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is struck and loses the hair of his beard and his head, having been worked upon, as they say, by John, who was afterwards the director of the orphanage. For this John, serving Romanos even before his reign, had great power as soon as he ascended to power. And he had other brothers, Michael, Niketas, Constantine, and George. But this John and Constantine and George were eunuchs, practicing the art of a charlatan, while Niketas had his genitals and the first down was already blooming on his cheek, and Michael, already reaching manhood, was most handsome in appearance. Both practiced the art of money-changing and debased the silver coins. Fortune, having brought all of these into the emperor's household through John, indicating the power they were about to seize, always raised them to great power; for the others were tested in various offices, and Michael was promoted by the emperor as archon of the pantheon. Toward him the empress conceived a demonic and mad love, and having arranged secret 2.505 meetings, she mingled with him in darkness. Therefore they also say that the emperor, worked upon by slow-acting 2.505 poisons, was mortified by grievous sicknesses, as the empress was seeking an opportunity to dispose of the emperor without suspicion, and to raise Michael to the imperial throne. Whence also by poisons, as has been said, not quick-acting but bringing on a very slow and tardy death, he, having been done in, dragged out a pitiful and painful life, being bedridden and calling for death with his whole soul. He lasted therefore until the 15th of the month of April, of the 2nd indiction, of the year 6542.

Then on the day of holy and great Thursday, having made the distribution of the salaries to the senators, and desiring to bathe in the bath in the Great Palace, and having entered, he is wretchedly drowned by the men around Michael in the pool of the bath, having reigned for 5 years and 4 months. And on this night, while the holy passions were being chanted, the patriarch Alexios is informed by the Emperor Romanos, supposedly, to come up to the palace, and having come up, he finds King Romanos dead, and Zoe, having seated herself on the dais after the Chrysotriklinos was decorated, brings out Michael, and compels the patriarch to perform the holy rite for him with her. But he, astounded by the word, stood speechless and hesitated at the holy rite. But John, with Zoe, giving fifty pounds of gold to the patriarch and fifty to the clergy, persuaded them to deem them worthy of the holy ceremony. And having been killed in the aforesaid manner, the Emperor Romanos is buried in the monastery of the Peribleptos, 2.506 newly built by him, on that very holy and great Friday. But Zoe, having established Michael on the imperial throne, thought that instead of a husband and emperor she would have a slave and a servant, and having already brought her father's eunuchs into the palace, she began to manage affairs more boldly; but everything turned out brilliantly contrary for her. For the emperor's brother John, being a practical and energetic man, as soon as he entered the palace, and fearing for his brother (for he saw the example of Romanos) lest he also suffer some terrible thing, sends the empress's eunuchs down from the palace and gets rid of her most faithful serving-women, and he sets women from his own kin as guards and wardens over the empress. And there was nothing small or great which was not done without his consent; for she was prevented from walking about and did not partake of baths unless he permitted it, and in general all amusement was taken away from her. And having set everything in order within, he sends out letters throughout the whole inhabited world, making known to all that Emperor Romanos had paid his debt to nature, and that Michael had been proclaimed emperor while the former was still alive and consenting, and by the empress

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βάλλεται καὶ τριχορρυεῖ γένυν τε καὶ τὴν κόμην, κατεργασθείς, ὥς φασιν, ὑπὸ Ἰωάννου τοῦ μετὰ ταῦτα ὀρφανοτρόφου. οὗτος γὰρ ὁ Ἰωάννης καὶ πρὸ τῆς βασιλείας ὑπηρετῶν τῷ Ῥωμανῷ, ἄρτι τοῦ κρά τους ἐπιβάντος αὐτοῦ μεγάλην δύναμιν ἔσχεν. ἦσαν δὲ αὐτῷ καὶ ἕτεροι ἀδελφοί, Μιχαὴλ Νικήτας Κωνσταντῖνός τε καὶ Γεώργιος. ἀλλ' οὗτος μὲν ὁ Ἰωάννης καὶ Κωνσταντῖνος καὶ Γεώργιος ὑπῆρχον εὐνοῦχοι, ἀγυρτικὴν μετιόντες τέχνην, ὁ δὲ Νικήτας εἶχε μὲν τὰ παιδογόνα καὶ τὸν πρῶτον ἤδη ἐπήνθει ἴουλον, ὁ δὲ Μιχαὴλ τῆς ἀνδρικῆς ἤδη ἡλικίας ἁπτόμενος εὐπρεπέστατος ἦν τὴν ὄψιν. ἄμφω δὲ τὴν ἀργυραμοιβικὴν μετῄεσαν ἐπιστήμην καὶ τὰ ἀργύρια ἐκιβδήλευον. τούτους οἰκειωθέντας ἅπαντας τῷ βασιλεῖ διὰ τοῦ Ἰωάννου ἡ τύχη, τὴν μέλλουσαν καταλήψεσθαι δυναστείαν αὐτοὺς ὑποδηλοῦσα, ἐπὶ μέγα διὰ παντὸς ἐξῇρε δυνάμεως· οἵ τε γὰρ ἄλλοι ἐν διαφόροις ἀρχαῖς ἐξητάζοντο, καὶ ὁ Μιχαὴλ ὑπὸ τοῦ βασιλέως ἄρχων προυβέβλητο τοῦ πανθέου. πρὸς τοῦτον ἡ βα σιλὶς ἔρωτα δαιμονιώδη σχοῦσα καὶ μανικόν, καὶ κρυφίους ἐντυ 2.505 χίας ποιησαμένη, σκοτίως ἐπεμίγνυτο. διὸ καί φασι χρονίοις 2.505 φαρμάκοις κατεργασθεὶς ὁ βασιλεὺς θυμαλγέσι νόσοις ἐσφακελί ζετο, καιρὸν ἐπιζητούσης τῆς βασιλίδος τοῦ τὸν βασιλέα μὲν ἀπο σκευάσασθαι ἀνυπονοήτως, τὸν Μιχαὴλ δὲ εἰς τὸν βασίλειον θρόνον ἀναγαγεῖν. ὅθεν καὶ φαρμάκοις, ὡς εἴρηται, οὐκ ὠκυ μόροις ἀλλὰ σχολαιότατον καὶ βραδὺν ἐπάγουσι θάνατον κατα πραχθεὶς οἰκτρὸν καὶ ἐπώδυνον διήντλει τὸν βίον, κλινοπετὴς ὢν καὶ ὅλῃ ψυχῇ τὸν θάνατον ἐκκαλούμενος. διήρκεσεν οὖν ἄχρι τῆς ιεʹ τοῦ Ἀπριλλίου μηνός, τῆς βʹ ἰνδικτιῶνος, τοῦ #22φμβʹ ἔτους.

Τότε δὲ κατὰ τὴν ἡμέραν τῆς ἁγίας μεγάλης πέμπτης τὴν διανο μὴν τῆς τῶν συγκλητικῶν ποιησάμενος ῥόγας, καὶ ἐπιθυμήσας λούσασθαι κατὰ τὸ ἐν τῷ μεγάλῳ παλατίῳ βαλανεῖον καὶ εἰσελθὼν οἰκτρῶς ἀποπνίγεται ὑπὸ τῶν περὶ τὸν Μιχαὴλ ἐν τῇ κολυμβήθρᾳ τοῦ λοετροῦ, βασιλεύσας ἐπ' ἔτη εʹ καὶ μῆνας ʹ. καὶ ταύτῃ τῇ νυκτὶ τῶν ἁγίων παθῶν ψαλλομένων μηνύεται ὁ πατριάρχης Ἀλέ ξιος ὑπὸ τοῦ βασιλέως Ῥωμανοῦ τάχα ἀνελθεῖν ἐν τοῖς ἀνακτόροις καὶ ἀνελθὼν εὑρίσκει μὲν νεκρὸν τὸν ἄνακτα Ῥωμανόν, τοῦ χρυσοτρικλίνου δὲ κοσμηθέντος ἐπὶ βήματος καθίσασα ἡ Ζωὴ ἐξάγει τὸν Μιχαήλ, καὶ τὸν πατριάρχην καταναγκάζει ἱερολογῆ σαι τοῦτον αὐτῇ. ὁ δὲ τῷ λόγῳ ἐκθαμβηθεὶς ἵστατο ἐννεὸς καὶ πρὸς τὴν ἱερολογίαν ἐνεδοίαζεν. ἀλλ' ὁ Ἰωάννης σὺν τῇ Ζωῇ πεντήκοντα μὲν χρυσίου λίτρας τῷ πατριάρχῃ πεντήκοντα δὲ τῷ κλήρῳ δοὺς ἔπεισεν ἱεροτελεστίας καταξιῶσαι αὐτούς. τὸν ῥηθέντα δὲ τρόπον ἀναιρεθεὶς Ῥωμανὸς ὁ βασιλεὺς θάπτεται ἐν τῇ παρ' 2.506 αὐτοῦ νεουργηθείσῃ τῆς περιβλέπτου μονῇ, κατ' αὐτὴν τὴν ἁγίαν καὶ μεγάλην παρασκευήν. Ἡ Ζωὴ δὲ τὸν Μιχαὴλ ἐπὶ τὸν βασίλειον ἐνιδρύσασα θρό νον ᾠήθη μὲν ἀντὶ ἀνδρὸς καὶ βασιλέως δοῦλον καὶ διάκονον ἕξειν, καὶ ἤδη τοὺς πατρῴους εὐνούχους εἰσαγαγοῦσα εἰς τὰ ἀνάκτορα γενναιότερον ἥπτετο τῶν πραγμάτων· ἀλλ' ἀπέβη πάντα ταύτῃ εἰς τοὐναντίον λαμπρῶς. ὁ γὰρ τοῦ βασιλέως ἀδελφὸς Ἰωάννης, πρακτικὸς ἄνθρωπος ὢν καὶ δραστήριος, ἅμα τε ἐπέβη τῶν βα σιλείων, καὶ δεδιὼς περὶ τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ (ἑώρα γὰρ εἰς παράδειγμα τοῦ Ῥωμανοῦ) μή τι καὶ πάθῃ δεινόν, τοὺς μὲν εὐνούχους τῆς βασιλίδος καταβιβάζει τοῦ παλατίου καὶ τὰς πιστικωτάτας τῶν θεραπαινίδων αὐτῇ ἀποσκευάζεται, γυναῖκας δὲ τῶν κατὰ γένος αὐτῷ προσηκόντων φρουροὺς ἐφίστησι τῇ βασιλίδι καὶ φύλακας. καὶ οὐδὲν μικρὸν ἢ μέγα ἦν ὃ μὴ μετὰ γνώμης αὐτοῦ διεπράττετο· περιπάτων τε γὰρ ἐκωλύετο καὶ βαλανείων οὐ μετεῖχε μὴ αὐτοῦ ἐπιτρέψαντος, καὶ ὅλως περιῄρητο αὐτῇ πᾶσα ψυχαγωγία. πάντα δὲ τὰ ἔνδον καταστησάμενος γράμματα κατὰ πάσης ἐκ πέμπει τῆς οἰκουμένης, γνωρίζοντα τοῖς πᾶσιν ὡς εἴη μὲν Ῥωμα νὸς ὁ βασιλεὺς τὸ φυσικὸν ἀποδεδωκὼς χρέος, ἀνηγόρευται δὲ ὁ Μιχαὴλ βασιλεὺς ἔτι ζῶντος ἐκείνου καὶ ἐπιτρέποντος, καὶ τῇ βα σιλίδι