260

to support the horsemen crossing over it, nor did it provide a passage for the usual skiffs to the ford. But it seemed too solid for the one, and too weak to support the horses. Therefore, it also presented a great difficulty for the crossing. The emperor, therefore, was encamped there for twelve days, waiting if in some way it might be possible to cross the Hebrus. But during these days, six hundred soldiers arriving from Byzantium at Adrianople prevented the attempt. But in Pamphylia, since the Pinkernes was not present, having the army which they feared would revolt, after first corrupting some of the guards with money and persuading them to secretly empty the vessels in which water and wine and any other liquid for drinking was kept for them, for it was not possible to draw from a spring, when they learned the plot had been accomplished, the whole city jointly took up war against the guards in the acropolis. And having besieged them during these days, they subdued them, as they were especially oppressed by thirst. And having bound their leaders, who were three, and the garrison, they sent them to the empress. And those in Byzantium, having dishonored them and displayed every kind of mockery, held them in prison. Likewise, they also showed great ingratitude towards the emperor Kantakouzenos, sparing no insult. 2.189 And they proceeded to such a degree of absurdity that whenever the young emperor John went forth from the palace for the sake of relaxation—for indeed nothing of public affairs was done by him on account of his very tender age; for he was nine years old when his father died—some men, sent forth by those holding power, would incite the people, both men and women, so that as he passed by they would pour forth many and most unseemly insults against the emperor Kantakouzenos. And they would offer this as some pleasing gift to the young emperor. But the purpose of their insults was no less to cast the people into greater fear, that if the emperor should prevail he would take bitter revenge on account of the insults; which also turned out according to their plan. For all the people, the more they raged, the more they feared. From this, they were both irreconcilable towards him and raged the more because of the evil expectation of retribution. And otherwise, so that they might also create a suspicion among all that, if he had not been ruined and completely weakened, they would not be showing such contempt. Therefore, no less on account of such things was the practice of insulting cultivated by them; but especially so that he, on hearing of it, might reject peace, believing that such things were done with the approval of the empress. For nothing seemed to them so dreadful among the things related to the war as the danger which peace was thought to bring. Therefore, they also devised and contrived everything so that it might not happen. 2.190 In the presence of the empress, however, they did not insult so indecently, for she was moved with anger against those who behaved so wantonly, but they only prayed for the most terrible things and condemned his great awkwardness and wickedness of character, because having enjoyed so many things from the emperor and having been so loved, he was seen as diametrically ungrateful and evil towards his children. They, therefore, were thus licentious with their tongues; and the patriarch, caring little or nothing for the ecclesiastical canons, subjected to excommunication both the emperor himself, who had furnished no pretext for the war, but had also often pleaded many times to be reconciled, as one who had appeared wicked towards the empress, and anyone who was with him; but the emperor Kantakouzenos not only appeared to be doing the very opposite himself, but also persuading those with him. For not only did he speak of the empress, whenever he had to mention her, with all good wishes, but he also addressed the others by their dignities rather than their names, those however which had been bestowed on each by the emperor Andronikos, since he disliked most of the later ones, as having been created unjustly. And when one of those with him shamefully insulted the parakoimomenos and some other of those in Byzantium in his presence, he ordered him to be flogged, saying that such things were fitting for prostituted women

260

στέγειν τοὺς ἱππέας ἐπ' αὐτὸν περαιουμένους, οὔτε τοῖς συνήθεσιν ἀκατίοις πρὸς τὸν πόρον δίοδον παρεῖχεν. ἀλλὰ τοῦ μὲν στεῤῥότερος ἐφαίνετο, τοῦ στέγειν δὲ τοὺς ἵππους ἀδρανέστερος. διὸ καὶ ἀπορίαν πολλὴν παρεῖχε πρὸς τὸν πόρον. δυοκαίδεκα μὲν οὖν ἐστρατοπεδεύετο ἐκεῖ ὁ βασιλεὺς ἡμέρας, περιμένων εἰ τρόπῳ δή τινι ἐγγένοιτο τὸν Ἕβρον διαβῆναι. ἐν ταύταις δὲ ἐκ Βυζαντίου τῇ Ἀδριανοῦ ἐπιγενόμενοι στρατιῶται ἑξακόσιοι τὴν ἐπιχείρησιν ἀφείλοντο. ἐν Παμφίλῳ δὲ ἐπεὶ ὁ Πιγκέρνης οὐ παρῆν, ἔχων τὴν στρατιὰν, ἣν ἐκεῖνοι ἐδεδοίκεσαν νεωτερίζειν, πρότερον τῶν φρουρῶν τινας χρήμασι διαφθείραντες καὶ πείσαντες τὰ ἀγγεῖα λάθρα ἐκκενοῦν, ἐν οἷς ὕδωρ αὐτοῖς καὶ οἶνος καὶ εἴ τι ἕτερον ὑγρὸν πρὸς πόσιν ἐφυλάττετο, οὐ γὰρ ἐκ πηγῆς ἀρύεσθαι ἐνῆν, ὡς ἐπύθοντο ἠνυσμένην τὴν ἐπιβουλὴν, πόλεμον πρὸς τοὺς ἐν ἀκροπόλει φρουροὺς κοινῇ πᾶσα ἡ πόλις ἀναιροῦνται. καὶ ἐκπολιορκήσαντες ἐν ταύταις ταῖς ἡμέραις, παρεστήσαντο μάλιστα δίψῃ πιεσθέντας. δήσαντες δὲ τούς τε ἡγουμένους αὐτῶν, οἳ ἦσαν τρεῖς, καὶ τὴν φρουρὰν, ἔπεμψαν εἰς βασιλίδα. οὓς καὶ ἀτιμάσαντες οἱ ἐν Βυζαντίῳ καὶ πᾶν εἶδος ἐπιδειξάμενοι ἐρεσχελίας, εἶχον ἐν δεσμωτηρίῳ. ὁμοίως δὲ καὶ πρὸς βασιλέα τὸν Καντακουζηνὸν πολλὴν ἐνεδείκνυντο ἀγνωμοσύνην, οὐδεμιᾶς ὕβρεως φειδόμενοι. εἰς 2.189 τοσοῦτον δὲ προῆλθον ἀτοπίας, ὥστε εἴ ποτε καὶ βασιλεὺς ὁ νέος Ἰωάννης προΐοι τῶν βασιλείων ῥᾳστώνης εἵνεκα, οὐ γὰρ δὴ αὐτῷ τι τῶν κοινῶν ἐπράττετο διὰ τὸ τῆς ἡλικίας πάνυ ἀτελές· ἐννέα γὰρ ἦν ἔτη γεγονὼς τελευτῶντος τοῦ πατρὸς, ὑπὸ τῶν τὰ πράγματα ἐχόντων προπεμπόμενοί τινες, τὸν δῆμον διηρέθιζον, καὶ ἄνδρας καὶ γυναῖκας, ὥστε διιόντος πολλὰς Καντακουζηνοῦ τοῦ βασιλέως καταχέειν λοιδορίας καὶ ὡς μάλιστα ἀσέμνους. καὶ τοῦτο ἦσαν ὥς τι δῶρον τῶν ἡδέων προσάγοντες τῷ νέῳ βασιλεῖ. σκοπὸς δὲ ἦν αὐτοῖς τῶν ὕβρεων οὐδὲν μὲν ἧττον, ὥστε καὶ τὸν δῆμον εἰς πλείονα ἐμβάλλειν φόβον, ὡς εἰ περιγένοιτο ὁ βασιλεὺς πικρῶς ἀμυνούμενος διὰ τὰς ὕβρεις· ὃ καὶ κατὰ σκοπὸν ἐξέβαινεν αὐτοῖς. πάντες γὰρ οἱ δῆμοι ὅσῳ μᾶλλον ἐξεμαίνοντο, τοσοῦτον ἐδεδίεσαν. ἐκ τούτου δὲ ἀσύμβατοί τε ἦσαν πρὸς ἐκεῖνον καὶ μᾶλλον ἐξεμαίνοντο διὰ τὴν ἐκ τῆς ἀντιδόσεως πονηρὰν ἐλπίδα. ἄλλως θ' ὅπως καὶ πᾶσιν ὑπόνοιαν παρέχωσιν, ὡς, εἰ μὴ διέφθαρτο ἐκεῖνος καὶ ἐξησθένηκε παντάπασιν, οὐκ ἂν οὕτω κατεφρόνουν. οὐδὲν οὖν ἧττον καὶ διὰ τὰ τοιαῦτα τὸ ὑβρίζειν αὐτοῖς ἐπετηδεύετο· μάλιστα δὲ ἵν' ἐκεῖνος πυνθανόμενος, ἀπαγορεύῃ τὴν εἰρήνην, νομίζων κατὰ γνώμην τὰ τοιαῦτα πράττεσθαι τῇ βασιλίδι. οὐδὲν γὰρ αὐτοῖς οὕτω δεινὸν ἐφαίνετο τῶν πρὸς τὸν πόλεμον, ὅσον ἄγειν κίνδυνον ἡ εἰρήνη ἐνομίζετο. διὸ καὶ πάντα ἐπενόουν καὶ ἐμηχανῶντο, ὥστε μὴ γενέσθαι. 2.190 ἐπὶ τῆς βασιλίδος μέντοι οὐκ ἀσέμνως οὕτως ἐλοιδοροῦντο, ὀργῇ γὰρ πρὸς τοὺς οὕτως ἀσελγαίνοντας ἐφέρετο, ἀλλ' ἠρῶντο μόνον τὰ δεινότατα καὶ πολλὴν κατεψηφίζοντο σκαιότητα καὶ πονηρίαν τρόπων, ὅτι τοσούτων παρὰ βασιλέως ἀπολελαυκὼς καὶ οὕτω φιληθεὶς, ἀχάριστος ἐκ διαμέτρου καὶ κακὸς περὶ τοὺς ἐκείνου παῖδας ὦπται. ἐκεῖνοι μὲν οὖν οὕτως ἠκολάσταινον περὶ τὴν γλῶτταν· καὶ ὁ πατριάρχης ὀλίγα ἢ οὐδὲν φροντίζων τῶν ἐκκλησιαστικῶν θεσμῶν, αὐτόν τε βασιλέα, μηδεμίαν πρόφασιν πρὸς τὸν πόλεμον παρεσχημένον, ἀλλὰ καὶ πολλὰ πολλάκις δεηθέντα διαλύσασθαι, ἀφορισμῷ ὑπέβαλεν, ὡς κακὸν ὀφθέντα περὶ βασιλίδα, καὶ εἴ τις αὐτῷ συνείη· βασιλεὺς δὲ ὁ Καντακουζηνὸς οὐ μόνον αὐτὸς τἀναντιώτατα ἐφαίνετο ποιῶν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοὺς συνόντας ἀναπείθων. οὐ γὰρ μόνον βασιλίδα, εἴποτε ἔδει μνημονεύειν, διὰ πάσης εὐφημίας ἦγεν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους ἀπὸ τῶν ἀξιωμάτων μᾶλλον, ἢ τῶν ὀνομάτων προσηγόρευε, τῶν ἐξ Ἀνδρονίκου μέντοι τοῦ βασιλέως ἑκάστῳ δεδωρημένων, ἐπεὶ τῶν ὕστερον, ὡς παρὰ δίκην γεγενημένων, τὰ πολλὰ ἀπέστεργε. τῶν συνόντων δὲ ἐπ' αὐτοῦ τινος τὸν παρακοιμώμενον καὶ ἕτερόν τινα τῶν ἐν Βυζαντίῳ ὑβρίσαντος αἰσχρῶς, ἐκέλευσε τυπτηθῆναι, γυναιξὶ φάμενος πορνευομέναις προσήκειν τὰ