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Staurakios. Stephen the domestikos opposed this, in the hope that Staurakios would live; but Theoktistos the magistros hurried to support Michael's claim to the throne. Staurakios, however, hemorrhaged immoderately through his urine and his thighs and legs became withered, arriving in Byzantium on a litter. Nikephoros the patriarch, who was strongly attached to him, advised him to propitiate God and to compensate those who had been wronged by his father; to whom he, the true heir of his father's disposition, said that he could not give back more than three talents. This was a small portion of the other's injustices. Yet he hesitated even about this, waiting to see if he would live. But having an implacable paternal disposition, he frequently hurled insults at Theoktistos the magistros and Stephen the domestikos and Michael the kouropalates, entirely shunning also Prokopia, his own sister, as one who had conspired against him through the suggestions of Theophano the Augusta. For the wretched woman, being childless, immediately hoped to seize the throne in imitation of the blessed Irene. But Staurakios, seeing that his condition was incurable, was eager to secure the throne for his wife, or else to stir up a democracy for the Christians on top of their previous evils. Alarmed at this, Nikephoros the patriarch and Theoktistos the magistros and Stephen the domestikos, out of great enmity, came to friendship with each other and with Michael the kouropalates towards the end of the month of September of the 5th indiction. On the evening of the 1st of the month of October, Staurakios, having summoned Stephen 493 the domestikos, asked how he might be able to bring Michael, his brother-in-law, from his house in order to blind him? And when he said that this was impossible at this hour on account of the force around him and the security of the location of his house, he begged that what had been said not be made known to anyone. But he, having persuaded him with plausible words to be unconcerned throughout the whole night, gathered the remaining troops of the tagmata in the covered Hippodrome with their own commanders in order to proclaim the same Michael as emperor. And when the whole senate came to the palace at dawn, they proclaimed him emperor, as will be related next. Nikephoros the patriarch demanded from Michael a written document in his own hand concerning the orthodox faith and that he keep his hands bloodless from Christians, and concerning priestly men or monks and the whole ecclesiastical list not being beaten by him.

Year of the world 6304. Year of the divine incarnation 804. Emperor of the Romans, Michael, 2 years. 1. Ruler of the Arabs, Muamed, 4 years. 4. Bishop of Rome, Leo, 10 years. 10. Bishop of Constantinople, Nikephoros, 9 years. 7. In this year, on the 2nd of the month of October, of the 5th indiction, on the 5th day, at the 1st hour, Michael the most pious kouropalates was proclaimed emperor of the Romans in the Hippodrome by the whole senate and the tagmata. But Staurakios, hearing of his proclamation, immediately cut off his hair and put on monastic garments through Symeon, a monk who was his relative, crying out many times for the patriarch, who, having come into the palace, along with the emperor Michael and his sister, urged Staurakios not to be grieved at what had happened; for it was not by conspiracy, but out of despair for his life. But he, raging with his father's wickedness, did not accept it, saying to him: "You will not find a better friend than him." At the 4th hour of the day Michael was crowned by Nikephoros the patriarch on the ambo of the great church, at which there was common rejoicing. And he made a gift to the patriarch of 50 pounds of gold and to the clergy 25. For being magnanimous and not avaricious, he consoled all those who had been wronged by the greed of Nikephoros, and with gifts he won over the senate and the armies. 494 On the 12th of the same month Prokopia was crowned Augusta in the triclinium of the Augusteum and with many gifts the

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Σταυράκιον. τούτῳ Στέφανος δομέστικος ἀντεῖπεν ἐλπίδι τῆς ζωῆς Σταυρακίου· Θεόκτιστος δὲ ὁ μάγιστρος συνέτρεχε περὶ τῆς βασιλείας Μιχαήλ. Σταυράκιος δὲ δι' οὔρων αἱμορραγήσας ἀμέτρως κατεξηράνθη μηροὺς καὶ σκέλη φορείῳ ἐλθὼν ἐν Βυζαντίῳ. τούτῳ Νικηφόρος ὁ πατριάρχης σφόδρα προσκείμενος συνεβούλευεν ἐξιλεώσασθαι τὸν θεὸν καὶ τοὺς πλεονεκτηθέντας ὑπὸ τοῦ πατρὸς αὐτοῦ παραμυθήσασθαι· πρὸς ὃν ὁ τῆς πατρικῆς γνώμης γνήσιος κληρονόμος ἔλεγε μὴ δύνασθαι πλείω τριῶν ταλάντων ἀποδοῦναι. ταῦτα δὲ ἦν μικρὸν μόριον τῶν ἐκείνου ἀδικιῶν. πλὴν καὶ περὶ ταῦτα ὤκνει ζῆσαι καραδοκῶν. ἄσπονδον δὲ ἔχων πατρικὴν γνώμην συχνότερον ἀτιμίαις ἔβαλλε Θεόκτιστον μάγιστρον καὶ Στέφανον δομέστικον καὶ Μιχαὴλ κουροπαλάτην, ἀποστρεφόμενος πάντη καὶ Προκοπίαν, τὴν ἰδίαν ἀδελφήν, ὡς ἐπιβουλεύσασαν αὐτῷ ταῖς Θεοφανοῦς τῆς αὐγούστης ὑποβολαῖς. αὐτίκα γὰρ ἡ τάλαινα κατὰ μίμησιν τῆς μακαρίας Εἰρήνης κρατήσειν ἤλπιζε τῆς βασιλείας ἄπαις οὖσα. ὁ δὲ Σταυράκιος ἀνιάτως ὁρῶν ἑαυτὸν διακείμενον τῇ γαμετῇ τὴν βασιλείαν ἐσπούδαζε περιποιήσασθαι, ἢ δημοκρατίαν ἐγεῖραι Χριστιανοῖς ἐπὶ τοῖς προλαβοῦσι κακοῖς. ἐφ' ᾧ πτοηθέντες Νικηφόρος ὁ πατριάρχης καὶ Θεόκτιστος μάγιστρος καὶ Στέφανος δομέστικος ἐκ πολλῆς ἔχθρας εἰς φιλίαν ἀλλήλοις καὶ Μιχαὴλ κουροπαλάτης ἦλθον κατὰ τὰ τέλη τοῦ Σεπτεμβρίου μηνὸς τῆς εʹ ἰνδικτιῶνος. τῇ δὲ ἑσπέρᾳ τῆς αʹ τοῦ Ὀκτωβρίου μηνὸς προσκαλεσάμενος Σταυράκιος Στέφανον 493 δομέστικον ἐπηρώτα, πῶς ἂν δυνηθείη ἀγαγεῖν Μιχαήλ, τὸν γαμβρὸν αὐτοῦ, ἐκ τοῦ οἴκου αὐτοῦ πρὸς τὸ ἐκτυφλῶσαι αὐτόν; τοῦ δὲ φήσαντος ἀδύνατον εἶναι τοῦτο ταύτῃ τῇ ὥρᾳ διὰ τὴν περὶ αὐτὸν δύναμιν καὶ τὸ τοῦ τόπου ἀσφαλὲς τῆς οἰκίας αὐτοῦ, παρεκάλει μὴ γνωσθῆναί τινι τὰ λεχθέντα. ὁ δὲ λόγοις πιθανοῖς πείσας αὐτὸν ἀμεριμνεῖν δι' ὅλης τῆς νυκτὸς τὰ περιλειφθέντα τῶν ταγμάτων στρατεύματα συνήγαγεν ἐν τῷ σκεπαστῷ ἱπποδρόμῳ μετὰ τῶν οἰκείων ἀρχόντων πρὸς τὸ ἀναγορεῦσαι τὸν αὐτὸν Μιχαὴλ εἰς βασιλέα. καὶ ἐλθούσης πάσης τῆς συγκλήτου τοῦ ὄρθρου ἐν τῷ παλατίῳ, τοῦτον ἀνηγόρευσαν βασιλέα, ὡς ἑξῆς δηλωθήσεται. Νικηφόρος δὲ ὁ πατριάρχης ἔγγραφον ἐξ ἰδιοχείρου παρὰ Μιχαὴλ ἠπαίτησε περὶ τῆς ὀρθῆς πίστεως καὶ τοῦ ἀναιμάτους φυλάξαι τὰς χεῖρας ἀπὸ Χριστιανῶν, καὶ περὶ ἱερατικῶν ἀνθρώπων ἢ μοναχῶν καὶ ὅλως τοῦ ἐκκλησιαστικοῦ καταλόγου τοῦ μὴ τύπτεσθαι παρ' αὐτοῦ.

Κόσμου ἔτη τδʹ. Τῆς θείας σαρκώσεως ἔτη ωδʹ. Ῥωμαίων βασιλεὺς Μιχαὴλ

ἔτη βʹ. αʹ. Ἀράβων ἀρχηγὸς Μουάμεδ ἔτη δʹ. δʹ. Ῥώμης ἐπίσκοπος Λέων ἔτη ιʹ. ιʹ. Κωνσταντ. ἐπίσκοπος Νικηφόρος ἔτη θʹ. ζʹ. Τούτῳ τῷ ἔτει μηνὶ Ὀκτωβρίῳ βʹ, ἰνδικτιῶνος εʹ, ἡμέρᾳ εʹ, ὥρᾳ αʹ, Μιχαὴλ ὁ εὐσεβέστατος κουροπαλάτης ἀνηγορεύθη βασιλεὺς Ῥωμαίων ἐν τῷ ἱπποδρόμῳ ὑπὸ πάσης τῆς συγκλήτου καὶ τῶν ταγμάτων. Σταυράκιος δὲ τὴν τούτου ἀναγόρευσιν ἀκούσας, αὐτίκα τὴν κόμην ἀποκειράμενος μοναχικὰ περιεβάλετο ἱμάτια διὰ Συμεὼν μοναχοῦ συγγενοῦς αὐτοῦ, πολλὰ τὸν πατριάρχην ἐπιβοώμενος, ὃς ἐλθὼν ἐν τῷ παλατίῳ πολλὰ Σταυράκιον σὺν τῷ βασιλεῖ Μιχαὴλ καὶ τῇ ἀδελφῇ παρεκάλουν μὴ λυπεῖσθαι ἐν τῷ γεγονότι· οὐ γὰρ κατ' ἐπιβουλήν, ἀλλὰ κατὰ ἀπόγνωσιν τῆς αὐτοῦ ζωῆς. ὁ δὲ τῇ πατρικῇ πονηρίᾳ λυττῶν οὐ προσήκατο εἰπὼν πρὸς αὐτόν· "φίλον αὐτοῦ κρείττονα οὐχ εὑρήσεις." ὥρᾳ δὲ δʹ τῆς ἡμέρας ἐστέφθη Μιχαὴλ ὑπὸ Νικηφόρου πατριάρχου ἐν τῷ ἄμβωνι τῆς μεγάλης ἐκκλησίας, ἐφ' ᾧ κοινὴ ἀγαλλίασις γέγονεν. καὶ ἐδωρήσατο τῷ πατριάρχῃ χρυσίου λίτρας νʹ καὶ τῷ κλήρῳ κεʹ. μεγαλόψυχος γὰρ καὶ ἀφιλάργυρος ὢν πάντας παρεμυθήσατο τοὺς ἐκ τῆς Νικηφόρου πλεονεξίας ἠδικημένους δωρεαῖς τε τὴν σύγκλητον καὶ τὰ στρατεύ494 ματα ἀνεκτήσατο. τῇ δὲ ιβʹ τοῦ αὐτοῦ μηνὸς ἐστέφθη Προκοπία αὐγούστα ἐν τῷ τρικλίνῳ τοῦ Αὐγουστέως καὶ πολλαῖς δωρεαῖς τὴν