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encountering it, they shirked the labors, but even when experiencing great misfortunes and losing generals and entire armies in the wars, they yielded nothing of their courage, nor of their spirit, but rather thought 2.245 it necessary to endure everything before enslaving themselves to the enemy. But you, I know not what has befallen you, or what fortunes you have experienced, being fearsome to the enemy and called by them an iron rod, have suddenly appeared cowardly and ignoble and servile instead of your former selves, and you willingly hand yourselves over to the enemy, who have expended no labor to subdue you. For we have neither been defeated by them in any battle, nor have our affairs come to such a state of hopelessness, that we are at a loss as to how we might be saved, unless we hand ourselves over to the enemy. But I, from the beginning and now no less, have so persuaded myself, that I would never abandon you, but either having subdued the enemy with you to share both the glory and the benefit from the victory, or to fall fighting, should it happen that we are defeated, as befits free and noble men. If, then, remembering your former glory you are willing to stand against the dangers, and not, terrified in the lot of slaves, to grant a bloodless victory to the enemy, you will be deliberating most excellently and in a manner befitting yourselves. But if indeed you are so overcome by sympathy for your kinsmen, that on their behalf you endure the most shameful and ignoble things, it is not necessary to be so uncertain and to suffer terribly while wavering, but, having openly arranged yourselves, to proceed to what you have chosen. For we neither dragged you unwillingly to serve us, nor now will we pre 2.246 vent you, if you do not willingly choose to stay with us, but even towards you when absent we will maintain the same and equal friendship. For I see that it is not through wickedness, but softened by the memory of your kinsmen, that you are compelled to do things you do not think are profitable.” When the emperor had said such things, they too, openly reproaching themselves for many things, for appearing, on account of sympathy for their kinsmen, cowardly and ignoble contrary to their worth, then also praying for his safety and begging him to delay no longer, but to take some thought for himself, wherever God might lead, they withdrew, addressing and kissing the emperor's foot. But he ordered those departing to no longer mingle with those remaining, so that there would not be disorder and confusion, with those remaining being unknown; but the contingent under him remained intact, for none of them had deserted, standing at a distance, those who would remain were to go towards it. And immediately some went toward the contingent; but the rest, each passing by and addressing the emperor, departed. And he, as if nothing unusual were happening, stood greeting in return those passing by, showing not even a trace of grief or agitation in his face. And not only those from Thessalonica and the Byzantines and others who were citizens of other cities departed, for whom their kinsmen were a plausible pretext, but also of those inhabiting Didymoteichon not only soldiers, but 2.247 also many of the nobles and those who seemed especially loyal to the emperor, with whom Apelmenes was also counted, having enjoyed much of the emperor's goodwill and from a small and common station having become most brilliant and distinguished. For the emperor, seeing him when he was still a youth, that he possessed a nature suited for fine things and that he was able, if he received training, to show himself most excellent in his pursuits, was ambitious to display him in every excellent form of education, and trained him especially in both letters and military affairs. And by providing the weight of his own influence, he made him not only wealthy, but also superior to the other household members. But he, in all other matters, showed himself most excellent and worthy of the emperor's ambition; but with a boastful spirit he thought he never enjoyed his due worth, but whatever he might obtain, he considered less than what was fitting; whence he also showed himself ungrateful towards his master who deemed him worthy of great things. And since also from

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συντυχόντος ἀπεδίδρασκον τοὺς πόνους, ἀλλὰ καὶ δυσπραγίαις χρώμενοι μεγάλαις καὶ στρατηγοὺς ἀποβάλλοντες καὶ στρατόπεδα ὁλόκληρα ἐν τοῖς πολέμοις, οὐδὲν ὑφίεσαν τῆς τόλμης, οὐδὲ τοῦ φρονήματος, ἀλλὰ πάντα μᾶλλον ᾤον 2.245 το δεῖν πρότερον ὑπομένειν ἢ δουλοῦν τοῖς πολεμίοις ἑαυτούς. ὑμεῖς δὲ οὐκ οἶδ' ὅ,τι παθόντες, ἢ τίσι χρησάμενοι ταῖς τύχαις, φοβεροὶ τοῖς πολεμίοις ὄντες καὶ ῥάβδος ὑπ' ἐκείνων κεκλημένοι σιδηρᾶ, δειλοὶ καὶ ἀγεννεῖς καὶ ἀνελεύθεροι ἀντὶ τῶν προτέρων ὤφθητε ἀθρόον, καὶ τοῖς πολεμίοις ἑκόντες ὄντες ἐγχειρίζετε σφᾶς αὐτοὺς, μηδένα πόνον περὶ τὸ χειρώσασθαι ὑμᾶς εἰσενεγκοῦσιν. οὔτε γὰρ ἐν μάχῃ ἡττήμεθα οὐδεμιᾷ αὐτῶν, οὔτ' εἰς τοσοῦτον ἡμῖν ἧκε τὰ πράγματα ἀνελπιστίας, ὥστε ἀπορεῖν ὅπῃ σωθησόμεθα, εἰ μὴ σφᾶς αὐτοὺς ἐγχειρίσομεν τοῖς πολεμίοις. ἐγὼ δὲ οὕτως ἐξαρχῆς καὶ νῦν οὐδὲν ἧττον πέπεικα ἐμαυτὸν, ὡς οὐδέποτε προησόμενος ὑμᾶς, ἀλλ' ἢ σὺν ὑμῖν παραστησάμενος τοὺς πολεμίους συμμερίσασθαι καὶ τὴν δόξαν καὶ τὴν ὠφέλειαν τὴν ἐκ τῆς νίκης, ἢ μαχόμενος πεσεῖσθαι, ἂν ἡττᾶσθαι συμβαίνῃ, ἐλευθέροις καὶ γενναίοις ἀνδράσι προσηκόντως. εἰ μὲν οὖν τὴν προτέραν εὔκλειαν ἐνθυμηθέντες ἀντιστῆναι ἐθελήσετε πρὸς τὰ δεινὰ, καὶ μὴ ἐν ἀνδραπόδων μοίρᾳ καταπλαγέντες τὴν νίκην παρέχειν ἀναιμωτὶ τοῖς πολεμίοις, ἄριστα βουλεύσεσθε καὶ προσήκοντα ὑμῖν αὐτοῖς. εἰ δ' ἄρα τοσοῦτον ἥττησθε πρὸς τῶν οἰκείων τὴν συμπάθειαν, ὥσθ' ὑπὲρ ἐκείνων καὶ τὰ αἰσχρότατα καὶ ἀγεννέστατα ὑφίστασθαι, οὐ δέον οὕτως ἀμφιβόλους φέρεσθαι καὶ δεινὰ πάσχειν κλονουμένους, ἀλλὰ συνταξαμένους φανερῶς, ἐφ' ἃ προείλεσθε χωρεῖν. οὔτε γὰρ ἄκοντας εἱλκύσαμεν ἡμῖν δουλεύειν, οὔτε νῦν κω 2.246 λύσομεν, εἰ μὴ ἑκόντες ὄντες αἱρεῖσθε τὴν μεθ' ἡμῶν διατριβὴν, ἀλλὰ καὶ πρὸς ἀπόντας τὴν ἴσην καὶ ὁμοίαν ὑμᾶς διατηρήσομεν φιλίαν. ὁρῶ γὰρ, ὡς οὐ διὰ κακίαν, ἀλλ' ὑπὸ τῆς τῶν οἰκείων μαλακισθέντες μνήμης, καὶ ἃ μὴ οἴεσθε λυσιτελεῖν, πράττειν ἀναγκάζεσθε.» τοιαῦτα εἰπόντος βασιλέως, καὶ αὐτοὶ πολλὰ ἑαυτοῖς καταμεμψάμενοι φανερῶς, ὡς διὰ τῶν οἰκείων τὴν συμπάθειαν δειλοῖς καὶ ἀγεννέσι παρ' ἀξίαν φαινομένοις, ἔπειτα καὶ σωτηρίαν ἐπευξάμενοι καὶ δεηθέντες μηκέτι μέλλειν, ἀλλὰ πρόνοιάν τινα ποιεῖσθαι ἑαυτοῦ, ὅποι ὁ θεὸς ἡγοῖτο, ἀνεχώρουν, προσαγορεύοντες καὶ ἀσπαζόμενοι τὸν βασιλέως πόδα. ἐκεῖνος δὲ μηκέτι ἀναμίγνυσθαι ἐκέλευε τοὺς ἀπιόντας τοῖς ὑπολειπομένοις, ἵνα μὴ ταραχὴ καὶ σύγχυσις ᾖ, ἀγνοουμένων τῶν μενόντων· ἀλλὰ τὸ ὑπ' αὐτὸν τάγμα ἀκέραιον διαμεῖναν, οὐδεὶς γὰρ αὐτῶν ἐλειποτάκτησεν, ἄπωθεν στὰν πρὸς ἐκεῖνο τοὺς μενοῦντας χωρεῖν. αὐτίκα τε οἱ μὲν ἐχώρουν πρὸς τὸ τάγμα· οἱ λοιποὶ δὲ παριόντες ἕκαστος καὶ προσαγορεύοντες βασιλέα, ἀπηλλάττοντο. ὁ δ' ὥσπερ οὐδενός τινος γινομένου καινοῦ, ἵστατο ἀντασπαζόμενος τοὺς παριόντας, οὐδὲ ἴχνος γοῦν τι λύπης ἢ ταραχῆς φαίνων ἐν τῷ προσώπῳ. ἀπέστησαν δὲ οὐχ οἱ ἐκ Θεσσαλονίκης μόνον καὶ Βυζάντιοι καὶ ἄλλοι ὅσοι πόλεων ἑτέρων ἦσαν πολῖται, οἷς πρόφασις εὐπρεπὴς οἱ οἰκεῖοι ἦσαν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν ∆ιδυμότειχον οἰκούντων οὐ στρατιῶται μόνον, ἀλλὰ 2.247 καὶ τῶν εὐγενῶν καὶ μάλιστα εὔνων δοκούντων βασιλεῖ πολλοὶ, οἷς καὶ Ἀπελμενὲ συνεξητάζετο πολλὰ τῆς βασιλέως εὐμενείας ἀπολελαυκὼς καὶ ἐκ μικροῦ καὶ τοῦ τυχόντος λαμπρὸς ἐς τὰ μάλιστα γεγενημένος καὶ περιφανής. ἔτι γὰρ μειράκιον ἐκεῖνον ὄντα ὁρῶν ὁ βασιλεὺς φύσεως πρὸς τὰ καλὰ ἐπιτηδείου τετυχηκότα καὶ δυνάμενον, εἰ ἄσκησιν προσλάβοι, ἄριστον παρέχειν πρὸς τὰ ἐπιτηδευόμενα ἑαυτὸν, ἐφιλονείκησε πρὸς πᾶσαν ἄριστον παιδείαν ἀποφαίνειν, καὶ πρός τε λόγους καὶ πρὸς τὰς στρατείας μάλιστα ἐξήσκησε. παρεχόμενος δὲ καὶ τὴν παρ' αὐτοῦ ῥοπὴν, οὐ πλούσιον μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν ἄλλων οἰκετῶν ὑπερέχοντα ἀπέφαινεν. ὁ δ' ἐν τοῖς ἄλλοις μὲν ἅπασιν ἄριστον παρεῖχεν ἑαυτὸν καὶ τῆς βασιλέως ἄξιον φιλοτιμίας· κόμπῳ δὲ φρονήματος οὐδέποτε τῆς ἀξίας ἀπολαύειν ᾤετο, ἀλλ' ὅσων ἂν τύχοι, τῶν προσηκόντων ἐνόμιζεν ἐλάσσω· ὅθεν καὶ ἀχάριστος ἐδείκνυτο πρὸς τὸν δεσπότην μεγάλων ἀξιοῦντα. ἐπεὶ δὲ καὶ ἐξ