Delphi Complete Works of Procopius

by Procopius of Caesarea

  Ἐν δὲ Ἰταλίᾳ κατὰ τοὺς χρόνους τοὺς αὐτοὺς τάδε γενέσθαι τετύχηκε. Βελισάριος ἐπὶ Θευδᾶτόν τε καὶ τὸ Γότθων ἔθνος πρὸς Ἰουστινιανοῦ βασιλέως ἐστέλλετο, καταπλεύσας δὲ ἐς Σικελίαν ταύτην δὴ τὴν νῆσον πόνῳ οὐδενὶ ἔσχεν. [2] ὅντινα δὲ τρόπον, ἐν τοῖς ὄπισθέν μοι λόγοις λελέξεται, ὅτε με ὁ λόγος ἐς τῶν Ἰταλικῶν πραγμάτων τὴν ἱστορίαν ἄγει. [3] νῦν γάρ μοι οὐκ ἀπὸ τρόπου ἔδοξεν εἶναι ξύμπαντα ἀναγραψάμενον τὰ ἐν Λιβύῃ ξυνενεχθέντα οὕτω δὴ ἐπὶ τὸν λόγον τὸν ἀμφὶ Ἰταλίαν τε καὶ Γότθους ἰέναι. [4] Τὸν μὲν οὖν χειμῶνα τοῦτον Βελισάριος μὲν ἐν Συρακούσαις, Σολόμων δὲ ἐν Καρχηδόνι διέτριψε. [5] καὶ τέρας ἐν τῷδε τῷ ἔτει ξυνηνέχθη γενέσθαι δεινότατον. ὁ γὰρ ἥλιος ἀκτίνων χωρὶς τὴν αἴγλην, ὥσπερ ἡ σελήνη, ἐς τοῦτον δὴ τὸν ἐνιαυτὸν ἅπαντα ἠφίει, ἐκλείποντί τε ἐπὶ πλεῖστον ἐῴκει, τὴν ἀμαρυγὴν τὴν αὑτοῦ οὐ καθαρὰν οὐδὲ ᾗπερ εἰώθει ποιούμενος. [6] ἐξ οὗ τε ξυμβῆναι τοῦτο τετύχηκεν, οὔτε πόλεμος οὔτε λοιμὸς οὔτε τι ἄλλο ἐς θάνατον φέρον τοὺς ἀνθρώπους ἀπέλιπε. χρόνος δὲ ἦν ὅτε δέκατον ἔτος Ἰουστινιανὸς τὴν βασιλείαν εἶχεν. [7] Ἅμα δὲ ἦρι ἀρχομένῳ, ὅτε οἱ Χριστιανοὶ ἑορτὴν ἦγον ἣν δὴ Πασχαλίαν καλοῦσι, στρατιώταις στάσις ἐν Λιβύῃ ἐνέπεσεν. ἣ ὅπως τε ἐφύη καὶ ἐς ὅ τι ἐτελεύτησεν, ἐρῶν ἔρχομαι. [8] Ἐπειδὴ Βανδίλοι ἡσσήθησαν τῇ μάχῃ, ὥσπερ μοι ἔμπροσθεν εἴρηται, οἱ Ῥωμαίων στρατιῶται τὰς αὐτῶν παῖδάς τε καὶ γυναῖκας ἐν γαμετῶν ἐποιήσαντο λόγῳ. [9] ἡ δὲ αὐτῶν ἑκάστη τὸν ἄνδρα ἐνῆγε τῶν χωρίων τῆς κτήσεως μεταποιεῖσθαι ὧν αὐτὴ πρότερον κυρία ἐτύγχανεν οὖσα, οὐχ ὅσιον λέγουσα εἶναι, εἰ Βανδίλοις μὲν ξυνοικοῦσαι τούτων ἀπώναντο, τοῖς δὲ αὐτοὺς νενικηκόσιν ἐς γάμον ἐλθοῦσαι οὕτω δὴ τῶν σφίσιν ὑπαρχόντων στερήσονται. [10] ταῦτα δὲ οἱ στρατιῶται ἐν νῷ ἔχοντες Σολόμωνι εἴκειν οὐκ ᾤοντο χρῆναι τὰ Βανδίλων χωρία ἔς τε τὸ δημόσιον καὶ ἐς τὸν βασιλέως οἶκον ἐθέλοντι ἀναγράψασθαι, φάσκοντί τε ὡς τὰ μὲν ἀνδράποδα καὶ τὰ ἄλλα πάντα χρήματα τοῖς στρατιώταις ἐς λάφυρα ἰέναι οὐκ ἀπεικὸς εἶναι, γῆν μέντοι αὐτὴν βασιλεῖ τε καὶ τῇ Ῥωμαίων ἀρχῇ προσήκειν, ἥπερ αὐτοὺ ἐξέθρεψέ τε καὶ στρατιώτας καλεῖσθαί τε κἁ̣̣̓ εἶναι πεποίηκεν, οὐκ ἐφ̓ ᾧ σφίσιν αὐτοῖς τ̣̣̔̓ χωρία κεκτήσονται ὅσα ἂν βαρβάρους ἐπι βατεύοντας τῆς Ῥωμαίων βασιλείας ἀφέλοιντὁ̣̣̓ ἀλλ̓ ἐφ̓ ᾧ ἐς τὸ δημόσιον ταῦτα ἰέναι, ὅθεν σφίς τε ξυμβαίνει καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις ἅπασι τὰς σιτήσει κομίζεσθαι. [11] αὕτη μὲν τῆς στάσεως αἰτία ξυνέπεσε μία. καὶ ἑτέραν δέ τινα ξυνηνέχθη γενέσθἁ̣̣̓ τοιάνδε, ἣ οὐδέν τι ἧσσον, εἰ μὴ καὶ μᾶλλον ἅπαντα ξυνταράξαι τὰ ἐν Λιβύῃ πράγματ̣̣̔̓ ἴσχυσεν. [12] ἐν τῷ Ῥωμαίων στρατοπέδῳ τἧ̣̣̓ Ἀρείου δόξης οὐχ ἧσσον ἢ χιλίους στρατιώτἁ̣̣̓ εἶναι ξυνέπεσεν: ὧν δὴ οἱ πολλοὶ βάρβαροι ἦσἁ̣̣̓ καὶ αὐτῶν τινες ἐκ τοῦ Ἐρούλων ἔθνους. [13] τούτοὑ̣̣̓ δὴ οἱ τῶν Βανδίλων ἱερεῖς ἐς τὴν στάσιν τὸ μάλιστα ὥρμων. οὐ γὰρ σφίσιν ἦν δυνατὰ τ̣̣̔̓ θεῷ ἐξοσιοῦσθαι τὰ εἰωθότα, ἀλλὰ ἀπεκέκλειντ̣̣̔̓ καὶ μυστηρίων καὶ ἱερῶν ἁπάντων. [14] οὐ γὰρ εἰ̔´̣̣̓ βασιλεὺς Ἰουστινιανὸς ἄνδρα Χριστιανὸν ὁ̣̣̓ μεταλαχόντα δόξης ὀρθῆς ἢ βαπτίσματι ἢ ἄλλῳ τῳ μυστηρίῳ χρῆσθαι. [15] μάλιστα δὲ αὐτοὺς ῾̣̣̓ Πασχαλία ἑορτὴ ξυνετάραξε, καθ̓ ἣν οὐχ οἷὁ̣̣̓ τε ἐγίνοντο τὰ σφέτερα αὐτῶν παιδία τῷ θεἵ̣̣̓ βαπτίζειν λουτρῷ, ἢ ἄλλο τι ἐργάζεσθαι ἐ̣̣̔̓ ταύτην δὴ τὴν ἑορτὴν ἄγον. [16] ὥσπερ δὲ οὐχ ἱκαν̣̣̔̓ ταῦτα τῷ δαιμονίῳ διαφθεῖραι τὰ Ῥωμαίων πράγματα ἐν σπουδῇ ἔχοντι, ξυνέπεσέ τι κἁ̣̣̓ ἄλλο τοῖς τὴν στάσιν μελετῶσιν ἐφόδιον. [17] τοὓ̣̣̓ γὰρ Βανδίλους, οὓς Βελισάριος ἐς Βυζάντιον ἤνεγκε, κατεστήσατο βασιλεὺς ἐς καταλόγους ἱππικοὺς πέντε, ὅπως ἐν πόλεσι ταῖς ἑῴαις τὸν ἅπαντα ἱδρύσωνται χρόνον: οὓς καὶ Ἰουστινιανοὺς Βανδίλους καλέσας ἐκέλευσε ξὺν ναυσὶν ἐς τὴν ἕω κομίζεσθαι. [18] τούτων δὴ τῶν Βανδίλων στρατιωτῶν οἱ μὲν πλεῖστοι ἐς τὴν ἕω ἀφίκοντο καὶ τοὺς καταλόγους πληροῦντες ἐς οὓς διατετάχαται. ἄχρι τοῦδε ἐπὶ Πέρσας στρατεύονται: οἱ δὲ ἄλλοι, ἀμφὶ τετρακοσίους ὄντες, ἐπεὶ ἐν Λέσβῳ ἐγένοντο, κεκολπωμένων σφίσι τῶν ἱστίων τοὺς ναύτας βιασάμενοι Πελοποννήσῳ προσέσχον. [19] ἐνθένδε τε ἀπάραντες ἐς Λιβύην κατέπλευσαν ἐν χωρίῳ ἐρήμῳ, οὗ δὴ τὰς ναῦς ἀπολιπόντες καὶ συσκευασάμενοι ἐς τὸ ὄρος τὸ Αὐράσιον καὶ ἐς Μαυριτανίαν ἀνέβησαν. [20] οἷς δὴ ἐπηρμένοι οἱ στρατιῶται οἷς ἦν ἐν ἐπιμελείᾳ ἡ στάσις, ἔτι μᾶλλον ξυνίσταντο ἐν σφίσιν αὐτοῖς. [21] καὶ λόγοι τε πολλοὶ περὶ τούτου καὶ ὅρκοι ἤδη ἐν τῷ στρατοπέδῳ ἐγίνοντο. ἐπειδή τε τὴν ἑορτὴν ἄγειν ἔμελλον, ἀχθόμενοι τῇ κωλύμῃ τῶν ἱερῶν οἱ Ἀρειανοὶ σφόδρα ἐνέκειντο. [22] Ἔδοξέ τε αὐτῶν τοῖς κορυφαίοις ἐν τῷ ἱερῷ τῇ πρώτῃ τῆς ἑορτῆς ἡμέρᾳ, ἣν μεγάλην καλοῦσι, [23] Σολόμωνα κτεῖναι. καὶ ἔλαθόν γε οὐδενὸς τοῦτο δὴ ἐξενεγκόντος τὸ βούλευμα. ἅτε γὰρ πολλῶν ὄντων τῶν τὰ δεινὰ βουλευομένων ὁ λόγος περιφερόμενος ἐς δυσμενῆ οὐδένα ἐξέπιπτε, ταύτῃ τε λανθάνειν ἐξίσχυσαν, ἐπεὶ καὶ Σολόμωνος οἱ πολλοὶ δορυφόροι τε καὶ ὑπασπισταὶ καὶ τῶν οἰκετῶν οἱ πλεῖστοι ἐς τα�
�την δὴ τὴν στάσιν ξυνετετάχατο τῇ τῶν χωρίων ἐπιθυμίᾳ. [24] ἡμέρας δὲ ἤδη τῆς κυρίας παρούσης Σολόμων μὲν ἐν τῷ ἱερῷ ἐκάθητο, μακρὰν τῶν αὑτοῦ ἀπολελειμμένος κακῶν. [25] ἐσελθόντες δὲ οἷς τὸν ἄνδρα τοῦτον κτεῖναι ἐδέδοκτο, νεύμασί τε ἀλλήλοις ἐγκελευσάμενοι, τῶν ξιφῶν ἥπτοντο, ἔδρασαν μέντὁ̣̣̓ οὐδέν, ἢ τὰ τελούμενα τηνικαῦτα ἐν τῷ ἱερῷ αἰσχυνόμενοι, ἢ διὰ τὴν τοῦ στρατηγοῦ δόξαν ἐρυθριῶντες, ἢ καί τι θεῖον αὐτοὺς διεκώλυσεν. [26] Ἐπειδὴ δὲ τά τε ἱερὰ ἐκείνῃ τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἤσκητο ἤδη καὶ οἴκαδε ἐκομίζοντο ἕκαστοι, ἀλλήλους ᾐτιῶντο οἱ στασιῶται ἅτε μαλθακοὺς οὐκ ἐν δέοντ̣̣̔̓ γεγενημένους, καὶ αὖθις ἀπετίθεντο ἐς τὴν ἐπιοῦσαν τὸ βούλευμα. [27] ὁμοίως δὲ καὶ τῇ ὑστεραίᾳ διαγεγονότες ἄπρακτοι ἐκ τοῦ ἱεροῦ ἀνεχώρησαν ἔς τε τὴν ἀγορὰν ἐλθόντες ἀλλήλοις ἐκ τοῦ ἐμφανοῦς ἐλοιδοροῦντο, αὐτός τε ἕκαστος μαλθακόν τε τὸν πέλας καὶ τῆς ἑταιρίας διαλυτὴν ἀποκαλῶν τὴν ἐς Σολόμωνα αἰδῶ ὀνειδίζειν οὐκ ἀπηξίου. [28] διὸ δὴ οὐκέτι ἀκίνδυνον σφίσιν ᾤοντο ἔσεσθαι τὴν ἐν Καρχηδόνι διατριβὴν ἅτε ἐς τὸ πᾶν ἐξενεγκόντες τὸ βούλευμα. [29] οἱ μὲν οὖν πολλὁ̣̣̓ τῆς πόλεως ἔξω κατὰ τάχος γενόμενοι τά τε χωρία ἐληίζοντο καὶ Λίβυσιν οἷς ἂν ἐντύχοιεν ὡς πολεμίοις ἐχρῶντο: οἱ δὲ ἄλλοι ἐν τῇ πόλἑ̣̣̓ διαμείναντες οὐ παρεῖχον αἴσθησιν ἧς εἶχον αὐτοὶ γνώμης, ἀλλ̓ ἀγνοεῖν τὰ βεβουλευμένα προσεποιοῦντο. [30] Σολόμων δὲ ἀκούσας ὅσα πρὸς τῶν στρατιωτῶν ἐν τῇ χώρᾳ ἐπράσσετο, ἐς θόρυβόν τε πολὺν ἐμπεσὼν τοῖς ἐν τῇ πόλει ἐγκελευόμενος οὐκ ἀνίἑ̣̣̓ ἐς εὔνοιαν τὴν βασιλέως παρακαλῶν. [31] οἱ δὲ κατ̓ ἀρχὰς μὲν ἐνδέχεσθαι τοὺς λόγους ἐδόκουν, ἡμέῥ̣̣̓ δὲ τῇ πέμπτῃ, ἐπεὶ τοὺς ἐξεληλυθότας ἐν βεβαίῳ τυραννεῖν ἤκουσαν, ἐς τὸν ἱππόδρομον ξυλλεγέντες ἔς τε Σολόμωνα καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους ἄρχοντας ἀνέδην ὕβριζον. [32] ἔνθα δὴ πρὸς Σολόμωνος σταλεὶς Θεόδωρος ὁ Καππαδόκης παρηγορεῖν τε καὶ τι θασσεύειν αὐτοὺς ἐνεχείρει, οὐδέν τι ἐπαΐοντας τῶν λεγομένων. [33] ἦν δέ τις Θεοδώρῳ τούτῳ δυσμένειά τε καὶ ἐπιβουλῆς ὑποψία ἐς Σολόμωνα. [34] διὸ δὴ οἱ στασιῶται στρατηγόν τε αὐτὸν σφίσιν αὐτίκα τῇ βοῇ ἐψηφίσαντο, καὶ ξὺν αὐτῷ σιδηροφοροῦντες καὶ θορύβῳ πολλῷ χρώμενοι ἐς τὸ Παλάτιον κατὰ τάχος ἧκον. [35] ἔνθα δὴ Θεόδωρον μὲν ἕτερον, ὃς τῶν φυλάκων ἡγεῖτο, κτείνουσιν, ἄνδρα τῆς τε ἄλλης ἀρετῆς ἐπὶ πλεῖστον ἥκοντα καὶ διαφερόντως ἀγαθὸν τὰ πολέμια. [36] ἐπεὶ δὲ τοῦ φόνου τούτου ἐγεύσαντο, ἅπαντα ἤδη τὸν ἐν ποσὶν ἔκτεινον, εἴτε Λίβυν εἴτε Ῥωμαῖον, Σολόμωνι γνώριμον εἴτε χρήματα ἐν χερσὶν ἔχοντα, ἐνθένδε τε ἐς τὸ ληίζεσθαι ἀπεχώρησαν, ἀναβαίνοντες δὲ ἐς τὰς οἰκίας ἔνθα δὴ μὴ στρατιῶται ἠμύνοντο, ἅπαντα τὰ τιμιώτατα ἥρπαζον, ἄχρι νύξ τε ἐπιγενομένη καὶ μέθη τὸν πόνον διαδεξαμένη κατέπαυσε. [37] Σολόμων δὲ ἐς τὸ ἱερόν, ὅ ἐστι μέγα ἐν Παλατίῳ, καταφυγὼν ἔλαθεν, ἔνθα δὴ καὶ Μαρτῖνος αὐτῷ ἀμφὶ δείλην ὀψίαν ἦλθεν. [38] ἐπεὶ δὲ οἱ στασιῶται πάντες ἐκάθευδον, ἐξελθόντες ἐκ τοῦ ἱεροῦ ἐς τὴν Θεοδώρου τοῦ ἐκ Καππαδοκίας οἰκίαν ἦλθον, ὃς αὐτοὺς δειπνῆσαί τε οὔ τι προθυμουμένους ἠνάγκασε, καὶ ἐς τὸν λιμένα διακομίσας ἐς λέμβον νεὼς δή τινος ἐσεκόμισεν, ὃς δὴ ἐνταῦθα Μαρτίνῳ παρεσκευασμένος ἐτύγχανεν. [39] εἵποντο δὲ Προκόπιός τε, ὃς τάδε ξυνέγραψε, καὶ τῆς Σολόμωνος οἰκίας ἄνδρες πέντε μάλιστα. [40] σταδίους τε τριακοσίους ἀνύσαντες ἀφίκοντο ἐς Μισούαν τὸ Καρχηδονίων ἐπίνειον, καὶ ἐπεὶ ἐγένοντο ἐν τῷ ἀσφαλεῖ, αὐτίκα Σολόμων ἐκέλευε Μαρτῖνον ἐς Νουμιδίαν παρὰ Βαλεριανόν τε καὶ τῶν ξυναρχόντων τοὺς ἄλλους ἰέναι, πειρᾶσθαί τε, εἴ πως δύναιτο αὐτῶν ἕκαστος τῶν τινας γνωρίμων στρατιωτῶν ἢ χρήμασιν ἢ τρόπῳ ἑτέρῳ τῳ ὑπελθὼν ἐς εὔνοιαν τὴν βασιλέως μεταγαγεῖν. [41] καὶ πρὸς Θεόδωρον γράμματα ἔπεμπε, Καρχηδόνος τε ἐπιστέλλων ἐπιμελεῖσθαι καὶ τὰ ἄλλα διέπειν ὅπη ἂν αὐτῷ δοκῇ δυνατὰ εἶναι, αὐτὸς δὲ ξὺν Προκοπίῳ παρὰ Βελισάριον ἐς Συρακούσας ἀφίκετο. [42] ἅπαντά τε αὐτῷ ἀγγείλας ὅσα ἐν Λιβύῃ γενέσθαι ξυνέπεσεν, ἐδεῖτο κατὰ τάχος ἰέναι τε ἐς Καρχηδόνα καὶ βασιλεῖ ἀμῦναι πάσχοντι πρὸς στρατιωτῶν τῶν αὐτοῦ τὰ ἀνόσια. καὶ Σολόμων μὲν ταῦτα ἐποίει.

  XIV

  And in Italy during these same times the following events took place. Belisarius was sent against Theodatus and the Gothic nation by the Emperor Justinian, and sailing to Sicily he secured this island with no trouble. And the manner in which this was done will be told in the following pages, when the history leads me to the narration of the events in Italy. For it has not seemed to me out of order first to record all the events which happened in Libya and after that to turn to the portion of the history touching Italy and the Goths.

  During this winter Belisarius remained in Syracuse and Solomon in Carthage. And it came about during this year that a most dread portent took place. For the sun gave forth its light without brightness, like the moon, during this whole year, and it seemed exceedingly like the sun in eclipse, for the beams it shed were not clear nor such as it is accustomed to shed. And from the time when this thing happened men were free neither from war nor pestilence nor any other thing leading to death. And it was the time when Justinian was in the tenth year of his reign. [536-537 A.D.]

  [536 A.D.] At the opening of spring, when the Christians were celebrating the feast which they call Easter, there arose a mutiny among the soldiers in Libya. I shall now tell how it arose and to what end it came.

  After the Vandals had been defeated in the battle, as I have told previously, the Roman soldiers took their daughters and wives and made them their own by lawful marriage. And each one of these women kept urging h
er husband to lay claim to the possession of the lands which she had owned previously, saying that it was not right or fitting if, while living with the Vandals, they had enjoyed these lands, but after entering into marriage with the conquerors of the Vandals they were then to be deprived of their possessions. And having these things in mind, the soldiers did not think that they were bound to yield the lands of the Vandals to Solomon, who wished to register them as belonging to the commonwealth and to the emperor’s house and said that while it was not unreasonable that the slaves and all other things of value should go as booty to the soldiers, the land itself belonged to the emperor and the empire of the Romans, which had nourished them and caused them to be called soldiers and to be such, not in order to win for themselves such land as they should wrest from the barbarians who were trespassing on the Roman empire, but that this land might come to the commonwealth, from which both they and all others secured their maintenance. This was one cause of the mutiny. And there was a second, concurrent, cause also, which was no less, perhaps even more, effective in throwing all Libya into confusion. It was as follows: In the Roman army there were, as it happened, not less than one thousand soldiers of the Arian faith; and the most of these were barbarians, some of these being of the Erulian nation. Now these men were urged on to the mutiny by the priests of the Vandals with the greatest zeal. For it was not possible for them to worship God in their accustomed way, but they were excluded both from all sacraments and from all sacred rites. For the Emperor Justinian did not allow any Christian who did not espouse the orthodox faith to receive baptism or any other sacrament. But most of all they were agitated by the feast of Easter, during which they found themselves unable to baptize their own children with the sacred water, or do anything else pertaining to this feast. And as if these things were not sufficient for Heaven, in its eagerness to ruin the fortunes of the Romans, it so fell out that still another thing provided an occasion for those who were planning the mutiny. For the Vandals whom Belisarius took to Byzantium were placed by the emperor in five cavalry squadrons, in order that they might be settled permanently in the cities of the East; he also called them the “Vandals of Justinian,” and ordered them to betake themselves in ships to the East. Now the majority of these Vandal soldiers reached the East, and, filling up the squadrons to which they had been assigned, they have been fighting against the Persians up to the present time; but the remainder, about four hundred in number, after reaching Lesbos, waiting until the sails were bellied with the wind, forced the sailors to submission and sailed on till they reached the Peloponnesus. And setting sail from there, they came to land in Libya at a desert place, where they abandoned the ships, and, after equipping themselves, went up to Mt. Aurasium and Mauretania. Elated by their accession, the soldiers who were planning the mutiny formed a still closer conspiracy among themselves. And there was much talk about this in the camp and oaths were already being taken. And when the rest were about to celebrate the Easter festival, the Arians, being vexed by their exclusion from the sacred rites, purposed to attack them vigorously.