301

of the common people. And when they were near the camp of the Scythians, they used a shout from afar and war cries and proceeded at a run against them. For they did not think they would resist even for a short time, but that they would cower and offer themselves ready to be enslaved. Therefore each man also carried ropes for the purpose of binding the barbarians who would be captured, so that they might not escape while being led away unbound. But the Scythians, thinking that an infantry army was coming against them, mounting their horses, led them out of the camp as if to fight. But they, as soon as they saw them coming out of the camp, forgetting their former arrogance, turned to flight. And since the plain was open and completely bare of wood, not even one was able to escape, but all were cut down by the Scythians except for the horsemen. For these were able to be saved into the city both because the Scythians were still far away from most of them when the rout occurred, and also because the barbarians were occupied with the infantry. Thus foolishness and irrational impulse lead to incurable 2.305 misfortunes. And Apokaukos the megas doux, having appointed Andronikos Palaiologos the protostrator, who was his son-in-law, as commander of the entire army for the invasion with the Scythians and entrusting to him the war against Didymoteichon, himself returned to Byzantium. And the protostrator made frequent sallies against Didymoteichon and again returned quickly. For there was nothing that he could harm by destroying, since there was nothing outside the walls. But the soldiers inside, when he withdrew, plundered the neighbors and seized grain and cattle, and carried on the war, neither doing nor intending to do anything ignoble on account of want. But when the protostrator once came against them, the metropolitan, sending a message, made known through a letter that they were toiling and suffering fruitlessly because of the war against the emperor, whom they would certainly serve after a short time, both themselves laboring endlessly and being the cause of great misfortunes for others. And he advised that, obeying him, they should abstain from these evils. "For if things do not turn out such as I say," he said, "the Holy Spirit has not spoken in me." And when the one who was being sent refused to go because he feared that he might suffer ill at their hands for reporting such things, he ordered him to be brave, as he would suffer nothing, or a few blows. Which also turned out as he had foretold. 52. And Empress Anna, when she learned that the Emperor Kantakouzenos was enjoying great favor with the Kral, and was pre 2.306 paring again to return to Didymoteichon with an army, having selected George Loukas and Makarios the metropolitan of Thessalonica, sent them as ambassadors to the Kral and promised to hand over as many cities as might be agreed upon, if only he would send Kantakouzenos to her as a prisoner. But he both blamed the embassy and openly declared that not for the sake of a few cities only, but not even for the entire Roman empire would he dare such an abomination, and he sent them away unsuccessful. And they, having come to Byzantium, a little later returned again. And the Kral said that during the second embassy they offered to hand over all the western cities from Christoupolis, except for Thessalonica, on condition that, if he did not wish to hand over the Emperor Kantakouzenos, he should at least imprison him and hold him in a dungeon. But he again sent them away unsuccessful, saying they were asking for impossible things. And Helen, the wife of the Kral, both bitterly reproached them and sent them away in anger, as they were negotiating unjustly and would bring great dishonor upon themselves. And likewise all the officials of the Triballi both reviled them and condemned their great foolishness, if they hoped to persuade them of such things, thus lacking no excess of wickedness. For all loved the emperor and would not tolerate anything that brought harm to him, so that even one of them named Kobatzes openly spoke against them and threatened the ambassadors with death if they did not depart more quickly. great 2.307 and he accused them of insensibility, because having themselves gouged out the eye of the Romans with their own hands, they were now also betraying it and

301

δημοτῶν. ἐπεὶ δὲ ἐγγὺς τοῦ στρατοπέδου ἦσαν τῶν Σκυθῶν, βοῇ πόῤῥωθεν ἐχρῶντο καὶ ἀλαλαγμοῖς καὶ ἐχώρουν δρόμῳ κατ' αὐτῶν. οὐ γὰρ ᾤοντο ἀντισχήσειν οὐδὲ πρὸς βραχὺ, ἀλλ' ὑποπτήξαντας ἑτοίμους ἑαυτοὺς παρέχεσθαι ἀνδραποδίζεσθαι. διὸ καὶ σχοινία ἕκαστος ἐπεφέροντο τοῦ τοὺς ἁλωσομένους βαρβάρους ἕνεκα δεσμεῖν, ἵνα μὴ διαδιδράσκοιεν ἄδετοι ἀγόμενοι. οἱ Σκύθαι δὲ νομίσαντες στρατιὰν πεζὴν ἰέναι ἐπ' αὐτοὺς, τῶν ἵππων ἐπιβάντες, ἐξήγοντο τοῦ στρατοπέδου ὡς μαχούμενοι. οἱ δὲ, ὡς μόνον εἶδον τοῦ στρατοπέδου ἐξιόντας, τοῦ προτέρου φυσήματος ἐπιλαθόμενοι ἐτρέποντο πρὸς φυγήν. ὑπτίου δὲ ὄντος τοῦ πεδίου καὶ ὕλης παντάπασι ψιλοῦ, διαδρᾶναι ἠδυνήθη οὐδὲ εἷς, ἀλλὰ πάντες κατεκόπησαν ὑπὸ τῶν Σκυθῶν πλὴν τῶν ἱππέων. οὗτοι γὰρ διά τε τὸ πολὺ αὐτῶν τοὺς Σκύθας ἔτι ἀφεστάναι, ἡνίκα ἡ τροπὴ ἐγένετο, ἄλλως θ' ὅτι καὶ πρὸς τὸν πεζὸν ἠσχόληντο οἱ βάρβαροι, διασωθῆναι εἰς τὴν πόλιν ἠδυνήθησαν. οὕτως ἡ ἄνοια καὶ ἡ παράλογος ὁρμὴ πρὸς ἀνηκέστους ἐξάγει 2.305 συμφοράς. Ἀπόκαυκος δὲ ὁ μέγας δοὺξ μετὰ τῶν Σκυθῶν τὴν εἰσβολὴν Ἀνδρόνικον Παλαιολόγον τὸν πρωτοστράτορα, ὃς ἦν γαμβρὸς αὐτῷ, ἄρχοντα συμπάσης ἀποδείξας τῆς στρατιᾶς καὶ τὸν πρὸς ∆ιδυμότειχον ἐπιτρέψας πόλεμον, αὐτὸς εἰς Βυζάντιον ἐπανῆκε. πρωτοστράτωρ δὲ συχνὰς ἐποιεῖτο κατὰ ∆ιδυμοτείχου ἐκδρομὰς καὶ πάλιν ἀνέστρεφε ταχέως. οὐ γὰρ ἦν, ὅ,τι κακώσειε διαφθείρας, οὐδενὸς ὄντος ἔξω τειχῶν. οἱ δὲ ἔνδον στρατιῶται, αὐτοῦ ἀναχωροῦντος, τοὺς περιοίκους ληϊζόμενοι καὶ σῖτον διαρπάζοντες καὶ βοσκήματα, διέφερον τὸν πόλεμον, οὐδὲν ἀγεννὲς οὔτε πράξαντες, οὔτε μελλήσαντες διὰ τὴν ἔνδειαν. ἐπελθόντος δὲ αὐτοῖς τοῦ πρωτοστράτορός ποτε, πέμψας ὁ μητροπολίτης ἐδήλου διὰ γραμμάτων, ὡς ἀνόνητα κόπτονται καὶ ταλαιπωροῦσι διὰ τὸν πρὸς βασιλέα πόλεμον, ᾧ δουλεύσουσι πάντως μετὰ μικρὸν, αὐτοί τε ἀπέραντα πονοῦντες καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις αἴτιοι γινόμενοι μεγάλων συμφορῶν. παρῄνει τε, αὐτῷ πειθομένους τῶν κακῶν ἀπέχεσθαι. εἰ γὰρ οὐκ ἀποβαίη τοιαῦτα, οἷα ἐγὼ λέγω, ἔφασκεν, οὐ λελάληκε τὸ πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον ἐν ἐμοί. τοῦ πεμπομένου δὲ ἀπαγορεύοντος τὴν ἄφιξιν διὰ τὸ δεδοικέναι, μὴ κακῶς ὑπ' ἐκείνων πάθῃ τοιαῦτα ἀπαγγέλλων, ἐκέλευε θαῤῥεῖν, ὡς οὐδὲν ὑποστησόμενον, ἢ πληγὰς ὀλίγας. ἃ καὶ ἀπέβαινεν, ᾗ ἐκεῖνος προηγόρευεν. νβʹ. Ἄννα δὲ ἡ βασιλὶς, ἐπεὶ πύθοιτο Καντακουζηνὸν τὸν βασιλέα πολλῆς εὐνοίας ἀπολαύοντα παρὰ Κράλῃ, πα 2.306 ρασκευάζεσθαι αὖθις ὡς εἰς ∆ιδυμότειχον ἐπανήξοντα ἅμα στρατιᾷ, τὸν Λουκᾶν ἀπολεξαμένη Γεώργιον καὶ Μακάριον τὸν μητροπολίτην Θεσσαλονίκης, πρεσβευτὰς ἔπεμπεν εἰς Κράλην καὶ ἐπηγγέλλετο πόλεις παραδώσειν, ὅσας ἂν συμβῶσιν, εἰ μόνον Καντακουζηνὸν πέμψειε δεσμώτην πρὸς αὐτήν. ὁ δὲ ἐμέμψατό τε τὴν πρεσβείαν καὶ ἀπηγόρευε φανερῶς, ὡς οὐκ ὀλίγων μόνον πόλεων ἕνεκα, ἀλλ' οὐδὲ συμπάσης τῆς Ῥωμαίων ἀρχῆς τοιοῦτον τολμήσων ἄγος, καὶ ἀπέπεμπεν ἀπράκτους. οἱ δὲ εἰς Βυζάντιον ἐλθόντες, ὀλίγῳ ὕστερον πάλιν ἐπανῆκον. ἔφασκε δὲ ὁ Κράλης, ὡς κατὰ τὴν δευτέραν πρεσβείαν τὰς ἐκ Χριστουπόλεως ἁπάσας ἑσπερίους πόλεις παραδιδοῖεν πλὴν Θεσσαλονίκης, ὡς, εἰ μὴ Καντακουζηνὸν τὸν βασιλέα βούλοιτο παραδιδόναι, ἀλλ' αὐτὸν γοῦν εἵρξαντα κατέχειν ἐν δεσμωτηρίῳ. ὁ δὲ αὖθις ἀπέπεμπεν ἀπράκτους, ἀδύνατα εἰπὼν αἰτεῖν. Ἑλένη δὲ, ἡ τοῦ Κράλη γαμετὴ, καὶ καθήψατο πικρῶς καὶ ἀπέπεμπε πρὸς ὀργὴν, ὡς ἄδικα πρεσβεύοντας καὶ πολλὴν αὐτοῖς τὴν ἀδοξίαν οἴσοντα. ὁμοίως δὲ καὶ οἱ ἐν τέλει πάντες τῶν Τριβαλῶν ἐλοιδοροῦντό τε καὶ πολλὴν αὐτῶν κατεγίνωσκον μωρίαν, εἰ τοιαῦτα πείσειν ἤλπισαν, οὕτω μηδεμίαν ὑπερβολὴν ἐλλείποντα κακίας. πάντες γὰρ ἐφίλουν βασιλέα καὶ οὐδὲν ἠνείχοντο τῶν ἀγόντων βλάβην εἰς ἐκεῖνον, ὥστε καί τις ἐξ αὐτῶν Κοβάτζης ὠνομασμένος φανερῶς ἀντεῖπε καὶ ἠπείλησε θάνατον τοῖς πρέσβεσιν, εἰ μὴ τάχιον ἀπαλλάττοιντο. πολ 2.307 λήν τε αὐτῶν ἀναισθησίαν κατηγόρει, ὅτι τὸν Ῥωμαίων ὀφθαλμὸν οἰκείαις αὐτῶν χερσὶν ἐξορύξαντες αὐτοὶ, προσέτι καταπροδιδόασι καὶ