Bulgaria

This proposition being acceptable to the emperor, further communications passed between them, in great secrecy, as Alousianus had desired. In accordance with the terms of agreement, the latter advanced, apparently with the intention of...

He referred to his father in an impersonal way, as though he himself was a member of another family. He then proceeded to speak with pride of his father’s ancestry, and made some tentative...

The Escape Of Alousianus To Bulgaria45. The war had not yet broken out when a most astonishing thing happened — something nearly as amazing as the emperor’s action.The more agreeable of Aaron’s sons (Aaron...

The Emperor’s Bulgarian Expedition43. This thought afflicted the emperor much more than physical suffering, and the harm it produced in him was quite different, for whereas the disease caused his body to swell, the...

He did not claim to be the legitimate heir of these kings, but he either invented or proved that he was a collateral relation. He readily convinced the people with his story, and they...

38. I am aware that many chroniclers of his life will, in all probability, give an account differing from mine, for in his time false opinions prevailed. But I took part in these events...

A new hospice was built too, called by him the Ptochotropheium,**52 and in this way a mighty stream of gold was poured out for the benefit of those who preferred a life of meditation....

Those who took part in these ceremonies with him and faked the apparitions, will know whether the story is true or false. If it is a mere fabrication then my opinion on the subject...

31. It was now evident that the whole of the emperor’s body was swollen, and nobody could fail to notice the hydropsy from which he was suffering. He tried various methods, such as prayers...

He was expert in the conception and planning of unlikely designs. He showed no consideration for benefactors, no gratitude to anyone for friendship or solicitude or devotion on his behalf. But his powers of...