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when the Persian army came to him and was able to do harm, he ordered them to be prevented from harming the country, as it was friendly and allied; and later he would help in whatever way he could. and it was up to him either to be grateful towards him, who would be a very good friend, or to choose to fight for no reasonable and just cause. And upon these terms he also greeted him and his wife Helen, as they were marching to Didymoteichon together with the Persian army. Having accomplished all these things in fifteen days, with the army from Thessaly and Berroia along with the others who were with him before, and with the Persians following, he came to Thessalonica. And in these days the Persian army that was on the ships, both harmed the country in other ways, as is expected of barbarians and enemies, and sacked two fortified villages that had towers, as the farmers who held them had surrendered themselves out of fear and been enslaved. And when Amour learned that the emperor was near, he himself on horseback with a few of his best men, for they were not well-supplied with horses, while the whole army followed on foot, went to meet the empe 2.393 ror. And when they were now not far from each other, Amour, dismounting from his horse, both prostrated himself before the emperor and walked towards him on foot. But the emperor sent word, ordering him to mount his horse, and he obeyed, after having insisted much before on coming on foot. And having greeted each other, they went to the tents and encamped not far from Thessalonica in seven days. And when Amour had sent an embassy to those in Thessalonica, urging them to willingly submit to the emperor and surrender the city, and promising that he would release the captives to them if they obeyed, they gave no reasonable reply. But the Zealots, fearing lest those inside who favored the emperor's cause, seizing a favorable opportunity and persuading the people, who were disturbed by the barbarians and especially since they hoped the captives would be released to them, might attack and overpower them, decided to resort to cruelty and murder, so that by these means they might also frighten the others. And a certain Palaiologos from among the nobles, who was remaining at home because he was under suspicion and had given no cause for being put to death, they seized and slaughtered in the public marketplace, and cutting off his head, then also dividing his body into four parts, they hung the pieces on the city gates, a piece for each; and placing the head on a spear and mercilessly dragging the entrails, they went around the city. And a certain Gabalas from the middle class of citi 2.394 zens, having first cut off his ears and his nose, and having mutilated his other limbs, they then killed. And of not a few others like them, having cut off their noses and ears, they then condemned them to perpetual exile, and opening the gates, they drove them out of the city. And when they lamented and begged to be told the reason for which they were condemned to suffer such things, the Zealots gave no other answer than that they knew they had most clearly chosen the side of Kantakouzenos. So those who were thus lamenting, since they had no other recourse for themselves, withdrew to the camp of the barbarians to the emperor. But the emperor, since he saw that it was impossible to win over the city, ordered his son Manuel and his nephew Angelos, who had the army from Thessaly and Berroia, to withdraw to their own provinces. But he himself, being left with those he had brought from home, and having provided horses for two hundred of the best of the Persians, and having taken six thousand picked infantry from the rest of the army, together with Amour withdrew from the mainland to Thrace. And they ordered the rest of the army to go by ship to Peritheorion, so as to join each other there. And when those from the sea and those from the mainland were again in the same place, having encamped around it, they besieged Peritheorion. But the Abderites came willingly, bringing as a prisoner also Goudeles, the cupbearer of the Empress Anna, whom on the

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τῆς Περσικῆς στρατιᾶς ἐλθούσης πρὸς αὐτὸν καὶ δυναμένης βλάπτειν, αὐτούς τε κωλῦσαι κελεύσας μὴ κακοῦν τὴν χώραν, ὡς φιλίαν οὖσαν καὶ συμμαχίδα· καὶ ὕστερον ὅ,τι ἂν δύναιτο ὠφελήσειν. ἐπ' αὐτῷ δὲ εἶναι ἢ εὐγνωμονεῖν περὶ αὐτὸν φίλον ἀγαθὸν μάλιστα ἐσόμενον, ἢ αἱρεῖσθαι πολεμεῖν ἐπ' οὐδεμιᾷ προφάσει εὐλόγῳ καὶ δικαίᾳ. ἐπὶ τούτοις δὲ καὶ προσηγόρευεν αὐτόν τε καὶ Ἑλένην τὴν γυναῖκα, ὡς ἅμα στρατιᾷ τῇ Περσικῇ βαδιούμενοι εἰς ∆ιδυμότειχον. ταῦτα δὴ πάντα ἐφ' ἡμέραις πεντεκαίδεκα διαπραξάμενος, τὴν ἐκ Θετταλίας καὶ Βεῤῥοίας ἔχων στρατιὰν ἅμα τοῖς ἄλλοις, οἳ αὐτῷ συνῆσαν πρότερον καὶ τῶν Περσῶν συνεπομένων, ἧκεν εἰς Θεσσαλονίκην. ἐν δὲ ταύταις ταῖς ἡμέραις ἡ ἐν ταῖς ναυσὶ τῶν Περσῶν οὖσα στρατιὰ, ἄλλα τε ἐκάκου τὴν χώραν, ὅσα εἰκὸς βαρβάρους καὶ πολεμίους, καὶ δύο κώμας τετειχισμένας καὶ πύργους ἐχούσας διεπόρθησε, τῶν ἐχόντων ταύτας γεωργῶν ὑπὸ δέους παραδεδωκότων σφᾶς αὐτοὺς καὶ ἀνδραποδισθέντων. Ἀμοὺρ δὲ ἐπεὶ ἐπύθετο ἐγγὺς εἶναι βασιλέα, αὐτὸς μὲν ἔφιππος μετὰ ὀλίγων τῶν ἀρίστων, οὐ γὰρ εὐπόρουν ἵππων, πᾶσα δὲ ἡ στρατιὰ πεζῇ ἑπόμενοι, εἰς ὑπάντησιν τοῦ βασι 2.393 λέως ᾔεσαν. ἐπεὶ δὲ ἦσαν ἤδη οὐ μακρὰν ἀλλήλων, τοῦ ἵππου ἀποβὰς ὁ Ἀμοὺρ, προσεκύνει τε τὸν βασιλέα καὶ ἐβάδιζε πρὸς αὐτὸν πεζός. πέμψας δὲ ὁ βασιλεὺς, ἐκέλευε τοῦ ἵππου ἐπιβαίνειν καὶ ἐπείθετο πολλὰ πρότερον περὶ τοῦ πεζὸς ἐλθεῖν φιλονεικήσας. προσαγορεύσαντες δὲ ἀλλήλους, ᾔεσαν εἰς τὰς σκηνὰς καὶ ἐστρατοπεδεύσαντο οὐ πολὺ ἄπωθεν Θεσσαλονίκης ἐν ἑπτὰ ἡμέραις. πρεσβείαν δὲ Ἀμοὺρ πρὸς τοὺς ἐν Θεσσαλονίκῃ πεποιημένου καὶ παραινοῦντος προσχωρεῖν ἑκόντας βασιλεῖ καὶ τὴν πόλιν παραδιδόναι, τούς τε αἰχμαλώτους ἀπολύσειν αὐτοῖς, εἰ πείθοιντο, ἐπαγγελλομένου, ἀπεκρίναντο οὐδὲν ἐπιεικές. δείσαντες δὲ οἱ Ζηλωταὶ, μὴ οἱ τὰ βασιλέως ἔνδον ᾑρημένοι, καιροῦ λαβόμενοι ἐπιτηδείου καὶ τὸν δῆμον ἀναπείσαντες, τεθορυβημένον ὑπὸ τῶν βαρβάρων, ἄλλως τε καὶ ἐλπίσαντα τοὺς αἰχμαλώτους αὐτοῖς ἀπολυθήσεσθαι, ἐπίθωνται καὶ κρατήσωσιν αὐτῶν, ἔγνωσαν ἐπὶ ὠμότητα καὶ φόνους χωρεῖν, ἵνα δι' αὐτῶν καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους ἐκφοβῶσι. καὶ Παλαιολόγον τέ τινα ἐκ τῶν ἀρίστων, οἴκοι σχολάζοντα διὰ τὸ ὑποπτεύεσθαι καὶ μηδεμίαν αἰτίαν τοῦ ἀποθανεῖν παρεσχημένον, ἐξαρπάσαντες ἀπέσφαξαν ἐπὶ τῆς δημοσίας ἀγορᾶς, καὶ τὴν κεφαλὴν ἀποτεμόντες, ἔπειτα καὶ τὸ σῶμα διελόντες τετραχῆ, τὰ μὲν τμήματα ἐν ταῖς πόλεως πύλαις ἀπηώρησαν ἑκάστῃ τμῆμα· τὴν κεφαλὴν δὲ δόρατι ἐνθέμενοι καὶ τὰ ἔγκατα σύροντες ἀνηλεῶς περιῄεσαν τὴν πόλιν. Γαβαλᾶν δέ τινα ἐκ τῶν μέσων πολι 2.394 τῶν τὰ ὦτα πρότερον ἐκτεμόντες καὶ τὴν ῥῖνα, καὶ τὰ ἄλλα μέλη διαλωβησάμενοι, ἔπειτα ἀπέκτειναν. ἑτέρων δὲ οὐκ ὀλίγων τοιούτων ῥῖνας καὶ ὦτα ἐκτεμόντες, ἔπειτα κατεδίκασαν ἀειφυγίαν, καὶ ἀνοίξαντες τὰς πύλας, ἐξήλαυνον τῆς πόλεως. τῶν δὲ ὀδυρομένων καὶ τὴν αἰτίαν δεομένων ἐκδιδάσκεσθαι, δι' ἣν τοιαῦτα ὑπομένειν κατεκρίθησαν, οὐδὲν πλέον ἀπεκρίναντο οἱ Ζηλωταὶ, ἢ ὅτι εἰδεῖεν αὐτοὺς τὰ Καντακουζηνοῦ σαφέστατα ᾑρημένους. οἱ μὲν οὖν οὕτως ὀδυρόμενοι, ἐπεὶ πρὸς οὐδὲν ἕτερον εἶχον χρῆσθαι ἑαυτοῖς, εἰς τὸ τῶν βαρβάρων ἀπεχώρουν στρατόπεδον πρὸς βασιλέα. βασιλεὺς δὲ ἐπεὶ τὸ προσάγεσθαι τὴν πόλιν ἄπορον ἑώρα, Μανουὴλ μὲν τὸν υἱὸν καὶ Ἄγγελον τὸν ἀνεψιὸν τήν τε ἐκ Θετταλίας καὶ Βεῤῥοίας ἔχοντας στρατιὰν, ἐκέλευεν εἰς τὰς ἰδίας ἀρχὰς ἀποχωρεῖν. αὐτὸς δὲ ἀπολειφθεὶς μεθ' ὧν ἦγεν οἴκοθεν, καὶ Περσῶν τοῖς ἀρίστοις διακοσίοις ἵππους παρασχόμενος, καὶ ἐκ τῆς ἄλλης στρατιᾶς ἑξακισχιλίους ἐπιλέκτους πεζοὺς παραλαβὼν, ἅμα Ἀμοὺρ ἐκ τῆς ἠπείρου εἰς Θρᾴκην ἀπεχώρουν. τὴν δὲ ἄλλην στρατιὰν ἐκέλευον ἐν ταῖς ναυσὶν εἰς Περιθεώριον ἐλθεῖν, ὡς ἐκεῖ συμμίξοντας ἀλλήλοις. ἐπεὶ δ' οἱ μὲν ἐκ θαλάττης, οἱ δ' ἐκ τῆς ἠπείρου πάλιν ἐν ταὐτῷ ἐγένοντο, Περιθεώριον ἐπολιόρκουν περιστρατοπεδευσάμενοι. Ἀβδηρῖται δὲ προσῆλθον ἑκοντὶ δεσμώτην ἀγαγόντες καὶ Γουδέλην τὸν τῆς βασιλίδος Ἄννης οἰνοχόον, ὃν ἐπὶ τῆς