The Complete Works of
PROCOPIUS
(c. AD 500-c. 554)
Contents
The Translations
THE WARS OF JUSTINIAN
SECRET HISTORY
THE BUILDINGS OF JUSTINIAN
The Greek Texts
LIST OF GREEK TEXTS
The Dual Texts
DUAL GREEK AND ENGLISH TEXTS
The Biography
INTRODUCTION TO PROCOPIUS by H. B. Dewing
The Delphi Classics Catalogue
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The Complete Works of
PROCOPIUS OF CAESAREA
By Delphi Classics, 2016
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Complete Works of Procopius
First published in the United Kingdom in 2016 by Delphi Classics.
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The Translations
Caesarea, formerly in the Roman Province Palaestina Prima and now a town in Israel, located mid-way between Tel Aviv and Haifa — Procopius’ birthplace
Ancient ruins at Caesarea
THE WARS OF JUSTINIAN
Translated by H. B. Dewing
Procopius’ most important work, The Wars of Justinian, is composed of eight books and recounts the Persian Wars of the emperors Justinus and Justinian. It is believed that the first seven books were originally published as a whole in c. AD 545, but were updated several years later, with the latest event mentioned belonging to early 551. The first two books are popularly known as The Persian War and concern the conflict between the Romans and Sassanid Persia in Mesopotamia, Syria, Armenia, Lazica and Caucasian Iberia. Procopius details the campaigns of the Sasanian Shah Kavadh I, the Nika riots in Constantinople in 532, the war by Kavadh’s successor, Khosrau I, in 540 and his destruction of Antioch and the transportation of its inhabitants to Mesopotamia, as well as reporting on the great plague that devastated Constantinople in 542. These books also cover in detail the early career of the Roman general Belisarius, Procopius’ patron.
The next two books, known as The Vandal War, deal with Belisarius’ successful campaign against the Vandal kingdom in Roman Africa. The remaining books cover The Gothic War, including Belisarius’ attempts to recapture Italy, then under the rule of the Ostrogoths, with accounts of the sieges of Naples and Rome. The later addition of the eighth book, The Gothic War IV, concerns events in 552/553, when a Roman army led by the eunuch Narses finally destroyed the Ostrogothic kingdom. This book also covers campaigns both in Italy and on the Eastern frontier.
The Wars of Justinian was largely influential on later Byzantine history-writing and a continuation of Procopius’ work was written after his death by the poet and historian Agathias of Myrina. Procopius’ great work consists largely of military history, with much scarce information about peoples, places and special events. A diligent and judicious narrator of facts and developments, Procopius often reveals adept powers of description, demonstrating a just treatment of the empire’s enemies, while boldly criticising the emperor Justinian.
Golden coin of Kavadh I, (c. 473-531) was the Sassanid king of Persia from 488 to 531. A son of Peroz I (457–484), he was crowned by the nobles in place of his deposed and blinded uncle Balash (484–488).
The Hippodrome in Istanbul — site of the Nika Riots, which took place over the course of a week in Constantinople in AD 532. It was the most violent riot in the history of the city, with nearly half the city being burned or destroyed and tens of thousands of people killed.
CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION
BOOK I. THE PERSIAN WAR
BOOK II. THE PERSIAN WAR (Continued)
BOOK III. THE VANDALIC WAR
BOOK IV. THE VANDALIC WAR (Continued)
BOOK V. THE GOTHIC WAR
BOOK VI. THE GOTHIC WAR (continued)
BOOK VII. THE GOTHIC WAR (continued)
BOOK VIII. THE GOTHIC WAR (continued)
Detailed table of contents
Mosaic of Belisarius, Basilica of San Vitale, Ravenna, Italy
Mosaic of Justinian I, San Vitale, Ravenna, 6th century A.D.
INTRODUCTION
Procopius is known to posterity as the historian of the eventful reign of Justinian (527-565 A.D.), and the chronicler of the great deeds of the general Belisarius. He was born late in the fifth century in the city of Caesarea in Palestine. As to his education and early years we are not informed, but we know that he studied to fit himself for the legal profession. He came as a young man to Constantinople, and seems to have made his mark immediately. For as early as the year 527 he was appointed legal adviser and private secretary to Belisarius, then a very young man who had been serving on the staff of the general Justinian, and had only recently been advanced to the office of general. Shortly after this Justinian was called by his uncle Justinus to share the throne of the Roman Empire, and four months later Justinus died, leaving Justinian sole emperor of the Romans. Thus the stage was set for the scenes which are presented in the pages of Procopius. His own activity continued till well nigh the end of Justinian’s life, and he seems to have outlived his hero, Belisarius.
During the eventful years of Belisarius’ campaigning in Africa, in Italy, and in the East, Procopius was moving about with him and was an eye-witness of the events he describes in his writings. In 527 we find him in Mesopotamia; in 533 he accompanied Belisarius to Africa; and in 536 he journeyed with him to Italy. He was therefore quite correct in the assertion which he makes rather modestly in the introduction of his history, that he was better qualified than anyone else to write the history of that period. Besides his intimacy with Belisarius it should be added that his position gave him the further advantage of a certain standing at the imperial court in Constantinople, and brought him the acquaintance of many of the leading men of his day. Thus we have the testimony of one intimately associated with the administration, and this, together with the importance of the events through which he lived, makes his record exceedingly interesting as well as historically important. One must admit that his position was not one to encourage impartiality in his presentation of facts, and that the imperial favour was not won by plain speaking; nevertheless we have before us a man who could not obliterate himself enough to play the abject flatterer always, and he gives us the reverse, too, of his brilliant picture, as we shall see presently.
Procopius’ three works give us a fairly complete account of the reign of Justinian up till near the year 560 A.D., and he has done us the favour of setting forth three different points of view which vary so widely that posterity has sometimes found it difficult to reconcile them. His greatest work, as well as his earliest, is the History of the Wars, in eight books. The material is not arranged strictly according to chronological sequence, but so that the progress of events may be traced separately in each one of three wars. Thus the first two books are given over to the Persian wars, the next two contain the account of the war waged against the Vandals in Africa, the three following describe the struggle against the Goths in Italy. These seven books were published together first, and the eighth book was added later as a supplemen
t to bring the history up to about the date of 554, being a general account of events in different parts of the empire. It is necessary to bear in mind that the wars described separately by Procopius overlapped one another in time, and that while the Romans were striving to hold back the Persian aggressor they were also maintaining armies in Africa and in Italy. In fact the Byzantine empire was making a supreme effort to re-establish the old boundaries, and to reclaim the territories lost to the barbarian nations. The emperor Justinian was fired by the ambition to make the Roman Empire once more a world power, and he drained every resource in his eagerness to make possible the fulfilment of this dream. It was a splendid effort, but it was doomed to failure; the fallen edifice could not be permanently restored.
The history is more general than the title would imply, and all the important events of the time are touched upon. So while we read much of the campaigns against the nations who were crowding back the boundaries of the old empire, we also hear of civic affairs such as the great Nika insurrection in Byzantium in 532; similarly a careful account is given of the pestilence of 540, and the care shewn in describing the nature of the disease shews plainly that the author must have had some acquaintance with the medical science of the time.
After the seventh book of the History of the Wars Procopius wrote the Anecdota, or Secret History. Here he freed himself from all the restraints of respect or fear, and set down without scruple everything which he had been led to suppress or gloss over in the History through motives of policy. He attacks unmercifully the emperor and empress and even Belisarius and his wife Antonina, and displays to us one of the blackest pictures ever set down in writing. It is a record of wanton crime and shameless debauchery, of intrigue and scandal both in public and in private life. It is plain that the thing is overdone, and the very extravagance of the calumny makes it impossible to be believed; again and again we meet statements which, if not absolutely impossible, are at least highly improbable. Many of the events of the History are presented in an entirely new light; we seem to hear one speaking out of the bitterness of his heart. It should be said, at the same time, that there are very few contradictions in statements of fact. The author has plainly singled out the empress Theodora as the principal victim of his venomous darts, and he gives an account of her early years which is both shocking and disgusting, but which, happily, we are not forced to regard as true. It goes without saying that such a work as this could not have been published during the lifetime of the author, and it appears that it was not given to the world until after the death of Justinian in 565.
Serious doubts have been entertained in times past as to the authenticity of the Anecdota, for at first sight it seems impossible that the man who wrote in the calm tone of the History and who indulged in the fulsome praise of the panegyric On the Buildings could have also written the bitter libels of the Anecdota. It has come to be seen, however, that this feeling is not supported by any unanswerable arguments, and it is now believed to be highly probable at least, that the Anecdota is the work of Procopius. Its bitterness may be extreme and its calumnies exaggerated beyond all reason, but it must be regarded as prompted by a reaction against the hollow life of the Byzantine court.
The third work is entitled On the Buildings, and is plainly an attempt to gain favour with the emperor. We can only guess as to what the immediate occasion was for its composition. It is plain, however, that the publication of the History could not have aroused the enthusiasm of Justinian; there was no attempt in it to praise the emperor, and one might even read an unfavourable judgment between the lines. And it is not at all unlikely that he was moved to envy by the praises bestowed upon his general, Belisarius. At any rate the work On the Buildings is written in the empty style of the fawning flatterer. It is divided into six short books and contains an account of all the public buildings of Justinian’s reign in every district of the empire. The subject was well chosen and the material ample, and Procopius lost no opportunity of lauding his sovereign to the skies. It is an excellent example of the florid panegyric style which was, unfortunately, in great favour with the literary world of his own as well as later Byzantine times. But in spite of its faults, this work is a record of the greatest importance for the study of the period, since it is a storehouse of information concerning the internal administration of the empire.
The style of Procopius is in general clear and straightforward, and shews the mind of one who endeavours to speak the truth in simple language wherever he is not under constraint to avoid it. At the same time he is not ignorant of the arts of rhetoric, and especially in the speeches he is fond of introducing sounding phrases and sententious statements. He was a great admirer of the classical writers of prose, and their influence is everywhere apparent in his writing; in particular he is much indebted to the historians Herodotus and Thucydides, and he borrows from them many expressions and turns of phrase. But the Greek which he writes is not the pure Attic, and we find many evidences of the influence of the contemporary spoken language.
Procopius writes at times as a Christian, and at times as one imbued with the ideas of the ancient religion of Greece. Doubtless his study of the classical writers led him into this, perhaps unconsciously. At any rate it seems not to have been with him a matter in which even consistency was demanded. It was politic to espouse the religion of the state, but still he often allows himself to speak as if he were a contemporary of Thucydides.
The text followed is that of Haury, issued in the Teubner series, 1905-1913.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
The editio princeps of Procopius was published by David Hoeschel, Augsburg, 1607; the Secret History was not included, and only summaries of the six books of the work On the Buildings were given. The edition is not important except as being the first.
The Secret History was printed for the first time separately with a Latin translation by Alemannus, Lyon, 1623.
The first complete edition was that of Maltretus, Paris, 1661-63, reprinted in Venice, 1729; the edition included a Latin translation of all the works, which was taken over into the edition of Procopius in the Corpus Scriptorum Historiae Byzantinae by Dindorf, Bonn, 1833-38.
Two editions of recent years are to be mentioned: Domenico Comparetti, La Guerra Gotica di Procopio di Cesarea; testo Greco emendato sui manoscritti con traduxione Italiana, Rome, 1895-98; 3 vols. Jacobus Haury, Procopii Caesariensis Opera Omnia, Leipzig, 1905-13; 3 vols. (Bibl. Teub.).
Among a number of works on Procopius or on special subjects connected with his writings the following may be mentioned:
Felix Dahn: Procopius von Cäsarea, Berlin, 1865.
Julius Jung: Geographisch-Historisches bei Procopius von Caesarea, Wiener Studien 5 (1883) 85-115.
W. Gundlach: Quaestiones Procopianae, Progr. Hanau, 1861, also Dissert. Marburg, 1861.
J. Haury: Procopiana, Progr. Augsburg, 1891.
B. Pancenko: Ueber die Geheimgeschichte des Prokop, Viz. Vrem. 2 (1895).
J. Haury: Zur Beurteilung des Geschichtschreibers Procopius von Caesarea, Munich, 1896-97.
1971. The Teubner edition in 4 volumes by J. Haury (1905-1913) has been re-edited by G. Wirth.
BOOK I. THE PERSIAN WAR
I
Procopius of Caesarea has written the history of the wars which Justinian, Emperor of the Romans, waged against the barbarians of the East and of the West, relating separately the events of each one, to the end that the long course of time may not overwhelm deeds of singular importance through lack of a record, and thus abandon them to oblivion and utterly obliterate them. The memory of these events he deemed would be a great thing and most helpful to men of the present time, and to future generations as well, in case time should ever again place men under a similar stress. For men who purpose to enter upon a war or are preparing themselves for any kind of struggle may derive some benefit from a narrative of a similar situation in history, inasmuch as this discloses the final result attained by men of an earlier day in a struggle of the same sort, and foreshadows, at lea
st for those who are most prudent in planning, what outcome present events will probably have. Furthermore he had assurance that he was especially competent to write the history of these events, if for no other reason, because it fell to his lot, when appointed adviser to the general Belisarius, to be an eye-witness of practically all the events to be described. It was his conviction that while cleverness is appropriate to rhetoric, and inventiveness to poetry, truth alone is appropriate to history. In accordance with this principle he has not concealed the failures of even his most intimate acquaintances, but has written down with complete accuracy everything which befell those concerned, whether it happened to be done well or ill by them.
It will be evident that no more important or mightier deeds are to be found in history than those which have been enacted in these wars, — provided one wishes to base his judgment on the truth. For in them more remarkable feats have been performed than in any other wars with which we are acquainted; unless, indeed, any reader of this narrative should give the place of honour to antiquity, and consider contemporary achievements unworthy to be counted remarkable. There are those, for example, who call the soldiers of the present day “bowmen,” while to those of the most ancient times they wish to attribute such lofty terms as “hand-to-hand fighters,” “shield-men,” and other names of that sort; and they think that the valour of those times has by no means survived to the present, — an opinion which is at once careless and wholly remote from actual experience of these matters. For the thought has never occurred to them that, as regards the Homeric bowmen who had the misfortune to be ridiculed by this term derived from their art, they were neither carried by horse nor protected by spear or shield. In fact there was no protection at all for their bodies; they entered battle on foot, and were compelled to conceal themselves, either singling out the shield of some comrade, or seeking safety behind a tombstone on a mound, from which position they could neither save themselves in case of rout, nor fall upon a flying foe. Least of all could they participate in a decisive struggle in the open, but they always seemed to be stealing something which belonged to the men who were engaged in the struggle. And apart from this they were so indifferent in their practice of archery that they drew the bowstring only to the breast, so that the missile sent forth was naturally impotent and harmless to those whom it hit. Such, it is evident, was the archery of the past. But the bowmen of the present time go into battle wearing corselets and fitted out with greaves which extend up to the knee. From the right side hang their arrows, from the other the sword. And there are some who have a spear also attached to them and, at the shoulders, a sort of small shield without a grip, such as to cover the region of the face and neck. They are expert horsemen, and are able without difficulty to direct their bows to either side while riding at full speed, and to shoot an opponent whether in pursuit or in flight. They draw the bowstring along by the forehead about opposite the right ear, thereby charging the arrow with such an impetus as to kill whoever stands in the way, shield and corselet alike having no power to check its force. Still there are those who take into consideration none of these things, who reverence and worship the ancient times, and give no credit to modern improvements. But no such consideration will prevent the conclusion that most great and notable deeds have been performed in these wars. And the history of them will begin at some distance back, telling of the fortunes in war of the Romans and the Medes, their reverses and their successes.
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