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in the Magnaura and established an unjust 479 tribunal. The tyrant's purpose was not to render justice to the poor, as events showed, but through this to disgrace and take captive all those in power, and to transfer everything to himself; which he also did. But seeing that everyone was distressed on account of him, and fearing that, remembering the benefactions of the pious Irene, they might invite her back to rule, in the month of November, with a most severe winter setting in, the heartless man did not pity her, but exiled her to the island of Lesbos, ordering her to be guarded securely, and not to be seen by anyone at all. On the 30th of the month of April Niketas Triphyllios died, killed, as they say, by Nikephoros with poison. And on the 4th of the month of May, the 5th day of the week, Nikephoros went out towards Chalcedon to a suburb, and mounting a very tame and gentle horse, by divine providence, it threw him and shattered his right foot. On the 19th of the month of July, the 4th day of the week, at the 1st hour, Bardanes, the patrikios and strategos of the Anatolics, surnamed Tourkos, was proclaimed emperor by the Asiatic themes; who, though he tried much to refuse, was not strong enough to escape them. And having come down as far as Chrysopolis and having patrolled for 8 days and not being received by the city, he returned as far as Malagina. But fearing God and considering that a slaughter of Christians might occur because of him, having sent to Nikephoros and received a written promise in his own hand, which Tarasios, the most holy patriarch, and all the patrikioi also countersigned, that he and all those with him would be kept unharmed and unpunished, on the 8th of the month of September at the midnight hour, having secretly escaped, he went down to Kios in Bithynia to the monastery of Herakleios, and finding the emperor's chelandion that had been sent for this purpose, he was tonsured and put on the monastic habit, and entering it he departed to the island called Prote, where he had built a monastery, thinking that the treacherous Nikephoros would respect the solemn promise he had given him, and would not harm him in any way. But he first stripped him of his 480 substance, and seizing the opportunity, he took captive all the rulers and landowners of the themes, and some also from the queen of cities, and left the entire army without provisions. And what account will be able to relate worthily the deeds done by him in those days by God's permission on account of our sins? On the 9th of the month of August of the 11th indiction the empress Irene died in exile on the island of Lesbos, and her body was transferred to the island of Prinkipo, in the monastery which she herself had built. 2. 19. 8. 20. In this year, in the month of December, of the 12th indiction, Nikephoros crowned his son Staurakios through Tarasios, the most holy patriarch, on the ambo of the great church as emperor, he being in every way unsuited in appearance, strength, and judgment for such a dignity. But Nikephoros, who never in any matter kept his word, having sent some Lycaonians, or wolf-men, of like mind and sentiment, to Prote, ordered them to land on the island by night and to blind the aforementioned Bardanes, as if, forsooth, he were ignorant of it, and after the deed to take refuge in the church. And when this had happened, both the patriarch and the senate were terribly pained, and all who feared God. But the most lawless emperor Nikephoros, pretending to take revenge, sought, to all appearances, to destroy with oaths the powerful Lycaonians, he who always did everything for show, and nothing according to God. For he had, along with his other lawless acts, also this outstanding peculiarity of character, by which even before his reign he deceived many. however, he was most ridiculous to those who knew his practice precisely, so that even he, whose most foul face was always darkened with great shamelessness, then became unable to go out in public on account of

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Μαγναύρᾳ καὶ ἄδικον 479 συνεστήσατο δικαστήριον. σκοπὸς δὲ τῷ τυράννῳ οὐ τοῖς πτωχοῖς τὰ δίκαια ἀποδιδόναι, ὡς ἔδειξε τὰ πράγματα, ἀλλὰ διὰ τούτου πάντας τοὺς ἐν τέλει ἀτιμάσαι τε καὶ αἰχμαλωτίσαι, καὶ εἰς ἑαυτὸν τὰ πάντα μετενεγκεῖν· ὃ καὶ πεποίηκεν. ἰδὼν δὲ πάντας λυπουμένους κατ' αὐτοῦ, καὶ δεδιώς, μήπως μεμνημένοι τὰς τῆς εὐσεβοῦς Εἰρήνης εὐεργεσίας προσκαλέσωνται πάλιν τοῦ κρατῆσαι αὐτήν, τῷ Νοεμβρίῳ μηνί, χειμῶνος ἐπικειμένου βαρυτάτου, οὐκ ᾤκτειρεν αὐτὴν ὁ ἄσπλαγχνος, ἀλλ' ἐξώρισεν αὐτὴν ἐν Λέσβῳ τῇ νήσῳ ἀσφαλῶς φρουρεῖσθαι αὐτὴν προστάξας, καὶ παρά τινος μὴ ὁρᾶσθαι τὸ σύνολον. τῇ δὲ λʹ τοῦ Ἀπριλλίου μηνὸς ἐτελεύτησε Νικήτας ὁ Τριφύλλιος, ὥς φασιν, ὑπὸ Νικηφόρου φαρμάκῳ ἀναιρεθείς. καὶ τῇ δʹ τοῦ Μαΐου μηνός, ἡμέρᾳ εʹ, ἐξῆλθε Νικηφόρος κατὰ τὴν Χαλκηδόνα ἐν προαστείῳ, καὶ ἐπιβὰς ἵππῳ πάνυ ἡμερωτάτῳ καὶ πράῳ ἐκ θείας προνοίας τοῦτον καταβαλὼν τὸν δεξιὸν πόδα αὐτοῦ συνέτριψεν. τῇ δὲ ιθʹ τοῦ Ἰουλίου μηνός, ἡμέρᾳ δʹ, ὥρᾳ αʹ, Βαρδάνης, ὁ πατρίκιος καὶ στρατηγὸς τῶν ἀνατολικῶν, ὁ ἐπίκλην Τοῦρκος, ἀνηγορεύθη εἰς βασιλέα ὑπὸ τῶν περατικῶν θεμάτων· ὅστις πολλὰ παραιτησάμενος διαδρᾶσαι αὐτοὺς οὐκ ἴσχυσεν. καὶ κατελθὼν ἕως Χρυσοπόλεως καὶ περιπολεύσας ἡμέρας ηʹ καὶ μὴ δεχθεὶς ὑπὸ τῆς πόλεως ὑπέστρεψεν ἕως τῶν Μαλαγίνων. φοβηθεὶς δὲ τὸν θεὸν καὶ λογισάμενος, μήποτε δι' αὐτὸν σφαγὴ γένηται Χριστιανῶν, ἀποστείλας πρὸς Νικηφόρον καὶ λαβὼν λόγον ἐνυπόγραφον ἐξ ἰδιοχείρου αὐτοῦ, ἐν ᾧ καὶ Ταράσιος, ὁ ἁγιώτατος πατριάρχης, καὶ πάντες οἱ πατρίκιοι καθυπέγραψαν, ὥστε ἀβλαβῆ αὐτὸν διατηρηθῆναι καὶ ἀζήμιον καὶ πάντας τοὺς σὺν αὐτῷ, τῇ ηʹ τοῦ Σεπτεμβρίου μηνὸς ὥρᾳ μεσονυκτίου λάθρα διαδρὰς κατῆλθεν ἐν τῇ Κίῳ τῆς Βιθυνίας εἰς τὴν μονὴν τοῦ Ἡρακλείου, καὶ εὑρὼν τὸ ἀπολυθὲν χελάνδιον τοῦ βασιλέως ἐπὶ τούτῳ ἀπεκάρθη καὶ ἐνεδύσατο στολὴν μοναδικήν, καὶ εἰσελθὼν ἐν αὐτῷ ἀπῆλθεν ἐν τῇ νήσῳ τῇ λεγομένῃ Πρώτῃ, ἐν ᾗ οἰκοδομήσας ἦν μοναστήριον, οἰόμενος ὅτι αἰδεσθήσεται τὸν φοβερὸν λόγον, ὃν ἔδωκεν αὐτῷ ὁ παραλογιστὴς Νικηφόρος, καὶ οὐ μὴ βλάψει αὐτὸν ἐν οὐδενί. ὁ δὲ πρῶτον μὲν γυμνοῖ αὐτὸν τῆς 480 ὑποστάσεως αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἀφορμῆς δραξάμενος πάντας τῶν θεμάτων τοὺς ἄρχοντας καὶ κτήτορας, τινὰς δὲ καὶ ἐκ τῆς βασιλίδος πόλεως, ᾐχμαλώτευσεν, τὸν δὲ στρατὸν ἅπαντα ἀρόγευτον εἴασεν. καὶ τίς λόγος δυνήσεται πρὸς ἀξίαν διηγήσασθαι τὰ ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις ἐκείναις πραχθέντα ὑπ' αὐτοῦ ἔργα κατὰ θεοῦ παραχώρησιν διὰ τὰς ἁμαρτίας ἡμῶν; τῇ δὲ θʹ τοῦ Αὐγούστου μηνὸς τῆς ιαʹ ἰνδικτιῶνος ἐτελεύτησεν ἡ βασίλισσα Εἰρήνη ἐν τῇ ἐξορίᾳ τῆς Λέσβου νήσου, καὶ μετηνέχθη τὸ σῶμα αὐτῆς ἐν τῇ νήσῳ τῆς Πριγκίπου, ἐν τῇ μονῇ, ἣν αὐτὴν ᾠκοδόμησεν. βʹ. ιθʹ. ηʹ. κʹ. Τούτῳ τῷ ἔτει, μηνὶ ∆εκεμβρίῳ, ἰνδικτιῶνος ιβʹ, ἔστεψε Νικηφόρος τὸν υἱὸν αὐτοῦ Σταυράκιον διὰ Ταρασίου, τοῦ ἁγιωτάτου πατριάρχου, ἐν τῷ ἄμβωνι τῆς μεγάλης ἐκκλησίας εἰς βασιλέα, ἀποίητον ὄντα κατὰ πάντα τῇ τε ἰδέᾳ καὶ ῥώμῃ καὶ γνώμῃ πρὸς τὴν τοιαύτην ἀξίαν. ὁ δὲ μηδέποτε ἐν μηδενὶ φυλάξας ἀλήθειαν Νικηφόρος Λυκάονάς τινας, ἢ λυκανθρώπους, ὁμογνώμονας καὶ ὁμόφρονας ἀποστείλας εἰς τὴν Πρώτην ἐκέλευσε νυκτὸς ἐπιβῆναι τῇ νήσῳ καὶ τὸν προρρηθέντα ἐκτυφλῶσαι Βαρδάνιον, ὡς δῆθεν ἀγνοοῦντος αὐτοῦ, καὶ μετὰ τὸ δρᾶμα προσφυγεῖν τῇ ἐκκλησίᾳ. τούτου δὲ γεγονότος ὅ τε πατριάρχης καὶ ἡ σύγκλητος δεινῶς ἤλγησαν καὶ πάντες οἱ φοβούμενοι τὸν θεόν. ὁ δὲ παρανομώτατος βασιλεὺς Νικηφόρος ὅρκοις τοὺς ἐν τέλει Λυκάονας, τὸ δοκεῖν, ἐπεζήτει ἀνελεῖν, ἀμύνασθαι σχηματιζόμενος, ὁ πάντα κατ' ἐπίδειξιν ἀεί, καὶ μηδὲν κατὰ θεὸν πράττων. ἦν γὰρ αὐτῷ μετὰ τῶν λοιπῶν παρανομιῶν καὶ τὸ τοιοῦτον τῆς γνώμης ἐξαίρετον ἰδίωμα, δι' οὗ καὶ πρὸ τῆς βασιλείας πολλοὺς ἠπάτησεν. πλὴν γελοιότατος ἦν τοῖς εἰδόσιν ἀκριβῶς τὸ ἐπιτήδευμα, ὥστε κἀκεῖνον ἀναιδείᾳ πολλῇ ζεζοφωμένον τὸ μιαρώτατον αὐτοῦ πρόσωπον ἀεί, τότε ἀπρόϊτον γενέσθαι ἐπὶ