On Leo the Armenian (from cod. Paris. gr. 1711)

A HISTORICAL COMPOSITION CONTAINING THE AFFAIRS OF LEO, SON OF BARDAS THE ARMENIAN.

And so Michael the emperor, in the first year of his reign, crowned his son Theophylact at the feasts, his wife Procopia also having come forth with great glory and having been present before the sanctuary and having seen the crowning of her son and having made great joy and having distributed much money. for she was the one arranging all the affairs of the empire; for her husband was gentle, as has been said. And they also performed many acts of charity, scattering the money which Nikephoros had diligently amassed, sending what was needed to the churches, to the monasteries, and to the ascetics in the deserts, and to the poor-houses 336 and to the hospices and to the captives and to the widows and to the orphans and to those who had fallen from their substance, and having made everyone joyful, they were glorified by all. And the demes composed poems in every mode for their acclamation, providing every pleasure of flattery. And so he recalled all those towards whom Nikephoros had been hostilely disposed, and he cast out of the palace the brothers of Theodote, who were patricians, and Leo, surnamed Scleros, and made him strategos of the Peloponnese.

And Leo, son of Bardas the Armenian, who had offended Nikephoros and had been flogged and tonsured by him and exiled, they recalled, and made him a patrician and strategos of the Anatolics; who, being wicked, also tyrannized them, as we will later say; so then, when these things had happened, the Bulgars, elated by their victory against Nikephoros, wanted to go to war. Learning this, Michael, having taken counsel, gathered all the themes, and levied many others in place of those left behind in the war, and having assembled those guarding the passes of Syria, Lycaonians and Cilicians and Isaurians and Cappadocians and Galatians, and taking them all with him, he went out in the second year of his reign, indiction . and the 337 city following him, and Procopia the Augusta, his wife, he went out as far as the aqueduct, holding Maioumas festivals and giving gifts to the commanders of the army, with Procopia exhorting them also concerning Michael the emperor, to protect him and shelter him in the war and to fight on behalf of the Christians. And from there she returned again to the city. And so, setting out from there, both the emperor and all the army drew near to the mountain passes. And indeed the Bulgars drew up in battle array opposite them, and seeing the multitude of the army, they did not dare to attack, but stood in battle array. Likewise also the army of the emperor stood, they too in battle array, for 15 days, not daring to lay a hand on each other. And so they suffered hardship in the heat, standing day and night of the summer, both the men and the beasts, and they came into great weakness, expecting that the Bulgars were about to lay a hand, and again the Bulgars likewise; and one could see them in great perplexity. And indeed Aplakes was on one part of the wing, having the Macedonians and the Thrakesians, and he declares to the emperor, "How long do we stand and perish? I will be the first to lay a hand in the name of God, and you yourselves attack with eagerness. And we shall be victorious; for we are more than ten times their number." As indeed was the case. And when he began 338 the battle, the Bulgars rushed against him in confusion, and the Thracians began to cut them down. and so of the battle

De Leone Armenio (e cod. Paris. gr. 1711)

ΕΥΓΓΡΑΦΗ ΧΡΟΝΟΓΡΑΦΙΟΥ ΤΑ ΚΑΤΑ ΛΕΟΝΤΑ ΥΙΟΝ ΒΑΡ∆Α ΤΟΥ ΑΡΜΕΝΙΟΥ ΠΕΡΙΕΧΟΥΣΑ.

Καὶ λοιπὸν Μιχαὴλ ὁ βασιλεὺς τῷ πρώτῳ ἔτει τὴν βασιλείας αὐτοῦ ἔστεψε τὸν υἱὸν αὐτοῦ Θεοφύλακτον εἰς τὰς ἑορτὰς, προελθούσης καὶ τῆς γυναικὸς αὐτοῦ Προκοπίας μετὰ δόξης πολλῆς καὶ παρασταθείσης ἔμπροσθεν τοῦ θυσιαστηρίου καὶ ἰδούσης τὸ στέψιμον τοῦ υἱοῦ αὐτῆς καὶ ποιησάσης χαρὰν μεγάλην καὶ διανειμάσης χρήματα πολλά. αὕτη γὰρ ἦν διατιθοῦσα πάντα τὰ τῆς βασιλείας· ὁ γὰρ ἀνὴρ πρᾶος ἦν, ὡς εἴρηται. ἐποίησαν δὲ καὶ ἐλεημοσύνας πολλάς, διασκορπίσαντες τὰ χρήματα ἅπερ ὁ Νικηφόρος δι' ἐμμελείας ἐσώρευσεν, εἰς τὰς ἐκκλησίας εἰς τὰ μοναστήρια καὶ εἰς τοὺς ἀσκητὰς ἐν ταῖς ἐρήμοις τὰ πρὸς τὴν χρείαν ἀποστέλλοντες καὶ εἰς τὰ πτωχεῖα 336 καὶ εἰς τοὺς ξενῶνας καὶ εἰς τοὺς αἰχμαλώτους καὶ εἰς τὰς χήρας καὶ εἰς τοὺς ὀρφανοὺς καὶ εἰς τοὺς ἀπὸ οὐσίας πεσόντας, καὶ πάντας χαροποιήσαντες ὑπὸ πάντων ἐδοξάζοντο. καὶ οἱ δῆμοι ἐμέλισαν ποιήματα καθ' ἕκαστον ἦχον πρὸς εὐφημίαν αὐτῶν πᾶσαν ἡδονὴν κολακείας παρέχοντα. καὶ λοιπὸν πάντας ἀνεκαλέσατο εἰς οὕσπερ Νικηφόρος ἐχθρωδῶς διέκειτο, καὶ ἐξέβαλε τοῦ παλατίου τῆς Θεοδότης τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς ὄντας πατρικίους καὶ Λέοντα τὸν ἐπιλεγόμενον τοῦ Σκληροῦ, καὶ ἐποίησεν αὐτὸν στρατηγὸν εἰς Πελοπόννησον.

Καὶ Λέοντα υἱὸν Βάρδα τοῦ Ἀρμενίου πταίσαντα τὸν Νικηφόρον τὸν δαρέντα καὶ κουρευθέντα ὑπ' αὐτοῦ καὶ ἐξορισθέντα οὗτοι ἀνεκαλέσαντο, καὶ ἐποίησαν αὐτὸν πατρίκιον καὶ στρατηγὸν τῶν ἀνατολικῶν· ὃς καὶ ἐτυράννησεν αὐτοὺς πονηρὸς ὤν, ὡς ὕστερον λέξομεν· λοιπὸν οὖν τούτων γενομένων ἐπαρθέντες οἱ Βούλγαροι ἐπὶ τῇ νίκῃ τῇ κατὰ τοῦ Νικηφόρου ἐβούλοντο ἀπελθεῖν πρὸς πόλεμον. ταῦτα γνοὺς Μιχαὴλ βουλὴν ποιησάμενος συνήγαγε πάντα τὰ θέματα, στρατεύσας καὶ ἄλλους πολλοὺς ἀντὶ τῶν ἀπολειφθέντων ἐν τῷ πολέμῳ, καὶ τοὺς φυλάσσοντας τὰς κλεισούρας τῆς Συρίας συναθροίσας, Λυκάονας καὶ Κίλικας καὶ Ἰσαύρους καὶ Καππαδόκας καὶ Γαλάτας, καὶ πάντας παραλαβὼν ἐξῆλθεν δευτέρῳ ἔτει τῆς αὐτοῦ βασιλείας, ἰνδικτιῶνος . καὶ τῆς 337 πόλεως συνακολουθούσης αὐτῷ, καὶ Προκοπίας τῆς Αὐγούστης τῆς αὐτοῦ γυναικός, ἐξῆλθεν ἕως τἀκιδούκτου, ποιοῦντες μαιουμάδας καὶ διδόντες χαρίσματα τοὺς ἄρχοντας τοῦ στρατοῦ, παρακλαούσης αὐτοὺς τῆς Προκοπίας καὶ περὶ Μιχαὴλ τοῦ βασιλέως, διαφυλάττειν αὐτὸν καὶ σκέπειν ἐν τῷ πολέμῳ καὶ ἀγωνίζεσθαι ὑπὲρ τῶν Χριστιανῶν. κακεῖθεν πάλιν αὐτὴ ὑπέστρεψεν ἐν τῇ πόλει. καὶ λοιπὸν ἀπάραντες ἐκεῖθεν ὅ τε βασιλεὺς καὶ πᾶς ὁ λαὸς ἐγγυτόμησαν ἕως τῶν κλεισουρῶν. καὶ δὴ οἱ Βούλγαροι παρετάξαντο ἀπενάντι αὐτῶν, καὶ θεωροῦντες τὸ πλῆθος τοῦ λαοῦ οὐκ ἐτόλμησαν ἐπιχειρῆσαι, ἀλλ' ἵσταντο παρατεταγμένοι. ὁμοίως δὲ καὶ ὁ λαὸς τοῦ βασιλέως ἵσταντο καὶ αὐτοὶ παρατεταγμένοι ἕως ἡμερῶν ιεʹ, μὴ τολμῶντες ἀλλήλοις βαλεῖν χεῖρα. καὶ λοιπὸν ἐταλαιπωρήθησαν ἐν τῷ καύσωνι στήκοντες τοῦ θέρους ἡμέρας καὶ νυκτὸς οἵ τε ἄνθρωποι καὶ τὰ κτήνη, καὶ ἦλθον εἰς ἀδυναμίαν πολλήν, προσδοκῶντες ὅτι οἱ Βούλγαροι εἶχον βαλεῖν χεῖρα, καὶ πάλιν οἱ Βούλγαροι ὁμοίως· καὶ ἦν ἰδεῖν αὐτοὺς ἐν ἀμηχανίᾳ πολλῇ. καὶ δὴ ὁ Ἀπλάκης ἦν ἐπὶ τὸ ἓν μέρος τῆς ἄκρας, ἔχων τοὺς Μακεδόνας καὶ τοὺς Θρᾳκησιανούς, καὶ δηλοῖ τὸν βασιλέα "ἕως πότε στήκομεν καὶ ἀπολλύμεθα; ἐγὼ πρῶτος βάλλω χεῖρα ἐπὶ τῷ ὀνόματι τοῦ θεοῦ, καὶ αὐτοὶ μετὰ προθυμίας ἐπεισέλθατε. καὶ ἔχομεν νικῆσαι· πλείους γὰρ αὐτῶν ἐσμὲν δεκαπλασίων." ὡς καὶ ἦν. καὶ ἀρξάμενος 338 τοῦ πολέμου συνεχύθησαν ἐπ' αὐτὸν οἱ Βούλγαροι, καὶ οἱ Θρᾴκης ἤρξαντο κόπτειν αὐτούς. καὶ λοιπὸν τῆς μάχης