332

they heard. And at first they all chose the way to Byzantium, but then, being ashamed to make their retreat on foot and unarmed, and fearing that they might fall into some ambushes on their way back and be destroyed, and at the same time complaining because the Roman state owed them their pay for a long time, they all voluntarily mingled with the army of the Goths, except, indeed, that Paul and a certain one of the Isaurians, Mindes by name, coming into the presence of Totila 7.36.27 begged him to send them to Byzantium. For they said 7.36.27 that they had children and wives in their native land, 7.36.28 without whom they were not able to live. Totila, accepting them as telling the truth, presented them with provisions for the journey and, sending escorts with them, let them go. And indeed others of the Roman army, as many as happened to have fled for refuge to the sanctuaries of the city, being about three hundred in number, after receiving pledges went over to Totila. 7.36.29 But for the future Totila wished neither to destroy Rome nor to abandon it, but he decided to settle both Goths and Romans of the senatorial council and all the others there for the following reason. 7.37.1 Not long before, Totila had sent to the ruler of the Franks, asking for his daughter as wife 7.37.2 to be given to him. But he rejected the request, saying that he neither was nor ever would be king of Italy, a man who, having captured Rome, was in no way able to hold it, but after destroying a part of it, had abandoned it to his enemies 7.37.3 again. For this reason he was now eager to have provisions brought into it and ordered everything to be rebuilt as quickly as possible, all that he himself had happened to tear down and burn, when he had previously captured Rome; and he summoned back the Romans of the senatorial council and all the others, whom he was guarding in Campania, 7.37.4. And after watching the horse races there, he prepared his entire army, as if to march against Sicily. 7.37.5 And at the same time he was preparing four hundred warships for a naval battle, and a fleet of very large and numerous ships, which, having been sent there from the East by the emperor with their men and 7.37.6 cargoes, he had happened to capture all this time. And he sent Stephanus, a Roman, as an ambassador to the emperor, asking him to end this war, and to make the Goths allies, on the condition that they would fight with him 7.37.7 when he went against his other enemies. But the Emperor Justinian neither allowed the ambassador to come into his presence nor did he pay any attention at all to what was being said. 7.37.8 When Totila heard this, he again made preparations for the war. But it seemed to him advantageous, after first making an attempt on Centumcellae, 7.37.9 to go thus against Sicily. Diogenes, the bodyguard of Belisarius, was then in command of the garrison there, 7.37.10 having with him a considerable force. And the army of the Goths, when they arrived at Centumcellae, encamped very close to the wall 7.37.11 and began a siege. And Totila sent envoys to Diogenes, and challenged both him and the soldiers with him, if they wished to decide the issue by battle against them, to set to work immediately. 7.37.12 And he advised them to have no hope that any other force 7.37.13 would come to them from the emperor. For it was impossible for Justinian henceforth to carry on this war against the Goths, if the events at Rome after so long a time were sufficient to prove it to anyone. 7.37.14 He therefore offered them the choice, whichever they themselves might wish, either to join the army of the Goths on equal terms, or to depart from there unharmed and be conveyed to Byzantium. 7.37.15 But the Romans and Diogenes said that it was not their wish either to decide the issue by battle nor, indeed, to join the army of the Goths, since they would not be able to live apart from their own children and wives. 7.37.16 But as for the city which they were guarding, they had no decent reason to surrender it at present, since there was no pretext

332

ἤκουσαν. καὶ τὰ μὲν πρῶτα τὴν ἐπὶ τὸ Βυζάντιον εἵλοντο ἅπαντες, ἔπειτα δὲ πεζοὶ μὲν ποιεῖσθαι καὶ ἄνοπλοι τὴν ἀναχώρησιν αἰσχυνόμενοι, δειμαίνοντες δὲ μή τισιν ἐνέδραις ἐν τῇ ἀποπορείᾳ περιπεπτωκότες διαφθαρεῖεν, ἅμα δὲ καὶ μεμφόμενοι, ὅτι δὴ σφίσι χρόνου τὰς συντάξεις πολλοῦ τὸ Ῥωμαίων δημόσιον ὤφειλεν, ἅπαντες ἐθελούσιοι τῷ Γότθων στρατῷ ἀνεμίγνυντο, πλήν γε δὴ ὅτι Παῦλός τε καὶ τῶν τις Ἰσαύρων, Μίνδης ὄνομα, Τουτίλᾳ ἐς ὄψιν ἐλθόντες 7.36.27 ἐς Βυζάντιον σφᾶς ἐδέοντο στεῖλαι. παῖδάς τε γὰρ 7.36.27 καὶ γυναῖκας σφίσιν ἐν γῇ τῇ πατρῴᾳ ἔφασκον εἶναι, 7.36.28 ὧνπερ χωρὶς βιοτεύειν οὐχ οἷοί τε εἶναι. οὕσπερ ὁ Τουτίλας ἅτε ἀληθιζομένους ἀποδεξάμενος, ἐφοδίοις τε δωρησάμενος καὶ παραπομποὺς ξυμπέμψας ἀφῆκε. καὶ ἄλλοι μέντοι τοῦ Ῥωμαίων στρατοῦ, ὅσοι καταφυγόντες ἐς τὰ τῆς πόλεως ἱερὰ ἔτυχον, ἐς τριακοσίους ὄντες, τὰ πιστὰ λαβόντες Τουτίλᾳ προσεχώρησαν. 7.36.29 Ῥώμην δὲ οὔτε καθελεῖν οὔτε ἀπολιπεῖν τὸ λοιπὸν Τουτίλας ἤθελεν, ἀλλὰ Γότθους τε καὶ Ῥωμαίους τοὺς ἐκ τῆς συγκλήτου βουλῆς καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους ἅπαντας ξυνοικίζειν ἐνταῦθα ἔγνω ἐξ αἰτίας τοιᾶσδε. 7.37.1 Τουτίλας οὐ πολλῷ πρότερον παρὰ τῶν Φράγγων τὸν ἄρχοντα πέμψας, τὴν παῖδά οἱ γυναῖκα ἐδεῖτο 7.37.2 γαμετὴν δοῦναι. ὁ δὲ τὴν αἴτησιν ἀπεσείσατο, Ἰταλίας αὐτὸν οὔτε εἶναι οὔτε ἔσεσθαί ποτε βασιλέα φάσκων, ὅς γε Ῥώμην ἑλὼν ἔχεσθαι μὲν αὐτῆς οὐδαμῆ ἴσχυσε, μοῖραν δὲ αὐτῆς καθελὼν τοῖς πολεμίοις μεθῆκεν 7.37.3 αὖθις. διὸ δὴ τὰ ἐπιτήδεια ἐν τῷ παρόντι ἐς αὐτὴν ἐσκομίζεσθαι διὰ σπουδῆς εἶχε καὶ ἀνοικοδομεῖσθαι ὅτι τάχιστα πάντα ἐκέλευεν, ὅσα καθελών τε καὶ πυρπολήσας αὐτὸς ἔτυχεν, ἡνίκα Ῥώμην τὸ πρότερον εἷλε· τῶν τε Ῥωμαίων τοὺς ἐκ τῆς συγκλήτου βουλῆς καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους ἅπαντας, οὕσπερ ἐπὶ Καμπανίας ἐφύλασσε, 7.37.4 μετεπέμπετο. ἐνταῦθά τε ἀγῶνα τὸν ἱππικὸν θεασάμενος, τὴν στρατιὰν ἡτοίμαζε πᾶσαν, ὡς ἐπὶ Σικελίαν 7.37.5 στρατεύσων. ἅμα δὲ καὶ τὰ μακρὰ πλοῖα τετρακόσια ὡς ἐς ναυμαχίαν ἐν παρασκευῇ ἐποιεῖτο, καὶ στόλον νεῶν μεγάλων τε καὶ πολλῶν ἄγαν, ἅσπερ ἐκ βασιλέως ἐκ τῆς ἑῴας ἐνταῦθα σταλείσας αὐτοῖς ἀνδράσι τε καὶ 7.37.6 φορτίοις πάντα τοῦτον τὸν χρόνον ἑλὼν ἔτυχε. Στέφανόν τε ἄνδρα Ῥωμαῖον παρὰ βασιλέα πρεσβευτὴν ἔπεμψε, τὸν μὲν πόλεμον τόνδε καταλύειν αἰτῶν, ἐνσπόνδους δὲ Γότθους ποιεῖσθαι, ἐφ' ᾧ δὴ αὐτῷ ξυμμαχή7.37.7 σουσιν ἐπὶ πολεμίους τοὺς ἄλλους ἰόντι. βασιλεὺς δὲ Ἰουστινιανὸς οὔτε τὸν πρεσβευτήν οἱ ἐς ὄψιν ἐλθεῖν ξυνεχώρησεν οὔτε τινὰ τῶν λεγομένων ἐντροπὴν τὸ 7.37.8 παράπαν πεποίηται. ἅπερ ἐπεὶ Τουτίλας ἤκουσεν, αὖθις τὰ ἐς τὸν πόλεμον ἐν παρασκευῇ ἐποιεῖτο. ξύμφορον δέ οἱ ἔδοξεν εἶναι, Κεντουκελλῶν ἀποπειρασα7.37.9 μένῳ πρότερον οὕτω δὴ ἐπὶ Σικελίαν ἰέναι. ἦρχε δὲ τότε τοῦ ἐνταῦθα φυλακτηρίου ∆ιογένης, ὁ Βελισαρίου 7.37.10 δορυφόρος, δύναμιν ἀξιόχρεων ξὺν αὑτῷ ἔχων. καὶ ὁ μὲν Γότθων στρατὸς, ἐπειδὴ ἐς Κεντουκέλλας ἀφίκοντο, ἄγχιστα τοῦ περιβόλου ἐνστρατοπεδευσάμενοι 7.37.11 ἐς πολιορκίαν καθίσταντο. πρέσβεις δὲ πέμψας παρὰ ∆ιογένην ὁ Τουτίλας, αὐτόν τε προὐκαλεῖτο καὶ τοὺς ἀμφ' αὐτὸν στρατιώτας, ἢν μὲν σφίσι βουλομένοις ᾖ μάχῃ πρὸς αὐτοὺς διακρίνεσθαι, ἔργου ἔχεσθαι αὐτίκα 7.37.12 δὴ μάλα. ἐν ἐλπίδι τε παρῄνει μηδεμιᾷ ἔχειν, δύναμιν 7.37.13 ἑτέραν τινὰ ἐκ βασιλέως σφίσιν ἀφίξεσθαι. ἀδύνατον γὰρ Ἰουστινιανὸν τὸ λοιπὸν εἶναι πόλεμον πρὸς Γότθους τόνδε διενεγκεῖν, εἴ τῳ ἱκανὰ τεκμηριῶσαι τὰ μετὰ χρόνου τοσούτου ἐπὶ τῆς Ῥώμης ξυμβάντα. 7.37.14 αἵρεσιν οὖν προὐτείνετο ἑλέσθαι ὁποτέραν ἂν αὐτοὶ βούλοιντο, ἢ ἐπὶ τῇ ἴσῃ καὶ ὁμοίᾳ τῷ Γότθων στρατῷ ἀναμίγνυσθαι, ἢ κακῶν ἀπαθέσιν ἐνθένδε ἀπαλλασσο7.37.15 μένοις ἐπὶ Βυζαντίου κομίζεσθαι. Ῥωμαῖοι δὲ καὶ ∆ιογένης οὔτε μάχῃ διακρίνεσθαι βουλομένοις σφίσιν αὐτοῖς ἔφασκον εἶναι οὔτε μέντοι ἀναμίγνυσθαι τῷ Γότθων στρατῷ, ἐπεὶ παίδων τε καὶ γυναικῶν τῶν 7.37.16 σφετέρων χωρὶς βιοτεύειν οὐκ ἂν δύναιντο. πόλιν δὲ, ἧσπερ φυλακὴν ἔχουσιν, ἐν μὲν τῷ παρόντι λόγῳ τινὶ εὐπρεπεῖ ἐνδοῦναι οὐδαμῆ ἔχειν, ἐπεὶ οὐδέ τις σκῆψις