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in the month of June of the same 8th indiction, on the 3rd day, that he would live and reign. Relying on these, he contrived for a revolt to occur in the Cappadocias against Aetius, which he was not deemed worthy to hear of while alive; for two days after he died, the news about this arrived; and the rebels, having been arrested, were subjected to exiles and punishments. 4. 10. 5. 17. In this year, on the 25th of the month of December, in the 9th indiction, Charles, the king of the Franks, was crowned by Pope Leo; and having wished to draw up his fleet against Sicily, he changed his mind, wishing rather to be joined to Irene, sending ambassadors for this purpose in the following year, the 10th indiction. And in the month of March of the 9th indiction, the pious Irene remitted the city taxes for the Byzantines, and she lightened the so-called customs duties of Abydos and Hieron, being greatly thanked for these along with many other benefactions. 5. 17. 2. 18. In this year Aetius the patrician, having been rid of Stauracius and being without care, hastened to transfer the power to his own brother, whom he also appointed sole general over both Thrace and Macedonia, while he himself held the themes across the water, the Anatolics and the Opsikion. Being, therefore, full of pride, he disparaged the ruling officials and considered them as nothing; and they, being greatly grieved at him, plotted a revolt against the empress and put it into effect. And the apocrisiarii sent from Charles and from Pope Leo arrived to the most pious Irene, asking that she be joined to Charles in marriage, and unite the East and the West. And she would have consented, had not this oft-mentioned Aetius prevented it, exercising power at court and usurping the rule for his own brother. 476 Emperor of the Romans, Nicephorus, for 9 years. 1. 18. 7. 19. In this year, on the 31st of the month of October, in the 11th indiction, at the fourth hour of the night, as the second day was dawning, Nicephorus, patrician and general logothete, usurped the throne from the most pious Irene, with God indeed permitting it by his ineffable judgments on account of the multitude of our sins, while Nicetas, patrician and domestic of the schools, and Sisinnius, patrician and his brother, the perjurious and treacherous Triphyllii, collaborated with him. With them also were Leo the patrician, the Sarantapechos, and Gregory the patrician, son of Mousoulakios, and Theoctistus, patrician and quaestor, and Peter the patrician, having deceived also some of the commanders of the people of the tagmata. And having seized the so-called Chalke Gate and having suddenly and falsely deceived the guards, they persuaded them that they had been sent by her to proclaim this same Nicephorus emperor because the patrician Aetius was forcing her to proclaim his own brother Leo emperor. And they, believing such a great lie, joined in proclaiming the tyrant emperor. Thus, then, the same patricians, having come to the great palace, entered into it, and from there, sending out certain obscure men and slaves throughout the whole city, they made the proclamation before midnight and placed guards around the palace of Eleutherios, in which she happened to be. And at dawn, having summoned her, they shut her up in the great palace; and thus they proceeded to the great church, in order to crown the sinner. And the entire populace of the city gathered, and all were displeased at what was being done, cursing the one crowning and the one being crowned and those rejoicing with them. And those who lived in piety and reason marveled at the divine judgment, how He permitted one who had struggled like a martyr for the right faith to be cast out by a swineherd, with her most loyal men siding with him on account of avarice,477 I mean Leo, the eunuch patrician and sakellarios from Sinope, and the God-hated Triphyllii, and the above-mentioned patricians, who had been greatly enriched by her with very many gifts, and often dining with her and persuading her with flatteries accompanied by dreadful oaths of all things in the world

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Ἰούνιον μῆνα τῆς αὐτῆς ηʹ ἰνδικτιῶνος ἡμέρᾳ γʹ, ὅτι ζήσεται καὶ βασιλεύσει. οἷς καὶ ἐπερειδόμενος στάσιν ἐν ταῖς Καππαδοκίαις συνεσκεύασε κατὰ Ἀετίου γενέσθαι, ἣν οὐκ ἠξιώθη ζῶν ἀκοῦσαι· μετὰ γὰρ δύο ἡμέρας τοῦ θανεῖν αὐτὸν ἡ περὶ τούτου κατέλαβε φάσις· καὶ οἱ στασιασταὶ συλληφθέντες ἐξορίαις καὶ τιμωρίαις ὑπεβλήθησαν. δʹ. ιʹ. εʹ. ιζʹ. Τούτῳ τῷ ἔτει, μηνὶ ∆εκεμβρίῳ κεʹ, ἰνδικτιῶνος θʹ, Κάρουλος, ὁ τῶν Φράγγων ῥήξ, ἐστέφθη ὑπὸ Λέοντος τοῦ πάπα· καὶ βουληθεὶς κατὰ Σικελίας στόλῳ παρατάξασθαι μετεμελήθη, ζευχθῆναι μᾶλλον Εἰρήνῃ βουληθείς, πρέσβεις εἰς τοῦτο πέμψας τῷ ἐπιόντι χρόνῳ, ἰνδικτιῶνος ιʹ. τῷ δὲ Μαρτίῳ μηνὶ τῆς θʹ ἰνδικτιῶνος Εἰρήνη ἡ εὐσεβὴς Βυζαντίοις τοὺς πολιτικοὺς ἐχαρίσατο φόρους, τῆς τε Ἀβύδου καὶ τοῦ Ἱεροῦ τὰ λεγόμενα κωμέρκια ἐκούφισεν, μεγάλως ἐπὶ τούτοις σὺν ἄλλοις πολλοῖς εὐχαριστηθεῖσα εὐεργετήμασιν. εʹ. ιζʹ. ʹ. ιηʹ. Τούτῳ τῷ ἔτει Ἀέτιος ὁ πατρίκιος ἀπαλλαγεὶς Σταυρακίου καὶ ἀπομεριμνήσας τὸ κράτος εἰς τὸν ἴδιον ἀδελφὸν μετενέγκαι ἔσπευδεν, ὃν καὶ προεβάλετο μονοστράτηγον εἴς τε τὴν Θρᾴκην καὶ Μακεδονίαν, αὐτὸς τὰ περατικὰ θέματα κατέχων, ἀνατολικοὺς καὶ τὸ Ὀψίκιν. ἐπάρσεως οὖν μεστὸς ὑπάρχων, τοὺς ἐν τέλει ἄρχοντας κατευτελίζων ἀντ' οὐδενὸς ἐλογίζετο· οἳ καὶ λυπηθέντες κατ' αὐτοῦ σφόδρα, στάσιν κατὰ τῆς βασιλίσσης μελετήσαντες εἰς ἔργον ἐξήνεγκαν. ἔφθασαν δὲ καὶ οἱ ἀποσταλέντες παρὰ Καρούλου ἀποκρισιάριοι καὶ τοῦ πάπα Λέοντος πρὸς τὴν εὐσεβεστάτην Εἰρήνην, αἰτούμενοι ζευχθῆναι αὐτὴν τῷ Καρούλῳ πρὸς γάμον, καὶ ἑνῶσαι τὰ ἑῷα καὶ τὰ ἑσπέρια. ἥτις ὑπήκουσεν ἄν, εἰ μὴ Ἀέτιος οὗτος ὁ πολλάκις ῥηθεὶς ἐκώλυσεν, παραδυναστεύων καὶ τὸ κράτος εἰς τὸν ἴδιον ἀδελφὸν σφετεριζόμενος. 476 Ῥωμαίων βασιλεὺς Νικηφόρος ἔτη θʹ. αʹ. ιηʹ. ζʹ. ιθʹ. Τούτῳ τῷ ἔτει, μηνὶ Ὀκτωβρίῳ λαʹ, ἰνδικτιῶνος ιαʹ, ὥρᾳ νυκτερινῇ δʹ, ἐπιφωσκούσης ἡμέρας βʹ, Νικηφόρος πατρίκιος καὶ γενικὸς λογοθέτης ἐτυράννησε κατὰ τῆς εὐσεβεστάτης Εἰρήνης, θεοῦ μὲν συγχωρήσαντος ἀφάτοις κρίμασι διὰ πλῆθος ἁμαρτιῶν ἡμῶν, συνεργούντων δὲ αὐτῷ Νικήτα, πατρικίου καὶ δομεστίκου τῶν σχολῶν, καὶ Σισιννίου, πατρικίου καὶ ἀδελφοῦ αὐτοῦ, τῶν ἐπιόρκων καὶ δολερῶν Τριφυλλίων. συνῆσαν δὲ αὐτοῖς καὶ Λέων πατρίκιος ὁ Σεραντάπηχος καὶ Γρηγόριος πατρίκιος ὁ τοῦ Μουσουλακίου καὶ Θεόκτιστος πατρίκιος καὶ κυαίστωρ, καὶ Πέτρος πατρίκιος, ἀπατήσαντες καί τινας τῶν ἀρχόντων τοῦ λαοῦ τῶν ταγμάτων. καταλαβόντες δὲ τὴν λεγομένην Χαλκῆν πύλην καὶ τοὺς φύλακας ἀθρόως ψευδῶς ἀπατήσαντες ἔπεισαν αὐτούς, ὅτι παρ' αὐτῆς ἀπεστάλησαν ἀναγορεῦσαι βασιλέα τὸν αὐτὸν Νικηφόρον διὰ τὸ τὸν πατρίκιον Ἀέτιον βιάζεσθαι αὐτὴν τὸν ἑαυτοῦ ἀδελφὸν Λέοντα ἀναγορεῦσαι βασιλέα. οἱ δὲ πιστεύσαντες τῷ τηλικούτῳ ψεύδει συνανηγόρευσαν βασιλέα τὸν τύραννον. οὕτως οὖν ἐπὶ τὸ μέγα παλάτιον ἐλθόντες οἱ αὐτοὶ πατρίκιοι εἰσῆλθον ἐν αὐτῷ, κἀκεῖθεν ἀποστείλαντες καθ' ὅλην τὴν πόλιν ἀσήμους τινὰς καὶ δούλους τὴν ἀναγόρευσιν ἐποιήσαντο πρὸ τοῦ μεσονυκτίου καὶ φύλακας περιέστησαν τῷ παλατίῳ τῶν Ἐλευθερίου, ἐν ᾧ συνέβη αὐτὴν εἶναι. ὄρθρου δὲ μεταστειλάμενοι αὐτὴν κατέκλεισαν ἐν τῷ μεγάλῳ παλατίῳ· καὶ οὕτω προῆλθον ἐν τῇ μεγάλῃ ἐκκλησίᾳ, ἐπὶ τὸ στέψαι τὸν ἀλιτήριον. συνῆλθε δὲ ἅπαν τὸ πλῆθος τῆς πόλεως, καὶ πάντες ἐπὶ τοῖς πραττομένοις ἐδυσχέραινον ἐπαρώμενοι τὸν στέφοντα καὶ τὸν στεφόμενον καὶ τοὺς τούτοις συγχαίροντας. καὶ οἱ μὲν εὐλαβείᾳ καὶ λόγῳ συζῶντες τὴν θείαν κρίσιν ἐθαύμαζον, ὅπως συνεχώρησεν ὑπὲρ τῆς ὀρθῆς πίστεως μαρτυρικῶς ἀθλήσασαν ὑπὸ συβώτου ἐκβληθῆναι τῶν εὐνουστάτων αὐτῆς προσθεμένων αὐτῷ διὰ φιλαργυ477 ρίαν, Λέοντος, φημί, εὐνούχου πατρικίου καὶ σακελλαρίου τοῦ Σινωπέως, καὶ τῶν θεοστυγῶν Τριφυλλίων, καὶ τῶν ἀνωτέρω εἰρημένων πατρικίων, οἵ τινες δωρεαῖς πλείσταις ὑπ' αὐτῆς κατεπλουτίσθησαν, καὶ πολλάκις συνεσθίοντες αὐτῇ καὶ κολακείαις μεθ' ὅρκων πείθοντες φρικτῶν πάντων τῶν ἐν κόσμῳ πραγμάτων