CONTENTS
THE ALEXIAD
THE ALEXIAD OF ANNA COMNENA
BOOK V.
War with the Normans (1082-83) (i-vii) : Alexius' First Battle
with Heretics - John Italus (viii-ix)
[115]
I And meanwhile Robert, entirely freed from anxiety, collected all the booty and
the Imperial tent, and, with these trophies and with much exultation, settled down again
in the plain which he had occupied before when besieging Dyrrachium. After a short rest he
began to consider whether he ought to make another attempt on that city's walls, or
postpone the siege to the following spring and for the present invest Glabinitza and
Joanina, and winter there, while lodging all his troops in the sequestered vales that lie
above the plain of Dyrrachium. But the inhabitants of Dyrrachium (the majority of whom
were colonists from Amalfi and Venice, as already stated), on hearing of the Emperor's
misfortune, and the terrible carnage, and the death of so many valiant men and the
departure of the fleet and Robert's intention of renewing the siege in the coming
spring-on hearing all this they began individually to deliberate what action they had
better take to ensure their safety and not incur such risks again. Consequently they
called an assembly where they openly stated their private opinions and after discussing
the vital points they thought they had found the only path, as it were, out of a pathless
wood, which was to decide to listen to Robert and surrender the city to him.
One of the colonists from Amalfi still further incited them to this course, so they
allowed themselves to be persuaded by his arguments, and threw open the gates and gave
Robert entrance. After taking possession, he sent for the troops and dividing them
according to race, enquired of each soldier individually whether he had been seriously
wounded or had perhaps received a slight scratch from a sword; at the same time he found
out how many and what class of men had fallen in the preceding battles. And, during the
winter which was then close at hand, he intended to collect a second army of mercenaries
and recruit foreign troops, and at the coming of spring to march against the Emperor with
his [116] whole army. However, Robert was not alone in formulating such plans, although he
congratulated himself on being the victor and winning the trophies, for the Emperor,
worsted and badly wounded, was scared, so to say, and much depressed by this intolerable
defeat and the loss of so many brave soldiers-but in spite of this as he never
underestimated his own powers and had not slackened in his reasoning, his whole mind was
intent on the problem of retrieving this defeat in the following spring. Both these men
were clever at foreseeing everything, and in grasping the essentials' and there was no
strategic trick unknown to them; they were conversant with every kind of siege, ambuscade
and regular battles in the open field, swift and brave in actual fighting, and of all the
leaders in the world they were the adversaries most alike in intellect and courage. The
Emperor Alexius had, however, a slight advantage over Robert in that while younger he was
no whit inferior to the other who was already in his prime, and used to boast that he
could almost make the earth quake and throw a whole army into a panic by one single shout!
But these details can be left for a different kind of writing, and are sure to be
mentioned by encomiasts. The Emperor Alexius allowed himself a short rest in Achrida, and
after regaining his physical strength, went to Diabolis. Here he sought as far as possible
to reinvigorate the survivors from their sufferings in the battle, and he sent for his
remaining followers from all parts and told them to assemble at Thessalonica.
Now that he had made experience of Robert and the boldness of his large army, he
condemned his own leaders for great negligence and cowardice (I will not add the soldiers
for the majority of those who had been in the battle had had neither training nor military
experience), and therefore he needed allies. But how was he to get them without money? For
there was none in the Imperial Treasury which had been depleted so thoroughly and for no
useful purpose by his predecessor, Nicephorus Botaniates, that the gates of the
treasure-house were not even locked now, but carelessly left open for anyone who liked to
walk through them; for all its contents had been squandered. Hence the present
embarrassment of the Roman state, which was oppressed simultaneously by weakness and
poverty.
At such a moment then what was the young ruler to do who had only lately put his hand
to the helm? He must either [117] in sheer desperation throw everything overboard and
resign his command, so that, being blameless, he might not be blamed for being an
inexperienced and unskilful general, or else in this extremity he must gain as many allies
as possible and collect from some quarter or other sufficient money to pay them; he must
also recall the scattered remnants of his army by offering bribes which would raise their
hopes and cause those who were with him to stand firmly by him, and those away to become
more eager to return, and then they would be able to put up a braver resistance to the
Frankish hordes. As he did not wish to do anything unworthy of, or inconsistent with, his
own military knowledge and bravery, he focussed his attention on these two points - the
first was to collect allies from all sides, who would easily be allured by the promise of
heavy largess, and the second, to request his mother and brother to procure money somehow
from somewhere, and send it to him.
II These two could not discover any other means of procuring money, so to begin with
they collected whatever silver and gold articles they possessed and sent them to the
imperial mint ; but first of all the Empress, my mother, deposited the sum that remained
to her of her parents' patrimony, hoping thereby to instigate others to do the same ; for
she was extremely anxious for the Emperor, seeing the straits into which his affairs had
fallen. Secondly, they took from the persons who were well-affected towards the imperial
family, and had voluntarily offered to advance money, as much gold and silver as each was
ready to give, and sent it to be used partly for allies and partly for the Emperor
himself. But these monies were far from sufficient even for the immediate need (for some
of the soldiers asked for rewards on the plea that they had fought on the Emperor's side,
and others who were mercenaries kept clamouring for higher pay); the Emperor urgently
pressed for more, and thought that the goodwill of the Romans had vanished. His relatives
were quite at a loss, and after discussing many schemes in public and in private, when
they heard that Robert was again preparing for war, they turned in their despair to an
examination of the ancient laws and canons dealing with the sale of Church property. And
amongst them they found that it was lawful to sell the sacred properties of the churches
for the ransoming of prisoners of war (for it was well known that the Christians who
remained under the domination of the barbarians in Asia, and had [118] escaped massacre,
became defiled by their intercourse with the infidels). Therefore to furnish pay for the
allies and the soldiers, they considered turning into coin a few church properties which
served no purpose and were amongst those which had long been lying idle and neglected, and
only afforded the populace an excuse for sacrilege and impiety. When they had come to this
conclusion, the Sebastocrator Isaac went up to the great House of God where he had
convoked an assembly of all the clergy. The members of the Holy Synod who were f
ellow-councillors with the Patriarch were astounded at seeing him and asked him what
brought him there. He replied, " I have come to speak to you of a matter which will
be of service in this terrible crisis, and will be the means of maintaining the
army." Thereupon he began reciting the Canons about " superfluous Church vessels
" and after saying a good deal about them, he concluded with the words, " I am
compelled to compel those whom I do not wish to compel." And by putting forward
various bold arguments he seemed likely to win over the majority. But Metaxas opposed him,
advanced some very specious counter-arguments and even jeered at Isaac himself. But in
spite of him, Isaac's proposal was carried. This decision became the subject of a very
grave scandal to the Emperors (for I do not hesitate to call Isaac " emperor "
even though he did not wear the purple), which lasted not only for the moment but for a
considerable time. The head of the church of Chalcedon at this time was a certain Leo, not
one of the especially wise or intellectual, but of very virtuous life, though his manners
were rough and disagreeable. This man tore off the silver and gold ornaments on the doors
of the church in Chalcoprateia, and rushed into the assembly and spoke his mind freely
without so much as a reference to the financial condition or the extant laws regarding
Church property. Moreover he behaved very insolently, and in a most disorderly manner, to
the Regent, and each time he visited the capital he abused the latter's forbearance and
kindness. And indeed when Alexius left the city the first time to march against Robert,
and the Sebastocrator Isaac, his own true brother, was collecting money from every
possible source, but always with the consent of the people and in accordance with the laws
and justice, Leo aroused Isaac's wrath by his shameless behaviour. At last after many
defeats and then after countless successful encounters with the Franks, the Emperor, by
the sanction of Heaven, returned a crowned victor, and then he learnt that a fresh swarm
of [119] enemies, I mean the Scythians, were ready to descend upon him. Consequently the
raising of funds was hurried on for similar reasons as before, even while the Emperor was
residing in the capital, and at that time Bishop Leo attacked the Emperor most impudently.
About this time a great controversy arose about the holy images, and Leo laid down the
principle that we should adore the sacred images, and not only give them relative honour.
On some points he argued reasonably and in a manner befitting his station, but on others
he laid down the law wrongly, whether this was to be attributed to the heat of contest and
his hatred of the Emperor, or to ignorance, I cannot say. He was incapable of making a
precise statement with conviction as he was absolutely untrained in the science of
reasoning. By the advice of malicious persons of whom there were a number in the
Government then, he grew still bolder towards the Emperors and egged on by his friends he
even resorted to insults and untimely blasphemies. The Emperor besought him to change his
opinion about the images and also to desist from the enmity towards him, he also promised
to restore even finer vessels to the churches and to do all that was necessary to repair
the loss. The Emperor himself was already acquitted of blame by the more liberal-minded of
the senate whom the partisans of the Chalcedonian called "flatterers." As a
result of this behaviour, Leo was condemned to deposition from office.
As he did not knuckle under and did not keep quiet at all, but again disturbed the
Church meeting, coming with a considerable crowd of followers, for he was absolutely
irreconcilable and incorrigible, he was condemned by a unanimous vote after the lapse of
some years and a sentenced exile was pronounced against him. The city of Sozopolis on the
Black Sea received him and treated him with much care and consideration by order of the
Emperor, none of which he accepted because of his grudge against the latter, I suppose.
This account of him must suffice.
III When it became known that the Emperor had escaped from the battle, recruits in
large numbers flocked to him, and these he had carefully trained to ride very securely, to
shoot very accurately, to fight in full armour and to lay ambuscades cleverly. He had also
sent ambassadors again to the King of Alamania, of these Methymnes was the leader, and in
his letter he urged him not to delay any longer, but to take the troops he had at hand,
and occupy Lombardy with all haste, according to his promise. In this way Robert [120]
would be fully occupied and he himself would gain a respite during which he could
reassemble his army and collect foreign troops and by their help drive Robert out of
Illyria. He assured the King of Alamania that he would be deeply indebted to him if he
would do this, and promised him that he would fulfil the marriage-contract which he had
proposed through his ambassadors.
After arranging these matters he left Pacurianus, the Great Domestic in those parts,
and himself returned to the capital, for the purpose of collecting foreign troops from all
sides, and to arrange other matters connected with the times and the actual circumstances.
Now the Manichaeans, Xantas and Culeon, with the men under them who totalled about two
thousand five hundred, went off home unceremoniously, and when invited several times by
the Emperor to return, they did indeed promise to come, but kept postponing their coming.
But he persisted and made them written promises of gifts and honours, but even so they did
not return. Whilst the Emperor was engaged in these preparations for an advance against
Robert, a messenger came to tell Robert that the King of Alamania had all but arrived in
Lombardy. Then Robert was in a dilemma and deliberated what would be the best thing to do.
After much reflection, as he had left Roger to be ruler over his Kingdom when he crossed
to Illyria, but had not yet assigned any territory to his younger son, Bohemund, he
assembled all the Counts and picked men among the soldiers, and summoning also his son,
Bohemund, nicknamed Saniscus, he made a public harangue and said, " You know, Counts,
that when I settled to cross to Illyria I appointed my beloved first-begotten son Roger,
ruler of my country. For I could not have started from there and undertaken a task of
great magnitude if I had left my own country without a leader, a ready prize at the mercy
of the first comer. But now that the King of Alamania has entered it with hostile intent,
it is my duty to defend it as far as in me lies. For certainly the man who attacks the
possessions of others, must not in any way be careless of his own. Consequently it is
necessary for me to leave you, in order to look after my own country, and engage in battle
with the King of Alamania. Therefore to Uds, my younger son, I hand over Dyrrachium,
Valona and all the remaining towns and islands which I have won by my sword since my
arrival. And I commend him to you and ask you to regard him as my substitute and to fight
for him with all your heart and mind." [121] Then addressing himself to Bohemund, he
said, " And you, my very dear son, I enjoin you to treat the Counts with all honour
and ask their advice on all occasions and not to 'play the master' by yourself, but to
communicate everything to them. Above all, take care not to neglect the continuance of the
war against the Roman Emperor, but see that you do not relax at all now that he has
suffered a severe defeat and all but fallen a victim to the sword, and the greater part of I-Lis army has been wiped out in the battle. (And truth to
tell,"he continued, "he came near being captured alive and only escaped from our
hands after being terribly wounded). Therefore take care lest by gaining a respite he
should recover and resist you more bravely than before. For he is not one of the common
herd, but has been nurtured from childhood on wars and battles, he has travelled over the
whole of the East and the West, and how many rebels he hunted down and brought back
captive to the preceding emperors, you can learn yourself from many informants. Therefore
if you lose heart at all and do not march against him with firm resolve you will lose all
that I personally have won by great effort, and you yourself will undoubtedly reap the
fruits of your own laziness. And now I am leaving immediately to drive the King of
Alamania out of our country and thus firmly establish my son Roger in the dominion I gave
him." After thus bidding his son farewell, Robert embarked on board a monoreme and
reached the opposite coast of Lombardy, and from there hurried on to Salernum, which had
formerly been appointed the residence for those who attained ducal rank. He stayed there
until he had collected a large force and as many mercenary troops from surrounding
countries as possible. Meanwhile the King of Alamania in accordance with his promise to
the Emperor, was already hastening to take possession of Lombardy. Robert on hearing this
news hurried to Rome to join his army with the Pope's and to deter the King of Alamania
from carrying out his intention. As the Pope was not at all unwilling, they both set out
against the King. He for his part was on his way to invest Lombardy when he heard the
whole story about the Emperor-namely, that he had suffered a heavy defeat, that part of
his army had been butchered and the rest scattered abroad, that the Emperor himself after
surviving many dangers had been seriously wounded in several parts of his body whilst
fighting magnificently, but had made a marvellous escape owing to his boldness and
[122]courage. On receipt of these tidings the King turned his horse and rode back to his
native land, considering this a victory in that he had not exposed himself to danger
uselessly. So this man took the homeward road; and Robert, when he had reached the King's
encampment, did not trouble to pursue him himself but separated a large detachment from
his troops and sent it in pursuit of the King of Alamania. He himself gathered up all the
booty and made his way to Rome with the Pope. After establishing the latter firmly on his
throne and in return being nominated King by him, he returned to Salernum there to repose
himself from the many fatigues of war.
IV Shortly afterwards Bohemund came to him, bearing witness on his face of the defeat
he bad sustained. We will now relate how f ate had dealt him this blow. The young man,
mindful of his father's counsels and being moreover naturally fond of war and of
confronting dangers, steadily pursued the war with the Emperor. Taking his own soldiers
with him and accompanied by all the picked men of the Romans and by the chiefs of the
districts and towns which had been subdued by Robert (for these threw themselves heart and
soul into Bohemund's cause once they had given up the Emperor's case as hopeless), he
marched through Bagenetia to Joanina. Here he first drew trenches in the vineyards outside
the town and disposed all his troops in convenient positions, and then set up his own tent
inside the town. He made a survey of the walls and recognising that the citadel was in a
dangerous condition, he not only hastened to restore it as far as was possible, but he
even built a second very strong one in another part of the walls where he thought it would
be of more use; he also sent out raiding parties to plunder the surrounding country and
towns. Thereupon the Emperor without the slightest delay, collected all his troops, and
hurriedly left Constantinople in the month of May. When he arrived at Joanina, it was the
right season for fighting. As he recognized that his own armies were but a fraction of
Bohemund's forces and knew besides from his previous battles with Robert that the first
onset of the Frankish cavalry upon their opponents was quite irresistible, he judged it
would be best to have an attack by missiles made first upon the enemy by a small picked
body of peltasts. By this means he would gain some idea of how much military experience
Bohemund possessed, and by several partial attacks he would be able to form some opinion
of the general [123] state of affairs, and then, with the knowledge he had gained, engage
in battle against the Franks with greater confidence. The two armies were burning with
impatience to attack each other. But the Emperor dreading the irresistible first shock of
the Latin cavalry hit upon a new device. He had wagons built, smaller and lighter than the
ordinary ones, and four poles fixed to each, in these he placed heavy infantry so that
when the Latins came dashing down at full gallop upon the Roman phalanx, the heavy-armed
infantry should push the wagons forward and thus break the Latins' line.
When the hour of battle approached and the sun had already risen in its brilliance
above the horizon, the Emperor drew up his regiments in order of battle and himself took
the command of the centre. As soon as the engagement began, Bohemund shewed that he was
not unprepared for the Emperor's scheme, but, as if he had foreknowledge of it, he adapted
himself to this happening, for he divided his own troops into two divisions, avoided the
waggons and attacked the Roman ranks on either flank. Then lines were confounded with
lines and men fought men, face to face. After many had fallen on either side in the fierce
fight, Bohemund certainly carried off the victory. The Emperor for his part stood like an
unshaken tower with darts thrown at him from before and behind, for at one minute he would
ride against the advancing Franks, engage in close fights with a few, giving and receiving
blows and killing, and at another minute he would be shouting to, and rallying, the
fugitives. Finally, however, when he saw his ranks split up into numerous portions, he
deemed it wise to seek safety for himself too, not, as some might say, to save himself,
nor was he shaken by cowardice, but in order that he might make a second, braver
resistance to the valiant Franks, if only he could escape the immediate danger and rally
his powers. As he was fleeing from the enemy with a few companions, he f ell in with some
Franks and again shewed himself the imperturbable general. For after exhorting his
companions, he rode down upon the enemy impetuously as if determined either to die that
day, or carry off the victory by force; with his own hand he struck and killed one of the
Franks, and the followers of Ares with him wounded many and routed the rest. In this way
he escaped from immeasurably great dangers, and once again reached safety by passing
through the Swamps to Achrida. There he stayed and after recalling a fair number of the
fugitives to his standard, he left them all in those parts with the Great Domestic and
[124] himself went to the Bardares. But not for the sake of rest, for unlike other
royalties he did not allow himself imperial ease and repose. There he assembled his
regiments and mercenaries again and started on his march against Bohemund, with a new
device in his head for overcoming the Franks. For he prepared iron caltrops, and on the
eve of the day on which he expected a battle, he had them spread over the intermediate
part of the plain, where he guessed the Frankish cavalry would make their fiercest
onslaught, thus aiming to break the first irresistible attack of the Latins by piercing
the feet of their horses. And he ordered the Roman spearsmen who held the front line, to
ride forward at a measured pace in order not to be lamed by the caltrops, and to part to
either side and then turn ; the light-armed troops were to send a heavy shower of darts on
the Franks from a distance, and the left and right wings were to fall upon them in a
vehement charge. These indeed were my father's plans but they did not escape Bohemund. For
this is what happened: whatever plans my father made against him in the evening, the Frank
knew by the morning. So he skilfully modified his plans in accordance with what he had
been told, and engaged in battle but did not, as was his custom, begin with a frontal
attack, but forestalling the Emperor's intention, he raised the din of battle on either
flank, bidding the front ranks keep still for a time. Then the battle became a
hand-to-hand fight, the soldiers of the Roman army turned their backs to the Latins and
had not even the courage to look them in the face again, as they had been thoroughly
frightened beforehand by their previous defeat. Thus the Roman lines were thrown into
utter confusion, even though the Emperor remained undaunted in hand and heart and offered
brave resistance, wounding many and sometimes too being wounded himself. But when he saw
that his whole army had disappeared and he was left with just a few, he decided not to
incur danger by carrying on a hopeless fight. For when anyone after heavy travail has no
longer the strength to make a stand against his enemies, he would be a fool if he thrust
himself into certain danger. Now after the left and right wings of the Roman phalanx had
turned to flight, the Emperor was still maintaining the combat against Bohemund's army,
bearing the whole brunt of the battle himself. But on comprehending his unquestionable
danger, he deemed it his duty to save himself, so as to be able to fight once again
against his conqueror, and prove himself [125] a very formidable opponent who would not
allow Bohemund to reap a complete victory. For such was his character, whether conquered
or conquering, fleeing or pursuing, he never was cowed, nor caught in the snares of
despair. Moreover, he had very great faith in God and ever had His name on his lips,
though always refraining from oaths. Now being tired out as just said, he too turned his
back and was pursued by Bohemund and a few Counts. In so doing he asked Goules (he was my
father's servant) and the others with him, "How far shall we flee? " With these
words he turned his horse, drew his sword and hit the foremost of his pursuers in the
face. When the Franks saw this and recognized that he was quite reckless of his own
safety, and as they knew from experience that men reduced to such a state of mind are
invincible, they were stricken with fear and ceased their pursuit. And so freed from his
pursuers he escaped danger. Even in flight he did not entirely lose heart but managed to
reassemble some of the fugitives and others he jeered at, though the majority naturally
affected not to notice it. Having in this wise escaped from peril he re-entered the
capital for the purpose of mustering new armies and again taking the field against
Bohemund.
V After Robert's departure for Lombardy Bohemund, obedient to his father's behests,
carried on the war against the Emperor, and continually rekindled battles and engagements.
Further, he sent Peter, the son of Aliphas, with the Count of Pontoise to besiege various
towns, with the result that Peter at once took the two Polobi, and the aforementioned
Count of Pontoise took Scopia, and on being invited by the Achridians, he quickly reached
Achrida. But after staying there some time and accomplishing nothing, for Ariebes was
guarding the citadel, he went away to Ostrobus ; from that town too he was sent away
empty-handed so passed through Soscus and Serbia and came to Beroea. And after attacking
several places repeatedly without success, he reached Moglena via Bodina and there rebuilt
a small fort which had long lain in ruins. There he left a Count, nicknamed " the
Saracen," with an ample garrison and betook himself to a spot on the river Bardares
called the Asprae Ecclesiae. And whilst he was spending three months there, three of the
foremost Counts, namely the Count of Pontoise, Reboldus and a certain Gulielmus were
detected in a plot for deserting to the Emperor. The Count of Pontoise indeed, became
aware of this and escaped [126] and reached the Emperor, but the other two were captured
and by the Frankish law condemned to ordeal by battle. Gulielmus was defeated and unhorsed
and Bohemund imprisoned and blinded him; the other, Reboldus, he sent to Lombardy to his
father, Robert, by whom he too was deprived of his sight. Then Bohemund left Asprae
Ecclesiae for Castoria. The Great Domestic on hearing this, occupied Moglena, seized and
immediately put to death the' Saracen' and reduced the fort to complete ruin. Bohemund,
meanwhile, left Castoria and came to Larissa where he hoped to winter. When the Emperor
reached the capital, as already mentioned, he at once set to work-being, as he was, a
strenuous worker and never allotting himself any rest-and asked the sultan for troops as
well as for some generals with long experience. The latter consequently sent him 7,000 men
with highly experienced leaders, among whom was Camyres who surpassed all in long
experience. While the Emperor was arranging and preparing these matters, Bohemund selected
a certain portion of his own army, all Franks in full armour, sent them out and they took
Pelagonia, Tricala and Castoria off-hand. Then Bohemund himself with his whole army
entered Tricala and dispatching a detachment of brave men took Tzibiscus at first assault.
After this he approached Larissa on the festival of St. George the Martyr with all his
troops, encircled the walls and proceeded to besiege it. Now the defender of this city was
the son of the Emperor's hereditary servant, Leo Cephalas, and he put up a stout
resistance to Bohemund's engines for six whole months. He at once informed the Emperor by
letter of the barbarian's attack. But the Emperor did not immediately start on his march
against Bohemund, though burning with impatience, but had to postpone his departure
because he was recruiting mercenaries from all quarters. At length after equipping them
all fully, he set out from Constantinople. When he was close to the territories of Larissa
and had passed over the hill of the Cells, he left the public highroad and the hill,
Cissabus, so-called locally, on the right and marched down to Ezeba ; this is a Vlach
village situated close to Androneia. From this he marched on to a large village, generally
called Plabitza, situated somewhere near a river called ... here he pitched his camp,
entrenching it just sufficiently. Then on again through the gardens of Delphinas, and
beyond them to Tricala. And here a messenger bearing a letter from Leo Cephalas (of whom I
[127] have already spoken), found him. He wrote very freely as follows: "Know, O
Emperor, that up to the present by evincing extreme zeal I have kept this fortress from
being taken. Now we are deprived of all foods allowed to Christians and have begun those
which are not fitted for us, but even those are now giving out. Therefore please make
haste if you wish to help us and if you could possibly drive away our assailants, then
thanks be to God. But, if not, I, at least, have done my duty; and shortly (for how is it
possible to struggle against nature and its imperious demands?) we must bow our heads to
necessity and we intend to surrender the fort to the enemy who are pressing us hard and
literally throttling us. But if this calamity should eventually come to pass, then may I
be accursed! But I now take the liberty of speaking openly to your Majesty. If you do not
hasten with all speed to extricate us from this danger, as we are unable to support the
overwhelming burden of warfare, as well as famine, any longer; if you, our Sovereign, do
not hasten to bring help when you have the power to do so, then, I say, you will certainly
not escape the imputation of betrayal." From this the Emperor realized that in one
way or another he must overcome the foe; and he was oppressed by anxieties and
speculations. And for a whole day during which he invoked the aid of God, he worked hard
at the problem of how best to set ambuscades. He also sent for an old man, a native of
Larissa, and sought information from him about the lie of the land. With intent eyes and
pointing with his finger too, he questioned him carefully about the places where ravines
broke through the plain, and whether any thick coppices grew beside them. He asked these
questions of the Larissaean because he wished to lay an ambush and defeat the Latins by
craft ; for he shirked an open battle in the field as in several engagements he had been
worsted and had gained experience of the Frankish method of attack. At sunset, the
Emperor, who had toiled all day long, betook himself to sleep and a vision appeared to
him. He seemed to be standing in the church of the Protomartyr Demetrius and heard a voice
say " Do not grieve nor groan, tomorrow you shall conquer." He thought the voice
fell upon his ears from an icon suspended in the temple on which the martyr Demetrius was
painted. He awoke full of joy because of the voice of his vision, made his prayers to the
martyr and promised besides that, if victory should be granted him, he would travel to
Thessalonica and at several stades' distance [128] from the town he would dismount and
proceed on foot at a smart pace and do obeisance to him in his church. Then he summoned
the generals, captains and his relatives and commenced the discussion by asking their
individual opinion, and next explained the plan he had formed. And this was to entrust all
the divisions to his relatives; as chief commanders he appointed Melissenus Nicephorus and
Curticius Basileios, also called 'Little John'; this man was an outstanding figure
renowned for his bravery and military skill, a native of Adrianople. But not only the
divisions did he entrust to them but also all the royal standards. Moreover he enjoined
them to draw up the army on the same plan as he had drawn it up in the foregoing battles,
and advised them first to try the vanguard of the Latin army by a skirmishing attack, then
to raise their battle-cry and make a general attack. But directly the troops were fully
engaged they were to turn their backs to the Latins and flee precipitately as if making
for Lycostomium. Whilst the Emperor was giving these orders, suddenly all the horses in
the army were heard to neigh. Astonishment seized them all; however, the Emperor and the
more intelligent of his audience at once interpreted it as a good omen.
After he had given them these injunctions he left them to the right of Larissa, and
after waiting for the sunset, he ordered some picked men to follow him, and went through
the narrow pass of Libotanium, skirted Rebenicus and through the so-called "Allage
" he reached the left side of Larissa; there he explored the nature of the ground and
finding a slight depression, he crouched down with his companions. At the same time when
the Emperor, as just related, was on the point of entering the defiles of Libotanium in
his haste to place an ambush, the leaders of the Roman divisions selected and sent forward
a detachment of the Roman troops against the Franks to draw the latter's attention to
themselves and not allow them leisure to spy out whither the Emperor was going. So the
Romans descended to the plain, attacked the Franks, and after a short battle, stopped, as
night completely prevented further fighting. On reaching the desired spot the Emperor bade
all dismount and kneel down and hold their reins in their hands; and he himself
accidentally alighted on a bed of germander and bending down likewise lay the rest of the
night on his face.
VI At sunrise Bohemund saw the Roman troops drawn up in array, and the royal standards
and the silver-studded [129] spears and the horses with their royal red saddle-cloths,
drew up his own army against them as well as he could, dividing his forces into two, and
leading one half himself and over the other he put Bryennius [=Count of Brienne, Constable
of Apulia] as commander, who was one of the most illustrious Latins and called 'Constable'
by them. After thus disposing his own forces, he again followed his usual mode of
procedure and thinking the Emperor was where he saw the imperial ensigns in the middle of
the line, he dashed down upon this deception like a whirlwind. After a short resistance
his opponents turned their backs and he rushed after them in mad pursuit as in our
previous descriptions. Meanwhile the Emperor saw his own troops fleeing far, and Bohemund
in mad pursuit of them, and when he judged that Bohemund was at a safe distance from the
Roman camp, he jumped on his horse, bade his followers do the same, and fell upon
Bohemund's encampment. Once inside it he slew a number of the Latins he found there and
carried off all the booty; then he took another glance at the pursuers and pursued. And
observing that his own men were really pretending flight and Bohemund chasing after them
and behind him Bryennius, he called George Pyrrhus, a famous archer, and having detached
other brave men, and a goodly number of peltasts he ordered them to ride quickly after
Bryennius, and when they overtook him, not to start a close fight, but rather aim at the
horses from a little distance and direct showers of arrows upon them. They did thus
overtake the Franks and showered arrows upon the horses so that the horsemen were reduced
to great difficulties. For every Frank is invincible both in attack and appearance when he
is on horseback, but when he comes off his horse, partly due to the size of his shield,
and partly to the long curved peaks of his shoes and a consequent difficulty in walking,
then he becomes very easy to deal with and a different man altogether, for all his mental
energy evaporates, as it were. This, I fancy, the Emperor knew, and therefore ordered them
not to trouble about the riders, but to disable the horses. As the Franks' horses fell,
the men with Bryennius were thrown into frightful confusion, and from this large whirling
mass a tall, thick cloud of dust rose almost to the sky, so that its density could almost
be likened to the darkness 'that could be felt ' which befell Egypt long ago. For their
eyes were blinded by the thick dust which also prevented their seeing whence and by whom
the arrows were shot. So [130] sent three Latins to report the matter to Bohemund. These
found him standing on a little island in the river called Salabrias, eating grapes and
also making a boastful pun which is still popularly quoted. For he kept repeating with his
barbaric pronunciation of "Lycostomium " that they had driven Alexius "into
the wolf's mouth." Thus does arrogance mislead many even with regard to things
directly before their eyes, and before their feet. But when he heard the news sent by
Bryennius and realized the craftiness and the victory won by guile he was naturally,
indeed, furious with the Emperor, but in no wise cast down, so brave was he. A few
selected Franks in full armour who were with him, then mounted a small hill opposite
Larissa. Directly our heavy troops caught sight of them they demanded very eagerly to be
allowed to attack them, but Alexius restrained them from this enterprise. Nevertheless
quite a number from the different divisions and of various types did join together and
mounted the hill and attacked the Franks, who immediately rushed at them and killed about
five hundred. Then the Emperor guessing at the spot where Bohemund was likely to pass,
dispatched brave soldiers with the Turks and Migidenus as chief commander, but as they
drew near, Bohemund set upon them and beat them and pursued them to the river.
VII As dawn broke on the following day Bohemund crossed the river we have mentioned
with his attendant Counts, Bryennius himself among them, and when he found a swampy place
in the neighbourhood of Larissa and a tree-covered plain between two hills which ran out
into a very narrow pass (this is called a "cleisura "), the plain was named
"the palace of Domenicus," he entered by the pass and fixed his palisades there.
The next day at dawn the leader of the phalanx, Michael Ducas, my maternal uncle, caught
him there with all the army. This man was celebrated for his prudence, and in beauty and
stature surpassed not only all his contemporaries, but all who have ever been born! (for
all who saw him were amazed); he was, too, very quick and almost unrivalled in his
conjectures of the future, his investigations of the actual and in taking action
accordingly. The Emperor gave strict injunctions to this man not to let all the troops
enter the mouth of the "cleisura"; but to leave the mass of them outside in
squadrons, and to pick out a few of the Turks and Sauromatians who were skilled archers
and allow these to enter, and to command them to use no weapon but their arrows. These
entered and made cavalry attacks on the [131] Latins, and the men outside, burning for a
fight, vied with each other as to who should enter the mouth. Bollemund, who was an expert
in strategic science, commanded his men to form in close order and to stand quietly and
protect themselves with their shields. When the Protostrator saw the men under him
gradually melting away and entering the mouth of the pass he went in himself. And Bohemund
seeing them come rejoiced as 'a lion who has met with mighty prey,' to use a Homeric
expression, even so he, when he saw the men and the Protostrator Michael with his own
eyes, dashed at them with all his forces in an irresistible rush, whereupon they
immediately turned and fled. Uzas (who was thus named after his race), a man famous for
his bravery and skilled, as Homer says, 'in wielding, now right now left, the tough bull's
hide that formed his target,' bent to the right as he was coming out of the entrance and,
turning sharply, hit the Latin following him, who straightway f ell headlong to the
ground. But Bohemund pursued the fugitives as far as the river Salabrias. During the
flight this same Uzas pierced Bohemund's standard-bearer with his spear and plucking the
standard from his hands waved it aloft a minute, and then lowered it to the ground. When
the Latins saw their standard lowered, they were confounded and fled along another path by
which they reached Tricala which had already been seized by some of Bohemund's men who
were fleeing to Lycostomium. And there they entered the town and stayed awhile and
afterwards seized Castoria. But the Emperor soon left Larissa and entered Thessalonica and
with his usual sagacity very soon began sending offers of rich rewards to the Counts in
Bohemund's train on condition that they would ask Bohemund for the pay he had promised
them, and that if he could not pay them, they should persuade him to journey down to the
sea and ask his father Robert for it, or better still, cross the sea himself to fetch it.
If they accomplished this, they should all enjoy his respect and numberless benefits. And
if any of them were willing to serve under him as mercenaries, he would enrol them in his
army and give them the pay they required, and to those who preferred to return to their
own homes, he would give a safe passage through Hungary. In response to the Emperor's
suggestion, the Counts unfeelingly demanded their pay for the last four years, but as
Bohemund had not got it, he temporized awhile. However on their insisting in their
reasonable demands, he did not know what to do, so appointed Bryennius Governor of [132]
Castoria, as well as Peter, son of Aliphas, who was guarding Polobi; and himself journeyed
down to Valona. On receipt of this news, the Emperor packed up and entered the Queen of
Cities in triumph.
VIII When he arrived he found the church in a very perturbed condition, and did not
even have a short period of relaxation. But as he was a true apostle of the church, and
now found it vexed by the teachings of Italus, although he was anxious to march against
Bryennius (the Frank who had taken Castoria, as we have said) yet even under these
circumstances he did not neglect his faith. For at this time the doctrines of Italus had
obtained a great vogue and were upsetting the church. Now this Italus (for it is necessary
to give his history from the beginning) was a native of Italy and had spent a considerable
time in Sicily; this is an island situated near Italy. For the Sicilians had rebelled
against the Roman rule and were preparing for war against them and invited the Italians to
join them; amongst those w1lo came was the father of Italus who brought his son with him,
although he was not of military age, and the boy accompanied and tripped along with him
and received a military education, as is the custom of the Italians. That is how Italus
spent the early years of his life, and that was the first foundation of his education.
When the famous George Maniaces during the reign of Monomachus mastered and subdued
Sicily, the father of Italus with his child only escaped with difficulty and betook
themselves in their flight to Lombardy which was still under the Romans. From there (I do
not know how) this Italus came to Constantinople, which was not ill supplied with teachers
of every subject and of the art of language. For from the time of Basil Porphyrogenitus
down to the Emperor Monomachus, the study of letters, although neglected by the many, had
nevertheless not entirely died out; it blazed up again and revived and was seriously
pursued by the lovers of letters in the reign of the Emperor Alexius. Before that time men
for the most part lived luxuriously and amused themselves, and due to their effeminacy
they busied themselves with quail-hunting and other more disgraceful pastimes, and treated
letters, and in fact any training in arts, as a secondary consideration. Therefore when
Italus found the majority of this character he consorted with the scholars, gloomy men of
uncouth habits (for such were to be found in the capital even then) and after he had
gained an education in letters from them he later associated with the renowned [133]
Michael Psellus. This man had not studied very much under learned professors, but through
his natural cleverness and quick intelligence and further by the help of God (which he had
obtained by his mother's ardent supplications, for she often spent whole nights in the
church of God weeping and making invocations to the holy picture of the Virgin on her
son's behalf) he had reached the summit of all knowledge, was thoroughly acquainted with
Greek and Chaldoean literature and grew famous in those days for his wisdom. Italus, then,
became this man's disciple, but he was never able to plumb the depths of philosophy for he
was of such a boorish and barbarous disposition that he could not endure teachers even
when learning from them. He was full of daring and barbarous rebelliousness and even
before learning a thing, imagined he surpassed everybody else and from the very start he
entered the lists against Psellus himself. Being well versed in dialectics he caused daily
commotions in public meeting places by stringing together sophistical quibbles, putting
forward something of the kind and then maintaining an argument to match it. The reigning
Emperor, Michael Ducas, and his brothers, made a friend of him; they certainly placed him
after Psellus in their estimation, yet they were fond of him, and used him in literary
contests; for the Ducases, the Emperor's brothers, and even the Emperor Michael himself,
were very literary. Italus would always cast heated, furious glances at Psellus when the
latter, like an eagle, soared above his quibbles.
What happened next? The war of the Latins and Italians with the Romans broke out, and
the occupation of Lombardy, nay even of the whole of Italy, was under consideration. The
Emperor of that time sent Italus to Epidamnus on the supposition that he was his friend
and an honest man, and understood Italian affairs. Then to cut my story short, he was
detected in treachery to us and an official was sent to expel him, and Italus getting wind
of this, escaped to Rome. Later, as was his nature, he repented and sent imploring letters
to the Emperor who ordered him back to Constantinople and gave him as dwelling-place the
monastery called Pege, and the church of the Forty Saints. Later when Psellus left
Byzantium after taking the tonsure, Italus became the foremost teacher of all philosophy
and was styled the highest, 'Hypatus,' of philosophers and he gave lectures explaining the
books of Aristotle and Plato. He was generally supposed to be very learned. and he
undoubtedly was far cleverer than [134] all others in expounding that most wonderful
philosophic system, the Peripatetic, and especially the dialectics of it. But for other
branches of literature he had not a very good head, for he stumbled over grammar and had
never tasted the nectar of rhetoric. Consequently his language was not adaptable nor at
all polished. For the same reason, too, his character was austere and entirely unadorned
with grace. His studies too had contracted his brows and he literally exhaled harshness.
His writings were crammed full of dialectic exordiums and his language in disputations
redounded with 'attempted proofs,' more so in his discourses than in his written works. He
was so strong in his arguments and so difficult to beat that his opponent would
automatically be reduced to silence and to despair. For he would dig a pit either, side of
his question and hurl his interlocutor into a well of difficulties. Such skill the man had
in dialectics, and by a rapid succession of questions he would overwhelm his opponents by
confusing and daunting their minds. And it was impossible for anyone, who had once argued
with him, to free himself from these labyrinths. In other ways he was most unrefined, and
subject to violent temper; and this fierce temper annulled and obliterated the credit he
gained from his learning. For in arguments this man used fists as well as words and he did
not allow his interlocutor simply to lose himself in embarrassment nor was he satisfied
with sewing up his opponent's mouth and condemning him to silence, but forthwith his hand
flew out to tear his beard and hair, and insult quickly followed insult, in fact the man
could not be restrained in the use of his hands and tongue. The only unphilosophic trait
he had was that after the blow his anger left him, tears and evident remorse followed. If
it would interest anyone to know his appearance, his head was large, his brow very
prominent, his face open, his nostrils wide and of free exhalation, his beard rounded, his
chest broad and his limbs well-knit together, in stature shorter than the very tall. His
pronunciation was such as you would expect of a Latin who had come to our country as a
young man and learnt Greek thoroughly but was not quite clear in his articulation, for he
mutilated his syllables here and there. This want of clearness in his utterance and his
dropping the last letters did not escape even ordinary people and made rhetoricians call
him 'rustic' in his speech. As a result, although his writings were crammed with
dialectical commonplaces, drawn from all sources, they were decidedly not free [135] from
faults of composition and solecisms scattered broadcast.
IX This man then was the acknowledged master of all philosophy and the youth flocked to
him. (For he expounded to them the doctrines of Plato and Proclus, and of the two
philosophers, Porphyry and Iamblichus, but especially the rules of Aristotle; and he gave
instruction in the system to those who wished, as affording a serviceable tool and it was
on this that he rather prided himself and to this he devoted his attention.) Yet he was
unequal to exerting a very good influence on his pupils as his violent temper and his
general instability of character stood in the way. And look, I pray, at his pupils-there
were Solomon John, and an Iasitas and Serblias and others devoted to learning maybe; most
of them I saw myself later, as they often came to the palace. They knew no literary
subject accurately, but would pose as dialecticians, making ungainly movements and mad
contortions of their limbs, they understood nothing sound but put forth ideas, even those
about metempsychosis, in a shadowy way and other similar equally monstrous notions. Is
there any learned man who on visiting the court has not seen that holy couple, utterly
absorbed in their study of the interpretation of the Divine writings both at day- and
nighttime? I mean my royal parents. And here I will tell a little tale, for the laws of
oratory allow that. I remember the Empress, my mother, when breakfast was already on the
table, carrying a book in her hands and poring over the writings of the didactic Fathers,
especially those of the philosopher and martyr Maximus. For she was not so much interested
in the physical disputations as in those about the dogmas, because she wished to gain true
wisdom. And I was often seized with wonder at her and one day in my wonder I said to her,
" How can you spontaneously rise to such sublime heights? for I tremble and dare not
listen to such things even with the tips of my ears? For the purely abstract and
intellectual character of the man makes one's head swim, as the saying goes."She
smiled and said " I know that kind of quite laudable dread; and I myself do not touch
these books without a tremor and yet I cannot tear myself away from them. But you wait a
little and after you have dipped into other books, you will taste the sweetness of
these." The remembrance of these words pricks my heart and I have plunged into an
ocean, so to speak, of other tales. But the rules of history forbid them, therefore let us
run back to the [136] tale of Italus - when he was at the height of his popularity with
the students, some of whom I have named, he treated them all with contempt and turned many
of the feebler-minded to rebellion and made not a few of his own pupils tyrants. And I
could mention several of them, had not time obliterated their names from my memory. All
this took place before my father was elevated to the throne. On his accession he found all
education here in a very poor way and the regular study of letters apparently banished
afar, he lost no time in raking the ashes together to see whether some live sparks might
perchance be bidden under them. Those who were inclined to learning (and they were but few
and had not passed beyond the vestibule of Aristotelian philosophy) he did not cease from
encouraging but bade them prefer the study of the sacred writings to Greek literature. He
found Italus throwing everything into confusion and leading many astray, so he deputed the
Sebastocrator Isaac to examine him, as he was very literary and accustomed to undertaking
important duties. When Isaac found that Italus was as report said, he openly censured him
in a public meeting and then passed him on to the ecclesiastical tribunal by order of the
Emperor, his brother. But Italus was unable to hide his own ignorance, and there he
vomited forth doctrines quite foreign to the church's, and in the midst of the
ecclesiastical dignitaries he did not cease from acting like a buffoon, and doing other
things of a boorish and uncultured nature; the president of the church then was Eustratius
Garidas who condemned him to detention within the precincts of the great church in the
hopes of bringing him to a better state of mind. But, report says that Garidas would more
quickly have shared the other's evil doctrines than brought him back to the right path,
and Italus won him over entirely to his side. What was the consequence? The whole
population of Constantinople surged into the church, shouting for Italus. Probably he
would have been thrown down from the top into the middle of the church, had he not escaped
to the roof of the sacred edifice and hidden himself in some hole he found. But as the
wrong doctrines he had promulgated were much discussed by some of the courtiers, and not a
few nobles had been corrupted by those pernicious dogmas, the Emperor's soul was vexed;
and the heretical doctrines taught by Italus were summarized in eleven chapters and
dispatched to the Emperor. Then the Emperor made Italus recite these chapters from the
pulpit in the great church with his head [137] uncovered, and pronounce a curse upon them,
while all the congregation listened and repeated the curse. When this had been done,
Italus still remained uncontrollable, and again taught these same doctrines to many quite
openly, and on being reprimanded by the Emperor, he turned away abruptly and rudely, then
he himself was excommunicated. Later on, when he professed penitence, his sentence of
excommunication was lightened somewhat. And although his doctrines are still recited and
cursed, his name is only mentioned indirectly, as it were, and secretly, and the anathema
pronounced on him by the church is not pronounced in a voice audible to the congregation.
For in his later years he changed his opinions and repented of the error into which he had
been led. Furthermore, he denied a belief in metempsychosis and retracted his insulting
words about the holy icons of the saints; he also remodelled his teaching about "
ideas " so as to make it conform to orthodoxy, and it was quite evident that he
condemned himself for having formerly strayed from the straight path.
