Book 3

Chapter XI.

During' these times, as was stated above [1] Justin the younger ruled at Constantinople, a man given to every kind of avarice, a despiser of the poor, a despoiler of senators. So great was the madness of his cupidity that he ordered iron chests made in which to collect those talents of gold which he seized. They also say that he fell into the Pelagian heresy. 'When he turned away the ear of his heart from the Divine commands he became mad, having lost the faculty of reason by the just judgment of God. He took Tiberius as his Caesar to govern his palace and his different provinces, a man just, useful, energetic, wise, benevolent, equitable in his judgments, brilliant in his victories, and what was more important than all these things, a most true Christian. From the treasures which Justin [2] had collected he brought out many things for the use of the poor, and the empress Sophia often upbraided him that he would reduce the state to poverty, saying, "What I have been collecting through many years you are scattering prodigally in a short time." But he said: ''I trust to the Lord that money will not be lacking in our treasury so long as the poor receive charity and captives are ransomed. For this is the great treasure, since the Lord says, 'Lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt and where thieves do not break through nor steal.' Therefore of these things which God has furnished us let us gather treasures in heaven, and God will deign to give us increase in this world." Then when Justin had reigned eleven years, [3] he ended at last the madness he had fallen into together with his life. During his time indeed were waged the wars which, as we before said in advance, were carried on by Narses the patrician against the Goths and the Franks. [4] In fine also, when Rome at the time of pope Benedict was suffering the privation of hunger, while the Langobards were destroying everything on every side, he [5] sent many thousand bushels of grain in ships straight from Egypt and relieved it by the effort of his benevolence.

[1] See Book II, Chap. 5.
[2] That there was no original sin and that God's grace was not indispensable. So called from the monk Pelagius, by whom it was taught, who died about A. D. 420.
[3] Almost thirteen years (Waitz).
[4] Incorrect; these wars were waged under Justinian (II, i et seq. supra; Waitz), although it was to Justin that the complaints were afterwards made of Narses' administration.
[5] That is, Justin (see Muratori Annals, A. U. 578, vol. 3, p. 501).


Chapter XII.

When Justin was dead [1] Tiberius Constantine, the fifteenth of the Roman emperors, assumed the sovereignty. While he was still Caesar under Justin as we said above, and was managing the palace and performing many acts of charity every day, God furnished him a great abundance of gold. For while walking through the palace he saw on the pavement of the house a marble slab on which the cross of our Lord was carved, and he said: " We ought to adorn our forehead and our breast with our Lord's cross and behold we trample it under our feet," and this said, he quickly ordered the slab to be lifted up. And underneath the slab when it was dug out and set up, they found another having the same device. And he ordered this also to be raised, and when it was moved they found also a third, and when this too was taken away by his command, they found a great treasure, containing more than a thousand centenaria [2] of gold, and the gold was carried away and distributed among the poor yet more abundantly than had been customary. Also Narses the patrician of Italy, since he had a great dwelling in a certain city of Italy, came to the above-mentioned city with many treasures, and there in his dwelling he secretly dug a great cistern in which he deposited many thousand centenaria of gold and silver. And when all who knew of the matter had been killed, he entrusted these to the care of one old man only, exacting from him an oath. And when Narses had died, the above-mentioned old man, coming to Caesar Tiberius, said, " If it profit me anything, I will tell you, Caesar, an important thing." The latter said to him, " Say what you will. It will be of advantage to you if you shall tell anything which will profit us." "I have," he said, "the treasure of Narses hidden away, which I, being near the end of my life, cannot longer conceal." Then Caesar Tiberius was delighted and sent his servants up to the place, and the old man went ahead [3] and they followed in astonishment, and coming to the cistern, when it was opened they entered it. So much gold and silver was found in it that it could with difficulty be emptied in many days by those carrying its contents. Almost all of this he bestowed upon the needy in bountiful distribution according to his custom. When he was about to accept the imperial crown, and the people were expecting him at the spectacle in the circus according to usage, and were preparing an ambuscade for him that they might raise Justinian, the nephew of Justin, to the imperial dignity, he first proceeded through the consecrated places, then he called to him the pontiff of the city and entered the palace with the consuls and prefects, and clad in the purple, crowned with the diadem and placed upon the imperial throne, he was confirmed with immense applause in the honor of the sovereignty. His adversaries hearing this, and not being able in any way to injure him who had placed his hope in God, were covered with great shame and confusion. And after a few days had elapsed, Justinian came and cast himself at the foot of the emperor bringing him fifteen centenaria of gold for the sake of pardon. Tiberius, raising him up in his patient way, commanded him to place himself in the palace at his side. But the empress Sophia, unmindful of the promise she had previously made to Tiberius, attempted to carry on a plot against him. And when he proceeded to his villa according to imperial custom, to enjoy for thirty days the pleasures of the vintage, she secretly called Justinian and wished to raise him to the sovereignty. When this was discovered, Tiberius returned in great haste to Constantinople, arrested the empress and despoiled her of all her treasures, leaving her only the nourishment of her daily food. And when he had separated her servants from her he put others at her service of those devoted to himself, commanding absolutely that none of the former ones should have access to her. But Justinian, whom he punished only by words, he afterwards cherished with so great a love that he promised his own daughter to his son, and on the other hand asked Justinian's daughter for his own son. But this thing, from what cause I know not, did not at all come to pass. The army sent by him completely subdued the Persians, and returning victorious, brought, together with twenty elephants, so great a quantity of booty as would be thought enough to satisfy human cupidity.

[1] He died October 5, 578 (Hodgkin, V, 197).
[2] The centenarium is a hundred pounds weight (Du Cange). According to Hodgkin (V, 196) this thousand centenaria would equal four million pounds sterling, an incredible sum.
[3] Literally ''withdrawing".


Chapter XIII.

When Hilperic, king of the Franks, sent messengers to this sovereign, he received from him many trinkets, and gold pieces too, of a pound each, having on the one side the image of the emperor and the words written in a circle, "Of Tiberius Constantine Universal Emperor," and having on the other side a quadriga with a driver [1] and containing the inscription "The glory of the Romans." In his days while the blessed Gregory, the deacon who afterwards became Pope, was papal delegate at the same imperial city, he composed books of Morals [2] and vanquished in debate in the presence of the emperor himself, Euthicius, [3] a bishop of that city who fell into error regarding the resurrection. [4] Also at this time first duke of the Spoletans, invaded Classis [5] army of Langobards and left the rich city plundered of all its wealth. [6]

[1] 'Asensor', literally, one who went up in it.
[2] The object of this treatise was to show that the book of Job comprehended all natural theology and morals.
[3] Not the same as Eutyches, leader of the Eutychian heresy, who lived in the preceding century.
[4] Euthicius maintained that the resurrection body of the saints will be more subtile than ether and too rare to be perceived by the senses, a view which Gregory contested (Hodgkin, V, 293).
[5] The harbor of Ravenna.
[6] While Paul has been narrating many events which took place in Gaul or at Constantinople, he has been neglecting the transactions in Italy, to which he now for a moment returns. Among the events of the interregnum, while the dukes held sway over the Langobards, and Longinus, the prefect, governed the Roman portion of Italy, was the first serious resistance offered to the Langobard invasion. Alboin had encountered little opposition, for the inhabitants of the open country fled to the cities which held out for a shorter or longer period, the Romans hoping, no doubt, that this invasion, like others which had preceded it, would soon be over and that the barbarians would retire. But in 575 or 576, Baduarius, the son-in-law of the emperor Justin II, assembled in Ravenna a considerable body of troops, and went forth and gave battle to the invaders. He was overthrown and died. It is not known what part of the forces of the various Langobard dukedoms were his antagonists. Probably it was those who were advancing towards the south and who, not far from this time, established the important dukedoms of Spoleto and Benevento under dukes Faroald and Zotto respectively (Hartmann, II, I, 47). The taking of Classis by Faroald mentioned in the text probably occurred about 579, while Longinus was still prefect (Hodgkin, V, 197; VI, 90, 91, note). The city was afterwards retaken from the Langobards by Droctulft (III, 19, infra).


Chapter XIV.

The patriarch Probinus, having died at Aquileia after he had ruled the church one year, the priest Helias (Elias) was set over that church.


Chapter XV.

After Tiberius Constantine had ruled the empire seven years, he felt the day of his death impending and with the approval of the empress Sophia, he chose Maurice, a Cappadocian by race, an energetic man, for the sovereignty, and gave him his daughter adorned with the royal decorations, saying, " Let my sovereignty be delivered to thee with this girl. Be happy in the use of it, mindful always to love equity and justice." After he had said these things he departed from this life to his eternal home, leaving great grief to the nation on account of his death. [1] For he was of the greatest goodness, ready in giving alms, just in his decisions, most careful in judging, despising no one, but including all in his good will; loving all, he was also beloved by all. When he was dead, Maurice, clad in the purple and encircled with the diadem, proceeded to the circus, and his praises having been acclaimed, gifts were bestowed upon the people, and he, as the first (emperor) of the race of the Greeks, was confirmed in the imperial power.

[1] A.D. 582 (Hodgkin, V, 227).