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for the forces to come, Tornikios in the month of September, of the first indiction, having been proclaimed emperor, 2.563 as was said, quicker than a word takes the capital, hoping to take it at the first shout because the emperor was not well-supplied with forces. And having pitched his camp opposite Blachernae, very near the monastery of the Holy Anargyroi, he first tried the citizens with words and promises, but when no one paid him any heed, he now also took to action. And the emperor himself drew up his forces in opposition with both the citizens and the soldiers who happened to be present, having stationed the citizens and the populace on the wall; but the soldiers who happened to be there and some others whom the rulers of the senate had armed at his command, being not more than a thousand, he led out of the wall through the gates in Blachernae and set them up opposite the tyrant, having placed a certain ditch before them as a hindrance to the attackers, when it was necessary to stay inside the gates and to defend against the attackers from the walls, with magistros Argyros the Italian lamenting much and exhorting them to stay inside and not to sally forth, and not to wish to engage a people that was raging and angry and trained in military exercises with so few soldiers and a raw and unwarlike populace. But saying these things he did not persuade them; for Constantine, surnamed Leichoudes, opposed him, who at that time held the first rank from the emperor and was very powerful with him and was the father of this counsel. And when these men had gone out late in the afternoon, as the tyrant perceived, having armed the forces around him he attacks with great momentum, and quicker than a word, cutting through the ditch, 2.564 he routs those within, of whom some were captured, while others, fleeing, fell into the city's moat and perished miserably. And the citizens also fled, flinging themselves from the wall, and similarly the gatekeepers of the walls in Blachernae threw open the gates. And if some chance had not thwarted Tornikios's affairs, he would have entered without a struggle and become master of all. Having just pursued them as far as the ditch by the wall, he stopped the pursuit, and those around the emperor, taking courage again, secured the gates and took care of the guarding of the walls. Then also the emperor would have nearly perished, being shot by a bow, if God had not manifestly saved him, the arrow being carried into a certain attendant's conical head-covering, which saved both the one wearing it and the emperor. In this way the city, having come near to being captured, was saved. And the apostate, having remained for some days in the camp, since those around him, gradually slipping away, were deserting to the emperor, being frightened lest all, having abandoned him, should depart or even seize him and hand him over to the emperor, arose from there and returned to Arcadiopolis. And he himself, with John Batatzes, having pitched a camp there, remained, but he sends Theodore, surnamed Strabomytes, and the one called Polys, and Marianos Branas, commanders of the western regiments, who were related to him by kinship of blood, to besiege Rhaedestus; for it happened that the other Ma 2.565 cedonian and Thracian cities had gone over to him, but this one alone maintained its loyalty to the emperor through the zeal of its archbishop and a certain local magnate called Batatzes, who was a relative of Tornikios. But when those men had departed and, though they spent much time, accomplished nothing, he himself also set out and goes there with his whole army, and having brought every assault and engine against the city and having been repulsed from all sides as those within bravely repelled the engines, he returned again to Arcadiopolis, having lifted the siege. Just then, the eastern armies having also crossed over from both Chrysopolis and Abydos to Thrace, the emperor, having appointed Michael Iasites the magistros as their general, sends them against the apostates. And he, having gathered the forces together as one and having encamped nearby

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δυνάμεις ἐλθεῖν, ὁ Τορνίκιος κατὰ τὸν Σεπτέμβριον μῆνα, τῆς αʹ ἐπινεμήσεως, βασι 2.563 λεύς, ὡς ἐλέχθη, ἀναρρηθεὶς θᾶττον ἢ λόγος τὴν βασιλίδα κατα λαμβάνει, ἐλπίζων αὐτοβοεὶ ταύτην αἱρήσειν διὰ τὸ μὴ εὐπορεῖν τὸν βασιλέα δυνάμεων. καὶ χάρακα πηξάμενος καταντικρὺ τῶν Βλαχερνῶν, ἔγγιστα τῆς μονῆς τῶν ἁγίων Ἀναργύρων, πρῶτον λόγοις καὶ ὑποσχέσεσιν ἀπεπειρᾶτο τῶν πολιτῶν, μηδενὸς δὲ προσέχοντος αὐτῷ ἤδη καὶ ἔργου ἥπτετο. καὶ αὐτὸς δὲ ὁ βα σιλεὺς διά τε τῶν πολιτῶν καὶ τῶν παρευρεθέντων κατὰ τύχην στρατιωτῶν ἀντιπαρετάττετο, τοὺς μὲν πολίτας καὶ τὸν δῆμον τάξας ἐπὶ τοῦ τείχους· τοὺς δὲ παρατυχόντας στρατιώτας καὶ ἄλλους τινὰς ὅσους οἱ τῆς συγκλήτου ἄρχοντες κελεύσει τούτου καθώπλισαν, μὴ πλέον τῶν χιλίων ὄντας, ἐξαγαγὼν τοῦ τείχους διὰ τῶν ἐν Βλαχέρναις πυλῶν ἀντιμετώπους ἔστησε τῷ τυράννῳ, τάφρον τινὰ προστησάμενος εἰς κώλυμα τῶν ἐπιόντων, δέον εἴσω πυλῶν ἐπέχειν καὶ ἀπὸ τῶν τειχῶν τοὺς ἐπιόντας ἀμύνεσθαι, πολλὰ τοῦ μαγίστρου Ἀργυροῦ τοῦ Ἰταλοῦ ποτνιωμένου καὶ παρακαλοῦντος εἴσω μένειν καὶ μὴ ἐξάλλεσθαι, καὶ μὴ θέλειν λαῷ συμπλέκε σθαι μαινομένῳ καὶ ὀργῶντι καὶ στρατιωτικαῖς μελέταις ἐνηθλη μένῳ μετὰ στρατιωτῶν ὀλιγοστῶν καὶ λαοῦ νεαλοῦς καὶ ἀπειροπο λέμου. ἀλλὰ ταῦτα λέγων οὐκ ἔπειθεν· ἀντέκειτο γὰρ Κωνσταν τῖνος ὁ τὴν ἐπωνυμίαν Λειχούδης, τὰ πρῶτα τότε παρὰ βασιλέως φέρων καὶ μέγα παρὰ τούτῳ δυνάμενος καὶ τῆς βουλῆς ταύτης ὑπάρχων πατήρ. ἐξελθόντων δὲ τούτων περὶ δείλην ὀψίαν, ὡς ἔγνω ὁ τύραννος, τὰς ἀμφ' αὐτὸν καθοπλίσας δυνάμεις ἔπεισι μετὰ ῥύμης μεγάλης, καὶ θᾶττον ἢ λόγος τὴν τάφρον διατεμὼν 2.564 τρέπεται τοὺς ἔνδον, ὧν οἱ μὲν ἁλίσκονται, οἱ δὲ φεύγοντες εἰς τὴν τῆς πόλεως τάφρον κατέπιπτον καὶ οἰκτρῶς ἀπώλοντο. ἔφευ γον δὲ καὶ ἀπὸ τοῦ τείχους κρημνιζόμενοι οἱ πολῖται, παραπλη σίως καὶ οἱ πυλωροὶ τῶν ἐν Βλαχέρναις τειχῶν τὰς πύλας ἀναπε τάσαντες. καὶ εἰ μὴ τύχη τις ἔσφηλε τῷ Τορνικίῳ τὰ πράγματα, εἰσῆλθεν ἂν ἀμογητὶ καὶ κύριος τῶν ἁπάντων ἐγένετο. ἄρτι δὲ διώξας ἄχρι τῆς παρὰ τῷ τείχει τάφρου ἐπέσχε τὸν διωγμόν, καὶ πάλιν ἀναθαρρήσαντες οἱ περὶ τὸν βασιλέα τάς τε πύλας κατέσχον καὶ τῆς φυλακῆς ἐπεμελήθησαν τῶν τειχῶν. τότε δὲ καὶ ὁ βασι λεὺς μικροῦ ἂν ἀπολώλει διὰ τόξου βληθείς, εἰ μὴ θεὸς προφα νῶς διεσώσατο, τοῦ οἰστοῦ ἐνεχθέντος εἴς τινος θεράποντος κά λυμμα στροβιλοειδὲς κεφαλῆς, ὅπερ καὶ τὸν ἔχοντα καὶ τὸν βα σιλέα διεσώσατο. τοῦτον δὲ τὸν τρόπον ἐγγὺς τοῦ ἁλῶναι ἡ πό λις ἐλθοῦσα διεσώθη. ὁ δὲ ἀποστάτης ἐπί τινας ἡμέρας προσ μείνας ἐν τῷ στρατοπέδῳ, ἐπειδὴ οἱ περὶ αὐτὸν κατὰ μικρὸν ὑπορρυέντες ηὐτομόλουν τῷ βασιλεῖ, πτοηθεὶς μή πως οἱ πάντες καταλιπόντες αὐτὸν οἰχήσονται ἢ καὶ κατασχόντες παραδῶσι τῷ βασιλεῖ, ἀναστὰς ἐκεῖθεν ὑπέστρεψεν ἐν Ἀρκαδιουπόλει. καὶ αὐτὸς μὲν σὺν Ἰωάννῃ τῷ Βατάτζῃ παρεμβολὴν πηξάμενος ἐκεῖσε προσέμενε, Θεόδωρον δὲ τὸν τὴν ἐπωνυμίαν Στραβομύτην καὶ τὸν λεγόμενον Πολὺν καὶ Μαριανὸν τὸν Βρανᾶν, ταγμάτων ἄρ χοντας δυτικῶν, καθ' αἵματος κοινωνίαν αὐτῷ ἐγγίζοντας, πο λιορκῆσαι ἐκπέμπει τὴν Ῥαιδεστόν· ἔτυχον γὰρ αἱ μὲν ἄλλαι Μα 2.565 κεδονικαὶ καὶ Θρᾳκικαὶ πόλεις προσχωρήσασαι τούτῳ, αὕτη δὲ μόνη εὔνοιαν ἐτήρει τῷ βασιλεῖ σπουδῇ τοῦ ταύτης ἀρχιερέως καί τινος ἐγχωρίου δυνάστου τοῦ λεγομένου Βατάτζη, συγγενοῦς ὄντος τοῦ Τορνικίου. ὡς δ' ἀπελθόντες ἐκεῖνοι καὶ χρονοτριβοῦντες οὐδὲν ἤνυον, ἄρας καὶ αὐτὸς ἄπεισιν ἐκεῖσε μετὰ παντὸς τοῦ στρατοῦ, καὶ πᾶσαν προσβολὴν καὶ μηχανὴν ἐπαγαγὼν τῇ πόλει καὶ πάντοθεν ἀποκρουσθεὶς εὐψύχως τῶν ἔνδον ἀποκρουομένων τὰς μηχανὰς ὑπέστρεψε πάλιν ἐν Ἀρκαδιουπόλει, λύσας τὴν πο λιορκίαν. ἄρτι δὲ καὶ τῶν ἑῴων στρατευμάτων διαπεραιωθέντων ἔκ τε Χρυσουπόλεως καὶ Ἀβύδου πρὸς Θρᾴκην, στρατηγὸν ἐπι στήσας αὐτοῖς ὁ βασιλεὺς Μιχαὴλ μάγιστρον τὸν Ἰασίτην πέμπει κατὰ τῶν ἀποστατῶν. ἀθροίσας δ' οὗτος ὑφ' ἓν τὰς δυνάμεις καὶ παραστρατοπεδεύσας