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and in Dalmatia and of the Scythians situated beyond these—I mean the Croats and Serbs and Zachlouboi and Terbouniotes and Kanalites and Diokletians and Rentanoi—had revolted from the Roman dominion of old and become autonomous, the Agarenes from Carthage also joined the attack in due course. And having appointed as leaders Soldan and Saba and Kalphous, who were acknowledged to excel their countrymen in military experience, they sent a fleet of thirty-six warships against Dalmatia, by which various cities of the Dalmatians were captured, such as Boutama, Rosa, and lower Dekatera. And as matters were proceeding according to the mind of the Agarenes, they came also against the metropolis of the whole nation, which is called Rhaousion, and they besieged it for a long time, while those within fought fiercely. But since the people of Rhaousion, suffering for some time, were driven to the last extremities of want, being straitened by necessity, they sent envoys to the emperor, begging him to aid those in danger of becoming subject to the deniers of Christ. But before the envoys had yet arrived, the emperor Michael died, and the envoys came upon Basil. Having listened to them carefully and being wholly moved by their suffering, he equipped a fleet of one hundred ships and appointed over them a man who surpassed most in experience and intelligence, the patrician Niketas and droungarios of the fleet, Ooryphas by name, and sent him out against the enemy. But the Agarenes who were persisting in the siege of Rhaousion, having learned from some deserters of the embassy of the people of Rhaousion to the emperor, and despairing of a quick capture, and also fearing the assistance about to arrive from the emperor, they raised the siege; and having crossed over to Italy, which is now named Langobardia, they sacked the fortress of Bari and encamped there, and attacking the neighboring places each day and always acquiring something more, they gained control of all Langobardia up to the once most-glorious Rome itself. When the aforementioned races of the Scythians, both the Croats and Serbs and the rest, saw what had been done in Dalmatia by the Roman assistance, they sent envoys to the emperor, asking to come under the yoke of Roman authority. The emperor, having heeded their reasonable request, received them kindly, and they all returned to Roman rule, receiving rulers of their own and of the same race. But as the Agarenes who had besieged Rhaousion were still running through Italy and continually devastating it, the emperor, considering how he might get rid of them, since he knew that the fleet with Ooryphas was not a match for them, sent an embassy to Dolichos, the king of Francia, and to the Pope of Rome, requesting that they assist his own forces and with them draw up for battle against the godless, and ordering the aforementioned lands of the Sclavenes and the inhabitants of Rhaousion to take part in the work. When all these things had come together and a great force had been assembled, since the Roman admiral was also adorned with strategic experience, Bari was quickly captured. The ruler of Francia took Soldan and the people of the Agarenes under him captive and led them away to his home. And the first campaign in the west for Basil received such an end. But Soldan, taken captive, as was said, by the king and brought to Capua, having spent a full two years there was never seen by anyone to laugh. The king announced a gift of gold to whoever could make him laugh openly. So someone once reported to the king that he had seen Soldan laughing, and he provided witnesses for this. The king summoned him and inquired about the change to laughter. But he said, "a wagon, having seen, and the

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καὶ ∆αλματίᾳ καὶ τῶν ἐπέκεινα τούτων διακει μένων Σκυθῶν, Χρωβάτων φημὶ καὶ Σέρβων καὶ Ζαχλούβων 2.219 Τερβουνιωτῶν τε καὶ Καναλιτῶν καὶ ∆ιοκλητιανῶν καὶ Ῥεντανῶν, τῆς ἀνέκαθεν Ῥωμαίων ἐπικρατείας ἀφηνιασάντων καὶ αὐτονόμων καθεστηκότων, συνεπέθεντο μετὰ τοῦ καιροῦ καὶ οἱ ἀπὸ Καρχη δόνος Ἀγαρηνοί. καὶ ἄρχοντας ἐπιστήσαντες τόν τε Σολδάνον καὶ Σάβαν καὶ τὸν Καλφούς, ἐμπειρίᾳ πολεμικῇ διαφέρειν μεμαρ τυρημένους τῶν ὁμοφύλων, ἓξ καὶ τριάκοντα πλοίων πολεμικῶν κατὰ ∆αλματίας στόλον ἀπέστειλαν, ὑφ' οὗ διάφοροι πόλεις ἑά λωσαν ∆αλματῶν, οἷον ἥτε Βούταμα, ἡ Ῥῶσα καὶ τὰ κάτω ∆ε κάταρα. προχωρούντων δὲ κατὰ νοῦν τῶν πραγμάτων τοῖς Ἀγα ρηνοῖς, ἦλθον καὶ ὑπὸ τὴν τοῦ ὅλου ἔθνους μητρόπολιν ἣ Ῥαού σιον λέγεται, καὶ ταύτην ἐπὶ χρόνον ἐπολιόρκουν πολύν, ἐκθύμως τῶν ἔνδον ἀγωνιζομένων. ἐπεὶ δὲ χρόνον ταλαιπωρούμενοι οἱ Ῥαούσιοι εἰς τὰς ἐσχάτας συνηλαύνοντο ἀπορίας, πέμπουσι πρέσ βεις ἐς βασιλέα ὑπὸ τῆς ἀνάγκης στενοχωρούμενοι, ἐπαμῦναι παρακαλοῦντες τοῖς κινδυνεύουσιν ὑποχειρίοις γενέσθαι τῶν ἀρνη τῶν τοῦ Χριστοῦ. μήπω δὲ τῶν πρέσβεων ἀφικομένων Μιχαὴλ μὲν ὁ βασιλεὺς θνήσκει, καταλαμβάνουσι δὲ τὸν Βασίλειον οἱ πρεσβευταί. ὧν ἐπιμελῶς ἀκροασάμενος καὶ ὅλος τοῦ πάθους γενόμενος, στόλον ἐξαρτυσάμενος νεῶν ἑκατὸν καὶ ἄνδρα τούτοις ἐπιστήσας ἐμπειρίᾳ καὶ συνέσει τῶν πολλῶν διαφέροντα τὸν πα τρίκιον Νικήταν καὶ δρουγγάριον τῶν πλωΐμων τὸν τὴν ἐπωνυ μίαν Ὠορύφαν, κατὰ τῶν πολεμίων ἐκπέμπει. οἱ δὲ τῇ πολιορκίᾳ τοῦ Ῥαουσίου προσμένοντες Ἀγαρηνοὶ διά τινων αὐτομόλων μα 2.220 θόντες τὴν πρὸς τὸν βασιλέα τῶν Ῥαουσίων πρεσβείαν, ἀπεγνω κότες δὲ καὶ τὴν σύντομον ἅλωσιν, τοῦτο δὲ καὶ τὴν ἐκ βασιλέως φοβηθέντες ἀφίξεσθαι μέλλουσαν βοήθειαν, λύουσι τὴν πολιορ κίαν, κατὰ δὲ τὴν Ἰταλίαν, ἣ νῦν Λαγγοβαρδία ὠνόμασται, δια περάσαντες τὸ κάστρον τῆς Βάρεως ἐξεπόρθησαν καὶ αὐτόθι κα τασκηνώσαντες, καὶ τοῖς ἐγγίζουσι καθ' ἑκάστην ἐπιτιθέμενοι καὶ ἀεί τι προσλαμβάνοντες, πᾶσαν τὴν Λαγγοβαρδίαν ἄχρι καὶ αὐ τῆς τῆς ποτὲ μεγαλοδόξου Ῥώμης ἐκράτησαν. Τὸ δὲ γενόμενον ἐν ∆αλματίᾳ παρὰ τῆς Ῥωμαϊκῆς ἐπικου ρίας καὶ τὰ προμνημονευθέντα γένη τῶν Σκυθῶν θεασάμενα, οἵ τε Χρωβάτοι καὶ Σέρβοι καὶ οἱ λοιποί, πρέσβεις πρὸς βασιλέα στέλλουσιν ἀξιοῦντες ζεύγλῃ τῆς Ῥωμαϊκῆς ἐξουσίας ὑπεισελθεῖν· ὧν ὡς εὐλόγου τῆς δεήσεως ἐπακούσας ὁ βασιλεὺς φιλανθρώπως αὐτοὺς προσεδέξατο, καὶ πάντες τῇ Ῥωμαϊκῇ ἐπανῆλθον ἀρχῇ, δεξάμενοι ἄρχοντας τῶν οἰκείων καὶ ὁμοφύλων. τῶν δὲ περικαθη μένων Ἀγαρηνῶν τὸ Ῥαούσιον ἔτι περὶ τὴν Ἰταλίαν διατρεχόντων καὶ συνεχῶς κατατριβόντων αὐτήν, φροντίζων ὁ βασιλεὺς ὅπως τούτους ἀποσκευάσηται, ἐπεὶ ἐγίνωσκε μὴ ἀξιόμαχον εἶναι τὸν μετὰ τοῦ Ὠορύφα στόλον, πρὸς ∆ολῖχον τὸν ῥῆγα Φραγγίας καὶ τὸν πάπαν Ῥώμης διαπρεσβεύεται, συνεπικουρῆσαι ταῖς ἑαυ τοῦ δυνάμεσιν ἐξαιτῶν καὶ μετὰ τούτων κατὰ τῶν ἀθέων συμ παρατάξασθαι, καὶ τὰς ὀλίγῳ πρόσθεν μνημονευθείσας χώρας τῶν Σθλαβηνῶν κελεύσας συνεπιλαβέσθαι τοῦ ἔργου καὶ τοὺς τοῦ 2.221 Ῥαουσίου οἰκήτορας. ὧν ὁμοῦ πάντων γεγενημένων καὶ μεγάλης ἀθροισθείσης δυνάμεως, ἐπεὶ καὶ ὁ Ῥωμαίων ναύαρχος ἐμπειρίᾳ στρατηγικῇ ἐκεκόσμητο, θᾶττον ἡ Βάρις ἁλίσκεται. τὸν δὲ Σολ δάνον καὶ τὸν ὑπ' αὐτὸν λαὸν τῶν Ἀγαρηνῶν ὁ ἄρχων Φραγγίας ἀναλαβόμενος αἰχμαλώτους ἐπ' οἶκον ἀπήγαγε. καὶ ἡ μὲν κατὰ τὴν ἑσπέραν πρώτη στρατεία τῷ Βασιλείῳ τοιοῦτον πέρας ἐδέ ξατο. Ὁ δὲ Σολδάνος αἰχμάλωτος, ὡς εἴρηται, παρὰ τοῦ ῥηγὸς ληφθεὶς καὶ ἐν Καπύῃ ἀχθείς, ἐπὶ διετίαν ὅλην ἐνδιατρίψας οὐδέ ποτε παρά τινος ὤφθη γελῶν. ὁ δὲ ῥὴξ τῷ κατάφωρον αὐτὸν γελῶντα πεποιηκότι χρυσίου δόσιν κατεπηγγείλατο. προσήγγειλεν οὖν τίς ποτε τῷ ῥηγὶ γελῶντα τὸν Σολδάνον θεάσασθαι, καὶ τού του παρείχετο μάρτυρας. ὃν καλέσας ὁ ῥὴξ τὴν μεταβολὴν τοῦ γέλωτος ἐπυνθάνετο. ὁ δὲ "ἅμαξαν" φησὶ "κατιδὼν καὶ τοὺς