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 least 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[1] derived from their art,

they were neither carried by horse nor protected by spear or shield[2].

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[3], or seeking safety behind a

tombstone on a mound[4], 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[5], so that the missile sent forth was naturally

impotent and harmless to those whom it hit[6]. 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.

II

[408 A.D.] When the Roman Emperor Arcadius was at the point of death in

Byzantium, having a malechild, Theodosius, who was still unweaned, he

felt grave fears not only for him but for the government as well, not

knowing how he should provide wisely for both. For he perceived that, if

he provided a partner in government for Theodosius, he would in fact be

destroying his own son by bringing forward against him a foe clothed in

the regal power; while if he set him alone over the empire, many would

try to mount the throne, taking advantage, as they might be expected to

do, of the helplessness of the child. These men would rise against the

government, and, after destroying Theodosius, would make themselves

tyrants without difficulty, since the boy had no kinsman in Byzantium to

be his guardian. For Arcadius had no hope that the boy's uncle,

Honorius, would succour him, inasmuch as the situation in Italy was

already troublesome. And he was equally disturbed by the attitude of the

Medes, fearing lest these barbarians should trample down the youthful

emperor and do the Romans irreparable harm. When Arcadius was confronted

with this difficult situation, though he had not shewn himself sagacious

in other matters, he devised a plan which was destined to preserve

without trouble both his child and his throne, either as a result of

conversation with certain of the learned men, such as are usually found

in numbers among the advisers of a sovereign, or from some divine

inspiration which came to him. For in drawing up the writings of his

will, he designated the child as his successor to the throne, but

appointed as guardian over him Isdigerdes, the Persian King, enjoining

upon him earnestly in his will to preserve the empire for Theodosius by

all his power and foresight. So Arcadius died, having thus arranged his

private affairs as well as those of the empire. But Isdigerdes, the

Persian King, when he saw this writing which was duly delivered to him,

being even before a sovereign whose nobility of character had won for

him the greatest renown, did then display a virtue at once amazing and

remarkable. For, loyally observing the behests of Arcadius, he adopted

and continued without interruption a policy of profound peace with the

Romans, and thus preserved the empire for Theodosius. Indeed, he

straightway dispatched a letter to the Roman senate, not declining the

office of guardian of the Emperor Theodosius, and threatening war

against any who should attempt to enter into a conspiracy against him.

[441 A.D.] When Theodosius had grown to manhood and was in the prime of

life, and Isdigerdes had been taken from the world by disease,

Vararanes, the Persian King, invaded the Roman domains with a mighty

army; however he did no damage, but returned to his home without

accomplishing anything. This came about in the following way. Anatolius,

General of the East, had, as it happened, been sent by the Emperor

Theodosius as ambassador to the Persians, alone and unaccompanied; as he

approached the Median army, solitary as he was, he leapt down from his

horse, and advanced on foot toward Vararanes. And when Vararanes saw

him, he enquired from those who were near who this man could be who was

coming forward. And they replied that he was the general of the Romans.

Thereupon the king was so dumbfounded by this excessive degree of

respect that he himself wheeled his horse about and rode away, and the

whole Persian host followed him. When he had reached his own territory,

he received the envoy with great cordiality, and granted the treaty of

peace on the terms which Anatolius desired of him; one condition,

however, he added, that neither party should construct any new

fortification in his own territory in the neighbourhood of the boundary

line between the two countries. When this treaty had been executed, both

sovereigns then continued to administer the affairs of their respective

countries as seemed best to them.

III

At a later time the Persian King Perozes became involved in a war

concerning boundaries with the nation of the Ephthalitae Huns, who are

called White Huns, gathered an imposing army, and marched against them.

The Ephthalitae are of the stock of the Huns in fact as well as in name;

however they do not mingle with any of the Huns known to us, for they

occupy a land neither adjoining nor even very near to them; but their

territory lies immediately to the north of Persia; indeed their city,

called Gorgo, is located over against the Persian frontier, and is

consequently the centre of frequent contests concerning boundary lines

between the two peoples. For they are not nomads like the other Hunnic

peoples, but for a long period have been established in a goodly land.

As a result of this they have never made any incursion into the Roman

territory except in company with the Median army. They are the only ones

among the Huns who have white bodies and countenances which are not

ugly. It is also true that their manner of living is unlike that of

their kinsmen, nor do they live a savage life as they do; but they are

ruled by one king, and since they possess a lawful constitution, they

observe right and justice in their dealings both with one another and

with their neighbours, in no degree less than the Romans and the

Persians. Moreover, the wealthy citizens are in the habit of attaching

to themselves friends to the number of twenty or more, as the case may

be, and these become permanently their banquet-companions, and have a

share in all their property, enjoying some kind of a common right in

this matter. Then, when the man who has gathered such a company together

comes to die, it is the custom that all these men be borne alive into

the tomb with him.

Perozes, marching against these Ephthalitae, was accompanied by an

ambassador, Eusebius by name, who, as it happened, had been sent to his

court by the Emperor Zeno. Now the Ephthalitae made it appear to their

enemy that they had turned to flight because they were wholly terrified

by their attack, and they retired with all speed to a place which was

shut in on every side by precipitous mountains, and abundantly screened

by a close forest of wide-spreading trees. Now as one advanced between

the mountains to a great distance, a broad way appeared in the valley,

extending apparently to an indefinite distance, but at the end it had no

outlet at all, but terminated in the very midst of the circle of

mountains. So Perozes, with no thought at all of treachery, and

forgetting that he was marching in a hostile country, continued the

pursuit without the least caution. A small body of the Huns were in

flight before him, while the greater part of their force, by concealing

themselves in the rough country, got in the rear of the hostile army;

but as yet they desired not to be seen by them, in order that they might

advance well into the trap and get as far as possible in among the

mountains, and thus be no longer able to turn back. When the Medes began

to realize all this (for they now began to have a glimmering of their

peril), though they refrained from speaking of the situation themselves

through fear of Perozes, yet they earnestly entreated Eusebius to urge

upon the king, who was completely ignorant of his own plight, that he

should take counsel rather than make an untimely display of daring, and

consider well whether there was any way of safety open to them. So he

went before Perozes, but by no means revealed the calamity which was

upon them; instead he began with a fable, telling how a lion once

happened upon a goat bound down and bleating on a mound of no very great

height, and how the lion, bent upon making a feast of the goat, rushed

forward with intent to seize him, but fell into a trench exceedingly

deep, in which was a circular path, narrow and endless (for it had no

outlet anywhere), which indeed the owners of the goat had constructed

for this very purpose, and they had placed the goat above it to be a

bait for the lion. When Perozes heard this, a fear came over him lest

perchance the Medes had brought harm upon themselves by their pursuit of

the enemy. He therefore advanced no further, but, remaining where he

was, began to consider the situation. By this time the Huns were

following him without any concealment, and were guarding the entrance of

the place in order that their enemy might no longer be able to withdraw

to the rear. Then at last the Persians saw clearly in what straits they

were, and they felt that the situation was desperate; for they had no

hope that they would ever escape from the peril. Then the king of the

Ephthalitae sent some of his followers to Perozes; he upbraided him at

length for his senseless foolhardiness, by which he had wantonly

destroyed both himself and the Persian people, but he announced that

even so the Huns would grant them deliverance, if Perozes should consent

to prostrate himself before him as having proved himself master, and,

taking the oaths traditional among the Persians, should give pledges

that they would never again take the field against the nation of the

Ephthalitae. When Perozes heard this, he held a consultation with the

Magi who were present and enquired of them whether he must comply with

the terms dictated by the enemy. The Magi replied that, as to the oath,

he should settle the matter according to his own pleasure; as for the

rest, however, he should circumvent his enemy by craft. And they

reminded him that it was the custom among the Persians to prostrate

themselves before the rising sun each day; he should, therefore, watch

the time closely and meet the leader of the Ephthalitae at dawn, and

then, turning toward the rising sun, make his obeisance. In this way,

they explained, he would be able in the future to escape the ignominy of

the deed. Perozes accordingly gave the pledges concerning the peace, and

prostrated himself before his foe exactly as the Magi had suggested, and

so, with the whole Median army intact, gladly retired homeward.

IV

Not long after this, disregarding the oath he had sworn, he was eager to

avenge himself upon the Huns for the insult done him. He therefore

straightway gathered together from the whole land all the Persians and

their allies, and led them against the Ephthalitae; of all his sons he

left behind him only one, Cabades by name, who, as it happened, was just

past the age of boyhood; all the others, about thirty in number, he took

with him. The Ephthalitae, upon learning of his invasion, were aggrieved

at the deception they had suffered at the hands of their enemy, and

bitterly reproached their king as having abandoned them to the Medes.

He, with a laugh, enquired of them what in the world of theirs he had

abandoned, whether their land or their arms or any other part of their

possessions. They thereupon retorted that he had abandoned nothing,

except, forsooth, the one opportunity on which, as it turned out,

everything else depended. Now the Ephthalitae with all zeal demanded

that they should go out to meet the invaders, but the king sought to

restrain them at any rate for the moment. For he insisted that as yet

they had received no definite information as to the invasion, for the

Persians were still within their own boundaries. So, remaining where he

was, he busied himself as follows. In the plain where the Persians were

to make their irruption into the land of the Ephthalitae he marked off a

tract of very great extent and made a deep trench of sufficient width;

but in the centre he left a small portion of ground intact, enough to

serve as a way for ten horses. Over the trench he placed reeds, and upon

the reeds he scattered earth, thereby concealing the true surface. He

then directed the forces of the Huns that, when the time came to retire

inside the trench, they should draw themselves together into a narrow

column and pass rather slowly across this neck of land, taking care that

they should not fall into the ditch[7]. And he hung from the top of the

royal banner the salt over which Perozes had once sworn the oath which

he had disregarded in taking the field against the Huns. Now as long as

he heard that the enemy were in their own territory, he remained at

rest; but when he learned from his scouts that they had reached the city

of Gorgo which lies on the extreme Persian frontier, and that departing

thence they were now advancing against his army, remaining himself with

the greater part of his troops inside the trench, he sent forward a

small detachment with instructions to allow themselves to be seen at a

distance by the enemy in the plain, and, when once they had been seen,

to flee at full speed to the rear, keeping in mind his command

concerning the trench as soon as they drew near to it. They did as

directed, and, as they approached the trench, they drew themselves into

a narrow column, and all passed over and joined the rest of the army.

But the Persians, having no means of perceiving the stratagem, gave

chase at full speed across a very level plain, possessed as they were by

a spirit of fury against the enemy, and fell into the trench, every man

of them, not alone the first but also those who followed in the rear.

For since they entered into the pursuit with great fury, as I have said,

they failed to notice the catastrophe which had befallen their leaders,

but fell in on top of them with their horses and lances, so that, as was

natural, they both destroyed them, and were themselves no less involved

in ruin. Among them were Perozes and all his sons. And just as he was

about to fall into this pit, they say that he realized the danger, and

seized and threw from him the pearl which hung from his right ear,--a

gem of wonderful whiteness and greatly prized on account of its

extraordinary size--in order, no doubt, that no one might wear it after

him; for it was a thing exceedingly beautiful to look upon, such as no

king before him had possessed. This story, however, seems to me

untrustworthy, because a man who found himself in such peril would have

thought of nothing else; but I suppose that his ear was crushed in this

disaster, and the pearl disappeared somewhere or other. This pearl the

Roman Emperor then made every effort to buy from the Ephthalitae, but

was utterly unsuccessful. For the barbarians were not able to find it

although they sought it with great labour. However, they say that the

Ephthalitae found it later and sold it to Cabades.

The story of this pearl, as told by the Persians, is worth recounting,

for perhaps to some it may not seem altogether incredible. For they say

that it was lodged in its oyster in the sea which washes the Persian

coast, and that the oyster was swimming not far from the shore; both its

valves were standing open and the pearl lay between them, a wonderful

sight and notable, for no pearl in all history could be compared with it

at all, either in size or in beauty. A shark, then, of enormous size and

dreadful fierceness, fell in love with this sight and followed close

upon it, leaving it neither day nor night; even when he was compelled to

take thought for food, he would only look about for something eatable

where he was, and when he found some bit, he would snatch it up and eat

it hurriedly; then overtaking the oyster immediately, he would sate

himself again with the sight he loved. At length a fisherman, they say,

noticed what was passing, but in terror of the monster he recoiled from

the danger; however, he reported the whole matter to the king, Perozes.

Now when Perozes heard his account, they say that a great longing for

the pearl came over him, and he urged on this fisherman with many

flatteries and hopes of reward. Unable to resist the importunities of

the monarch, he is said to have addressed Perozes as follows: "My

master, precious to a man is money, more precious still is his life, but

most prized of all are his children; and being naturally constrained by

his love for them a man might perhaps dare anything. Now I intend to

make trial of the monster, and hope to make thee master of the pearl.

And if I succeed in this struggle, it is plain that henceforth I shall

be ranked among those who are counted blessed. For it is not unlikely

that thou, as King of Kings, wilt reward me with all good things; and

for me it will be sufficient, even if it so fall out that I gain no

reward, to have shewn myself a benefactor of my master. But if it must

needs be that I become the prey of this monster, thy task indeed it will

be, O King, to requite my children for their father's death. Thus even

after my death I shall still be a wage-earner among those closest to me,

and thou wilt win greater fame for thy goodness,--for in helping my

children thou wilt confer a boon upon me, who shall have no power to

thank thee for the benefit--because generosity is seen to be without

alloy only when it is displayed towards the dead." With these words he

departed. And when he came to the place where the oyster was accustomed

to swim and the shark to follow, he seated himself there upon a rock,

watching for an opportunity of catching the pearl alone without its

admirer. As soon as it came about that the shark had happened upon

something which would serve him for food, and was delaying over it, the

fisherman left upon the beach those who were following him for this

service, and made straight for the oyster with all his might; already he

had seized it and was hastening with all speed to get out of the water,

when the shark noticed him and rushed to the rescue. The fisherman saw

him coming, and, when he was about to be overtaken not far from the

beach, he hurled his booty with all his force upon the land, and was

himself soon afterwards seized and destroyed. But the men who had been

left upon the beach picked up the pearl, and, conveying it to the king,

reported all that had happened. Such, then, is the story which the

Persians relate, just as I have set it down, concerning this pearl. But

I shall return to the previous narrative.

[484 A.D.] Thus Perozes was destroyed and the whole Persian army with

him. For the few who by chance did not fall into the ditch found

themselves at the mercy of the enemy. As a result of this experience a

law was established among the Persians that, while marching in hostile

territory, they should never engage in any pursuit, even if it should

happen that the enemy had been driven back by force. Thereupon those who

had not marched with Perozes and had remained in their own land chose as

their king Cabades, the youngest son of Perozes, who was then the only

one surviving. At that time, then, the Persians became subject and

tributary to the Ephthalitae, until Cabades had established his power

most securely and no longer deemed it necessary to pay the annual

tribute to them. And the time these barbarians ruled over the Persians

was two years.

V

But as time went on Cabades became more high-handed in the

administration of the government, and introduced innovations into the

constitution, among which was a law which he promulgated providing that

Persians should have communal intercourse with their women, a measure

which by no means pleased the common people. [486 A.D.] Accordingly they

rose against him, removed him from the throne, and kept him in prison in

chains. They then chose Blases, the brother of Perozes, to be their

king, since, as has been said, no male offspring of Perozes was left,

and it is not lawful among the Persians for any man by birth a common

citizen to be set upon the throne, except in case the royal family be

totally extinct. Blases, upon receiving the royal power, gathered

together the nobles of the Persians and held a conference concerning

Cabades; for it was not the wish of the majority to put the man to

death. After the expression of many opinions on both sides there came

forward a certain man of repute among the Persians, whose name was

Gousanastades, and whose office that of "chanaranges" (which would be

the Persian term for general); his official province lay on the very

frontier of the Persian territory in a district which adjoins the land

of the Ephthalitae. Holding up his knife, the kind with which the

Persians were accustomed to trim their nails, of about the length of a

man's finger, but not one-third as wide as a finger, he said: "You see

this knife, how extremely small it is; nevertheless it is able at the

present time to accomplish a deed, which, be assured, my dear Persians,

a little later two myriads of mail-clad men could not bring to pass."

This he said hinting that, if they did not put Cabades to death, he

would straightway make trouble for the Persians. But they were

altogether unwilling to put to death a man of the royal blood, and

decided to confine him in a castle which it is their habit to call the

"Prison of Oblivion." For if anyone is cast into it, the law permits no

mention of him to be made thereafter, but death is the penalty for the

man who speaks his name; for this reason it has received this title

among the Persians. On one occasion, however, the History of the

Armenians relates that the operation of the law regarding the Prison of

Oblivion was suspended by the Persians in the following way.

There was once a truceless war, lasting two and thirty years, between

the Persians and the Armenians, when Pacurius was king of the Persians,

and of the Armenians, Arsaces, of the line of the Arsacidae. And by the

long continuance of this war it came about that both sides suffered

beyond measure, and especially the Armenians. But each nation was

possessed by such great distrust of the other that neither of them could

make overtures of peace to their opponents. In the meantime it happened

that the Persians became engaged in a war with certain other barbarians

who lived not far from the Armenians. Accordingly the Armenians, in

their eagerness to make a display to the Persians of their goodwill and

desire for peace, decided to invade the land of these barbarians, first

revealing their plan to the Persians. Then they fell upon them

unexpectedly and killed almost the whole population, old and young

alike. Thereupon Pacurius, who was overjoyed at the deed, sent certain

of his trusted friends to Arsaces, and giving him pledges of security,

invited him to his presence. And when Arsaces came to him he shewed him

every kindness, and treated him as a brother on an equal footing with

himself. Then he bound him by the most solemn oaths, and he himself

swore likewise, that in very truth the Persians and Armenians should

thenceforth be friends and allies to each other; thereafter he

straightway dismissed Arsaces to return to his own country.

Not long after this certain persons slandered Arsaces, saying that he

was purposing to undertake some seditious enterprise. Pacurius was

persuaded by these men and again summoned him, intimating that he was

anxious to confer with him on general matters. And he, without any

hesitation at all, came to the king, taking with him several of the most

warlike among the Armenians, and among them Bassicius, who was at once

his general and counsellor; for he was both brave and sagacious to a

remarkable degree. Straightway, then, Pacurius heaped reproach and abuse

upon both Arsaces and Bassicius, because, disregarding the sworn

compact, they had so speedily turned their thoughts toward secession.

They, however, denied the charge, and swore most insistently that no

such thing had been considered by them. At first, therefore, Pacurius

kept them under guard in disgrace, but after a time he enquired of the

Magi what should be done with them. Now the Magi deemed it by no means

just to condemn men who denied their guilt and had not been explicitly

found guilty, but they suggested to him an artifice by which Arsaces

himself might be compelled to become openly his own accuser. They bade

him cover the floor of the royal tent with earth, one half from the land

of Persia, and the other half from Armenia. This the king did as

directed. Then the Magi, after putting the whole tent under a spell by

means of some magic rites, bade the king take his walk there in company

with Arsaces, reproaching him meanwhile with having violated the sworn

agreement. They said, further, that they too must be present at the

conversation, for in this way there would be witnesses of all that was

said. Accordingly Pacurius straightway summoned Arsaces, and began to

walk to and fro with him in the tent in the presence of the Magi; he

enquired of the man why he had disregarded his sworn promises, and was

setting about to harass the Persians and Armenians once more with

grievous troubles. Now as long as the conversation took place on the

ground which was covered with the earth from the land of Persia, Arsaces

continued to make denial, and, pledging himself with the most fearful

oaths, insisted that he was a faithful subject of Pacurius. But when, in

the midst of his speaking, he came to the centre of the tent where they

stepped upon Armenian earth, then, compelled by some unknown power, he

suddenly changed the tone of his words to one of defiance, and from then

on ceased not to threaten Pacurius and the Persians, announcing that he

would have vengeance upon them for this insolence as soon as he should

become his own master. These words of youthful folly he continued to

utter as they walked all the way, until turning back, he came again to

the earth from the Persian land. Thereupon, as if chanting a

recantation, he was once more a suppliant, offering pitiable

explanations to Pacurius. But when he came again to the Armenian earth,

he returned to his threats. In this way he changed many times to one

side and the other, and concealed none of his secrets. Then at length

the Magi passed judgment against him as having violated the treaty and

the oaths. Pacurius flayed Bassicius, and, making a bag of his skin,

filled it with chaff and suspended it from a lofty tree. As for Arsaces,

since Pacurius could by no means bring himself to kill a man of the

royal blood, he confined him in the Prison of Oblivion.

After a time, when the Persians were marching against a barbarian

nation, they were accompanied by an Armenian who had been especially

intimate with Arsaces and had followed him when he went into the Persian

land. This man proved himself a capable warrior in this campaign, as

Pacurius observed, and was the chief cause of the Persian victory. For

this reason Pacurius begged him to make any request he wished, assuring

him that he would be refused nothing by him. The Armenian asked for

nothing else than that he might for one day pay homage to Arsaces in the

way he might desire. Now it annoyed the king exceedingly, that he should

be compelled to set aside a law so ancient; however, in order to be

wholly true to his word, he permitted that the request be granted. When

the man found himself by the king's order in the Prison of Oblivion, he

greeted Arsaces, and both men, embracing each other, joined their voices

in a sweet lament, and, bewailing the hard fate that was upon them, were

able only with difficulty to release each other from the embrace. Then,

when they had sated themselves with weeping and ceased from tears, the

Armenian bathed Arsaces, and completely adorned his person, neglecting

nothing, and, putting on him the royal robe, caused him to recline on a

bed of rushes. Then Arsaces entertained those present with a royal

banquet just as was formerly his custom. During this feast many speeches

were made over the cups which greatly pleased Arsaces, and many

incidents occurred which delighted his heart. The drinking was prolonged

until nightfall, all feeling the keenest delight in their mutual

intercourse; at length they parted from each other with great

reluctance, and separated thoroughly imbued with happiness. Then they

tell how Arsaces said that after spending the sweetest day of his life,

and enjoying the company of the man he had missed most of all, he would

no longer willingly endure the miseries of life; and with these words,

they say, he dispatched himself with a knife which, as it happened, he

had purposely stolen at the banquet, and thus departed from among men.

Such then is the story concerning this Arsaces, related in the Armenian

History just as I have told it, and it was on that occasion that the law

regarding the Prison of Oblivion was set aside. But I must return to the

point from which I have strayed.

VI

While Cabades was in the prison he was cared for by his wife, who went

in to him constantly and carried him supplies of food. Now the keeper of

the prison began to make advances to her, for she was exceedingly

beautiful to look upon. And when Cabades learned this from his wife, he

bade her give herself over to the man to treat as he wished. In this way

the keeper of the prison came to be familiar with the woman, and he

conceived for her an extraordinary love, and as a result permitted her

to go in to her husband just as she wished, and to depart from there

again without interference from anyone. Now there was a Persian notable,

Seoses by name, a devoted friend of Cabades, who was constantly in the

neighbourhood of this prison, watching his opportunity, in the hope that

he might in some way be able to effect his deliverance. And he sent word

to Cabades through his wife that he was keeping horses and men in

readiness not far from the prison, and he indicated to him a certain

spot. Then one day as night drew near Cabades persuaded his wife to give

him her own garment, and, dressing herself in his clothes, to sit

instead of him in the prison where he usually sat. In this way,

therefore, Cabades made his escape from the prison. For although the

guards who were on duty saw him, they supposed that it was the woman,

and therefore decided not to hinder or otherwise annoy him. At daybreak

they saw in the cell the woman in her husband's clothes, and were so

completely deceived as to think that Cabades was there, and this belief

prevailed during several days, until Cabades had advanced well on his

way. As to the fate which befell the woman after the stratagem had come

to light, and the manner in which they punished her, I am unable to

speak with accuracy. For the Persian accounts do not agree with each

other, and for this reason I omit the narration of them.

Cabades, in company with Seoses, completely escaped detection, and

reached the Ephthalitae Huns; there the king gave him his daughter in

marriage, and then, since Cabades was now his son-in-law, he put under

his command a very formidable army for a campaign against the Persians.

This army the Persians were quite unwilling to encounter, and they made

haste to flee in every direction. And when Cabades reached the territory

where Gousanastades exercised his authority, he stated to some of his

friends that he would appoint as chanaranges the first man of the

Persians who should on that day come into his presence and offer his

services. But even as he said this, he repented his speech, for there

came to his mind a law of the Persians which ordains that offices among

the Persians shall not be conferred upon others than those to whom each

particular honour belongs by right of birth. For he feared lest someone

should come to him first who was not a kinsman of the present

chanaranges, and that he would be compelled to set aside the law in

order to keep his word. Even as he was considering this matter, chance

brought it about that, without dishonouring the law, he could still keep

his word. For the first man who came to him happened to be

Adergoudounbades, a young man who was a relative of Gousanastades and an

especially capable warrior. He addressed Cabades as "Lord," and was the

first to do obeisance to him as king, and besought him to use him as a

slave for any service whatever. [488 A.D.] So Cabades made his way into

the royal palace without any trouble, and, taking Blases destitute of

defenders, he put out his eyes, using the method of blinding commonly

employed by the Persians against malefactors, that is, either by heating

olive oil and pouring it, while boiling fiercely, into the wide-open

eyes, or by heating in the fire an iron needle, and with this pricking

the eyeballs. Thereafter Blases was kept in confinement, having ruled

over the Persians two years. Gousanastades was put to death and

Adergoudounbades was established in his place in the office of

chanaranges, while Seoses was immediately proclaimed "adrastadaran

salanes,"--a title designating the one set in authority over all

magistrates and over the whole army. Seoses was the first and only man

who held this office in Persia; for it was conferred on no one before or

after that time. And the kingdom was strengthened by Cabades and guarded

securely; for in shrewdness and activity he was surpassed by none.

VII.

A little later Cabades was owing the king of the Ephthalitae a sum of

money which he was not able to pay him, and he therefore requested the

Roman emperor Anastasius to lend him this money. Whereupon Anastasius

conferred with some of his friends and enquired of them whether this

should be done; and they would not permit him to make the loan. For, as

they pointed out, it was inexpedient to make more secure by means of

their money the friendship between their enemies and the Ephthalitae;

indeed it was better for the Romans to disturb their relations as much

as possible. It was for this reason, and for no just cause, that Cabades

decided to make an expedition against the Romans. [502 A.D.] First he

invaded the land of the Armenians, moving with such rapidity as to

anticipate the news of his coming, and, after plundering the greater

part of it in a rapid campaign, he unexpectedly arrived at the city of

Amida, which is situated in Mesopotamia, and, although the season was

winter, he invested the town. Now the citizens of Amida had no soldiers

at hand, seeing that it was a time of peace and prosperity, and in other

respects were utterly unprepared; nevertheless they were quite unwilling

to yield to the enemy, and shewed an unexpected fortitude in holding out

against dangers and hardships.

Now there was among the Syrians a certain just man, Jacobus by name, who

had trained himself with exactitude in matters pertaining to religion.

This man had confined himself many years before in a place called

Endielon, a day's journey from Amida, in order that he might with more

security devote himself to pious contemplation. The men of this place,

assisting his purpose, had surrounded him with a kind of fencing, in

which the stakes were not continuous, but set at intervals, so that

those who approached could see and hold converse with him. And they had

constructed for him a small roof over his head, sufficient to keep off

the rain and snow. There this man had been sitting for a long time,

never yielding either to heat or cold, and sustaining his life with

certain seeds, which he was accustomed to eat, not indeed every day, but

only at long intervals. Now some of the Ephthalitae who were overrunning

the country thereabout saw this Jacobus and with great eagerness drew

their bows with intent to shoot at him. But the hands of every one of

them became motionless and utterly unable to manage the bow. When this

was noised about through the army and came to the ears of Cabades, he

desired to see the thing with his own eyes; and when he saw it, both he

and the Persians who were with him were seized with great astonishment,

and he entreated Jacobus to forgive the barbarians their crime. And he

forgave them with a word, and the men were released from their distress.

Cabades then bade the man ask for whatever he wished, supposing that he

would ask for a great sum of money, and he also added with youthful

recklessness that he would be refused nothing by him. But he requested

Cabades to grant to him all the men who during that war should come to

him as fugitives. This request Cabades granted, and gave him a written

pledge of his personal safety. And great numbers of men, as might be

expected, came flocking to him from all sides and found safety there;

for the deed became widely known. Thus, then, did these things take

place.

Cabades, in besieging Amida, brought against every part of the defences

the engines known as rams; but the townspeople constantly broke off the

heads of the rams by means of timbers thrown across them[8]. However,

Cabades did not slacken his efforts until he realized that the wall

could not be successfully assailed in this way. For, though he battered

the wall many times, he was quite unable to break down any portion of

the defence, or even to shake it; so secure had been the work of the

builders who had constructed it long before. Failing in this, Cabades

raised an artificial hill to threaten the city, considerably overtopping

the wall; but the besieged, starting from the inside of their defences,

made a tunnel extending under the hill, and from there stealthily

carried out the earth, until they hollowed out a great part of the

inside of the hill. However, the outside kept the form which it had at

first assumed, and afforded no opportunity to anyone of discovering what

was being done. Accordingly many Persians mounted it, thinking it safe,

and stationed themselves on the summit with the purpose of shooting down

upon the heads of those inside the fortifications. But with the great

mass of men crowding upon it with a rush, the hill suddenly fell in and

killed almost all of them. Cabades, then, finding no remedy for the

situation, decided to raise the siege, and he issued orders to the army

to retreat on the morrow. Then indeed the besieged, as though they had

no thought of their danger, began laughingly from the fortifications to

jeer at the barbarians. Besides this some courtesans shamelessly drew up

their clothing and displayed to Cabades, who was standing close by,

those parts of a woman's body which it is not proper that men should see

uncovered. This was plainly seen by the Magi, and they thereupon came

before the king and tried to prevent the retreat, declaring as their

interpretation of what had happened that the citizens of Amida would

shortly disclose to Cabades all their secret and hidden things. So the

Persian army remained there.

Not many days later one of the Persians saw close by one of the towers

the mouth of an old underground passage, which was insecurely concealed

with some few small stones. In the night he came there alone, and,

making trial of the entrance, got inside the circuit-wall; then at

daybreak he reported the whole matter to Cabades. The king himself on

the following night came to the spot with a few men, bringing ladders

which he had made ready. And he was favoured by a piece of good fortune;

for the defence of the very tower which happened to be nearest to the

passage had fallen by lot to those of the Christians who are most

careful in their observances, whom they call monks. These men, as chance

would have it, were keeping some annual religious festival to God on

that day. When night came on they all felt great weariness[9] on account

of the festival, and, having sated themselves with food and drink beyond

their wont, they fell into a sweet and gentle sleep, and were

consequently quite unaware of what was going on. So the Persians made

their way through the passage inside the fortifications, a few at a

time, and, mounting the tower, they found the monks still sleeping and

slew them to a man. When Cabades learned this, he brought his ladders up

to the wall close by this tower. It was already day. And those of the

townsmen who were keeping guard on the adjoining tower became aware of

the disaster, and ran thither with all speed to give assistance. Then

for a long time both sides struggled to crowd back the other, and

already the townsmen were gaining the advantage, killing many of those

who had mounted the wall, and throwing back the men on the ladders, and

they came very near to averting the danger. But Cabades drew his sword

and, terrifying the Persians constantly with it, rushed in person to the

ladders and would not let them draw back, and death was the punishment

for those who dared turn to leave. As a result of this the Persians by

their numbers gained the upper hand and overcame their antagonists in

the fight. So the city was captured by storm on the eightieth day after

the beginning of the siege. [Jan. 11, 503 A.D.] There followed a great

massacre of the townspeople, until one of the citizens--an old man and a

priest--approached Cabades as he was riding into the city, and said that

it was not a kingly act to slaughter captives. Then Cabades, still moved

with passion, replied: "But why did you decide to fight against me?" And

the old man answered quickly: "Because God willed to give Amida into thy

hand not so much because of our decision as of thy valour." Cabades was

pleased by this speech, and permitted no further slaughter, but he bade

the Persians plunder the property and make slaves of the survivors, and

he directed them to choose out for himself all the notables among them.

A short time after this he departed, leaving there to garrison the place

a thousand men under command of Glones, a Persian, and some few

unfortunates among the citizens of Amida who were destined to minister

as servants to the daily wants of the Persians; he himself with all the

remainder of the army and the captives marched away homeward. These

captives were treated by Cabades with a generosity befitting a king; for

after a short time he released all of them to return to their homes, but

he pretended that they had escaped from him by stealth[10]; and the

Roman Emperor, Anastasius, also shewed them honour worthy of their

bravery, for he remitted to the city all the annual taxes for the space

of seven years, and presented all of them as a body and each one of them

separately with many good things, so that they came fully to forget the

misfortunes which had befallen them. But this happened in later years.

VIII

At that time the Emperor Anastasius, upon learning that Amida was being

besieged, dispatched with all speed an army of sufficient strength. But

in this army there were general officers in command of every

symmory[11], while the supreme command was divided between the following

four generals: Areobindus, at that time General of the East, the

son-in-law of Olyvrius, who had been Emperor in the West not long

before; Celer, commander of the palace troops (this officer the Romans

are accustomed to call "magister"); besides these still, there were the

commanders of troops in Byzantium, Patricias, the Phrygian, and

Hypatius, the nephew of the emperor; these four, then, were the

generals. With them also was associated Justinus, who at a later time

became emperor upon the death of Anastasius, and Patriciolus with his

son Vitalianus, who raised an armed insurrection against the Emperor

Anastasius not long afterwards and made himself tyrant; also

Pharesmanes, a native of Colchis, and a man of exceptional ability as a

warrior, and the Goths Godidisklus and Bessas, who were among those

Goths who had not followed Theoderic when he went from Thrace into

Italy, both of them men of the noblest birth and experienced in matters

pertaining to warfare; many others, too, who were men of high station,

joined this army. For such an army, they say, was never assembled by the

Romans against the Persians either before or after that time. However,

all these men did not assemble in one body, nor did they form a single

army as they marched, but each commander by himself led his own division

separately against the enemy. And as manager of the finances of the army

Apion, an Aegyptian, was sent, a man of eminence among the patricians

and extremely energetic; and the emperor in a written statement declared

him partner in the royal power, in order that he might have authority to

administer the finances as he wished.

Now this army was mustered with considerable delay, and advanced with

little speed. As a result of this they did not find the barbarians in

the Roman territory; for the Persians had made their attack suddenly,

and had immediately withdrawn with all their booty to their own land.

Now no one of the generals desired for the present to undertake the

siege of the garrison left in Amida, for they learned that they had

carried in a large supply of provisions; but they made haste to invade

the land of the enemy. However they did not advance together against the

barbarians but they encamped apart from one another as they proceeded.

When Cabades learned this (for he happened to be close by), he came with

all speed to the Roman frontier and confronted them. But the Romans had

not yet learned that Cabades was moving against them with his whole

force, and they supposed that some small Persian army was there.

Accordingly the forces of Areobindus established their camp in a place

called Arzamon, at a distance of two days' journey from the city of

Constantina, and those of Patricius and Hypatius in a place called

Siphrios, which is distant not less than three hundred and fifty stades

from the city of Amida. As for Celer, he had not yet arrived.

Areobindus, when he ascertained that Cabades was coming upon them with

his whole army, abandoned his camp, and, in company with all his men,

turned to flight and retired on the run to Constantina. And the enemy,

coming up not long afterwards, captured the camp without a man in it and

all the money it contained. From there they advanced swiftly against the

other Roman army. Now the troops of Patricius and Hypatius had happened

upon eight hundred Ephthalitae who were marching in advance of the

Persian army, and they had killed practically all of them. Then, since

they had learned nothing of Cabades and the Persian army, supposing that

they had won the victory, they began to conduct themselves with less

caution. At any rate they had stacked their arms and were preparing

themselves a lunch; for already the appropriate time of day was drawing

near. Now a small stream flowed in this place and in it the Romans began

to wash the pieces of meat which they were about to eat; some, too,

distressed by the heat, were bathing themselves in the stream; and in

consequence the brook flowed on with a muddy current. But while Cabades,

learning what had befallen the Ephthalitae, was advancing against the

enemy with all speed, he noticed that the water of the brook was

disturbed, and divining what was going on, he came to the conclusion

that his opponents were unprepared, and gave orders to charge upon them

immediately at full speed. [Aug., 503 A.D.] Straightway, then, they fell

upon them feasting and unarmed. And the Romans did not withstand their

onset, nor did they once think of resistance, but they began to flee as

each one could; and some of them were captured and slain, while others

climbed the hill which rises there and threw themselves down the cliff

in panic and much confusion. And they say that not a man escaped from

there; but Patricius and Hypatius had succeeded in getting away at the

beginning of the onset. After this Cabades retired homeward with his

whole army, since hostile Huns had made an invasion into his land, and

with this people he waged a long war in the northerly portion of his

realm. In the meantime the other Roman army also came, but they did

nothing worth recounting, because, it seems, no one was made

commander-in-chief of the expedition; but all the generals were of equal

rank, and consequently they were always opposing one another's opinions

and were utterly unable to unite. However Celer, with his contingent,

crossed the Nymphius River and made some sort of an invasion into

Arzanene. This river is one very close to Martyropolis, about three

hundred stades from Amida. So Celer's troops plundered the country

thereabout and returned not long after, and the whole invasion was

completed in a short time.

IX

After this Areobindus went to Byzantium at the summons of the emperor,

while the other generals reached Amida, and, in spite of the winter

season, invested it. And although they made many attempts they were

unable to carry the fortress by storm, but they were on the point of

accomplishing their object by starvation; for all the provisions of the

besieged were exhausted. The generals, however, had ascertained nothing

of the straits in which the enemy were; but since they saw that their

own troops were distressed by the labour of the siege and the wintry

weather, and at the same time suspected that a Persian army would be

coming upon them before long, they were eager to quit the place on any

terms whatever. The Persians, on their part, not knowing what would

become of them in such terrible straits, continued to conceal

scrupulously their lack of the necessities of life, and made it appear

that they had an abundance of all provisions, wishing to return to their

homes with the reputation of honour. So a proposal was discussed between

them, according to which the Persians were to deliver over the city to

the Romans upon receipt of one thousand pounds of gold. Both parties

then gladly executed the terms of the agreement, and the son of Glones,

upon receiving the money, delivered over Amida to the Romans. For Glones

himself had already died in the following manner.

When the Romans had not yet encamped before the city of Amida but were

not far from its vicinity, a certain countryman, who was accustomed to

enter the city secretly with fowls and loaves and many other delicacies,

which he sold to this Glones at a great price, came before the general

Patricius and promised to deliver into his hands Glones and two hundred

Persians, if he should receive from him assurance of some requital. And

the general promised that he should have everything he desired, and thus

dismissed the fellow. He then tore his garments in a dreadful manner,

and, assuming the aspect of one who had been weeping, entered the city.

And coming before Glones, and tearing his hair he said: "O Master, I

happened to be bringing in for you all the good things from my village,

when some Roman soldiers chanced upon me (for, as you know, they are

constantly wandering about the country here in small bands and doing

violence to the miserable country-folk), and they inflicted upon me

blows not to be endured, and, taking away everything, they

departed,--the robbers, whose ancient custom it is to fear the Persians

and to beat the farmers. But do you, O Master, take thought to defend

yourself and us and the Persians. For if you go hunting into the

outskirts of the city, you will find rare game. For the accursed rascals

go about by fours or fives to do their robbery." Thus he spoke. And

Glones was persuaded, and enquired of the fellow about how many Persians

he thought would be sufficient for him to carry out the enterprise. He

said that about fifty would do, for they would never meet more than five

of them going together; however, in order to forestall any unexpected

circumstance, it would do no harm to take with him even one hundred men;

and if he should double this number it would be still better from every

point of view; for no harm could come to a man from the larger number.

Glones accordingly picked out two hundred horsemen and bade the fellow

lead the way for them. But he insisted that it was better for him to be

sent first to spy out the ground, and, if he should bring back word that

he had seen Romans still going about in the same districts, that then

the Persians should make their sally at the fitting moment. Accordingly,

since he seemed to Glones to speak well, he was sent forward by his own

order. Then he came before the general Patricius and explained

everything; and the general sent with him two of his own body-guard and

a thousand soldiers. These he concealed about a village called

Thilasamon, forty stades distant from Amida, among valleys and woody

places, and instructed them to remain there in this ambush; he himself

then proceeded to the city on the run, and telling Glones that the prey

was ready, he led him and the two hundred horsemen upon the ambush of

the enemy. And when they passed the spot where the Romans were lying in

wait, without being observed by Glones or any of the Persians, he roused

the Romans from their ambuscade and pointed out to them the enemy. And

when the Persians saw the men coming against them, they were astounded

at the suddenness of the thing, and were in much distress what to do.

For neither could they retire to the rear, since their opponents were

behind them, nor were they able to flee anywhere else in a hostile land.

But as well as they could under the circumstances, they arrayed

themselves for battle and tried to drive back their assailants; but

being at a great disadvantage in numbers they were vanquished, and all

of them together with Glones were destroyed. Now when the son of Glones

learned of this, being deeply grieved and at the same time furious with

anger because he had not been able to defend his father, he fired the

sanctuary of Symeon, a holy man, where Glones had his lodging. It must

be said, however, that with the exception of this one building, neither

Glones nor Cabades, nor indeed any other of the Persians, saw fit either

to tear down or to destroy in any other way any building in Amida at any

rate, or outside this city. But I shall return to the previous

narrative.

[504 A.D.] Thus the Romans by giving the money recovered Amida two years

after it had been captured by the enemy. And when they got into the

city, their own negligence and the hardships under which the Persians

had maintained themselves were discovered. For upon reckoning the amount

of grain left there and the number of barbarians who had gone out, they

found that rations for about seven days were left in the city, although

Glones and his son had been for a long time doling out provisions to the

Persians more sparingly than they were needed. For to the Romans who had

remained with them in the city, as I have stated above, they had decided

to dispense nothing at all from the time when their enemy began the

siege; and so these men at first resorted to unaccustomed foods and laid

hold on every forbidden thing, and at the last they even tasted each

other's blood. So the generals realized that they had been deceived by

the barbarians, and they reproached the soldiers for their lack of

self-control, because they had shewn themselves wanting in obedience to

them, when it was possible to capture as prisoners of war such a

multitude of Persians and the son of Glones and the city itself, while

they had in consequence attached to themselves signal disgrace by

carrying Roman money to the enemy, and had taken Amida from the Persians

by purchasing it with silver. [506 A.D.] After this the Persians, since

their war with the Huns kept dragging on, entered into a treaty with the

Romans, which was arranged by them for seven years, and was made by the

Roman Celer and the Persian Aspebedes; both armies then retired homeward

and remained at peace. Thus, then, as has been told, began the war of

the Romans and the Persians, and to this end did it come. But I shall

now turn to the narration of the events touching the Caspian Gates.

X

The Taurus mountain range of Cilicia passes first Cappadocia and Armenia

and the land of the so-called Persarmenians, then also Albania and

Iberia and all the other countries in this region, both independent and

subject to Persia. For it extends to a great distance, and as one

proceeds along this range, it always spreads out to an extraordinary

breadth and rises to an imposing height. And as one passes beyond the

boundary of Iberia there is a sort of path in a very narrow passage,

extending for a distance of fifty stades. This path terminates in a

place cut off by cliffs and, as it seems, absolutely impossible to pass

through. For from there no way out appears, except indeed a small gate

set there by nature, just as if it had been made by the hand of man,

which has been called from of old the Caspian Gates. From there on there

are plains suitable for riding and extremely well watered, and extensive

tracts used as pasture land for horses, and level besides. Here almost

all the nations of the Huns are settled, extending as far as the Maeotic

lake. Now if these Huns go through the gate which I have just mentioned

into the land of the Persians and the Romans, they come with their

horses fresh and without making any detour or encountering any

precipitous places, except in those fifty stades over which, as has been

said, they pass to the boundary of Iberia. If, however, they go by any

other passes, they reach their destination with great difficulty, and

can no longer use the same horses. For the detours which they are forced

to make are many and steep besides. When this was observed by Alexander,

the son of Philip, he constructed gates in the aforesaid place and

established a fortress there. And this was held by many men in turn as

time went on, and finally by Ambazouces, a Hun by birth, but a friend of

the Romans and the Emperor Anastasius. Now when this Ambazouces had

reached an advanced age and was near to death, he sent to Anastasius

asking that money be given him, on condition that he hand over the

fortress and the Caspian Gates to the Romans. But the Emperor Anastasius

was incapable of doing anything without careful investigation, nor was

it his custom to act thus: reasoning, therefore, that it was impossible

for him to support soldiers in a place which was destitute of all good

things, and which had nowhere in the neighbourhood a nation subject to

the Romans, he expressed deep gratitude to the man for his good-will

toward him, but by no means accepted this proposition. So Ambazouces

died of disease not long afterwards, and Cabades overpowered his sons

and took possession of the Gates.

The Emperor Anastasius, after concluding the treaty with Cabades, built

a city in a place called Daras, exceedingly strong and of real

importance, bearing the name of the emperor himself. Now this place is

distant from the city of Nisibis one hundred stades lacking two, and

from the boundary line which divides the Romans from the Persians about

twenty-eight. And the Persians, though eager to prevent the building,

were quite unable to do so, being constrained by the war with the Huns

in which they were engaged. But as soon as Cabades brought this to an

end, he sent to the Romans and accused them of having built a city hard

by the Persian frontier, though this had been forbidden in the agreement

previously made between the Medes and the Romans[12]. At that time,

therefore, the Emperor Anastasius desired, partly by threats, and partly

by emphasizing his friendship with him and by bribing him with no mean

sum of money, to deceive him and to remove the accusation. And another

city also was built by this emperor, similar to the first, in Armenia,

hard by the boundaries of Persarmenia; now in this place there had been

a village from of old, but it had taken on the dignity of a city by the

favour of the Emperor Theodosius even to the name, for it had come to be

named after him[13]. But Anastasius surrounded it with a very

substantial wall, and thus gave offence to the Persians no less than by

the other city; for both of them are strongholds menacing their country.

XI

[Aug. 1, 518 A.D.] And when a little later Anastasius died, Justinus

received the empire, forcing aside all the kinsmen of Anastasius,

although they were numerous and also very distinguished. Then indeed a

sort of anxiety came over Cabades, lest the Persians should make some

attempt to overthrow his house as soon as he should end his life; for it

was certain that he would not pass on the kingdom to any one of his sons

without opposition. For while the law called to the throne the eldest of

his children Caoses by reason of his age, he was by no means pleasing to

Cabades; and the father's judgment did violence to the law of nature and

of custom as well. And Zames, who was second in age, having had one of

his eyes struck out, was prevented by the law. For it is not lawful for

a one-eyed man or one having any other deformity to become king over the

Persians. But Chosroes, who was born to him by the sister of Aspebedes,

the father loved exceedingly; seeing, however, that all the Persians,

practically speaking, felt an extravagant admiration for the manliness

of Zames (for he was a capable warrior), and worshipped his other

virtues, he feared lest they should rise against Chosroes and do

irreparable harm to the family and to the kingdom. Therefore it seemed

best to him to arrange with the Romans to put an end both to the war and

the causes of war, on condition that Chosroes be made an adopted son of

the Emperor Justinus; for only in this way could he preserve stability

in the government. Accordingly he sent envoys to treat of this matter

and a letter to the Emperor Justinus in Byzantium. And the letter was

written in this wise: "Unjust indeed has been the treatment which we

have received at the hands of the Romans, as even you yourself know, but

I have seen fit to abandon entirely all the charges against you, being

assured of this, that the most truly victorious of all men would be

those who, with justice on their side, are still willingly overcome and

vanquished by their friends. However I ask of you a certain favour in

return for this, which would bind together in kinship and in the

good-will which would naturally spring from this relation not only

ourselves but also all our subjects, and which would be calculated to

bring us to a satiety of the blessings of peace. My proposal, then, is

this, that you should make my son Chosroes, who will be my successor to

the throne, your adopted son."

When this message was brought to the Emperor Justinus, he himself was

overjoyed and Justinian also, the nephew of the emperor, who indeed was

expected to receive from him the empire. And they were making all haste

to perform the act of setting down in Writing the adoption, as the law

of the Romans prescribes--and would have done so, had they not been

prevented by Proclus, who was at that time a counsellor to the emperor,

holding the office of quaestor, as it is called, a just man and one whom

it was manifestly impossible to bribe; for this reason he neither

readily proposed any law, nor was he willing to disturb in any way the

settled order of things; and he at that time also opposed the

proposition, speaking as follows: "To venture on novel projects is not

my custom, and indeed I dread them more than any others; for where there

is innovation security is by no means preserved. And it seems to me

that, even if one should be especially bold in this matter, he would

feel reluctance to do the thing and would tremble at the storm which

would arise from it; for I believe that nothing else is before our

consideration at the present time than the question how we may hand over

the Roman empire to the Persians on a seemly pretext. For they make no

concealment nor do they employ any blinds, but explicitly acknowledging

their purpose they claim without more ado to rob us of our empire,

seeking to veil the manifestness of their deceit under a shew of

simplicity, and hide a shameless intent behind a pretended unconcern.

And yet both of you ought to repel this attempt of the barbarians with

all your power; thou, O Emperor, in order that thou mayst not be the

last Emperor of the Romans, and thou, O General, that thou mayst not

prove a stumbling block to thyself as regards coming to the throne. For

other crafty devices which are commonly concealed by a pretentious shew

of words might perhaps need an interpreter for the many, but this

embassy openly and straight from the very first words means to make this

Chosroes, whoever he is, the adopted heir of the Roman Emperor. For I

would have you reason thus in this matter: by nature the possessions of

fathers are due to their sons and while the laws among all men are

always in conflict with each other by reason of their varying nature, in

this matter both among the Romans and among all barbarians they are in

agreement and harmony with each other, in that they declare sons to be

masters of their fathers' inheritance. Take this first resolve if you

choose: if you do you must agree to all its consequences."

Thus spoke Proclus; and the emperor and his nephew gave ear to his words

and deliberated upon what should be done. In the meantime Cabades sent

another letter also to the Emperor Justinus, asking him to send men of

repute in order to establish peace with him, and to indicate by letter

the manner in which it would be his desire to accomplish the adoption of

his son. And then, indeed, still more than before Proclus decried the

attempt of the Persians, and insisted that their concern was to make

over to themselves as securely as possible the Roman power. And he

proposed as his opinion that the peace should be concluded with them

with all possible speed, and that the noblest men should be sent by the

emperor for this purpose; and that these men must answer plainly to

Cabades, when he enquired in what manner the adoption of Chosroes should

be accomplished, that it must be of the sort befitting a barbarian, and

his meaning was that the barbarians adopt sons, not by a document, but

by arms and armour[14]. Accordingly the Emperor Justinus dismissed the

envoys, promising that men who were the noblest of the Romans would

follow them not long afterwards, and that they would arrange a

settlement regarding the peace and regarding Chosroes in the best

possible way. He also answered Cabades by letter to the same effect.

Accordingly there were sent from the Romans Hypatius, the nephew of

Anastasius, the late emperor, a patrician who also held the office of

General of the East, and Rufinus, the son of Silvanus, a man of note

among the patricians and known to Cabades through their fathers; from

the Persians came one of great power and high authority, Seoses by name,

whose title was adrastadaran salanes, and Mebodes, who held the office

of magister. These men came together at a certain spot which is on the

boundary line between the land of the Romans and the Persians: there

they met and negotiated as to how they should do away with their

differences and settle effectually the question of the peace. Chosroes

also came to the Tigris River, which is distant from the city of Nisibis

about two days journey, in order that, when the details of the peace

should seem to both parties to be as well arranged as possible, he might

betake himself in person to Byzantium. Now many words were spoken on

both sides touching the differences between them, and in particular

Seoses made mention of the land of Colchis, which is now called Lazica,

saying that it had been subject to the Persians from of old and that the

Romans had taken it from them by violence and held it on no just

grounds. When the Romans heard this, they were indignant to think that

even Lazica should be disputed by the Persians. And when they in turn

stated that the adoption of Chosroes must take place just as is proper

for a barbarian, it seemed to the Persians unbearable. The two parties

therefore separated and departed homeward, and Chosroes with nothing

accomplished was off to his father, deeply injured at what had taken

place and vowing vengeance on the Romans for their insult to him.

After this Mebodes began to slander Seoses to Cabades, saying that he

had proposed the discussion of Lazica purposely, although he had not

been instructed to do so by his master, thereby frustrating the peace,

and also that he had had words previously with Hypatius, who was by no

means well-disposed toward his own sovereign and was trying to prevent

the conclusion of peace and the adoption of Chosroes; and many other

accusations also were brought forward by the enemies of Seoses, and he

was summoned to trial. Now the whole Persian council gathered to sit in

judgment moved more by envy than by respect for the law. For they were

thoroughly hostile to his office, which was unfamiliar to them, and also

were embittered by the natural temper of the man. For while Seoses was a

man quite impossible to bribe, and a most exact respecter of justice, he

was afflicted with a degree of arrogance not to be compared with that of

any other. This quality, indeed, seems to be inbred in the Persian

officials, but in Seoses even they thought that the malady had developed

to an altogether extraordinary degree. So his accusers said all those

things which have been indicated above, and added to this that the man

was by no means willing to live in the established fashion or to uphold

the institutions of the Persians. For he both reverenced strange

divinities, and lately, when his wife had died, he had buried her,

though it was forbidden by the laws of the Persians ever to hide in the

earth the bodies of the dead. The judges therefore condemned the man to

death, while Cabades, though seeming to be deeply moved with sympathy as

a friend of Seoses, was by no means willing to rescue him. He did not,

on the other hand, make it known that he was angry with him, but, as he

said, he was not willing to undo the laws of the Persians, although he

owed the man the price of his life, since Seoses was chiefly responsible

both for the fact that he was alive and also that he was king. Thus,

then, Seoses was condemned and was removed from among men. And the

office which began with him ended also with him. For no other man has

been made adrastadaran salanes. Rufinus also slandered Hypatius to the

emperor. As a result of this the emperor reduced him from his office,

and tortured most cruelly certain of his associates only to find out

that this slander was absolutely unsound; beyond this, however, he did

Hypatius no harm.

XII

Immediately after this, Cabades, though eager to make some kind of an

invasion into the land of the Romans, was utterly unable to do so on

account of the following obstacle which happened to arise. The Iberians,

who live in Asia, are settled in the immediate neighbourhood of the

Caspian Gates, which lie to the north of them. Adjoining them on the

left towards the west is Lazica, and on the right towards the east are

the Persian peoples. This nation is Christian and they guard the rites

of this faith more closely than any other men known to us, but they have

been subjects of the Persian king, as it happens, from ancient times.

And just then Cabades was desirous of forcing them to adopt the rites of

his own religion. And he enjoined upon their king, Gourgenes, to do all

things as the Persians are accustomed to do them, and in particular not

under any circumstances to hide their dead in the earth, but to throw

them all to the birds and dogs. For this reason, then, Gourgenes wished

to go over to the Emperor Justinus, and he asked that he might receive

pledges that the Romans would never abandon the Iberians to the

Persians. And the emperor gave him these pledges with great eagerness,

and he sent Probus, the nephew of the late emperor Anastasius, a man of

patrician rank, with a great sum of money to Bosporus, that he might win

over with money an army of Huns and send them as allies to the Iberians.

This Bosporus is a city by the sea, on the left as one sails into the

so-called Euxine Sea, twenty days journey distant from the city of

Cherson, which is the limit of the Roman territory. Between these cities

everything is held by the Huns. Now in ancient times the people of

Bosporus were autonomous, but lately they had decided to become subject

to the Emperor Justinus. Probus, however, departed from there without

accomplishing his mission, and the emperor sent Peter as general with

some Huns to Lazica to fight with all their strength for Gourgenes.

Meanwhile Cabades sent a very considerable army against Gourgenes and

the Iberians, and as general a Persian bearing the title of "varizes,"

Boes by name. Then it was seen that Gourgenes was too weak to withstand

the attack of the Persians, for the help from the Romans was

insufficient, and with all the notables of the Iberians he fled to

Lazica, taking with him his wife and children and also his brothers, of

whom Peranius was the eldest. And when they had reached the boundaries

of Lazica, they remained there, and, sheltering themselves by the

roughness of the country, they took their stand against the enemy. And

the Persians followed after them but did nothing deserving even of

mention since the circumstance of the rough country was against them.

Thereafter the Iberians presented themselves at Byzantium and Petrus

came to the emperor at his summons; and from then on the emperor

demanded that he should assist the Lazi to guard their country, even

against their will, and he sent an army and Eirenaeus in command of it.

Now there are two fortresses in Lazica[15] which one comes upon

immediately upon entering their country from the boundaries of Iberia,

and the defence of them had been from of old in charge of the natives,

although they experienced great hardship in this matter; for neither

corn nor wine nor any other good thing is produced there. Nor indeed can

anything be carried in from elsewhere on account of the narrowness of

the paths, unless it be carried by men. However, the Lazi were able to

live on a certain kind of millet which grows there, since they were

accustomed to it. These garrisons the emperor removed from the place and

commanded that Roman soldiers should be stationed there to guard the

fortresses. And at first the Lazi with difficulty brought in provisions

for these soldiers, but later they gave up the service and the Romans

abandoned these forts, whereupon the Persians with no trouble took

possession of them. This then happened in Lazica.

And the Romans, under the leadership of Sittas and Belisarius, made an

inroad into Persarmenia, a territory subject to the Persians, where they

plundered a large tract of country and then withdrew with a great

multitude of Armenian captives. These two men were both youths and

wearing their first beards[16], body-guards of the general Justinian,

who later shared the empire with his uncle Justinus. But when a second

inroad had been made by the Romans into Armenia, Narses and Aratius

unexpectedly confronted them and engaged them in battle. These men not

long after this came to the Romans as deserters, and made the expedition

to Italy with Belisarius; but on the present occasion they joined battle

with the forces of Sittas and Belisarius and gained the advantage over

them. An invasion was also made near the city of Nisibis by another

Roman army under command of Libelarius of Thrace. This army retired

abruptly in flight although no one came out against thorn. And because

of this the emperor reduced Libelarius from his office and appointed

Belisarius commander of the troops in Daras. It was at that time that

Procopius, who wrote this history, was chosen as his adviser. [527 A.D.]

XIII

[Apr. 1, 527] Not long after this Justinus, who had declared his nephew

Justinian emperor with him, died, and thus the empire came to Justinian

alone. [Aug. 1, 527] This Justinian commanded Belisarius to build a

fortress in a place called Mindouos, which is over against the very

boundary of Persia, on the left as one goes to Nisibis. He accordingly

with great haste began to carry out the decision of the emperor, and the

fort was already rising to a considerable height by reason of the great

number of artisans. But the Persians forbade them to build any further,

threatening that, not with words alone but also with deeds, they would

at no distant time obstruct the work. When the emperor heard this,

inasmuch as Belisarius was not able to beat off the Persians from the

place with the army he had, he ordered another army to go thither, and

also Coutzes and Bouzes, who at that time commanded the soldiers in

Libanus[17]. These two were brothers from Thrace, both young and

inclined to be rash in engaging with the enemy. So both armies were

gathered together and came in full force to the scene of the building

operations, the Persians in order to hinder the work with all their

power, and the Romans to defend the labourers. And a fierce battle took

place in which the Romans were defeated, and there was a great slaughter

of them, while some also were made captive by the enemy. Among these was

Coutzes himself. All these captives the Persians led away to their own

country, and, putting them in chains, confined them permanently in a

cave; as for the fort, since no one defended it any longer, they razed

what had been built to the ground.

After this the Emperor Justinian appointed Belisarius General of the

East and bade him make an expedition against the Persians. And he

collected a very formidable army and came to Daras. Hermogenes also came

to him from the emperor to assist in setting the army in order, holding

the office of magister; this man was formerly counsellor to Vitalianus

at the time when he was at war with the Emperor Anastasius. The emperor

also sent Rufinus as ambassador, commanding him to remain in Hierapolis

on the Euphrates River until he himself should give the word. For

already much was being said on both sides concerning peace. Suddenly,

however, someone reported to Belisarius and Hermogenes that the Persians

were expected to invade the land of the Romans, being eager to capture

the city of Daras. And when they heard this, they prepared for the

battle as follows. [July, 530] Not far from the gate which lies opposite

the city of Nisibis, about a stone's throw away, they dug a deep trench

with many passages across it. Now this trench was not dug in a straight

line, but in the following manner. In the middle there was a rather

short portion straight, and at either end of this there were dug two

cross trenches at right angles to the first; and starting from the

extremities of the two cross trenches, they continued two straight

trenches in the original direction to a very great distance. Not long

afterwards the Persians came with a great army, and all of them made

camp in a place called Ammodios, at a distance of twenty stades from the

city of Daras. Among the leaders of this army were Pityaxes and the

one-eyed Baresmanas. But one general held command over them all, a

Persian, whose title was "mirranes" (for thus the Persians designate

this office), Perozes by name. This Perozes immediately sent to

Belisarius bidding him make ready the bath: for he wished to bathe there

on the following day. Accordingly the Romans made the most vigorous

preparations for the encounter, with the expectation that they would

fight on the succeeding day.

At sunrise, seeing the enemy advancing against them, they arrayed

themselves as follows[18]. The extremity of the left straight trench

which joined the cross trench, as far as the hill which rises here, was

held by Bouzes with a large force of horsemen and by Pharas the Erulian

with three hundred of his nation. On the right of these, outside the

trench, at the angle formed by the cross trench and the straight section

which extended from that point, were Sunicas and Aigan, Massagetae by

birth, with six hundred horsemen, in order that, if those under Bouzes

and Pharas should be driven back, they might, by moving quickly on the

flank, and getting in the rear of the enemy, be able easily to support

the Romans at that point. On the other wing also they were arrayed in

the same manner; for the extremity of the straight trench was held by a

large force of horsemen, who were commanded by John, son of Nicetas, and

by Cyril and Marcellus; with them also were Germanus and Dorotheus;

while at the angle on the right six hundred horsemen took their stand,

commanded by Simmas and Ascan, Massagetae, in order that, as has been

said, in case the forces of John should by any chance be driven back,

they might move out from there and attack the rear of the Persians. Thus

all along the trench stood the detachments of cavalry and the infantry.

And behind these in the middle stood the forces of Belisarius and

Hermogenes. Thus the Romans arrayed themselves, amounting to

five-and-twenty thousand; but the Persian army consisted of forty

thousand horse and foot, and they all stood close together facing the

front, so as to make the front of the phalanx as deep as possible. Then

for a long time neither side began battle with the other, but the

Persians seemed to be wondering at the good order of the Romans, and

appeared at a loss what to do under the circumstances.

In the late afternoon a certain detachment of the horsemen who held the

right wing, separating themselves from the rest of the army, came

against the forces of Bouzes and Pharas. And the Romans retired a short

distance to the rear. The Persians, however, did not pursue them, but

remained there, fearing, I suppose, some move to surround them on the

part of the enemy. Then the Romans who had turned to flight suddenly

rushed upon them. And the Persians did not withstand their onset and

rode back to the phalanx, and again the forces of Bouzes and Pharas

stationed themselves in their own position. In this skirmish seven of

the Persians fell, and the Romans gained possession of their bodies;

thereafter both armies remained quietly in position. But one Persian, a

young man, riding up very close to the Roman army, began to challenge

all of them, calling for whoever wished to do battle with him. And no

one of the whole army dared face the danger, except a certain Andreas,

one of the personal attendants of Bouzes, not a soldier nor one who had

ever practised at all the business of war, but a trainer of youths in

charge of a certain wrestling school in Byzantium. Through this it came

about that he was following the army, for he cared for the person of

Bouzes in the bath; his birthplace was Byzantium. This man alone had the

courage, without being ordered by Bouzes or anyone else, to go out of

his own accord to meet the man in single combat. And he caught the

barbarian while still considering how he should deliver his attack, and

hit him with his spear on the right breast. And the Persian did not bear

the blow delivered by a man of such exceptional strength, and fell from

his horse to the earth. Then Andreas with a small knife slew him like a

sacrificial animal as he lay on his back, and a mighty shout was raised

both from the city wall and from the Roman army. But the Persians were

deeply vexed at the outcome and sent forth another horseman for the same

purpose, a manly fellow and well favoured as to bodily size, but not a

youth, for some of the hair on his head already shewed grey. This

horseman came up along the hostile army, and, brandishing vehemently the

whip with which he was accustomed to strike his horse, he summoned to

battle whoever among the Romans was willing. And when no one went out

against him, Andreas, without attracting the notice of anyone, once more

came forth, although he had been forbidden to do so by Hermogenes. So

both rushed madly upon each other with their spears, and the weapons,

driven against their corselets, were turned aside with mighty force, and

the horses, striking together their heads, fell themselves and threw off

their riders. And both the two men, falling very close to each other,

made great haste to rise to their feet, but the Persian was not able to

do this easily because his size was against him, while Andreas,

anticipating him (for his practice in the wrestling school gave him this

advantage), smote him as he was rising on his knee, and as he fell again

to the ground dispatched him. Then a roar went up from the wall and from

the Roman army as great, if not greater, than before; and the Persians

broke their phalanx and withdrew to Ammodios, while the Romans, raising

the pæan, went inside the fortifications; for already it was growing

dark. Thus both armies passed that night.

XIV

On the following day ten thousand soldiers arrived who had been summoned

by the Persians from the city of Nisibis, and Belisarius and Hermogenes

wrote to the mirranes as follows: "The first blessing is peace, as is

agreed by all men who have even a small share of reason. It follows that

if any one should be a destroyer of it, he would be most responsible not

only to those near him but also to his whole nation for the troubles

which come. The best general, therefore, is that one who is able to

bring about peace from war. But you, when affairs were well settled

between the Romans and the Persians, have seen fit to bring upon us a

war without cause, although the counsels of each king are looking toward

peace, and although our envoys are already present in the neighbourhood,

who will at no distant time settle all the points of dispute in talking

over the situation together, unless some irreparable harm coming from

your invasion proves sufficient to frustrate for us this hope. But lead

away as soon as possible your army to the land of the Persians, and do

not stand in the way of the greatest blessings, lest at some time you be

held responsible by the Persians, as is probable, for the disasters

which will come to pass." When the mirranes saw this letter brought to

him, he replied as follows: "I should have been persuaded by what you

write, and should have done what you demand, were the letter not, as it

happens, from Romans, for whom the making of promises is easy, but the

fulfilment of the promises in deed most difficult and beyond hope,

especially if you sanction the agreement by any oaths. We, therefore,

despairing in view of your deception, have been compelled to come before

you in arms, and as for you, my dear Romans, consider that from now on

you will be obliged to do nothing else than make war against the

Persians. For here we shall be compelled either to die or grow old until

you accord to us justice in deed." Such was the reply which the mirranes

wrote back. And again Belisarius and his generals wrote as follows: "O

excellent mirranes, it is not fitting in all things to depend upon

boasting, nor to lay upon one's neighbours reproaches which are

justified on no grounds whatever. For we said with truth that Rufinus

had come to act as an envoy and was not far away, and you yourself will

know this at no remote time. But since you are eager for deeds of war,

we shall array ourselves against you with the help of God, who will, we

know, support us in the danger, being moved by the peaceful inclination

of the Romans, but rebuking the boastfulness of the Persians and your

decision to resist us when we invite you to peace. And we shall array

ourselves against you, having prepared for the conflict by fastening the

letters written by each of us on the top of our banners." Such was the

message of this letter. And the mirranes again answered as follows:

"Neither are we entering upon the war without our gods, and with their

help we shall come before you, and I expect that on the morrow they will

bring the Persians into Daras. But let the bath and lunch be in

readiness for me within the fortifications." When Belisarius and his

generals read this, they prepared themselves for the conflict.

On the succeeding day the mirranes called together all the Persians at

about sunrise and spoke as follows: "I am not ignorant that it is not

because of words of their leaders, but because of their individual

bravery and their shame before each other that the Persians are

accustomed to be courageous in the presence of dangers. But seeing you

considering why in the world it is that, although the Romans have not

been accustomed heretofore to go into battle without confusion and

disorder, they recently awaited the advancing Persians with a kind of

order which is by no means characteristic of them, for this reason I

have decided to speak some words of exhortation to you, so that it may

not come about that you be deceived by reason of holding an opinion

which is not true. For I would not have you think that the Romans have

suddenly become better warriors, or that they have acquired any more

valour or experience, but that they have become more cowardly than they

were previously; at any rate they fear the Persians so much that they

have not even dared to form their phalanx without a trench. And not even

with this did they begin any fighting, but when we did not join battle

with them at all, joyfully and considering that matters had gone better

for them than they had hoped, they withdrew to the wall. For this reason

too it happened that they were not thrown into confusion, for they had

not yet come into the dangers of battle. But if the fighting comes to

close quarters, fear will seize upon them, and this, together with their

inexperience, will throw them, in all probability, into their customary

disorder. Such, therefore, is the case with regard to the enemy; but do

you, O men of Persia, call to mind the judgment of the King of Kings.

For if you do not play the part of brave men in the present engagement,

in a manner worthy of the valour of the Persians, an inglorious

punishment will fall upon you." With this exhortation the mirranes began

to lead his army against the enemy. Likewise Belisarius and Hermogenes

gathered all the Romans before the fortifications, and encouraged them

with the following words: "You know assuredly that the Persians are not

altogether invincible, nor too strong to be killed, having taken their

measure in the previous battle; and that, although superior to them in

bravery and in strength of body, you were defeated only by reason of

being rather heedless of your officers, no one can deny. This thing you

now have the opportunity to set right with no trouble. For while the

adversities of fortune are by no means such as to be set right by an

effort, reason may easily become for a man a physician for the ills

caused by himself. If therefore you are willing to give heed to the

orders given, you will straightway win for yourselves the superiority in

battle. For the Persians come against us basing their confidence on

nothing else than our disorder. But this time also they will be

disappointed in this hope, and will depart just as in the previous

encounter. And as for the great numbers of the enemy, by which more than

anything else they inspire fear, it is right for you to despise them.

For their whole infantry is nothing more than a crowd of pitiable

peasants who come into battle for no other purpose than to dig through

walls and to despoil the slain and in general to serve the soldiers. For

this reason they have no weapons at all with which they might trouble

their opponents, and they only hold before themselves those enormous

shields in order that they may not possibly be hit by the enemy.

Therefore if you shew yourselves brave men in this struggle, you will

not only conquer the Persians for the present, but you will also punish

them for their folly, so that they will never again make an expedition

into the Roman territory."

When Belisarius and Hermogenes had finished this exhortation, since they

saw the Persians advancing against them, they hastily drew up the

soldiers in the same manner as before. And the barbarians, coming up

before them, took their stand facing the Romans. But the mirranes did

not array all the Persians against the enemy, but only one half of them,

while he allowed the others to remain behind. These were to take the

places of the men who were fighting and to fall upon their opponents

with their vigour intact, so that all might fight in constant rotation.

But the detachment of the so-called Immortals alone he ordered to remain

at rest until he himself should give the signal. And he took his own

station at the middle of the front, putting Pityaxes in command on the

right wing, and Baresmanas on the left. In this manner, then, both

armies were drawn up. Then Pharas came before Belisarius and Hermogenes,

and said: "It does not seem to me that I shall do the enemy any great

harm if I remain here with the Eruli; but if we conceal ourselves on

this slope, and then, when the Persians have begun the fight, if we

climb up by this hill and suddenly come upon their rear, shooting from

behind them, we shall in all probability do them the greatest harm."

Thus he spoke, and, since it pleased Belisarius and his staff, he

carried out this plan.

But up to midday neither side began battle. As soon, however, as the

noon hour was passed, the barbarians began the fight, having postponed

the engagement to this time of the day for the reason that they are

accustomed to partake of food only towards late afternoon, while the

Romans have their meal before noon; and for this reason they thought

that the Romans would never hold out so well, if they assailed them

while hungry. At first, then, both sides discharged arrows against each

other, and the missiles by their great number made, as it were, a vast

cloud; and many men were falling on both sides, but the missiles of the

barbarians flew much more thickly. For fresh men were always fighting in

turn, affording to their enemy not the slightest opportunity to observe

what was being done; but even so the Romans did not have the worst of

it. For a steady wind blew from their side against the barbarians, and

checked to a considerable degree the force of their arrows. Then, after

both sides had exhausted all their missiles, they began to use their

spears against each other, and the battle had come still more to close

quarters. On the Roman side the left wing was suffering especially. For

the Cadiseni, who with Pityaxes were fighting at this point, rushing up

suddenly in great numbers, routed their enemy, and crowding hard upon

the fugitives, were killing many of them. When this was observed by the

men under Sunicas and Aigan, they charged against them at full speed.

But first the three hundred Eruli under Pharas from the high ground got

in the rear of the enemy and made a wonderful display of valorous deeds

against all of them and especially the Cadiseni. And the Persians,

seeing the forces of Sunicas too already coming up against them from the

flank, turned to a hasty flight. And the rout became complete, for the

Romans here joined forces with each other, and there was a great

slaughter of the barbarians. On the Persian right wing not fewer than

three thousand perished in this action, while the rest escaped with

difficulty to the phalanx and were saved. And the Romans did not

continue their pursuit, but both sides took their stand facing each

other in line. Such was the course of these events.

But the mirranes stealthily sent to the left a large body of troops and

with them all the so-called Immortals. And when these were noticed by

Belisarius and Hermogenes, they ordered the six hundred men under

Sunicas and Aigan to go to the angle on the right, where the troops of

Simmas and Ascan were stationed, and behind them they placed many of

Belisarius men. So the Persians who held the left wing under the

leadership of Baresmanas, together with the Immortals, charged on the

run upon the Romans opposite them, who failed to withstand the attack

and beat a hasty retreat. Thereupon the Romans in the angle, and all who

were behind them, advanced with great ardour against the pursuers. But

inasmuch as they came upon the barbarians from the side, they cut their

army into two parts, and the greater portion of them they had on their

right, while some also who were left behind were placed on their left.

Among these happened to be the standard bearer of Baresmanas, whom

Sunicas charged and struck with his spear. And already the Persians who

were leading the pursuit perceived in what straits they were, and,

wheeling about, they stopped the pursuit and went against their

assailants, and thus became exposed to the enemy on both sides. For

those in flight before them understood what was happening and turned

back again. The Persians, on their part, with the detachment of the

Immortals, seeing the standard inclined and lowered to the earth, rushed

all together against the Romans at that point with Baresmanas. There the

Romans held their ground. And first Sunicas killed Baresmanas and threw

him from his horse to the ground. As a result of this the barbarians

were seized with great fear and thought no longer of resistance, but

fled in utter confusion. And the Romans, having made a circle as it were

around them, killed about five thousand. Thus both armies were all set

in motion, the Persians in retreat, and the Romans in pursuit. In this

part of the conflict all the foot-soldiers who were in the Persian army

threw down their shields and were caught and wantonly killed by their

enemy. However, the pursuit was not continued by the Romans over a great

distance. For Belisarius and Hermogenes refused absolutely to let them

go farther, fearing lest the Persians through some necessity should turn

about and rout them while pursuing recklessly, and it seemed to them

sufficient to preserve the victory unmarred. For on that day the

Persians had been defeated in battle by the Romans, a thing which had

not happened for a long time. Thus the two armies separated from each

other. And the Persians were no longer willing to fight a pitched battle

with the Romans. However, some sudden attacks were made on both sides,

in which the Romans were not at a disadvantage. Such, then, was the

fortune of the armies in Mesopotamia.

XV

And Cabades sent another army into the part of Armenia which is subject

to the Romans. This army was composed of Persarmenians and Sunitae,

whose land adjoins that of the Alani. There were also Huns with them, of

the stock called Sabiri, to the number of three thousand, a most warlike

race. And Mermeroes, a Persian, had been made general of the whole

force. When this army was three days' march from Theodosiopolis, they

established their camp and, remaining in the land of the Persarmenians,

made their preparations for the invasion. Now the general of Armenia

was, as it happened, Dorotheus, a man of discretion and experienced in

many wars. And Sittas held the office of general in Byzantium, and had

authority over the whole army in Armenia. These two, then, upon learning

that an army was being assembled in Persarmenia, straightway sent two

body-guards with instructions to spy out the whole force of the enemy

and report to them. And both of these men got into the barbarian camp,

and after noting everything accurately, they departed. And they were

travelling toward some place in that region, when they happened

unexpectedly upon hostile Huns. By them one of the two, Dagaris by name,

was made captive and bound, while the other succeeded in escaping and

reported everything to the generals. They then armed their whole force

and made an unexpected assault upon the camp of their enemy; and the

barbarians, panic-stricken by the unexpected attack, never thought of

resistance, but fled as best each one could. Thereupon the Romans, after

killing a large number and plundering the camp, immediately marched

back.

Not long after this Mermeroes, having collected the whole army, invaded

the Roman territory, and they came upon their enemy near the city of

Satala. There they established themselves in camp and remained at rest

in a place called Octava, which is fifty-six stades distant from the

city. Sittas therefore led out a thousand men and concealed them behind

one of the many hills which surround the plain in which the city of

Satala lies. Dorotheus with the rest of the army he ordered to stay

inside the fortifications, because they thought that they were by no

means able to withstand the enemy on level ground, since their number

was not fewer than thirty thousand, while their own forces scarcely

amounted to half that number. On the following day the barbarians came

up close to the fortifications and busily set about closing in the town.

But suddenly, seeing the forces of Sittas who by now were coming down

upon them from the high ground, and having no means of estimating their

number, since owing to the summer season a great cloud of dust hung over

them, they thought they were much more numerous than they were, and,

hurriedly abandoning their plan of closing in the town, they hastened to

mass their force into a small space. But the Romans anticipated the

movement and, separating their own force into two detachments, they set

upon them as they were retiring from the fortifications; and when this

was seen by the whole Roman army, they took courage, and with a great

rush they poured out from the fortifications and advanced against their

opponents. They thus put the Persians between their own troops, and

turned them to flight. However, since the barbarians were greatly

superior to their enemy in numbers, as has been said, they still offered

resistance, and the battle had become a fierce fight at close quarters.

And both sides kept making advances upon their opponents and retiring

quickly, for they were all cavalry. Thereupon Florentius, a Thracian,

commanding a detachment of horse, charged into the enemy's centre, and

seizing the general's standard, forced it to the ground, and started to

ride back. And though he himself was overtaken and fell there, hacked to

pieces, he proved to be the chief cause of the victory for the Romans.

For when the barbarians no longer saw the standard, they were thrown

into great confusion and terror, and retreating, got inside their camp,

and remained quiet, having lost many men in the battle; and on the

following day they all returned homeward with no one following them up,

for it seemed to the Romans a great and very noteworthy thing that such

a great multitude of barbarians in their own country had suffered those

things which have just been narrated above, and that, after making an

invasion into hostile territory, they should retire thus without

accomplishing anything and defeated by a smaller force.