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war. But his mind was of all kinds and cunning, and escaped every hold. For his conversations were precise and he gave answers from every side that were inescapable. And being such and so great, he was conquerable only by the emperor, both by fortune and by words and by the other advantages from nature.
13.11.1 Therefore, the emperor, having reminded him of his former actions summarily and having presented them to him in a somewhat veiled manner, began another line of discourse. But he, with his own conscience accusing him, skillfully evaded the objections to his words, saying only this: "I have not come to be questioned about such things; for I myself would have had many things to say. But since God has driven me here, I entrust everything for the future to your power." And the emperor said to him: "The past must be let go for now, but you, if you wish to make a truce with us, first must become one of those under my power, then to declare this very thing to your nephew Tancred and to instruct him to hand over Antioch to those sent by me, according to the agreements made between us from the beginning, and then also for you to keep all the other things that were then agreed upon between us, both now and hereafter." 13.11.2 When the emperor had said these and many other things to him and heard him out, since he was that same Bohemond and had not changed, he said: "I am unable to make such a promise"; and because of certain other demands made by the emperor, he asked for his return to his own army according to the agreement made by the ambassadors. But the emperor said to him: "I have no one better than myself to see you safely through." And with that word, he openly ordered the leaders of the army to ready their horses in order to take the road leading to Dyrrhachium. Bohemond, hearing this, went out to go to the tent assigned to him, and sought to see my Caesar Nicephorus Bryennius, who was at that time honored with the rank of Panhypersebastos. And he went out and, employing every persuasion of speech, as one who was peerless in public speaking and debate, persuaded Bohemond to agree to most of the things said by the emperor. Therefore, taking him by the hand, he led him in to the emperor. And on the next day, under oath and of his own will, as it seemed good to him, he fulfilled the agreement. And the things agreed upon were as follows.
13.12.1 "The former agreement, which was made at that time with your God-crowned majesty, when with that numerous army of the Franks I came to the queen of cities, crossing from Europe to Asia for the liberation of Jerusalem, since it has been annulled by certain turns of events, let that one be set aside and have no force, being rendered invalid by the circumstance of events. And from that, your majesty should have no just claim against me nor thenceforth make claims about the things agreed upon and written down in it. For since I took up war against your God-appointed majesty and broke the agreements, the accusations of your majesty against me have been broken along with them. But now, coming as if in repentance, and like a fish that has been struck and brought to its senses, and having been made more sensible, so to speak, by your spear, and remembering the defeat of that time and the wars, I turn to this other agreement with your majesty, so as to become a liege man of your scepter, and, so that I might speak more clearly and more plainly, a servant and a subject, since you too have wished to draw me under your right hand and are willing to make me your liege man. 13.12.2 Therefore, from now on, according to this second agreement, I shall be,
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πόλεμον. Τὸ δὲ φρόνημα αὐτῷ παντοδαπὸν καὶ πανοῦργον καὶ πρὸς ἅπασαν λαβὴν διαδιδράσκον. Αἱ γὰρ ὁμιλίαι τούτῳ ἀκριβεῖς καὶ τὰς ἀποκρίσεις ἐδίδου παντα χόθεν ἀπεριδράκτους. Καὶ τοιοῦτος ὢν καὶ τοσοῦτος μόνῳ τῷ αὐτοκράτορι ἁλώσιμος ἦν καὶ τύχῃ καὶ λόγοις καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις τοῖς ἀπὸ τῆς φύσεως πλεονεκτήμασιν.
13.11.1 Ἀναμνήσας οὖν ὁ αὐτοκράτωρ αὐτὸν τῶν προτέρων ἐπιτροχάδην καὶ συνεσκιασμένως πως αὐτῷ παραστήσας ἑτέραν λόγου περίοδον ἐποιήσατο. Ὁ δέ, τὴν ἰδίαν συνείδη σιν ἔχων ἐλέγχουσαν, ἐπιτηδείως τὰς πρὸς τοὺς λόγους αὐτοῦ ἐξέφυγεν ἀνθυποφορὰς τοῦτο μόνον φάμενος ὡς· «Οὐχὶ περὶ τῶν τοιούτων ἀνακρίνεσθαι ἐλήλυθα· εἶχον γὰρ ἂν καὶ αὐτὸς πολλὰ λέγειν. Τοῦ Θεοῦ δὲ ἐνταυθοῖ με συνελάσαντος πάντα τοῦ λοιποῦ τῷ σῷ ἀνατίθημι κράτει». Ὁ δὲ βασιλεὺς πρὸς αὐτόν· «Τὰ μὲν παρεληλυθότα ἐατέον τὸ νῦν, σὺ δέ, εἰ βούλει σπείσασθαι μεθ' ἡμῶν, πρῶτον μὲν ἕνα τῶν ὑπὸ τὸ ἐμὸν κράτος χρὴ σὲ γενέσθαι, εἶτα δηλῶσαι περὶ αὐτοῦ τε τούτου τῷ σῷ ἀνεψιῷ Ταγγρὲ ἐπισκῆψαί τε αὐτῷ, τοῖς ἐξ ἐμοῦ ἀποσταλεῖσι παραδοῦναι τὴν Ἀντιόχειαν κατὰ τὰς γεγονυίας ἐξ ἀρχῆς συμφωνίας ἡμῶν, εἶτα καὶ τἆλλα πάντα ὅσα τότε συμπεφώνηται ἡμῖν τηρῆσαί σε νῦν τε καὶ μετέπειτα». 13.11.2 Ταῦτα τοῦ βασι λέως καὶ ἄλλα πλείω πρὸς αὐτὸν εἰπόντος τε καὶ ἀκούσαν τος, ἐπεὶ ὁ αὐτὸς ἐκεῖνος ἦν Βαϊμοῦντος καὶ οὐκ ἠλλοίωτο, ἔφη· «Ἀδυνάτως ἔχω τοιαύτην ὑπόσχεσιν ποιήσασθαι»· καὶ δι' ἄλλα τινὰ παρὰ τοῦ βασιλέως ἀπαιτούμενα ᾐτεῖτο τὴν πρὸς τὸ ἴδιον στράτευμα ἐπανάζευξιν κατὰ τὴν γενο μένην συμφωνίαν παρὰ τῶν πρέσβεων. Ὁ δὲ βασιλεύς φησι πρὸς αὐτὸν ὅτι· «Κρείττονα ἐμοῦ οὐκ ἔχω τὸν μετὰ ἀσφαλείας σε διασώσοντα». Καὶ ἅμα τῷ λόγῳ, τοῖς ἡγε μόσι παρρησίᾳ ἐπέταττε τοῦ στρατεύματος ἑτοιμάσαι τοὺς ἵππους αὐτῶν ἐφ' ᾧ τῆς πρὸς τὸ ∆υρράχιον φερούσης ἅψασθαι. Τοῦτο ὁ Βαϊμοῦντος ἀκούσας, ἐξελθὼν ἐπὶ τῷ πρὸς τὴν ἀποτεταγμένην αὐτῷ ἀπιέναι σκηνήν, τὸν ἐμὸν καίσαρα Νικηφόρον τὸν Βρυέννιον, τῷ τοῦ πανυπερσε βάστου τότε τετιμημένον ἀξιώματι, ἐζήτει θεάσασθαι. Ὁ δὲ ἐξελθὼν καὶ πᾶσαν πειθὼ λόγων κινήσας, ὁποῖος ἐκεῖνος ἐν δημηγορίαις καὶ διαλέξεσιν ἀπαράμιλλος, πείθει τὸν Βαϊ μοῦντον τοῖς πλείστοις συνθέσθαι τῶν παρὰ τοῦ βασιλέως ῥηθέντων. Κρατήσας οὖν αὐτὸν τῆς χειρὸς εἰσάγει πρὸς τὸν βασιλέα. Τῇ δὲ μετ' αὐτήν, ἐνωμότως καὶ μετὰ τῆς οἰκείας προαιρέσεως κατὰ τὸ δοκοῦν αὐτῷ, τὴν συμφωνίαν ἐπλήρωσεν. Εἶχε δὲ τὰ συμπεφωνημένα οὕτως.
13.12.1 «Ἡ μὲν προτέρα συμφωνία, ἥτις δὴ καὶ κατ' ἐκεῖνο καιροῦ γέγονε πρὸς τὸ θεοστεφὲς κράτος σου, ὁπόταν μετὰ τῆς πολυπληθοῦς ἐκείνης στρατιᾶς τῶν Φράγγων εἰς τὴν βασιλίδα πόλιν ἐπιδεδήμηκα, διαβαίνων ἀπὸ τῆς Εὐρώπης εἰς τὴν Ἀσίαν ἐπὶ τῇ τῶν Ἱεροσολύμων ἐλευθερίᾳ, ἐπειδὴ κατά τινας περιπετείας πραγμάτων ἠθέτηται, ἐκείνη μὲν σχολασάτω καὶ μὴ ἐχέτω τὸ ἐνεργὸν ὡς τὸ ἄκυρον ἀποφε ρομένη διὰ τὴν τῶν πραγμάτων περίστασιν. Καὶ ἐξ ἐκείνης οὐ χρὴ κατ' ἐμοῦ δίκαιόν τι ἔχειν τὴν βασιλείαν σου κἀν τεῦθεν ἰσχυρίζεσθαι περὶ τῶν ἐν ἐκείνῃ συμπεφωνημένων τε καὶ ἀναγεγραμμένων. Πόλεμον γὰρ ἀραμένου μου κατὰ τοῦ σοῦ θεοπροβλήτου κράτους καὶ παραλύσαντος τὰ συμ πεφωνημένα, συμπαραλέλυται τούτοις καὶ τὰ ἀπὸ τοῦ σοῦ κράτους κατ' ἐμοῦ αἰτιάματα. Νῦν δὲ αὖ ὥσπερ ἐκ μετα μελείας ἐρχόμενος καὶ ὥσπερ ἁλιεὺς πληγεὶς καὶ ἀπενεγκά μενος νοῦν καὶ μονονουχὶ τῷ δόρατι τῷ σῷ νουνεχέστερος γεγονὼς καὶ τῆς κατ' ἐκεῖνο καιροῦ ἥττης καὶ τῶν πολέμων ἀναμνησθεὶς εἰς ἑτέραν συμφωνίαν μετὰ τοῦ κράτους σου τρωπῶμαι ταυτηνί, ὥστε λίζιον γενέσθαι τοῦ σκήπτρου σου ἄνθρωπον καί, ἵνα σαφέστερον εἴποιμι καὶ φανερώτερον, οἰκέτην καὶ ὑποχείριον, ἐπειδὴ καὶ σὺ ὑπὸ τὴν σὴν δεξιὰν ἕλκειν ἐμὲ βεβούλησαι καὶ ἄνθρωπόν σου ἐθέλεις ποιήσα σθαι λίζιον. 13.12.2 Ἔσομαι τοίνυν ἀπὸ τοῦ νῦν κατὰ τὴν δευτέραν ταυτηνὶ συμφωνίαν,