528

and having secured the council as much as was possible 2.621, and having bid the emperor farewell, each departed for home, as it seemed.

And just then Bryennios, with his affairs being settled as it somehow seemed best to the emperor, crossed over to the east, having with him also the patrician John Opsaras, sent by the emperor with gold for the purpose of distributing the rations money to the soldiers. And arriving at a certain flat and open place in the theme of the Anatolics, he distributed the largess to the Cappadocians. But increasing the donatives, and ordering more to be provided than had been arranged, he found Opsaras opposing him and not obeying; for the latter said that he did not dare to give additions to the soldiers, as the emperor had ordered nothing concerning this. When Bryennios told him to keep quiet and urged him to do in silence what was commanded, but Opsaras resisted and grew insolent, he, inflamed with anger, rose from his throne and struck him with his fists. Finally, seizing him by the hair and the beard, he threw him to the ground, and putting him in chains, he kept him under guard in his own tent, while he himself, having taken the imperial gold, made the distribution with excesses as he wished. It happened that at that time the patrician Lykanthes, commander of the Pisidians and Lycaonians, was encamped nearby. When he heard what had happened to Opsaras, and suspecting the action to be an attempt at usurpation, as was likely (for he was uninitiated in the plans of the eastern commanders), he armed two of the 2.622 Anatolic regiments and attacked the tent of Bryennios, acclaiming Michael as emperor. And having seized Bryennios, he bound him, and he released Opsaras from his bonds, and handing Bryennios over to him just as he was, in fetters, he bade him to deal with him as he wished. And he, released from his fetters and having become master to do what he wanted, immediately put out the eyes of Bryennios and sent him as a prisoner to the emperor, also reporting the attempted rebellion; but he himself remained at the place, supposedly to carry out the distribution to the rest of the people. And so Bryennios paid such a penalty for his own rashness and arrogance, that we may not say folly; But the commanders who had their homes in the theme of the Anatolics, the proedros Romanos Skleros (for he too was not outside those who had sworn the oath), Bourtzes, Botaneiates, the sons of Basil Argyros, and the rest of the group, for a time were keeping quiet and awaiting the start of a rebellion from elsewhere, but when they learned what had happened to Bryennios, and to what fortunes this man had madly subjected himself, quickly reasoning that he, being interrogated, would reveal the conspiracy and the outcome would not be good for the conspirators, they all set out and went to Paphlagonia, to Kastamon; Kastamon was the home of Isaac Komnenos the magistros. And finding him still keeping quiet, they raised him up, even against his will, and they went with him to a certain level place of considerable width; the place is called Gounaria. And there, having gathered the neighboring sol 2.623 diers, and as many as came voluntarily, having heard of the movement, with all of them, they proclaimed him autocrator and emperor of the Romans, it being then the eighth of the month of June, of the 10th indiction, of the year 6565.

And having been proclaimed emperor, having pitched a fortified camp, he remained at the place, waiting for the rest to be gathered, as many as had taken part in the conspiracy. And the slowness of Kekaumenos persuaded him to wait longer and not to rush forward; for as he was considering and seeking the reason for the delay, a certain messenger came from the east and announced that he, having changed his mind, had disregarded the oaths that had been given and was of the emperor's party and was gathering people for the purpose of

528

καὶ τὴν βουλὴν ὡς ἐνῆν 2.621 ἀσφαλισάμενοι, καὶ τῷ βασιλεῖ προσειπόντες τὰ ἐξιτήρια, ἕκα στος οἴκαδε τῷ δοκεῖν ἀπεφοίτησεν.

Ἄρτι δὲ καὶ ὁ Βρυέννιος τῶν πραγμάτων αὐτῷ καθιστα μένων ὥς πῃ ἐδόκει τῷ βασιλεῖ, διαπερᾷ πρὸς τὴν ἕω, ἔχων μεθ' ἑαυτοῦ καὶ τὸν πατρίκιον Ἰωάννην τὸν Ὀψαρᾶν, ἀπεσταλμένον ἐκ βασιλέως μετὰ χρυσίου ἐφ' ᾧ τοῖς στρατιώταις διανεμηθῆναι τὸ σιτηρέσιον. γενόμενος δὲ κατά τινα τόπον ἡπλωμένον καὶ ὕπτιον ἐν τῷ θέματι τῶν ἀνατολικῶν τοῖς Καππαδόκαις διένειμε τὴν φι λοφροσύνην. ἐπαύξων δὲ τὰς δόσεις, καὶ πλείω τῶν τεταγμένων παρέχειν κελεύων, ἀντιπίπτοντα εἶχε τὸν Ὀψαρᾶν καὶ μὴ ὑπακού οντα· ἔφασκε γὰρ οὗτος μὴ τολμᾶν προσθήκας διδόναι τοῖς στρα τιώταις, μηδὲν τοῦ βασιλέως περὶ τούτου προστάξαντος. τοῦ δὲ Βρυεννίου ἀτρέμας ἔχειν εἰπόντος καὶ ποιεῖν σιωπῇ τὸ κεκελευσμέ νον παρεγγυήσαντος, ἀντιτείνοντος δὲ τοῦ Ὀψαρᾶ καὶ θρασυνο μένου, ἀναφθεὶς ἐκεῖνος τῷ θυμῷ τοῦ θρόνου τε ἀνίσταται καὶ κονδύλους τούτῳ προστρίβει. τελευταῖον δὲ καὶ τῶν τριχῶν καὶ τῆς γενειάδος ἁψάμενος καταβάλλει τοῦτον εἰς γῆν, καὶ δεσμὰ περιθεὶς ἐν τῇ ἰδίᾳ ἐφρούρει σκηνῇ, αὐτὸς δὲ τὸ βασιλικὸν χρυ σίον ἀνειληφὼς ἐποιεῖτο τὴν διανομὴν ὡς ἠβούλετο μεθ' ὑπερο χῶν. ἔτυχε δὲ τότε παραστρατοπεδεύων ἐγγὺς ὁ πατρίκιος Λυ κάνθης, καὶ τῶν Πισιδῶν καὶ Λυκαόνων ἡγούμενος. οὗτος τὰ εἰς τὸν Ὀψαρᾶν συμβεβηκότα ἀκουτισθείς, καὶ τυραννίδος ἐπίθε σιν, ὥσπερ ἦν εἰκός, τὴν πρᾶξιν ὑπολαβὼν (ἦν γὰρ τῶν τοῖς ἑῴοις ἄρχουσι βεβουλευμένων ἀμύητος), καθοπλίσας τὰ δύο τῶν 2.622 ἀνατολικῶν τάγματα ἐπιτίθεται τῇ σκηνῇ τοῦ Βρυεννίου, αὐτο κράτορα τὸν Μιχαὴλ εὐφημῶν. καὶ τοῦτον μὲν δεσμεῖ κατασχών, ἀπολύει δὲ καὶ τὸν Ὀψαρᾶν τῶν δεσμῶν, καὶ τὸν Βρυέννιον αὐτῷ παραδοὺς οὕτως ὡς εἶχε κλοιῶν, χρῆσθαι τούτῳ κελεύει ὡς βού λεται. ὁ δὲ ἀνεθεὶς τῆς πέδης καὶ πράττειν ὃ θέλει κύριος γεγο νὼς τοῦ μὲν Βρυεννίου εὐθέως ἐξορύττει τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς καὶ ἐς βασιλέα τοῦτον δεσμώτην ἐκπέμπει, μηνύσας καὶ τὴν τολμηθεῖ σαν ἀποστασίαν· ὁ δὲ προσέμενε τῷ τόπῳ ὡς τάχα τὴν εἰς τὸν λοιπὸν λαὸν διενεργήσων διανομήν. καὶ ὁ μὲν Βρυέννιος τοιαύτας ἀπέδωκε δίκας τῆς ἑαυτοῦ προπετείας καὶ αὐθαδείας, ἵνα μὴ λέ γωμεν ἀνοίας· οἱ δὲ κατὰ τὸ θέμα τῶν ἀνατολικῶν τὰς οἰκήσεις ἔχοντες ἄρχοντες, ὁ πρόεδρος Ῥωμανὸς ὁ Σκληρὸς (ἦν γὰρ οὐδ' αὐτὸς ἔξω τῶν ὀμωμοκότων), ὁ Βούρτζης, ὁ Βοτανειάτης, οἱ Βασιλείου τοῦ Ἀργυροῦ παῖδες καὶ ὁ λοιπὸς ὅμιλος, τέως μὲν ἦσαν ἠρεμοῦντες καὶ ἀρχὴν ἀποστασίας ἀλλαχόθεν προσμένοντες, ἐπεὶ δὲ ἐπύθοντο τὰ κατὰ τὸν Βρυέννιον, καὶ οἵαις ἑαυτὸν οὗτος φρενοβλαβῶς καθυπέβαλε τύχαις, ἐντρεχῶς λογισάμενοι ὡς ἐτα ζόμενος οὗτος ἀποφήνειε τὴν συνωμοσίαν καὶ οὐκ εἰς καλὸν τοῖς συνωμόταις τὸ τέλος ἐπενεχθήσεται, ἄραντες ἅπαντες ἀπέρχονται ἐν Παφλαγονίᾳ κατὰ τὴν Κασταμόνα· οἶκος δὲ ἡ Κασταμὼν τοῦ Ἰσαακίου μαγίστρου τοῦ Κομνηνοῦ. καταλαβόντες δὲ καὶ αὐτὸν ἠρεμοῦντα ἔτι ἀνιστῶσι καὶ ἄκοντα, καὶ ἔρχονται μετ' αὐτοῦ κατά τινα τόπον ὁμαλὸν καὶ πλάτος ἱκανὸν ἔχοντα· Γουνάρια ὁ τόπος κατονομάζεται. κἀκεῖσε τοὺς πλησιοχώρους ἀθροίσαντες στρα 2.623 τιώτας, καὶ τοὺς ὅσοι πυθόμενοι τὴν κίνησιν ἐθελονταὶ παρεγέ νοντο, μετὰ πάντων αὐτῶν ἀναγορεύουσι τοῦτον αὐτοκράτορα βασιλέα Ῥωμαίων, ὀγδόην ἄγοντος τότε τοῦ Ἰουνίου μηνός, τῆς ιʹ ἰνδικτιῶνος τοῦ #22φξεʹ ἔτους.

Ἀναγορευθεὶς δὲ βασιλεύς, στρατοπεδείαν ὀχυρὰν πηξά μενος, προσέμενε τῷ τόπῳ, ἐκδεχόμενος ἀθροισθῆναι καὶ τοὺς λοιπούς, ὁπόσοι μετεσχήκασι τῆς συνωμοσίας. πλέον δὲ αὐτὸν καρτερεῖν ἀνέπειθε καὶ μὴ προεξάλλεσθαι ἡ τοῦ Κεκαυμένου βραδύτης· διασκοπουμένῳ γὰρ αὐτῷ καὶ τὸ αἴτιον ζητοῦντι τῆς βραδυτῆτος ἄγγελός τις ἐκ τῆς ἑῴας ἐλθὼν ἀπήγγειλεν ὡς μετα μεληθεὶς ἐκεῖνος τῶν τε δοθέντων ὅρκων ἠλόγησε καὶ τὰ βασιλέως φρονεῖ καὶ λαὸν ἀθροίζει ἐφ' ᾧ