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strong, and excelling in nobility of soul and condensed in wisdom, you overlook the affairs of state hanging from a thin and old and broken thread," alluding to his father, "and you do not rise up, and remove him from your path as an obstacle to your most noble impulses, and take charge of affairs yourself, being able not only to govern the 2.323 empire of the Romans alone but many at once? Come now, be persuaded by me as I advise you to your advantage, and rising up, be willing to take charge of affairs, and cause the fortunes of the Romans to flourish again, and humble those of the enemy, and show by your deeds themselves that not for nothing nor in vain have your blooming youth and the other advantages of your soul been granted to you by God. You will have for this purpose as a fellow-combatant and supporter also your brother-in-law the porphyrogennetos, who is very famous and desirous of being freed from the burden of your father and of seeing the empire governed by you." Carried away by these words, Stephen was seized by the desire for sole rule and conceived an irresistible urge to depose his own father from the imperial throne. And being about to put his plan into action, he dropped hints to his brother, alluding to what he was eager to do. But since his brother was unyielding even at the first hearing, and advised him rather not to trust his brother-in-law, but admonished him to adhere to his father's loyalty and friendship, he dismissed him as being more of an obstacle than an accomplice, and he himself thought it possible to attempt what had been decided. Having therefore taken as comrades, along with the aforementioned Basil, also the monk Marianos, son of Leo Argyros, who was greatly honored and trusted by the emperor Romanos, and certain others with them, he found an opportunity and dragged his own father down from power, on the 10th of the month of December, in the 3rd indiction, in the year #22υνγʹ, when he was completing his 20th year in the reign, and confined him to the island of Prote, 2.324 having tonsured him a monk against his will. When Romanos was therefore deposed, Stephen immediately took hold of affairs more vigorously, having his brother-in-law and his brother as partners in action.

But since they were not similarly pleased in all matters, but in some things they also disagreed, a beginning of clashes grew from this cause, and they suspected and were wary of each other, Stephen of the porphyrogennetos, and the porphyrogennetos in turn of him, and each plotted against the other. And Stephen for his part exerted no ordinary effort and struggle to depose his brother and his brother-in-law and be left as sole ruler of the state; but since, according to the poet, there are other things hotter than fire, he found himself suffering rather than acting, as Constantine, since he perceived he was being plotted against, allowed no delay to the undertaking, with his wife Helena also greatly inciting him to depose his brothers from the throne. Revealing the secret, therefore, to the aforementioned Basil Peteinos, and through him winning over Marianos, and also Nikephoros and Leo, the sons of Bardas Phokas, and Nicholas and Leo Tornikios and not a few others, he seized Stephen and Constantine when they were suspecting nothing, as they were dining with him at the very time of the noon meal, and brought them down from the palace, on the 27th of the month of January of the same 3rd indiction, and putting them on boats he sent them into exile, one to the island of Panormos, and Constantine 2.325 to Terebinthos. And through Basil of Caesarea and Anastasios of Heraclea he tonsured them both as clerics, after no long time transferring Stephen to Proikonnesos, then to Rhodes and finally to Mytilene, and Constantine to Samothrace. But Stephen, bearing with nobility and magnanimity the fortunes that befell him, continued for nineteen years living on Lesbos; but Constantine

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ῥωμαλέος, καὶ ψυχῆς γενναιότητι ὑπερφέρων καὶ φρονήσει πεπυκνωμένος, τὰ πράγματα παρορᾷς ἀπὸ λεπτοῦ καὶ παλαιοῦ καὶ διερρωγότος μίτου" τὸν αὐτοῦ πατέρα ὑπαινιττόμε νος "ἐξαρτώμενα, καὶ οὐ διανίστασαι, καὶ τοῦτον μὲν ὡς ἐμπό διον ταῖς σαῖς γενναιοτάταις ὁρμαῖς ἐκποδὼν ποιεῖς, αὐτὸς δὲ τῶν πραγμάτων ἀντιλαμβάνῃ, δυνάμενος οὐχ ὅπως τὴν Ῥωμαίων 2.323 βασιλείαν μόνην ἀλλὰ καὶ πολλὰς ὁμοῦ κυβερνᾶν; ἄγε δή, πεί σθητί μοι τὰ λυσιτελῆ συμβουλεύοντι, καὶ διαναστὰς ἀντισχέσθαι θέλησον τῶν πραγμάτων, καὶ τὰ μὲν Ῥωμαίων ἀναθηλῆσαι παρα σκεύασον, τὰ δὲ τῶν ἐχθρῶν ταπείνωσον, καὶ δεῖξον ἔργοις αὐτοῖς ὡς οὐ διὰ κενῆς οὐδὲ μάτην ἡ ἐπανθοῦσά σοι ὥρα καὶ τὰ λοιπὰ τῆς ψυχῆς ἐκ θεοῦ σοι δεδώρηνται προτερήματα. ἕξεις δὲ εἰς τοῦτο συναγωνιστὴν καὶ συλλήπτορα καὶ τὸν σὸν γαμβρὸν τὸν πορφυρο γέννητον, λίαν θεοκλυτοῦντα καὶ ἱμειρόμενον τῆς τοῦ σοῦ πατρὸς ἐλευθερωθῆναι βαρύτητος καὶ παρὰ σοῦ κατόψεσθαι τὴν βασι λείαν κυβερνωμένην." τούτοις ὑποσυρεὶς τοῖς λόγοις ὁ Στέφανος κατεσχέθη τε τῇ τῆς αὐτοκρατορίας ἐπιθυμίᾳ καὶ ἄσχετον ὄρεξιν ἀνεδέξατο τοῦ καταγαγεῖν τὸν ἑαυτοῦ πατέρα τῆς βασιλείας. μέλ λων δὲ ἐγχειρεῖν τοῖς δοχθεῖσι καὶ λόγους αἰνιττομένους τὸ σπου δαζόμενον ὑποσπείρει τῷ ἀδελφῷ. ἐπεὶ δ' οὗτος καὶ πρὸς τὴν πρώτην ἀκοὴν ἄτεγκτος ἦν, καὶ παρῄνει μᾶλλον μὴ θαρρεῖν τῷ γαμβρῷ, ἀλλὰ τῆς πατρῴας ἐνουθέτει ἐξέχεσθαι πίστεως καὶ φιλίας, τοῦτον μὲν παρῆκεν ὡς ἐμπόδιον μᾶλλον, ἀλλ' οὐ συνερ γὸν ἐσόμενον, αὐτὸς δ' ᾠήθη ὡς ἀνυστὸν ἐγχειρῆσαι τοῖς δεδο γμένοις. προσεταιρισάμενος οὖν σὺν τῷ ῥηθέντι Βασιλείῳ καὶ τὸν μοναχὸν Μαριανὸν τὸν υἱὸν Λέοντος τοῦ Ἀργυροῦ, ὑπὸ τοῦ βασιλέως Ῥωμανοῦ λίαν καὶ τιμώμενον καὶ πιστευόμενον, καί τινας ἄλλους σὺν αὐτοῖς, εὐκαιρήσας κατασπᾷ τὸν αὐτοῦ πατέρα τῆς ἀρχῆς, μηνὶ ∆εκεμβρίῳ ιʹ, ἰνδικτιῶνος γʹ, ἔτους #22υνγʹ, κʹ ἀνύοντα ἐν τῇ βασιλείᾳ ἐνιαυτόν, καὶ τῇ νήσῳ Πρώτῃ περιορίζει, 2.324 ἀποκείρας καὶ ἄκοντα τοῦτον μοναχόν. κατενεχθέντος οὖν τοῦ Ῥωμανοῦ εὐθέως ὁ Στέφανος γενναιοτέρως ἥπτετο τῶν πραγμά των, κοινοπραγμονοῦντα ἔχων τόν τε γαμβρὸν καὶ τὸν ἀδελφόν.

Ἐπεὶ δὲ μὴ ἐν πᾶσιν ὁμοίως ἠρέσκοντο, ἀλλ' ἔσθ' ὅπῃ καὶ διεφώνουν, ἀρχὴ προσκρουμάτων ἐκ ταύτης τῆς αἰτίας ἐφύετο, καὶ ὑπώπτευον ἀλλήλους καὶ ὑφωρῶντο, τὸν μὲν πορφυρογέννη τον ὁ Στέφανος, ἐκεῖνον δὲ αὖθις ὁ πορφυρογέννητος, καὶ κατ' ἀλλήλων ἕκαστος ἐμελέτα. καὶ σπουδὴν μὲν ὁ Στέφανος καὶ ἀγῶνα οὐ τὸν τυχόντα κατεβάλλετο εἰς τὸ καταγαγεῖν τὸν ἀδελφὸν καὶ τὸν γαμβρὸν καὶ μόναρχος ὑπολειφθῆναι τοῖς πράγμασιν· ἀλλ' ἐπεὶ κατὰ τὸν ποιητὴν εἰσὶ καὶ ἄλλα πυρὸς θερμότερα, ἔλαθε παθὼν μᾶλλον ἢ δράσας, τοῦ Κωνσταντίνου, ἐπείπερ ᾔσθετο ἐπιβουλευόμενος, ἀναβολὴν μὴ δεδωκότος τῇ ἐγχειρήσει, πολλὰ καὶ τῆς γυναικὸς αὐτοῦ Ἑλένης ἐρεθισάσης αὐτὸν πρὸς τὸ κατα γαγεῖν τῆς βασιλείας τοὺς ἀδελφούς. ἐκφήνας οὖν τὸ μυστήριον τῷ εἰρημένῳ Βασιλείῳ τῷ Πετεινῷ, καὶ δι' αὐτοῦ προσκτησάμενος τὸν Μαριανόν, ἔτι δὲ Νικηφόρον καὶ Λέοντα τοὺς υἱοὺς Βάρδα τοῦ Φωκᾶ, Νικόλαόν τε καὶ Λέοντα τοὺς Τορνικίους καὶ ἄλλους οὐκ ὀλίγους, μηδὲν ὑφορωμένους τὸν Στέφανον καὶ τὸν Κωνσταν τῖνον, κατ' αὐτὸν τὸν καιρὸν τοῦ ἀρίστου συναριστῶντας αὐτῷ, ἀναρπάστους τίθησι καὶ καταβιβάζει τῶν βασιλείων, τῇ κζʹ τοῦ Ἰανουαρίου μηνὸς τῆς αὐτῆς γʹ ἰνδικτιῶνος, καὶ πλοιαρίοις ἐνθέ μενος ὑπερορίζει τὸν μὲν ἐν τῇ Πανόρμῳ νήσῳ, τὸν Κωνσταντῖ 2.325 νον δὲ ἐν τῇ Τερεβίνθῳ. καὶ διὰ Βασιλείου τοῦ Καισαρείας καὶ Ἀναστασίου τοῦ Ἡρακλείας καὶ ἄμφω κληρικοὺς ἀποκείρει, μεταστήσας οὐκ εἰς μακρὰν τὸν μὲν Στέφανον ἐν Προικοννήσῳ, εἶτα ἐν Ῥόδῳ καὶ τελευταῖον ἐν Μιτυλήνῃ, τὸν δὲ Κωνσταντῖνον ἐν Σαμοθρᾴκῃ. ἀλλ' ὁ μὲν Στέφανος μεγαλοφυῶς καὶ μεγαλοψύ χως τὰς ἐπενεχθείσας αὐτῷ φέρων τύχας διετέλεσεν ἐπὶ ἔτη ιθʹ βιοτεύων ἐν τῇ Λέσβῳ· ὁ Κωνσταντῖνος δὲ