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is appointed to the Orontes of Antioch. And he appoints as ephor and overseer of all the eastern regiments the patrician Peter, the servant of Phokas, naming him stratopedarch, a eunuch indeed, but otherwise active and most experienced in warfare. And this greatly grieved Scleros, so that he was not even able to magnanimously conceal his vexation within himself, but complained and reproached, 2.418 if in return for the deeds of valor and trophies he had won he received such rewards, progressing for the worse, though it mattered little or not at all to the parakoimomenos, who told him to be content with what was given and not to meddle further, unless he intended to become a stay-at-home in his own house instead of a commander. And when these things had been thus arranged by the parakoimomenos, Bardas departed from the capital and with great speed took possession of the command entrusted to him. And having often appeared serious and active in his previous commands, and beloved, so to speak, by the entire army, and having partially laid bare the secret of his design to many whom he trusted, and especially to the regiment of the stratelatai, and thinking the time was now suitable to reveal his purpose, after taking counsel with his associates, he brought to birth the rebellion with which he had long been in labor, and took up arms against the emperors and his own people. Therefore, he immediately sent a certain Anthes by name, surnamed Alyates, one of his most effective servants, to the capital, so that, if he could, he might steal away his son Romanos (for he happened to be residing in the capital) and come to him. And he, having arrived in the city, and being eager to remain unnoticed by every means, spread unfavorable rumors about Scleros, by which he was able to remain hidden, appearing unsuspected, and to steal Romanos away and bring him to Scleros. And Bardas, 2.419 now bringing his plan bursting into the open, puts on a diadem and takes up the other insignia of imperial power, and is acclaimed emperor by the entire army of the Romans present, with the Armenians beginning the acclamation. And since he knew that one who had cast such a die needed much money, without which none of the necessary things can be done, as the orator somewhere says, he immediately turned to collecting it, both seizing the public tax collectors and exacting the common funds, and arresting and punishing others who gave the impression of wealth, while some even brought their own property voluntarily in the hope of receiving greater things back; and so in a short time he collected a great quantity of money. And having seized a strong fortress called Charpote, situated in Mesopotamia, and having secured it in every way and established a sufficient garrison, in it he deposited the collected money, and planned to have it as a base of operations in case of failure and a harbor of safety. And with the neighboring Saracens, both the emir of Amida, Apotoulph, which is called Emet, and the emir of Martyropolis, Apotagle, which they name Miefierkin, having given and received pledges, and having formed marriage alliances with them and through these alliances secured their friendship, he both received much money and four thousand Arab cavalry as allies. And as the news spread everywhere, all those who delight in revolution flocked to him. And when 2.420 summer came, he set out with his entire army and hastened towards the capital, full of hope and almost thinking he was already seated in the palace. For a nocturnal vision of a certain monk, who laid claim to virtue, emboldened him and made him more daring for the enterprise. For he seemed to have seen fiery men, who took Bardas and led him up to a certain very high watchtower; and in it he met a woman of a countenance sterner than human, who gave him the imperial scourge. This scourge Bardas considered a symbol

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Ὀρόντῃ Ἀντιοχείας προβάλλεται. ἔφορον δὲ καὶ ἐπιστάτην τῶν ἑῴων ἀποδείκνυσι πάντων ταγμάτων τὸν πατρίκιον Πέτρον τὸν τοῦ Φωκᾶ δοῦλον, στρατο πεδάρχην αὐτὸν ὀνομάσας, τομίαν μὲν ἄνθρωπον, δραστήριον δ' ἄλλως καὶ τὰ πολεμικὰ ἐμπειρότατον. τοῦτο δὲ τὸν Σκληρὸν σφόδρα ἐλύπησεν, ὡς μηδὲ παρ' ἑαυτῷ δυνηθῆναι συγκαλύψαι τὴν ἀνίαν μεγαλοψύχως, ἀλλ' ἐπεγκαλέσαι καὶ προσονειδίσαι, 2.418 εἰ ἀντὶ τῶν ὑπ' αὐτοῦ γενομένων ἀνδραγαθημάτων τε καὶ τρο παίων τοιαύτας ἀντιλαμβάνει τὰς ἀμοιβάς, ἐπὶ τὸ χεῖρον προ κόπτων, κἂν ὀλίγον ἢ οὐδὲν τῷ παρακοιμωμένῳ ἐμέλησεν, ἀγαπᾶν εἰπόντι τοῖς δεδομένοις καὶ μὴ ἐπέκεινα πολυπραγμο νεῖν, εἰ μή που μέλλει ἀντὶ ἄρχοντος οἰκουρὸς ἔσεσθαι τῆς ἰδίας οἰκίας. Τούτων δὲ οὕτως οἰκονομηθέντων τῷ παρακοιμωμένῳ ἀπά ρας ὁ Βάρδας τῆς βασιλίδος σὺν τάχει πολλῷ τὴν ἐγχειρισθεῖσαν αὐτῷ καταλαμβάνει ἀρχήν. ἐν δὲ ταῖς προηγησαμέναις στρατη γίαις ἐμβριθὴς πολλάκις φανεὶς καὶ δραστήριος, καὶ ὑπὸ παντὸς ὡς ἔπος εἰπεῖν τοῦ στρατοῦ φιληθείς, καὶ πρὸς πολλοὺς οὓς ἐθάρ ρει τὸ τῆς μελέτης παραγυμνώσας μυστήριον, καὶ μᾶλλον τῷ τά γματι τῶν στρατηλατῶν, ἄρτι τε καιρὸν οἰηθεὶς ἐπιτήδειον εἰς τὸ ἀνακαλύψαι τὸ σπουδαζόμενον, μετὰ τῶν ἐπιτηδείων σκεψάμενος, ἣν ἐκ μακρῶν ὤδινεν ἀποτίκτει ἀποστασίαν, καὶ κατὰ τῶν βασι λέων καὶ τῶν ὁμοφύλων αἴρει τὰ ὅπλα. εὐθὺς οὖν Ἄνθην τινὰ τοὔνομα, Ἀλυάτην τὴν προσηγορίαν, τὰ μάλιστα ὄντα αὐτῷ τῶν δραστικωτάτων ὑπηρετῶν, ἐς τὴν βασιλίδα πέμπει, ὅπως, εἰ δύ ναιτο, Ῥωμανὸν τὸν ἑαυτοῦ κλέψας υἱὸν (ἔτυχε γὰρ ἐνδημῶν τῇ βασιλευούσῃ) πρὸς αὐτὸν ἀφίκηται. ὁ δὲ γενόμενος ἐν τῇ πόλει, καὶ πάντα τρόπον λαθεῖν ἐπειγόμενος, φήμας οὐ καλὰς κατὰ τοῦ Σκληροῦ ἐνέσπειρε, δι' ὧν λαθεῖν τε ἠδυνήθη ἀνύποπτος φανεὶς καὶ τὸν Ῥωμανὸν ἀποκλέψας πρὸς τὸν Σκληρὸν ἀγαγεῖν. ὁ Βάρ 2.419 δας δὲ τὸ βουλευθὲν εἰς τοὐμφανὲς ἤδη ἐκρήξας διάδημά τε περι βάλλεται καὶ τὰ λοιπὰ τῆς βασιλείας ἀναλαμβάνει παράσημα, καὶ ὑπὸ παντὸς τοῦ συνόντος στρατοῦ Ῥωμαίων ἀναγορεύεται βασι λεύς, τῶν Ἀρμενίων καταρξάντων τῆς εὐφημίας. ἐπεὶ δὲ τῷ τοιοῦτον ἀναρρίψαντι κύβον χρημάτων δεῖν πολλῶν ἠπίστατο, ὧν ἄνευ οὐδὲν ἔστι γενέσθαι τῶν δεόντων, καθά πού φησιν ὁ ῥήτωρ, πρὸς συλλογὴν τούτων παραχρῆμα ἐτρέπετο, τούς τε τῶν δημο σίων πράκτορας φόρων κατέχων καὶ τὰ κοινὰ εἰσπραττόμενος χρή ματα, καὶ τοὺς ἄλλως ὑπόνοιαν παρέχοντας πλούτου συλλαμβά νων τε καὶ τιμωρῶν, ἐνίων δὲ καὶ αὐθαιρέτως προσαγόντων τὸν ἑαυτῶν βίον ἐλπίδι τοῦ ἀπολήψεσθαι μείζονα· καὶ οὕτως ἐν οὐ μακρῷ τῷ χρόνῳ πλῆθος χρημάτων συνάγει πολύ. φρούριόν τε κατασχὼν ἐρυμνὸν τὸ λεγόμενον Χάρποτε, ἐν Μεσοποταμίᾳ κεί μενον, καὶ παντοίως ἀσφαλισάμενος καὶ φυλακὴν ἐπιστήσας τὴν ἐξαρκοῦσαν, ἐν τούτῳ τὰ συναγόμενα ἀπετίθει χρήματα, καὶ ὁρμητήριον ἐξ ἀποτυχίας καὶ λιμένα σωτηρίας ἔχειν ἐταμιεύετο. καὶ πρὸς τοὺς γειτονοῦντας Σαρακηνούς, τόν τε τῆς Ἀμίδης ἀμη ρᾶν Ἀποτούλφ, ἥτις Ἔμετ καλεῖται, καὶ τὸν τῆς Μαρτυροπόλεως Ἀποτάγλε, ἥντινα Μιεφερκὶν ὀνομάζουσι, πίστεις δοὺς καὶ λαβών, καὶ μετ' αὐτῶν κηδεύσας καὶ διὰ τοῦ κήδους τὰ τῆς φιλίας ἀσφα λισάμενος, χρήματά τε λαμβάνει πολλὰ καὶ συμμαχικὸν Ἄραβας ἱππότας τʹ. τῆς φήμης δὲ πανταχοῦ διαδραμούσης συνέρρεον πρὸς αὐτὸν ὁπόσοι νεωτέροις χαίρουσι πράγμασιν. ἤδη δὲ τοῦ 2.420 θέρους ἐπιγενομένου ἄρας παντὶ τῷ στρατῷ ἠπείγετο πρὸς τὴν βασιλεύουσαν, μεστὸς ἐλπίδων καὶ μονονοὺ τοῖς βασιλείοις καθῆ σθαι δοκῶν. καὶ γὰρ δὴ καὶ ἐθράσυνεν αὐτὸν καὶ τολμηρότερον ἐτίθει πρὸς τὸ ἐγχείρημα μοναχοῦ τινὸς ἀρετῆς ἀντιποιουμένου ὄψις νυκτερινή. ἐδόκει γὰρ οὗτος ἰδεῖν ἄνδρας πυρίνους, οἵτινες τὸν Βάρδαν λαβόντες ἀνάγουσιν εἴς τινα ὑψηλοτάτην περιωπήν· ἐντυχεῖν δ' ἐν αὐτῇ γυναικὶ ἀνθρωπίνης ὄψεως στερροτέρᾳ, καὶ τὴν μάστιγα αὐτῷ ἐπιδοῦναι βασιλικήν. ταύτην τὴν μάστιγα ὁ μὲν Βάρδας σύμβολον ἐλογίζετο