440

to be relieved, having received troops sufficient for the impending struggle. For it happened that Bardas Phokas, having escaped from Amaseia, where he had been condemned to live, with relatives and friends and associates, with whom he had secretly conspired to seize Caesarea in Cappadocia, and having gathered there a not insignificant company, of which the leaders were the sons of the patrikios Theodoulos Parsakoutenos, Theodore and Nikephoros, and a certain other patrikios, Symeon Am 2.389 pelas, having placed a diadem on himself and having assumed the other insignia of royalty, to launch a rebellion against the emperor, his father, Leo the kouropalates, having persuaded some to this with gifts, and others with promises of dignities and possessions, using the bishop of Abydos as his agent for this purpose. And he himself also wished to cross secretly from Lesbos with his son Nikephoros to the regions of Thrace. When this became known to the emperor, since the bishop too, having been arrested and being unable to evade the evidence, brought everything out into the open, the kouropalates was handed over to the judges, and by all of them he is condemned to die along with his son; but as the emperor acted more leniently, they are both condemned to perpetual exile and the blinding of their eyes, the emperor, as it is said, having secretly ordered the executioners in no way to damage their sight, but to give the appearance of blinding, while in fact allowing them to retain their own light, and to conceal that this had been ordered by the emperor, and to attribute the deed to themselves, as if they had acted out of philanthropy and granted them their sight as a favor.

And so the affairs of the kouropalates ended in this way; but Skleros, having crossed into Asia and arrived in Dorylaion, first made an attempt on Phokas and those who sided with him, to see if he could somehow persuade them with promises of good things to desist from their plans (for indeed he also had an order from the emperor to strive as much as possible to keep his 2.390 hands clean of civil blood); but when he realized he was attempting the impossible (for the rebels were emboldened rather than softened by the embassies), he decided to get down to business, and having gathered his army, he set out for Caesarea. When those with Phokas learned of this, they ceased to be carried away by uncertain hopes and preferred what was at hand; accepting the gifts given to them by the emperor, when night fell, they deserted to Skleros, first Diogenes Adralestos, then also Ampelas and the sons of Theodoulos, who had orchestrated the whole rebellion, and in succession all the rest of the multitude, so that Phokas was left all alone with his own servants. And he, having been left destitute of all help, and submerged in anguish and grief against those who had incited him and then betrayed him, was overcome by sleep as night was already falling. Then, while sleeping, he seemed to be indignant and distressed and to be speaking to God about those who had wronged him, saying, “Judge, O Lord, those who wrong me.” But while he was about to say the next words of the psalm, he heard a voice telling him not to proceed further; for Skleros had already taken up the rest of the ode. Therefore, rising up trembling, as he realized he had slipped from all hope, just as he was, he rode out with those around him and fled toward the fortress of Tyropoion. When his flight became known to the magistros Bardas Skleros, light-armed cavalry were sent to hasten and seize him before he could enter the fortress; who, engaging in a swift 2.391 pursuit, overtake him in the plain as he was just about to approach the foothills of the fortress. And one of these, excelling in daring and nobility, by the name of Constantine, with the surname Charon, leaving the others behind, swiftly advanced upon Phokas, who was acting as rearguard for his own men and was prepared to eagerly receive anyone who attacked. Seeing him from afar and

440

ραιωθῆναι, τὰ πρὸς τὸν προκείμενον ἀρκοῦντα ἀγῶνα εἰληφότα στρατεύματα. ἔτυχε γὰρ Βάρδας ὁ Φωκᾶς ἀποδρὰς ἐξ Ἀμασείας, ἣν οἰκεῖν κατεκέκριτο, μετὰ συγγενῶν καὶ φίλων καὶ συνήθων, μεθ' ὧν ἀφανῶς συνωμόσατο τὴν ἐν Καππαδοκίᾳ καταλαβεῖν Καισάρειαν, κἀκεῖσε ἑταιρικὸν οὐκ ὀλίγον ἀθροίσας, ὧν ἦσαν ἔξαρχοι οἱ τοῦ πατρικίου Θεοδούλου παῖδες τοῦ Παρσακουτηνοῦ Θεόδωρος καὶ Νικηφόρος καί τις πατρίκιος ἄλλος Συμεὼν ὁ Ἀμ 2.389 πελᾶς, διάδημα περιθεὶς ἑαυτῷ καὶ τὰ λοιπὰ τῆς βασιλείας ἀνει ληφὼς γνωρίσματα ἀποστασίαν κατὰ τοῦ βασιλέως κινῆσαι, τοῦ πατρὸς αὐτοῦ Λέοντος τοῦ κουροπαλάτου τοὺς μὲν ἀναπείσαντος δώροις εἰς τοῦτο, τοὺς δὲ ὑποσχέσεσιν ἀξιωμάτων καὶ κτήσεων, ὑπηρέτῃ πρὸς τοῦτο χρησαμένου τῷ τῆς Ἀβύδου ἐπισκόπῳ. ἐβού λετο δὲ καὶ αὐτὸς ἐκ τῆς Λέσβου διαπερᾶν λάθρᾳ σὺν τῷ υἱῷ Νικηφόρῳ εἰς τὰ ἐπὶ Θρᾴκην χωρία. γνωσθέντος δὲ τούτου τῷ βασιλεῖ, ἐπεὶ καὶ ὁ ἐπίσκοπος συνειλημμένος καὶ τοὺς ἐλέγχους οὐχ οἷός τε ὢν διαδιδράσκειν πάντα ἐξοῖσεν εἰς τοὐμφανές, παρε δόθη τοῖς δικασταῖς ὁ κουροπαλάτης, καὶ ὑπὸ πάντων τούτων προστιμᾶται τεθνάναι σὺν τῷ υἱῷ· ἐπιεικέστερον δὲ χρησαμένου τοῦ βασιλέως, ἀειφυγίᾳ καὶ τῶν ὀμμάτων πηρώσει καὶ ἄμφω κα ταδικάζονται, λεληθότως, ὡς λέγεται, τοῦ βασιλέως παραγγεί λαντος τοῖς δημίοις μηδαμῶς τὰς ὄψεις τούτων λωβήσασθαι, ἀλλὰ δόκησιν μὲν παρασχεῖν ἐκτυφλώσεως, ἔργῳ δ' ἐᾶσαι τού τους τὸ οἰκεῖον ἀποφέρεσθαι φῶς, ἀποκρύψαι δὲ καὶ ὅτι προστε ταγμένον ἦν τοῦτο παρὰ τοῦ βασιλέως, ἑαυτοῖς δὲ τὸ ἔργον ἀνα θέσθαι ὡς τάχα φιλανθρωπευσαμένοις καὶ χαρισαμένοις τὸ βλέπειν αὐτοῖς.

Καὶ τὰ μὲν τοῦ κουροπαλάτου εἰς τοῦτο ἐτελεύτα· διαβὰς δὲ ὁ Σκληρὸς εἰς τὴν Ἀσίαν κἀν τῷ ∆ορυλαίῳ γενόμενος πρῶτον μὲν ἀπεπειρᾶτο τοῦ Φωκᾶ καὶ τῶν τούτῳ συναιρομένων, εἴ πως δυνηθείη αὐτὸς ἀγαθῶν ὑποσχέσεσιν ἀποστῆναι πεῖσαι τῶν βεβουλευμένων (καὶ γὰρ δὴ καὶ παραγγελίαν εἶχεν ἐκ βασιλέως ὡς ἀνυστὸν ἀγωνίσασθαι ἐμφυλίου αἵματος καθαρὰς διατηρῆσαι 2.390 τὰς χεῖρας)· ὡς δ' ἀνηνύτοις ἔγνω ἐπιχειρῶν (ἐθρασύνοντο γὰρ μᾶλλον ἢ ἐχαυνοῦντο ταῖς πρεσβείαις οἱ ἀποστάται), ἔργου ἤδη ἅπτεσθαι ἔκρινε, καὶ τὸν στρατὸν ἀγείρας ἀπῄει πρὸς τὴν Καισάρειαν. ὅπερ οἱ σὺν τῷ Φωκᾷ ἐγνωκότες, καὶ τὸ ἐπ' ἀδήλοις ἐλπίσιν ὀχεῖσθαι ἐάσαντες καὶ τὰ ἐν χερσὶ προτιμήσαντες, τὰς ἐκ τοῦ βασιλέως διδομένας αὐτοῖς δωρεὰς δεξάμενοι νυκτὸς ἐπιγενο μένης αὐτομολοῦσι πρὸς τὸν Σκληρόν, πρῶτος μὲν ὁ ∆ιογένης Ἀδράλεστος, εἶτα καὶ ὁ Ἀμπελᾶς καὶ οἱ τοῦ Θεοδούλου παῖδες, οἱ καὶ τὸ πᾶν τῆς ἀποστασίας προκαταρτύσαντες, καὶ ἐφεξῆς τὸ λοιπὸν ἅπαν πλῆθος, ὡς μόνον ἀθρόον μετὰ τῶν ἑαυτοῦ θερα πόντων περιλειφθῆναι τὸν Φωκᾶν. πάσης δὲ βοηθείας ἔρημος οὗτος ἀπολειφθείς, καὶ ἀνίᾳ βαπτισθεὶς καὶ λύπῃ κατὰ τῶν παρα κινησάντων, εἶτα προδεδωκότων, κατηνέχθη πρὸς ὕπνον ἤδη νυ κτὸς ἐπιστάσης. ἔδοξεν οὖν ὑπνώττων ἀγανακτεῖν καὶ ἀλύειν καὶ περὶ τῶν ἀδικησάντων διαλέγεσθαι τῷ θεῷ, "δίκασον κύριε" λέ γων "τοὺς ἀδικοῦντάς με." ἐν ᾧ δὲ ἔμελλε τὰ ἑπόμενα εἰπεῖν τοῦ ψαλμοῦ, ἤκουσε φωνῆς λεγούσης μὴ περαιτέρω προβῆναι· ἔφθασε γὰρ ὁ Σκληρὸς προειληφέναι τὸ ἐπίλοιπον τῆς ᾠδῆς. δια ναστὰς οὖν σύντρομος, ὡς ἔγνω πάσης ἐλπίδος ὠλισθηκώς, ὡς εἶχεν ἐξιππασάμενος μετὰ τῶν περὶ αὐτὸν πρὸς τὸ φρούριον ἔφευγε τὸν Τυροποιόν. γνωσθέντος δὲ τοῦ δρασμοῦ τῷ μαγίστρῳ Βάρδᾳ τῷ Σκληρῷ, ἱππεῖς ἀπεστέλλοντο εὔζωνοι καταταχῆσαι καὶ κατα λαβεῖν αὐτὸν πρὸ τοῦ εἰς τὸ φρούριον εἰσελθεῖν· οἵτινες συντόνῳ 2.391 χρησάμενοι τῇ διώξει καταλαμβάνουσιν αὐτὸν κατὰ τὸ πεδίον καὶ μέλλοντα ὅσον οὐδέπω ταῖς τοῦ φρουρίου προσεγγίζειν ὑπωρείαις. εἷς δὲ τούτων τόλμῃ προφέρων καὶ γενναιότητι, τοὔνομα Κων σταντῖνος, Χάρων τὴν προσηγορίαν, τοὺς ἄλλους κατόπιν λιπὼν μετὰ συντονίας ἐπήρχετο τῷ Φωκᾷ, ὄπισθεν οὐραγοῦντι τῶν ἑαυ τοῦ, καὶ ἤν τις ἐπίῃ δέξασθαι προθύμως παρεσκευασμένῳ. τοῦ τον πόρρωθεν ἰδὼν καὶ