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he left for the sake of a guard, so that the enemy might bring in nothing further, and through lack of necessities would give up both themselves and the fortress to the Goths; but he himself, having crossed over to Sicily with the rest of the army, attacked the wall of the Messenians. And Domnentiolus, the nephew of Bouzes, who was in command of the Romans there, having met him before the circuit-wall and come to blows, was not worsted. And then, having gotten into the city and taking care of the garrison there, he remained quiet. But the Goths, with no one coming out against them, plundered practically the whole of Sicily. But the Romans who were being besieged in Rhegium, whom Thorimuth and Himerius commanded, as has been said by me, since their necessities had completely failed them, gave up both themselves and the fortress to the enemy by agreement. When the emperor heard this, having gathered a fleet of ships and having placed on this fleet a considerable army from the infantry rolls, and having appointed Liberius as their commander, he ordered them to sail with all speed for Sicily, and to save the island with all their might. But he very soon indeed regretted having appointed Liberius commander of the fleet. For the man was extremely old and unpracticed in the works of war. And having absolved Artabanes of all the charges against him and having appointed him general of the forces in Thrace, he immediately sent him to Sicily, providing him not a large army, but instructing him to take over the fleet with Liberius, since he was recalling Liberius to Byzantium. And as commander-in-chief of the war against Totila and the Goths he appointed Germanus, his own nephew. To whom, indeed, he gave not a large army, but having provided considerable sums of money he instructed him, after gathering a most noteworthy army from both the Thracians and Illyrians, thus to set out with great haste for Italy. And he directed him to bring with him to Italy both Philemouth the Herul with his followers and John, the son-in-law of Germanus himself, but the nephew of Vitalian (for being general of the forces in Illyricum he had his station there). Then indeed a great ambition seized Germanus, to win the victory over the Goths, so that it would fall to him to have saved both Libya and Italy for the Roman empire. For when Stotzas had previously played the tyrant in Libya and already held the power of Libya most securely, he himself, being sent by the emperor, and having unexpectedly defeated the mutineers in battle, both put an end to the tyranny and saved Libya again for the Roman empire, as was related by me in the previous books. and now that the affairs of Italy had come to such a state of fortune, as has just been narrated by me, he wished to win great glory therefrom, seeing that he would be able to save it also for the emperor. And first (for his wife, Passara by name, had died long before) he made Matasuntha his wife, the daughter of Amalasuntha, the daughter of Theoderic, since Witigis had already departed from the world. For he hoped that, if his wife were with him in the camp, the Goths would, as was likely, be ashamed to take up arms against her, remembering the rule of Theoderic and Atalaric. Then, by lavishing great sums of money, some from the emperor, but more from his own house, without any stint, he was easily able in a short time to gather an unexpectedly large army of most warlike men. For Romans, men good at warfare, who had held in contempt many of the commanders whose spearmen and shield-bearers they were, followed Germanus, from Byzantium and the regions of Thrace and Illyricum no less, since Justinus and Justinian, his sons, showed great zeal in these matters, for he took them with him as he departed. And he also gathered some from the cavalry rolls, who were stationed in Thrace, with the emperor's permission. and many barbarians, who dwelt about the Ister river, coming because of the fame of Germanus and

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εἴασε φυλακῆς ἕνεκα, ὅπως δὴ οἱ πολέμιοι μηδὲν μὲν τοῦ λοιποῦ ἐσκομίζωνται, ἀπορίᾳ δὲ τῶν ἀναγκαίων σφᾶς τε αὐτοὺς καὶ τὸ φρούριον Γότθοις ἐνδώσουσιν· αὐτὸς δὲ τῷ ἄλλῳ στρατῷ ἐς Σικελίαν διαπορθμευσάμενος τῷ Μεσηνῶν 7.39.3 προσέβαλε τείχει. καί οἱ ∆ομνεντίολος ὁ Βούζου ἀδελφιδοῦς, ὅσπερ τῶν τῇδε Ῥωμαίων ἦρχεν, ὑπαντιάσας τε πρὸ τοῦ περιβόλου καὶ ἐς χεῖρας ἐλθὼν οὐκ 7.39.4 ἔλασσον ἔσχεν. αὖθις δὲ ἐν τῇ πόλει γενόμενος φυλακῆς τε τῆς ἐνταῦθα ἐπιμελούμενος ἡσυχίαν ἦγε. Γότθοι δὲ, μηδενὸς σφίσιν ἐπεξιόντος, ἐληΐσαντο Σικελίαν 7.39.5 σχεδόν τι ὅλην. Ῥωμαῖοι δὲ οἱ ἐν Ῥηγίῳ πολιορκούμενοι, ὧν δὴ Θουριμούθ τε καὶ Ἱμέριος ἦρχον, ὥσπερ μοι εἴρηται, τὰ γὰρ ἀναγκαῖα σφᾶς παντάπασιν ἐπελελοίπει, αὑτούς τε καὶ τὸ φρούριον ὁμολογίᾳ τοῖς πολεμίοις ἐνέδοσαν. 7.39.6 Ἅπερ ἐπεὶ βασιλεὺς ἤκουσε, στόλον τε ἀγείρας νηῶν καὶ στράτευμα λόγου ἄξιον ἐκ καταλόγων πεζῶν ἐν τῷ στόλῳ τούτῳ ἐνθέμενος, ἄρχοντά τε Λιβέριον αὐτοῖς ἐπιστήσας, πλεῖν κατὰ τάχος ἐπὶ Σικελίας ἐκέλευσε, καὶ τὴν νῆσον διασώσασθαι δυνάμει τῇ πάσῃ. 7.39.7 ἀλλά οἱ ἄρχοντα τοῦ στόλου καταστησαμένῳ Λιβέριον αὐτίκα δὴ μάλα μετέμελεν. ἦν γὰρ ἐσχατογέρων τε ὁ 7.39.8 ἀνὴρ μάλιστα καὶ ἀμελέτητος πολεμίων ἔργων. Ἀρταβάνῃ τε ἀφεὶς τὰ ἐς αὐτὸν ἐγκλήματα πάντα καὶ στρατηγὸν καταλόγων τῶν ἐπὶ Θρᾴκης καταστησάμενος ἐς Σικελίαν εὐθὺς ἔπεμψε, στράτευμα μὲν οὐ πολὺ παρασχόμενος, ἐπιστείλας δὲ τὸν ξὺν τῷ Λιβερίῳ παραλαβεῖν στόλον, ἐπεὶ Λιβέριον ἐς Βυζάντιον μετεπέμ7.39.9 πετο. αὐτοκράτορα δὲ τοῦ πρὸς Τουτίλαν τε καὶ Γότθους πολέμου Γερμανὸν κατεστήσατο τὸν αὑτοῦ ἀνεψιόν. ᾧ δὴ στράτευμα μὲν οὐ πολὺ ἔδωκε, χρήματα δὲ λόγου ἄξια παρασχόμενος στρατιὰν ἐπέστελλεν ἔκ τε Θρᾳκῶν καὶ Ἰλλυριῶν ἀξιολογωτάτην ἀγείραντι οὕτω δὴ στέλλεσθαι σπουδῇ ἐς τὴν Ἰταλίαν 7.39.10 πολλῇ. καί οἱ Φιλημούθ τε τὸν Ἔρουλον ξὺν τοῖς ἑπομένοις καὶ Ἰωάννην τὸν αὐτοῦ μὲν Γερμανοῦ κηδεστὴν, Βιταλιανοῦ δὲ ἀδελφιδοῦν (στρατηγὸς γὰρ ὢν τῶν ἐν Ἰλλυριοῖς καταλόγων διατριβὴν ἐνταῦθα εἶχε) ξὺν αὑτῷ ἐς τὴν Ἰταλίαν ἐπαγαγέσθαι ἐπήγγελλε. 7.39.11 Τότε δὴ Γερμανὸν φιλοτιμία πολλή τις ἔσχε, Γότθων τὴν ἐπικράτησιν ἀναδήσασθαι, ὅπως οἱ Λιβύην τε καὶ Ἰταλίαν ἀνασώσασθαι περιέσται τῇ Ῥωμαίων 7.39.12 ἀρχῇ. Στότζα γὰρ τετυραννηκότος ἔν γε Λιβύῃ τὰ πρότερα καὶ τὸ Λιβύης κράτος βεβαιότατα ἤδη ἔχοντος αὐτὸς ἐκ βασιλέως σταλεὶς καὶ μάχῃ τοὺς στασιώτας παρὰ δόξαν νικήσας τήν τε τυραννίδα κατέπαυσε καὶ Λιβύην αὖθις ἀνεσώσατο τῇ Ῥωμαίων ἀρχῇ, ὥσπερ 7.39.13 μοι ἐν τοῖς ἔμπροσθεν λόγοις ἐρρήθη. καὶ νῦν δὲ τῶν Ἰταλίας πραγμάτων ἐς τοῦτο τύχης ἐληλακότων, ἐς ὅ μοι ἔναγχος δεδιήγηται, μέγα δὴ ἐνθένδε περιβαλέσθαι κλέος ἐβούλετο ἅτε δὴ καὶ αὐτὴν ἰσχύσας 7.39.14 βασιλεῖ ἀνασώσασθαι. καὶ πρῶτα μὲν (ἐτετελευτήκει γάρ οἱ πολλῷ πρότερον ἡ γυνὴ Πασσάρα ὄνομα) Ματασοῦνθαν ἐν γαμετῆς ἐποιήσατο λόγῳ, τὴν Ἀμαλασούνθης τῆς Θευδερίχου θυγατρὸς παῖδα, Οὐιττίγιδος 7.39.15 ἤδη ἐξ ἀνθρώπων ἀφανισθέντος. ἤλπιζε γὰρ, ἢν ξὺν αὐτῷ ἐν τῷ στρατοπέδῳ ἡ γυνὴ εἴη, αἰσχύνεσθαι, ὡς τὸ εἰκὸς, Γότθους ὅπλα ἐπ' αὐτὴν ἀνελέσθαι, ἀναμνησθέντας τῆς Θευδερίχου τε καὶ Ἀταλαρίχου ἀρχῆς. 7.39.16 ἔπειτα δὲ χρήματα μεγάλα τὰ μὲν ἐκ βασιλέως, τὰ δὲ πλείω οἴκοθεν οὐδεμιᾷ φειδοῖ προϊέμενος στρατιὰν ἐκ τοῦ ἀπροσδοκήτου πολλὴν ἀνδρῶν μαχιμωτάτων ἀγεῖραι 7.39.17 δι' ὀλίγου εὐπετῶς ἴσχυσε. Ῥωμαῖοί τε γὰρ, ἄνδρες ἀγαθοὶ τὰ πολέμια, τῶν ἀρχόντων πολλοὺς, ὧν δὴ δορυφόροι τε καὶ ὑπασπισταὶ ἦσαν, ἐν ὀλιγωρίᾳ πεποιημένοι, Γερμανῷ εἵποντο, ἔκ τε Βυζαντίου καὶ τῶν ἐπὶ Θρᾴκης χωρίων καὶ Ἰλλυριῶν οὐδέν τι ἧσσον, Ἰουστίνου τε καὶ Ἰουστινιανοῦ, τῶν αὐτοῦ παίδων, πολλὴν ἐνδειξαμένων περὶ ταῦτα σπουδὴν, ἐπεὶ καὶ 7.39.18 αὐτοὺς ἐπαγαγόμενος ἀπιὼν ᾤχετο. τινὰς δὲ καὶ ἐκ καταλόγων ἱππικῶν, οἳ ἐπὶ τῆς Θρᾴκης ἵδρυντο, δόντος 7.39.19 βασιλέως ξυνέλεξε. καὶ βάρβαροι πολλοὶ, οἵπερ ἀμφὶ ποταμὸν Ἴστρον διατριβὴν εἶχον, κατὰ κλέος τοῦ Γερμανοῦ ἥκοντες καὶ