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he manned the country. And having become the cause of great goods for them, 2.127 he was especially beloved by the ruler of the Saracens and by their senate.

Learning these things, Theophilos, as was likely, was annoyed, and moved every stone so that he might recall the man. Therefore he sends out a cross and a golden bull by means of a certain vagrant monk to Manuel, summoning him to return and granting him through them all amnesty for his misdeeds. Having brought these, the one who received them secretly places them in the hands of Manuel. And having received them, and as if his soul was kindled, and now also having been trusted because of his former deeds, he reports to the ruler of the Saracens that he harbors a desire both to campaign against the Romans and to avenge himself on the enemies who slandered him to the emperor, who inhabit Cappadocia. He asked that his son also be sent out with him for a greater removal of suspicion. Ismael consented to the requests, and gives him permission to campaign. But when he approached the Roman borders, he makes known his situation to the strategos of Cappadocia and his subsequent return to Romania, and at the same time he was instructing that it was necessary for an ambush and a trap to be set at a certain place, "so that when," he says, "I get there, I will cause the Saracen scouts to ride out to some other place, but I myself will run back to the Roman territories." Which also happened. For as they approached the appointed place according to the agreement, having embraced the son of Ismael many times, he said, "Go in health, child, to your father; but I will go away to my emperor 2.128 and lord." Having been saved from there, he meets the emperor in the reigning city at the church of the Theotokos in Blachernae, and he is honored by him as magistros and from then on is called his god-son. And so the affairs concerning Manuel turned out this way; but of Theodotos the Melissenos, whom the account has made known from above was also called Kassiteras, who had held the throne of Constantinople for a sufficient time, but had just now ended his life, Theophilos' tutor, John, succeeds to his throne, having received the priesthood as a prize for faithlessness and impiety. And when the emperor Theophilos was diligently inquiring about these things, who would rule after him, a certain woman, taken from the Hagarenes during one of the preceding wars, being naturally gifted concerning such prophecies, was brought before the emperor. So the emperor asked what he wanted, and ordered her to declare whose succession to the empire would be long. And this woman, whether moved by divine inspiration or by demonic energy, "Your successor," she said, "O emperor, will be your son together with his own mother, and after him the family of the Martinakioi will long endure in the empire." And he, at the same time as her word, tonsured Martinakes as a monk, although he was beloved by him, and he designated his house a dwelling for monks. And not only this did the said woman prophesy, but also many other future things; for 2.129 she announced that the patriarch John would be expelled from the patriarchal throne, and that the holy icons would receive their fitting honor and veneration. At which Theophilos, having become greatly grieved, often beseeched the empress and the logothete of the drome, Theoktistos, and bound them with most fearful oaths that after his own death they should neither remove John from the patriarchate nor endure to see the veneration of the idols. And not only did the woman prophesy these things, but also John through lecanomancy clearly showed him who was going to succeed to the rule. The woman did not solve the inquiries for the emperor alone, but also to Constantine, who was then very powerful among the Triphyllioi, she made clear what would happen, saying that both he and his sons were going to be deprived of their property and to put on the habit of clerics; which also happened after these things, when Basil was directing the rule. And she also foretold

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τὴν χώραν ἠνδρίσατο. καὶ μεγάλων αἴτιος αὐτοῖς καλῶν γεγονὼς αὐτῷ τε 2.127 ἠγαπήθη διαφερόντως τῷ ἄρχοντι τῶν Σαρακηνῶν καὶ τῇ γερουσίᾳ αὐτῶν.

Ταῦτα μανθάνων ὁ Θεόφιλος, ὡς εἰκὸς ἦν, ἠνιᾶτο, καὶ πάντα λίθον ἐκίνει ὡς ἂν τὸν ἄνδρα μετακαλέσοιτο. διὸ καὶ σταυρὸν καὶ χρυσόβουλλον διά τινος ἀγύρτου μοναχοῦ ἐκπέμπει τῷ Μανουήλ, ἐκκαλούμενος ἐπαναστρέψαι καὶ πᾶσαν ἀμνηστίαν κακῶν αὐτῷ χαριζόμενος δι' αὐτῶν. ἃ δὴ κομίσας ὁ εἰληφὼς εἰς χεῖρας λαθὼν τίθησι τοῦ Μανουήλ. καὶ δεξάμενος οὗτος, καὶ οἱονεὶ τὴν ψυχὴν ἐκκαυθείς, ἤδη δὲ καὶ πιστευσάμενος ἐκ τῶν προτέρων ἔργων, μηνύει τῷ ἄρχοντι τῶν Σαρακηνῶν ὡς πόθον τρέφει καὶ κατὰ Ῥωμαίων στρατεῦσαι καὶ τοὺς ἐχθροὺς ἀμύνασθαι οἳ κατεῖπον αὐτοῦ πρὸς τὸν βασιλέα, τὴν Καππαδοκίαν οἰκοῦντας. συνεκπεμφθῆναι δὲ αὐτῷ ἠξίου καὶ τὸν τούτου υἱὸν εἰς πλείονα τῆς ὑπονοίας ἀναίρεσιν. κατένευσε τοῖς αἰτηθεῖσιν ὁ Ἰσμαήλ, καὶ δίδωσιν αὐτῷ τοῦ ἐκστρατεύειν ἄδειαν. ὡς δὲ ἤγγισε τοῖς Ῥωμαίων ὁρίοις, δῆλα ποιεῖ τὰ κατ' αὐτὸν τῷ τῆς Καππαδοκίας στρατηγῷ καὶ τὴν ἐσαῦθις ἐς Ῥωμανίαν ἐπάνοδον, καὶ ἅμα ἐδί δασκεν ὡς δεῖ κατὰ τὸν δεῖνα τόπον λόχον καὶ ἐνέδραν γενέσθαι, "ἵν' ὅταν ἐκεῖσε" φησί "γένωμαι, τοὺς μὲν Σαρακηνῶν προδρό μους ἐπ' ἄλλον τινὰ τόπον ἐξελαύνειν ποιήσω, αὐτὸς δὲ πρὸς τὰ Ῥωμαίων ἤθη ἀναδραμοῦμαι." ὃ καὶ γέγονεν. ὡς γὰρ κατὰ τὸ σύνθημα τῷ ὁρισθέντι ἐπλησίαζον τόπῳ, πολλὰ τὸν τοῦ Ἰσμαὴλ υἱὸν κατασπασάμενος "σὺ μὲν ὑγιὴς" ἔφη "ἄπιθι, τέκνον, πρὸς τὸν σὸν πατέρα· ἐγὼ δὲ ἀπελεύσομαι πρὸς τὸν ἐμὸν βασιλέα 2.128 καὶ κύριον." διασωθεὶς δ' ἐκεῖθεν πρὸς τὴν βασιλεύουσαν ἐν τυγχάνει τῷ βασιλεῖ κατὰ τὸν ἐν Βλαχέρναις τῆς θεοτόκου ναόν, καὶ μάγιστρος παρ' αὐτοῦ τιμᾶται καὶ σύντεκνος ἔκτοτε χρηματίζει αὐτῷ. καὶ τὰ μὲν περὶ τοῦ Μανουὴλ ἔσχεν οὕτως· Θεοδότου δὲ τοῦ Μελισσηνοῦ, ὃν καὶ Κασσιτηρᾶν προσαγορεύεσθαι ὁ λόγος ἐγνώρισεν ἄνωθεν, ἐφ' ἱκανὸν τὸν τῆς Κωνσταντινουπόλεως θρό νον κατεσχηκότος, ἄρτι δὲ καταλύσαντος τὸν βίον, ὁ τοῦ Θεο φίλου παιδαγωγὸς Ἰαννὴς τὸν ἐκείνου διαδέχεται θρόνον, ἆθλον τὴν ἱερωσύνην λαβὼν ἀπιστίας καὶ ἀσεβείας. Ζητοῦντι δὲ τῷ βασιλεῖ Θεοφίλῳ ἐπιστατικῶς περὶ τούτων οἵτινες ἄρξουσι μετ' αὐτόν, γύναιόν τι ληφθὲν ἐκ τῶν Ἀγαρηνῶν κατά τινα τῶν προηγησαμένων πολέμων, εὐφυῶς ἔχον περὶ τὰς τοιαύτας προρρήσεις, παρέστη τῷ βασιλεῖ. ἤρετο οὖν ὁ βασι λεὺς ἃ δὴ καὶ ἐβούλετο, καὶ τίνων μακρὰν ἔσεσθαι τὴν διαδοχὴν τῆς βασιλείας ἀνειπεῖν προσέταττε. τοῦτο δὲ τὸ γύναιον, εἴτε ἐξ ἐνθουσιασμοῦ εἴτε καὶ ἐκ δαιμονικῆς ἐνεργείας κινούμενον, "σοῦ μὲν" ἔφη "ὦ βασιλεῦ διάδοχος ἔσται ὁ σὸς υἱὸς συνάμα τῇ ἰδίᾳ μητρί, μετὰ δὲ τοῦτον τὸ τῶν Μαρτινακίων γένος διαρκέσει ἐπὶ πολὺ τῇ βασιλείᾳ." ὁ δὲ ἅμα τῷ λόγῳ τὸν Μαρτινάκην, καίτοι στεργόμενον αὐτῷ, ἀπέκειρε μοναχόν, καὶ τὸν αὐτοῦ οἶκον κατα γώγιον ἀπέδειξε μοναστῶν. οὐ τοῦτο δὲ μόνον τὸ ῥηθὲν γύναιον, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἄλλα πολλὰ τῶν μελλόντων προεθέσπισε· τόν τε γὰρ 2.129 πατριάρχην Ἰαννῆν ἐκπεσεῖσθαι τοῦ πατριαρχικοῦ θρόνου προήγ γειλε, καὶ τὰς σεπτὰς εἰκόνας τὴν προσήκουσαν τιμὴν καὶ προσκύ νησιν δέξεσθαι. ἐφ' οἷς περιώδυνος γενόμενος ὁ Θεόφιλος παρε κάλει πολλάκις τὴν δέσποιναν καὶ τὸν τοῦ δρόμου λογοθέτην Θεόκτιστον, καὶ ὅρκοις κατεδέσμει φρικωδεστάτοις μετὰ τὸν ἑαυτοῦ θάνατον μήτε τὸν Ἰαννῆν μεταστῆσαι τοῦ πατριαρχείου μήτε τὴν προσκύνησιν τῶν εἰδώλων ἰδεῖν ἀνασχέσθαι. οὐ τὸ γύναιον δὲ μόνον προεφήτευε ταῦτα, ἀλλὰ καὶ Ἰαννῆς διὰ λεκανομαντείας καθαρῶς ἀπέδειξεν αὐτῷ τὸν μέλλοντα τὴν ἀρχὴν διαδέξασθαι. οὐ τῷ βασιλεῖ δὲ μόνῳ τὸ γύναιον τὰς πεύσεις διέλυσεν, ἀλλὰ καὶ Κωνσταντίνῳ τῷ κατὰ τοὺς Τριφυλλίους μέγα δυναμένῳ τῷ τότε τὰ συμβησόμενα διετράνωσεν, αὐτόν τε καὶ τοὺς υἱοὺς μέλλειν εἰπὸν ὑπάρξεώς τε στερηθῆναι καὶ τὸ τῶν κληρικῶν ἀμφιάσασθαι σχῆμα· ὃ καὶ γέγονε μετὰ ταῦτα, τοῦ Βασιλείου τὴν ἀρχὴν διιθύνοντος. προεῖπε δὲ καὶ