399
fitting, that it had once been under them, with twelve triremes, they came to Smyrna, which had previously been held by the Latins. And it seemed good to the patriarch that he should go out to the church in Smyrna, in which the metropolis had long been, to perform the divine liturgy, and he ordered the army to arm itself and follow. But Martinus and the other 2.583 admirals prevented him, asserting that he was daring a risky venture. But when he was not persuaded, they followed out of necessity. And as he came to the church and was performing the divine liturgy, Amor came upon him with his army. And the rest of the army of the Latins was saved, having withdrawn to the fortress which they held, when they saw the Persians advancing; but the patriarch, wearing the sacred vestments, was slain by the Persians, as were Martinus and a few others of the nobles. And in these times some thirty-two of the Genoese nobles, having manned triremes at their own expense, sailed against Chios and besieged it for no little time, and they made many strong assaults on the walls and brought up siege engines. But they accomplished little or nothing from such things. For the Chians stoutly defended themselves against the Latins, but being pressed by want and starving, since they received no aid from the Romans, they went over to the Latins and surrendered the city out of necessity. The empress was terribly distressed that Chios was being besieged, but she could not help; for she did not have sufficient funds against so great a force to equip a fleet equal to that of the Latins, nor did she have anyone who could manage affairs well and properly; for all the notable men among the Romans were locked up in prisons. Nevertheless, the archons, having armed a few 2.584 triremes, sent Phakeolatos, at that time a co-ruler with the others, for he was married to the sister of the wife of Kinnamos the mystikos, not to oppose the Latins; for he was far from a match for their power; but to see if he could somehow bring grain into Chios. But when Phakeolatos, on landing, learned that Chios had been captured, he turned back at once; and encountering a large transport ship from Genoa, he defeated it in battle and killed not a few of the Latins who fought, and plundered their goods. And when their countrymen in Galata learned of this, they wrote a decree that Phakeolatos should be killed by whoever might meet him, and that no one should be tried for murder, and their enmity toward him remained until his death. And the empress, when she saw that only the city of Constantine was left to her, for almost all the others had gone over to the emperor Kantakouzenos, sent an embassy to a certain Balikas, ruler of Karvuna, asking for help. And he gladly received the embassy and sent his brothers Theodore and Dobrotitsa, leading a thousand picked soldiers, as allies to the empress, who, passing through the coastal cities along the Pontus, persuaded them to revolt from the emperor and join the empress; for they hoped they would achieve something great. And the empress received the men with great goodwill and honor, and she married the daughter of Apokaukos the grand duke to Dobrotitsa, and appointed him general 2.585 of the Roman army. And he, having his own forces and those of the Romans, marched against the Selymbrians, while the emperor was residing at Didymoteichon. But Phakrases the protostrator, who had been left in Selymbria by the emperor with an army, and having the Selymbrians with him, went out and engaged Dobrotitsa's forces and was completely victorious. For Dobrotitsa, being unfamiliar with the terrain, commanded badly, leading his cavalry into ditches and narrow places and vineyards; whence being defeated, a few died in the battle, but many were captured, with few being able to escape. Of these, they bound the most distinguished and held them under guard; the others they stripped and released. Dobrotitsa himself also came close to being captured, but being able to escape, he returned in shame. But after that defeat, Dobrotitsa remained in Byzantium, already having a wife
399
προσηκούσης, ὅτι ὑπ' αὐτοῖς ἐγένετό ποτε, ἅμα δυοκαίδεκα τριήρεσιν, ἦλθον εἰς τὴν Σμύρνην, καὶ πρότερον ὑπὸ τῶν Λατίνων κατεχομένην. πατριάρχῃ δὲ ἐδόκει δεῖν εἰς τὸν κατὰ Σμύρναν ἐξελθόντα ναὸν, ἐν ᾧ πάλαι ἡ μητρόπολις ἦν, τὴν θείαν μυσταγωγίαν ἐκτελέσαι, καὶ ἐκέλευε τὴν στρατιὰν ὁπλισαμένην ἕπεσθαι. Μαρτῖνος δὲ ἐκώλυε καὶ οἱ ἄλλοι τῶν 2.583 ναυάρχων, διακεκινδυνευμένα τολμᾷν ἰσχυριζόμενοι. ἐπεὶ δὲ οὐκ ἐπείθετο, εἵποντο ἀνάγκῃ. καὶ γενομένῳ πρὸς τὸν ναὸν καὶ τὴν μυσταγωγίαν τὴν θείαν ἐκτελοῦντι ἐπῆλθεν Ἀμοὺρ μετὰ τῆς στρατιᾶς. καὶ τὸ μὲν ἄλλο στράτευμα τῶν Λατίνων διεσώθη ἀναχωρῆσαν πρὸς τὸ φρούριον, ὃ κατεῖχον, ἐπεὶ τοὺς Πέρσας εἶδον ἐπιόντας· πατριάρχης δὲ τὴν ἱερὰν στολὴν ἐνδεδυμένος ἀπεσφάγη ὑπὸ τῶν Περσῶν καὶ Μαρτῖνος καὶ ἄλλοι τῶν ἐπιφανῶν ὀλίγοι. ἐν δὲ τοῖς χρόνοις τούτοις καὶ τῶν ἐν Γεννούᾳ εὐγενῶν τινες δύο καὶ τριάκοντα πληρώσαντες οἰκείοις ἀναλώμασι τριήρεις ἐπέπλευσαν τῇ Χίῳ καὶ ἐπολιόρκησαν χρόνον οὐκ ὀλίγον, καὶ τειχομαχίας τε πολλὰς ἐποιήσαντο καὶ καρτερὰς καὶ μηχανήματα προσῆγον. ἤνυον δὲ ἀπὸ τῶν τοιούτων ὀλίγα ἢ οὐδέν. οἱ γὰρ Χῖοι ἠμύνοντο τοὺς Λατίνους καρτερῶς, ἐνδείᾳ δὲ πιεσθέντες καὶ λιμώξαντες, ἐπεὶ ἐπικουρίας οὐδεμιᾶς ἐτύγχανον παρὰ Ῥωμαίων, προσεχώρουν τοῖς Λατίνοις καὶ παρέδοσαν τὴν πόλιν ὑπ' ἀνάγκης. ἡ βασιλὶς δὲ ἠνιᾶτο μὲν δεινῶς, τῆς Χίου πολιορκουμένης, βοηθεῖν δὲ οὐκ εἶχε· χρημάτων τε γὰρ οὐκ εὐπόρει πρὸς τοσαύτην δύναμιν, ὥστε στόλον ἀντίῤῥοπον τῷ Λατίνων ἐξαρτύειν, καὶ τὸν διοικήσοντα καλῶς καὶ ὡς προσῆκε τὰ πράγματα οὐκ εἶχε· πάντες γὰρ, ὅσοι ἦσαν ἀξιόλογοι Ῥωμαίων, ἐν δεσμωτηρίοις κατεκλείοντο. ὅμως τινὰς ὀλίγους ἐφοπλίσαντες οἱ ἄρχοντες 2.584 τριήρεις, Φακεωλάτον ἔπεμψαν συνάρχοντα τότε τοῖς ἄλλοις, ἦν γὰρ Κιννάμου τοῦ μυστικοῦ συνοικῶν ἀδελφῇ τῆς γυναικὸς, οὐχ ὥστε ἀντιτάττεσθαι Λατίνοις· οὐκ ὀλίγου γὰρ ἀπέδει πρὸς τὴν ἐκείνων δύναμιν· ἀλλ' εἰ δύναιτο τρόπῳ δή τινι σῖτον εἰσάγειν εἰς τὴν Χίον. Φακεωλάτος δὲ ἐπεὶ καταπλέων ἐπύθετο τὴν Χίον ἑαλωκυῖαν, ἀνέστρεφεν εὐθύς· καὶ ὁλκάδι ἐκ Γεννούας περιτυχὼν μεγάλῃ ἐκράτησε μάχῃ καὶ ἀπέκτεινεν οὐκ ὀλίγους τῶν Λατίνων μαχομένους καὶ διήρπασε τὰ χρήματα. πυθόμενοι δὲ οἱ ἐν Γαλατᾷ ὁμόφυλοι ψήφισμα ἔγραψαν ἀποκτιννύναι Φακεωλάτον, οἷ ἄν τις συντύχοι, καὶ μηδένα κρίνειν φόνου, καὶ διέμεινεν αὐτοῖς ἡ πρὸς ἐκεῖνον ἔχθρα ἄχρι τελευτῆς. βασιλὶς δὲ ἐπεὶ ἑώρα μόνην τὴν Κωνσταντίνου πόλιν αὐτῇ περιλειπομένην, αἱ γὰρ ἄλλαι σχεδὸν πᾶσαι προσεχώρησαν βασιλεῖ τῷ Καντακουζηνῷ, πρὸς Μπαλίκαν τινὰ τοῦ Καρβωνᾶ ἄρχοντα πέμψασα πρεσβείαν ἐδεῖτο βοηθεῖν. ὁ δὲ ἀσμένως τε ἐδέξατο τὴν πρεσβείαν καὶ Θεόδωρον καὶ Τομπροτίτζαν τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς, χιλίους στρατιώτας ἄγοντας ἐπιλέκτους, κατὰ συμμαχίαν ἔπεμπε τῇ βασιλίδι, οἳ καὶ τὰς κατὰ τὸν Πόντον παραθαλασσίους πόλεις διιόντες ἔπεισαν ἀποστῆναι βασιλέως καὶ τῇ βασιλίδι προσχωρεῖν· ἤλπισαν γὰρ αὐτούς τι μέγα κατορθώσειν. καὶ ἡ βασιλὶς ἐδέξατο τοὺς ἄνδρας μετὰ πολλῆς τῆς εὐμενείας καὶ τιμῆς, καὶ τήν τε Ἀποκαύκου τοῦ μεγάλου δουκὸς θυγατέρα συνῴκισε τῷ Τομπροτίτζᾳ, καὶ στρατηγὸν ἀπέδειξε 2.585 τῆς Ῥωμαίων στρατιᾶς. ὁ δὲ τήν τε οἰκείαν ἔχων καὶ τὴν Ῥωμαίων ἐπεστράτευσε Σηλυμβριανοῖς, βασιλέως ∆ιδυμοτείχῳ ἐνδιατρίβοντος. Φακρασὴς δὲ ὁ πρωτοστράτωρ ὑπὸ βασιλέως ἐν Σηλυμβρίᾳ καταλελειμμένος μετὰ στρατιᾶς, ἔχων καὶ τοὺς Σηλυμβριανοὺς, συνεπλέκετο τοῖς περὶ Τομπροτίτζαν ἐξελθὼν καὶ ἐνίκα κατὰ κράτος. ἄπειρος γὰρ ὢν ὁ Τομπροτίτζας τῶν χωρίων ἐστρατήγησε κακῶς, εἰς τάφρους καὶ στενοχωρίας καὶ ἀμπέλους τοὺς ἱππέας ἐμβαλών· ὅθεν ἡττηθέντες ὀλίγοι μὲν ἀπέθανον κατὰ τὴν μάχην, ἑάλωσαν δὲ πολλοὶ ὀλίγων, διαδρᾶναι δυνηθέντων. ὧν τοὺς ἐπιφανεστέρους δήσαντες εἶχον ἐν φρουραῖς· τοὺς δ' ἄλλους ἀποδύσαντες ἀπέλυον. ἦλθε δὲ καὶ ὁ Τομπροτίτζας ἐγγὺς ἁλῶναι, ὅμως διαδρᾶναι δυνηθεὶς ἀνέστρεφε κατῃσχυμμένος. μετὰ τὴν ἧτταν δὲ ἐκείνην Τομπροτίτζας μὲν ὑπελείπετο ἐν Βυζαντίῳ ἤδη γυναῖκα