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the nobles, by the counsel of his mother, in the purple in which he was born, and they blind him terribly and incurably so that he might die, by the will of his mother. And the sun was then darkened for 17 days and did not give its rays, so that all said that this happened because of the blinding of the emperor; for such a darkness occurred that even the ships went astray. But behold also the unsearchable judgments of God; for after 5 years, in the same month and on the same day on which he blinded his uncles, he himself is blinded. And Irene his mother ruled alone for 5 years. And her brothers-in-law rebelled, whom she also exiled to Athens; and there, having conspired concerning the empire, they were slain by the local people, and the entire 2.28 family of the abominable Copronymus was wiped out. And on the second day of holy Easter the empress, having gone forth in the customary procession to the Holy Apostles, in the evening proceeded in a golden chariot, drawn by four horses, held by patricians, throwing many consular coins in the Mese. In the 3rd year Staurakios plotted a usurpation, and when the empress learned of it she decreed that no one should approach Staurakios; and he, worn out by grief, bringing up blood from his lung, died. In the 4th year the pious Irene forgave the citizens of Byzantium their city taxes, and she lightened the commercial duties of Abydos and Hieron. In the 5th year the easterners plotted a rebellion against the empress. And envoys arrived from Charles, who had been crowned emperor of Rome by Pope Leo, to the most pious Irene, asking that she be joined to Charles in marriage and unite the East and the West; and she would have consented, if Aetius had not prevented it, usurping power for his own brother. The empress administered other affairs prudently and wisely and as one would pray, but she had this one charge against her, the deposition and blinding of her most unfortunate son, although she possessed divine zeal and orthodox faith. For it was she who brought about the holy seventh 2.29 council and the veneration of the holy icons, and her achievements were many and countless. She also founded Beroea in Thessaloniki, renaming it Irenopolis. And she also founded Anchialus. But the great swarm of eunuchs and their leaders, both Staurakios and Leo Klokas, being at variance with each other, stripped her of the empire, and they established Nikephoros as emperor on the throne in her place. Thus the counsels of the worst eunuchs destroy their own masters and benefactors, so that Chrysaorius, a most admirable man of old, said to one of the great ones that if you have a eunuch, kill him, but if you do not have one, buy one and kill him. Nikephoros, therefore, expels Irene through the efforts of Leo Klokas and the patrician Niketas and Sisinnius, the brothers, and the perjured and deceitful Triphyllioi, and the patrician Leo the forty-cubit, and the patrician Gregory Mousilakes and certain others in power; who, having come to the Chalke at the fourth hour of the night, and having deceived the guards, persuaded them that they had been sent by the Augusta to proclaim Nikephoros emperor. And they, believing such a great lie, themselves also proclaimed the usurper emperor. Many, therefore, marveled how God permitted one who had struggled like a martyr for the true faith to be thus tyrannically cast out by an impious man. Others brought forward her sin against her son, and others slandered and grumbled in other ways. Therefore, having placed guards around her in the palace of Eleutherios (for the empress happened to be 2.30 staying there), at dawn he brought her and shut her up in the palace, and thus he proceeded to the church to be crowned, while Tarasios still occupied the throne. And the crowds cursed both the one crowning and the usurper being crowned, and called him a sinner

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οἱ μεγιστᾶνες ἐκ συμβουλῆς τῆς μητρὸς αὐτοῦ, ἐν τῇ πορφύρᾳ ἐν ᾗ ἐγεννήθη, καὶ ἐκτυφλοῦσιν αὐτὸν δεινῶς καὶ ἀνιάτως πρὸς τὸ τεθνάναι τῇ γνώμῃ τῆς μητρὸς αὐτοῦ. ἐσκοτίσθη δὲ ὁ ἥλιος τότε ἐπὶ ἡμέρας ιζʹ καὶ οὐκ ἔδωκε τὰς ἀκτῖ νας αὐτοῦ, ὡς πάντας λέγειν ὅτι διὰ τὴν τοῦ βασιλέως τύφλωσιν τοῦτο ἐγένετο· τοιοῦτον γὰρ σκότος ἐγένετο ὥστε καὶ τὰ πλοῖα πλανᾶσθαι. ἀλλ' ὅρα καὶ τὰ τοῦ θεοῦ ἀνεξερεύνητα κρίματα· μετὰ γὰρ εʹ ἔτη τῷ αὐτῷ μηνὶ καὶ τῇ αὐτῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐν ᾗ ἀπετύ φλωσε τοὺς θείους αὐτοῦ, τυφλοῦται καὶ αὐτός. ἐκράτησε δὲ Εἰρήνη ἡ μήτηρ αὐτοῦ μόνη ἔτη εʹ. ἐστασίασαν δὲ οἱ ἀνδράδελ φοι αὐτῆς, οὓς καὶ ἐξώρισεν ἐν Ἀθήναις· οἳ κἀκεῖσε βουλευσά μενοι περὶ βασιλείας παρὰ τῶν ἐντοπίων ἀνῃρέθησαν, καὶ ἠφανί 2.28 σθη τὸ τοῦ μιαροῦ Κοπρωνύμου ἅπαν γένος. τῇ δὲ δευτέρᾳ τοῦ ἁγίου πάσχα ἀπελθοῦσα ἡ βασίλισσα ἐπὶ τῇ κατὰ τύπον γενομένῃ προελεύσει εἰς τοὺς ἁγίους ἀποστόλους, δείλης προῆλθεν ἐν ὀχή ματι χρυσῷ, ἐποχουμένη τέσσαρσιν ἵπποις, κρατουμένη ὑπὸ πα τρικίων, ῥίψασα ὑπατείαν ἐν τῇ μέσῃ πολλήν. Τῷ γʹ ἔτει Σταυράκιος τυραννίδα ἐμελέτησεν, ὅπερ μα θοῦσα ἡ βασιλὶς ἐθέσπισε μὴ προσπελάζειν τινὰ Σταυρακίῳ· ὁ δὲ τῇ λύπῃ καταπονηθείς, αἷμα ἐκ τοῦ πνεύμονος ἀναγαγών, τέθνηκε. Τῷ δʹ ἔτει ἡ εὐσεβὴς Εἰρήνη τοῖς Βυζαντίοις τοὺς πολιτι κοὺς ἐχαρίσατο φόρους, τῆς δὲ Ἀβύδου καὶ τοῦ Ἱεροῦ τὰ κομμέρκια ἐκούφισε. Τῷ εʹ ἔτει στάσιν κατὰ τῆς βασιλείας οἱ ἀνατολικοὶ ἐμελέ τησαν. ἔφθασαν δὲ ἀπὸ Καρούλου τοῦ στεφθέντος βασιλέως Ῥώμης παρὰ Λέοντος τοῦ πάπα ἀποκρισιάριοι πρὸς τὴν εὐσεβε στάτην Εἰρήνην, αἰτούμενοι ζευχθῆναι αὐτὴν τῷ Καρούλῳ πρὸς γάμον καὶ ἑνῶσαι τὰ ἑῷα καὶ τὰ ἑσπέρια· ἥτις ὑπήκουσεν ἄν, εἰ μὴ Ἀέτιος ἐκώλυσε, τὸ κράτος εἰς τὸν ἴδιον ἀδελφὸν σφετεριζό μενος. ἡ βασιλὶς δὲ τὰ μὲν ἄλλα φρονίμως καὶ συνετῶς διῴκησε πράγματα καὶ ὡς ἄν τις εὔξαιτο, μόνην δὲ ταύτην ἔσχεν αἰτίαν, τὴν ἔκπτωσιν καὶ τύφλωσιν τοῦ δυστυχεστάτου υἱοῦ αὐτῆς, καίτοι ζῆλον θεῖον ἔχουσα καὶ πίστιν ὀρθόδοξον. τήν τε γὰρ ἁγίαν ἑβδό μην σύνοδον καὶ τὴν τῶν ἱερῶν εἰκόνων προσκύνησιν αὕτη παρε 2.29 σκεύασε, καὶ πολλὰ αὐτῆς καὶ μυρία τὰ κατορθώματα. αὕτη καὶ τὴν ἐν Θεσσαλονίκῃ Βέρροιαν ἔκτισεν, Εἰρηνόπολιν μετονο μάσασα. ἔκτισε δὲ καὶ τὴν Ἀγχίαλον. ἀλλ' ὁ πολὺς τῶν εὐνού χων ἐσμὸς καὶ οἱ τούτων ἐξέχοντες, ὅ τε Σταυράκιος καὶ ὁ Λέων ὁ Κλόκας πρὸς ἀλλήλους διαφερόμενοι, τῆς βασιλείας ταύτην ἀπεγύμνωσαν, καὶ Νικηφόρον ἀντ' αὐτῆς ἐπὶ τῶν θρόνων βασι λέα καθίδρυσαν. οὕτως αἱ τῶν κακίστων εὐνούχων βουλαὶ τοὺς οἰκείους δεσπότας καὶ εὐεργέτας διαλυμαίνονται, ὥστε Χρυσαόριον τὸν πάλαι θαυμασιώτατον εἰπεῖν πρός τινα τῶν μεγάλων ὅτι εἰ μὲν ἔχεις εὐνοῦχον, φόνευσον, εἰ δ' οὐκ ἔχεις, ἀγόρασον καὶ φό νευσον. ἐκβάλλει τοίνυν Εἰρήνην ὁ Νικηφόρος σπουδῇ Λέοντος τοῦ Κλόκα καὶ Νικήτα πατρικίου καὶ Σισινίου τῶν αὐταδέλφων καὶ τῶν ἐπιόρκων καὶ δολερῶν Τριφυλλίων καὶ Λέοντος πατρι κίου τοῦ τεσσαρακονταπήχους καὶ Γρηγορίου πατρικίου τοῦ Μου σιλάκη καὶ ἑτέρων τινῶν τῶν ἐν τέλει· οἵτινες ἐλθόντες ἐν τῇ χαλκῇ ὥρᾳ τετάρτῃ τῆς νυκτός, καὶ τοὺς φύλακας ἐξαπατήσαντες, ἔπεισαν ὅτι παρὰ τῆς Αὐγούστης ἀπεστάλησαν ἀναγορεῦσαι βασι λέα τὸν Νικηφόρον. οἱ δὲ πιστεύσαντες τῷ τηλικούτῳ ψεύσματι συνανηγόρευσαν καὶ αὐτοὶ βασιλέα τὸν τύραννον. πολλοὶ γοῦν ἐθαύμαζον πῶς ὁ θεὸς συνεχώρησε τὴν ὑπὲρ τῆς ὀρθῆς πίστεως μαρτυρικῶς ἐναθλήσασαν ὑπὸ ἀσεβοῦς οὕτω τυραννικῶς ἐκβλη θῆναι. ἄλλοι τὴν εἰς τὸν υἱὸν αὐτῆς ἁμαρτίαν προεβάλλοντο, καὶ ἄλλοι ἄλλως ἐδυσφήμουν καὶ κατεγόγγυζον. φύλακας τοίνυν ἐν τῷ παλατίῳ τῶν Ἐλευθερίου περιστήσας (ἐκεῖσε γὰρ ἔτυχε τυγ 2.30 χάνουσα ἡ βασιλὶς) ὄρθρου ἀγαγὼν αὐτὴν ἐν τῷ παλατίῳ ἀπέ κλεισε, καὶ οὕτως προῆλθεν ἐν τῇ ἐκκλησίᾳ ἐπὶ τὸ στεφθῆναι, Ταρασίου ἔτι τὸν θρόνον κατέχοντος. οἱ δὲ ὄχλοι κατηρῶντο καὶ τὸν στέφοντα καὶ τὸν στεφόμενον τύραννον, καὶ ἀπεκάλουν ἀλι