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especially towards all things that are known to adorn a young man, being naturally gifted and showing great hopes 3.53 of proving himself worthy of his parents. After this, the emperor, having his son-in-law as emperor, went out to the cities of Thrace and visited them all, on the one hand, presenting to all the emperor who until then had been unknown to the cities, and by all his actions making it manifest to them that the young emperor would succeed to his ancestral empire, and on the other hand, training him in the toils befitting a soldier. The elder emperor was exceedingly pleased seeing the young man well-disposed towards military campaigns and promising great things from his present actions. For without complaint and cheerfully he bore the toils, and the change of diet, and did everything like those long accustomed to it. 9. And the emperor, having returned again to Byzantium, chose as ambassadors to Clement, bishop of Rome, both George Spanopoulos the *protovestiarios* and Sigeros the praetor of the people, and a certain man of Latin origin named Frances, who had already served the emperor for a long time, and was among the close associates and acquaintances of the pope. And the embassy was, on the one hand, to wipe away from the pope's soul the rumors that had reached him concerning the emperor. For he knew that he had heard about him, that during the time of the war he had used barbarians as allies, who were daily killing and enslaving the Romans. Therefore he considered it of greater importance for the pope to learn the reasons for what had happened, and that he had resorted to such measures out of necessity because of the war that had encompassed him, 3.54 and not because he welcomed the fellowship of the barbarians. Then he also requested that the expedition against the enemy barbarians, planned by the pope himself and by those throughout Italy and the rest of the West, should now be undertaken in his time. For he would be most delighted at their ruin and destruction and would himself cooperate to the greatest extent, not only by providing the army an easy passage to Asia, but also by being present himself with the army and fighting alongside it eagerly. For he would most easily concede other advantages to those who had reigned before him; but in zeal for what is noble and in the desire to see the barbarians suffer a fate equivalent to what they had dared against the Christians for so long, to no one. Such then was the embassy, and everything was accomplished according to the emperor's wish. For as the ambassadors were conversing with the pope about their mission, he took up the conversation and related everything accurately, as if he himself had been present while the war was being waged. And when the ambassadors were amazed and asked from where he knew these things for certain, he said he had heard it from Zampaia of Savoy who had been with the empress in Byzantium especially from the beginning of the war until the end; she, after the emperor took Byzantium, departing for her own home, related everything accurately upon meeting the pope, as it had happened, hiding nothing of the truth. And the pope praised the emperor and prayed fervently 3.55 for him, because, having been so unjustly warred against and slandered by sycophants and having endured so many terrible things during the war, when he had prevailed by arms over his opponents, he had suffered nothing mean-spirited or ignoble; nor did he bear a grudge against those who had acted wickedly towards him, and this, though they had previously been greatly benefited by him, but he showed himself worthy of himself and of the emperor his friend's devotion to him, both to the empress and to the children, and was similarly gentle and affable to all the others, not only by demanding justice from no one for what had been dared, but also by munificently bestowing benefits in return. And he especially praised his joining his daughter to the young emperor and restoring his paternal empire. And the pope, having treated the emperor's ambassadors most honorably with seats of honor and escorts and formal receptions and the other appropriate things, then sent them away, and sent with them two bishops as ambassadors, of whom one was of the order of the Minors, called Gelielmos, while the other was called Ouga Spert, being from those called the Preachers, and especially of virtue

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πρὸς πάντα μάλιστα, ὅσα νέον οἶδε κοσμεῖν, ἔχων εὐφυῶς καὶ μεγάλας ἐλπίδας ὑποφαίνων 3.53 τοῦ τῶν γεγεννηκότων ἄξιον ἑαυτὸν ἀποφανεῖν. μετὰ τοῦτο δὲ ὁ βασιλεὺς βασιλέα τὸν γαμβρὸν ἔχων, πρὸς τὰς τῆς Θρᾴκης ἐξῄει πόλεις καὶ πάσας περιῆλθε, τοῦτο μὲν βασιλέα πᾶσιν ἐμφανίζων ἄχρι τότε ἀγνοούμενον ταῖς πόλεσι, καὶ πᾶσιν ἔργοις αὐτοῖς κατάδηλον ποιῶν, ὡς τὴν πατρῴαν βασιλείαν ὁ νέος διαδέξοιτο βασιλεὺς, τοῦτο δὲ πρὸς τοὺς πόνους στρατιώτῃ πρέποντας ἀσκῶν. ἥδετό τε κατάκρας ὁ πρεσβύτερος βασιλεὺς ὁρῶν τὸν νέον ἐπιτηδείως ἔχοντα πρὸς τὰς στρατείας καὶ μεγάλα ἐπαγγελλόμενον ἐκ τῶν παρόντων. ἀλύπως γὰρ καὶ ἱλαρῶς τούς τε πόνους ἔφερε, καὶ τῆς διαίτης τὴν ἐναλλαγὴν, καὶ πάντα ἔπραττεν ὁμοίως τοῖς εἰθισμένοις ἐκ πολλοῦ. θʹ. Αὖθίς τε εἰς Βυζάντιον ἀναστρέψας ὁ βασιλεὺς, πρὸς τὸν Ῥώμης ἐπίσκοπον Κλήμεντα τόν τε Σπανόπουλον Γεώργιον τὸν πρωτοβεστιαρίτην καὶ Σιγηρὸν τὸν πραίτωρα τοῦ δήμου, καὶ ἐκ τοῦ Λατίνων γένους Φρανσὲς ὄνομά τινα, πολὺν ἤδη χρόνον δεδουλευκότα βασιλεῖ, τῶν ἐπιτηδείων δ' ὄντα καὶ γνωρίμων πάπᾳ, πρέσβεις ᾑρεῖτο. ἡ πρεσβεία δὲ ἦν, ἅμα μὲν ἀπαλείφουσα τῆς πάπα ψυχῆς τὰς περὶ βασιλέως προσπεσούσας φήμας. ᾔδει γὰρ αὐτὸν περὶ αὐτοῦ ἀκηκοότα, ὡς κατὰ τὸν τοῦ πολέμου χρόνον βαρβάροις χρήσαιτο συμμάχοις, ἀναιροῦσι καὶ ἐξανδραποδιζομένοις ὁσημέραι τοὺς Ῥωμαίους. διὸ περὶ πλείονος ἐποιεῖτο τὰς αἰτίας τῶν συμβεβηκότων πάπαν καταμαθεῖν, καὶ ὡς ἀνάγκῃ διὰ τὸν περι 3.54 σχόντα πόλεμον ἐπὶ τοιαῦτα ἔλθοι, ἀλλ' οὐ τὴν κοινωνίαν τῶν βαρβάρων ἀσπαζόμενος. ἔπειτα ἐδεῖτο καὶ τὴν μελετωμένην ὑπ' αὐτοῦ πάπα καὶ τῶν κατὰ τὴν Ἰταλίαν καὶ τὴν ἄλλην ἑσπέραν κατὰ τῶν βαρβάρων ἔφοδον τῶν πολεμίων τῷ στρατηγῷ ἐπ' αὐτοῦ νυνὶ γεγενῆσθαι. ἥδεσθαί τε γὰρ μάλιστα ἐπὶ τῇ ἐκείνων ἀπωλείᾳ καὶ φθορᾷ καὶ αὐτὸν τὰ μέγιστα συνεργήσειν, οὐ μόνον διάβασιν παρέχοντα τῇ στρατιᾷ πρὸς τὴν Ἀσίαν ἄπονον, ἀλλὰ καὶ αὐτὸν συμπαρόντα μετὰ τῆς στρατιᾶς καὶ συναγωνιζόμενον προθύμως. τῶν μὲν γὰρ ἄλλων πλεονεκτημάτων τοῖς πρὸ αὐτοῦ βεβασιλευκόσι ῥᾷστα ἂν παραχωρήσειε· προθυμίας δὲ τῆς περὶ τὰ καλὰ καὶ τοῦ βούλεσθαι τοὺς βαρβάρους ἐπιδεῖν πάσχοντας ἀντίῤῥοπα τοῖς τολμηθεῖσι κατὰ Χριστιανῶν ἐπὶ τοσοῦτον χρόνον, οὐδενί. ἡ μὲν οὖν πρεσβεία τοιαύτη ἦν, καὶ πάντα ἐτελεῖτο κατὰ γνώμην βασιλεῖ. διαλεγομένων γὰρ τῶν πρεσβέων τῷ πάπᾳ περὶ ὧν ἧκον, ἐκεῖνος τὸν λόγον ἀναλαβὼν, πάντα διηγεῖτο ἀκριβῶς, ὥσπερ ἂν αὐτὸς παρὼν τοῦ πολέμου τελουμένου. θαυμαζόντων δὲ τῶν πρεσβέων καὶ πυνθανομένων, ὅθεν εἰδείη ταῦτα ἀσφαλῶς, παρὰ Ζαμπαίας τῆς ἐκ Σαβωΐας ἔφασκεν ἀκηκοέναι βασιλίδι συμπαρούσης ἐν Βυζαντίῳ ἀπ' ἀρχῆς μάλιστα τοῦ πολέμου ἄχρι τέλους· ἣ μετὰ τὸ βασιλέα Βυζάντιον ἑλεῖν, ἀπαίρουσα εἰς τὴν οἰκείαν, πάντα διηγεῖτο ἀκριβῶς τῷ πάπᾳ συντυχοῦσα, ὡς ἐγένετο, μηδὲν ἀποκρύψασα τῆς ἀληθείας. ἐπῄνει τε ὁ πάπας βασιλέα καὶ ὑπερηύ 3.55 χετο αὐτοῦ, ὅτι πολεμηθεὶς ἀδίκως οὕτω καὶ διαβληθεὶς ὑπὸ συκοφαντῶν καὶ τοσαῦτα ἐνεγκὼν δεινὰ κατὰ τὸν πόλεμον, ἐπειδὴ τοῖς ὅπλοις περιεγένετο τῶν ἀντισχόντων, οὐδὲν μικρόψυχον ἔπαθεν, οὐδ' ἀγεννές· οὐδὲ ἐμνησικάκησε τοῖς κακοῖς περὶ αὐτὸν γεγενημένοις, καὶ ταῦτα ὑπ' ἐκείνου πρότερον πολλὰ εὐεργετηθεῖσιν, ἀλλὰ βασιλίδι τε καὶ τοῖς παισὶν ἄξιος ὤφθη ἑαυτοῦ καὶ τῆς βασιλέως τοῦ φίλου περὶ αὐτὸν σπουδῆς, καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις ἅπασιν ὁμοίως ἥμερος καὶ προσηνὴς, οὐ μόνον τῶν τετολμημένων δίκας μηδένα ἀπαιτήσας, ἀλλὰ καὶ φιλοτίμως εὐεργετῶν ἐξ ἀντιστρόφου. μάλιστα δὲ ἐπῄνει τὸ τὴν θυγατέρα συναρμόσαι βασιλεῖ τῷ νέῳ καὶ τὴν πατρῴαν ἀποδοῦναι βασιλείαν. φιλοτιμότατά τε ὁ πάπας περὶ τοὺς βασιλέως πρέσβεις διατεθεὶς ἐν προεδρίαις καὶ προπομπαῖς καὶ ὑπαντήσεσι καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις τοῖς προσήκουσιν, ἔπειτα ἀπέπεμπε, καὶ πρέσβεις δύο τῶν ἐπισκόπων συνεκπέμψας, ὧν ὁ ἕτερος τοῦ μενουρίων τάγματος ἦν Γελίελμος προσαγορευόμενος, Οὔγα δὲ Σπὲρτ ὁ λοιπὸς ἐκαλεῖτο ἐκ τῶν κηρύκων προσαγορευομένων ὢν, ἀρετῆς τε μάλιστα