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his sons, Stephen and Constantine, in the Great Church; and his remaining son Theophylact the patriarch tonsured a cleric, ordaining him subdeacon, and appointing him synkellos, having previously entered the sanctuary with the order of subdeacons. He also honored the mystikos John, the chief minister, with the rank of patrikios 2.307 and proconsul. On the 15th of the month of May, of the 3rd indiction, the patriarch Nicholas died, having held office in his second proclamation for 13 years; and in the month of August, Stephen, the metropolitan of Amaseia, was appointed patriarch. And the mystikos was accused of usurping the imperial power, and at the instigation of the patrikios Kosmas, the logothetes tou dromou, who was betrothing his own daughter to him, he was brought down from the palace. Nevertheless, he was permitted to enter and do obeisance to the emperor; for the emperor, loving him, did not wish to cast him off completely. But as his accusers pressed on and showed the accusation to be clear, the emperor investigated and, finding the things spoken against him to be true, was about to arrest and examine him; but he, foreseeing this, took refuge by flight in the monastery of Monokastanon and was tonsured a monk. And the emperor, having tortured the patrikios and logothetes Kosmas in the Horologion, removed him from his office. And in place of the mystikos John he appointed the protovestiarios Theophanes as chief minister. At that time there was also an earthquake in the theme of the Thrakesians and terrifying chasms in the earth, so that many villages and churches were swallowed up with all their people. And in the month of May, of the 15th indiction, Symeon the ruler of Bulgaria made an invasion against the Croats, and engaging with them and being defeated in the difficult terrain of the mountains, he lost his entire 2.308 army. And a certain astronomer, John, coming to the emperor, said that if he sent and cut off the head of the statue standing on top of the arch in the Xerolophos and facing west, Symeon would die immediately; for such a statue was magically connected to him. And he, persuaded by his words, cut off the head of the statue; and at that very hour, as the emperor learned after making precise inquiries, Symeon died in Bulgaria, seized by a heart attack. When he died, Peter, the son from his second wife, the sister of George Soursouboulos, took over the rule of the Bulgarians, whom Symeon had also appointed as regent for his children; for Michael, the son born from his first wife, Symeon, while still alive, had tonsured a monk. Accordingly, the surrounding nations, the Turks, Serbs, Croats and the rest, having learned of Symeon's death, planned to march against the Bulgarians. And a great famine along with locusts took hold of the Bulgarian nation, severely oppressing and consuming the populace and the crops. Therefore, the Bulgarians feared the assault of the other nations, but they feared even more the advance of the Romans. Therefore Peter, having consulted with those around him, decided it was necessary to campaign against the Romans for the purpose of intimidation. They therefore occupied Macedonia. Then, learning that the emperor would march out against them, Peter the ruler of Bulgaria and George, the regent of Symeon's 2.309 children, secretly sent a certain monk, carrying letters. The letters declared that they wished to make a truce with the Romans, and, if they should choose, also to establish a marriage alliance with them. When he arrived, the emperor received him most gladly and immediately sent by dromon a certain monk Theodosius and the imperial cleric Constantine the Rhodian, to discuss matters of peace with the Bulgarians in Mesembria. Who, having arrived and discussed what was appropriate, returned by land together with a certain Stephen, a man of renown in Bulgaria; and after them came also the regent George Soursouboulos and some others of the notables. And coming into the sight of the emperor, and also having seen the daughter of Christopher the

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αὐτοῦ, Στέφανον καὶ Κωνσταντῖνον, ἐν τῇ μεγάλῃ ἐκκλησίᾳ· τὸν δὲ λοιπὸν υἱὸν αὐτοῦ Θεοφύλακτον ὁ πατριάρχης ἀπέκειρε κληρικόν, χειροτονήσας αὐ τὸν ὑποδιάκονον, προχειρισάμενος καὶ σύγκελλον, πρότερον διελ θόντα εἰς τὰ ἅγια μετὰ τοῦ τάγματος τῶν ὑποδιακόνων. ἐτίμησε δὲ καὶ τὸν μυστικὸν Ἰωάννην καὶ παραδυναστεύοντα πατρίκιον 2.307 καὶ ἀνθύπατον. ιεʹ δὲ Μαΐου μηνός, ἰνδικτιῶνος γʹ, τελευτᾷ ὁ πατριάρχης Νικόλαος, κρατήσας ἐν τῇ δευτέρᾳ ἀναρρήσει ἔτη ιγʹ· καὶ καθίσταται Αὐγούστῳ μηνὶ πατριάρχης ὁ τῆς Ἀμασείας μη τροπολίτης Στέφανος. κατηγορήθη δὲ καὶ ὁ μυστικὸς ὡς τὴν βασιλείαν σφετεριζόμενος, καὶ ὑποθήκῃ τοῦ πατρικίου Κοσμᾶ καὶ λογοθέτου τοῦ δρόμου, μνηστευομένου τοῦτον εἰς τὴν ἑαυτοῦ θυγατέρα, καταβιβάζεται τοῦ παλατίου. συγχωρεῖται δ' ὅμως εἰσέρχεσθαι καὶ προσκυνεῖν τὸν βασιλέα· στέργων γὰρ αὐτὸν ὁ βασιλεὺς τελέως ἀπώσασθαι οὐκ ἐβούλετο. ἐγκειμένων δὲ τῶν κατηγόρων καὶ σαφῆ δεικνύντων τὴν κατηγορίαν, ἐρευνήσας ὁ βα σιλεὺς καὶ ἀληθῆ τὰ κατ' αὐτοῦ εὑρῶν λαληθέντα ἔμελλε κατα σχεῖν καὶ ἐξετάσαι· ὁ δὲ τοῦτο προγνοὺς φυγῇ τὴν Μονοκάστανον μονὴν καταλαμβάνει καὶ ἀποκείρεται μοναχός. τὸν δὲ πατρίκιον Κοσμᾶν καὶ λογοθέτην αἰκισάμενος ὁ βασιλεὺς ἐν τῷ ὡρολογείῳ παρέλυσε τῆς ἀρχῆς. προβάλλεται δὲ ἀντὶ τοῦ μυστικοῦ Ἰωάννου τὸν πρωτοβεστιάριον Θεοφάνην παραδυναστεύοντα. ἐγένετο τηνι καῦτα καὶ σεισμὸς ἐν τῷ θέματι τῶν Θρᾳκησίων καὶ χάσματα γῆς καταπληκτικά, ὥστε πολλὰ χωρία καὶ ἐκκλησίας αὐτάνδρους κα ταποθῆναι. Μαΐῳ δὲ μηνί, ἰνδικτιῶνος ιεʹ, εἰσβολὴν Συμεὼν ὁ τῆς Βουλγαρίας ἄρχων ἐποιήσατο κατὰ Χρωβάτων, καὶ συμβαλὼν μετ' αὐτῶν καὶ ἡττηθεὶς ἐν ταῖς τῶν ὀρῶν δυσχωρίαις ἅπαν τὸ 2.308 ἑαυτοῦ ἀπώλεσε στράτευμα. Ἰωάννης δέ τις ἀστρονόμος προσ ελθὼν τῷ βασιλεῖ ἔφησεν ὡς εἰ πέμψας ἀποκόψει τὴν κεφαλὴν τῆς ἱσταμένης ἄνωθεν τῆς ἐν τῷ Ξηρολόφῳ ἁψῖδος καὶ πρὸς δύσιν βλεπούσης στήλης, ἀποθανεῖται ὁ Συμεὼν παραυτίκα· αὐτῷ γὰρ ἐστοιχειῶσθαι τὴν τοιαύτην στήλην. ὁ δὲ τοῖς ἐκείνου πιθήσας λόγοις ἀπέτεμε τὴν κεφαλὴν τῆς στήλης· καὶ αὐτῇ τῇ ὥρᾳ, καθὼς ἀκριβωσάμενος ἔγνω ὁ βασιλεύς, ὁ Συμεὼν ἐν Βουλγαρίᾳ τέθνηκε νόσῳ κατακαρδίῳ ἁλούς. Οὗ τελευτήσαντος τὴν τῶν Βουλγάρων ἀρχὴν Πέτρος κατ έσχεν ὁ ἐκ τῆς δευτέρας αὐτοῦ γυναικὸς τῆς ἀδελφῆς Γεωργίου τοῦ Σουσουρβούλου, ὃν καὶ ἐπίτροπον τοῖς ἑαυτοῦ παισὶν ὁ Συμεὼν κατέστησε· Μιχαὴλ γὰρ τὸν ἐκ τῆς προτέρας ἀποτεχθέντα παῖδα αὐτῷ ἔτι ζῶν ὁ Συμεὼν ἀπέκειρε μοναχόν. τὰ γοῦν πέριξ ἔθνη, Τοῦρκοι Σέρβοι Χρωβάτοι καὶ οἱ λοιποί, τὴν τοῦ Συμεὼν ἀνα μαθόντες τελευτὴν ἐκστρατεύειν κατὰ Βουλγάρων ἐβουλεύοντο. κατέσχε δὲ καὶ λιμὸς μέγας σὺν ἀκρίδι τὸ Βουλγάρων ἔθνος, ἰσχυ ρῶς ἐκπιέζων καὶ καταδαπανῶν τὰ πλήθη καὶ τοὺς καρπούς. ἐδε δοίκεσαν μὲν οὖν οἱ Βούλγαροι καὶ τὴν τῶν ἄλλων ἔφοδον ἐθνῶν, ἐδεδίεσαν δὲ πλέον τὴν τῶν Ῥωμαίων ἐπέλευσιν. βουλευσάμενος οὖν ὁ Πέτρος μετὰ τῶν περὶ αὐτὸν ἔγνω δεῖν ἐπιστρατεῦσαι Ῥω μαίοις ἐπὶ καταπλήξει. καταλαμβάνουσι τοίνυν τὴν Μακεδονίαν. εἶτα μαθόντες ὡς ἔξεισι κατ' αὐτῶν ὁ βασιλεύς, πέμπουσι λάθρᾳ τινὰ μοναχὸν Πέτρος τε ὁ ἄρχων Βουλγαρίας καὶ ὁ τῶν παίδων 2.309 τοῦ Συμεὼν ἐπιτροπεύων Γεώργιος, γράμματα ἐπαγόμενον. ὡς βούλονται δὲ Ῥωμαίοις σπείσασθαι, τὰ γράμματα ἔφραζεν, εἰ αἱροῦνται δέ, καὶ γαμικὸν συστήσασθαι συνάλλαγμα μετ' αὐτῶν. ὃν ἀφικόμενον ὁ βασιλεὺς ἀσμενέστατα προσδεξάμενος, εὐθέως ἀπέστειλε μετὰ δρόμωνος μοναχὸν τινὰ Θεοδόσιον καὶ Κωνσταντῖ νον βασιλικὸν κληρικὸν τὸν Ῥόδιον, συλλαλῆσαι τοῖς Βουλγάροις τὰ εἰς εἰρήνην ἐν Μεσημβρίᾳ. οἵτινες παραγενόμενοι καὶ τὰ εἰκότα διαλεχθέντες ὑπέστρεψαν διὰ ξηρᾶς ἅμα Στεφάνῳ τινὶ περιωνύμῳ ἐν Βουλγαρίᾳ· κατόπιν δὲ τούτων παρεγένετο καὶ ὁ ἐπίτροπος Γεώργιος ὁ τοῦ Σουρσουβούλου καὶ ἄλλοι τινὲς τῶν ἐπιφανῶν. καὶ εἰς ὄψιν ἐλθόντες τῷ βασιλεῖ, θεασάμενοι δὲ καὶ τὴν θυγα τέρα Χριστοφόρου τοῦ