The Chronicle of Victor of Tunnuna: Translation and Overview
The Chronicle of Victor of Tunnuna: Translation and Overview
Victor of Tunnuna was a bishop from North Africa (probably in modern-day Tunisia) who lived in the sixth century CE and firmly defended what he saw as proper Catholic orthodoxy, whether in affirming the proceedings of the Council of Chalcedon (451 CE) as a whole or in its particulars. As such, he was a staunch advocate of the conventional Christian view today that Christ had two natures in one person (a fully human nature and a fully divine nature). In addition, he espoused the orthodox view of the three persons of the Trinity (the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit) as co-substantial and co-eternal, contrasting with the Arian Vandals who dominated his region until being extirpated by the Byzantines.
In light of Victor’s theological concerns, much of his chronicle, which represents a continuation of Prosper of Aquitaine’s chronicle and spans a period of just under 125 years (c. 444-567 CE), consists of entries dealing with pushback against the Council of Chalcedon, foremost represented in Miaphysite and/or Monophysite trends (i.e. those who held there was a single nature of some sort in Christ rather than two natures), and later on the controversy over three particular chapters of the Council. For his defence of those three chapters in contrast to the Byzantine emperor Justinian’s supposed opposition to them, Victor suffered repeated imprisonment, beatings and exile. He also appears to have died in exile.
The chronicle’s geographical focus is that of the author’s home region of North Africa and the lands of the Eastern Roman Empire (which survived the collapse of the Western Roman Empire and would become known as the Byzantine Empire). Italy- the heart of the former Western Roman Empire- receives little attention in terms of political developments following the Western Roman Empire’s collapse, with the focus instead being on the succession of the bishops of Rome (i.e. the Roman Catholic popes). Meanwhile, Spain receives no mention at all.
In light of the chronicle’s repeated mention of Alexandria in Egypt and a rather monstrous account of how Alexandrians were afflicted with mass psychosis where they started barking like dogs and had to be bound in iron chains and dragged to churches, I would like to dedicate this translation and overview to three Egyptian friends from Alexandria or with notables ties to it. In all probability, some of their ancestors were afflicted by this mass psychosis. In no particular order, these friends are:
(i) Jasmine El-Gamal, who spent some 20 years working on issues pertaining to counter-terrorism and national security from Iraq to Guantánamo, and is now focusing on mental health in stressful work environments. I recently had the pleasure of translating a profile of her in Le Figaro from French into Arabic and Latin (forthcoming publication) and would urge you to follow her upcoming work. Meantime, Jasmine, I believe you should analyse the events pertaining to Alexandria in this chronicle from a mental health perspective.
(ii) Islam El-Ghazouly, who has been working at the International Organisation for Migration in the field of ‘Preventing Violent Extremism’ in Iraq. In my view, Islam El-Ghazouly (whom I always refer to by his full name when addressing him) should reconsider his career path (in which he excels, to be sure) and turn towards becoming a music critic. Indeed, in a recent meeting with him, where I played pieces for him such as Chopin’s Nouvelle Etude No. 1 in F Minor, he demonstrated a remarkable ability to recognise the emotional atmosphere and style of the music.
(iii) Sara Labib, a friend who worked in Egypt and used to write publicly but has recently relocated to southern Gaul (a land that receives only passing mention in this chronicle). Nonetheless, Sara also studied Latin at one point and I hope she will return to it.
Below is my translation of the chronicle annotated with notes. For the original Latin text, I have consulted the edition of the German scholar Theodor Mommsen, who also annotated the chronicle by CE years. I am aware of a more recent edition published by Brepols, though it is expensive to obtain. As always, I welcome any amendments and suggestions regarding the translation.
Photo I took in Tunisia in 2018.
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The religious man Prosper expounded the order of the preceding years up to here. We have added these things to that:
[444 CE]
When Theodosius and Albinus were consuls, the former for the 18th time:
Domnus became bishop of the church of Antioch after John.
[446 CE]
When Aetius and Symmachus were consuls, the former for the third time.
[447 CE]
When Callippius and Arabures were consuls
Eutyches the priest and archimandrite[i] of a certain monastery of Constantinople appeared. He founded the heresy of his own name. For this man claimed that our Lord Jesus Christ had been born from his mother the eternal Virgin Mary, such that he claimed there was no human nature in him. Invited to a synodal meeting brought together at Constantinople headed by Flavianus the city’s bishop, this man did not want to admit that Christ existed in two natures after his birth from the Virgin and was co-substantial with us according to the flesh, and thus he and his error were subject to damnation. This damnation was affirmed by the holy Leo- bishop of Rome- with apostolic authority. The meeting was sponsored by the Emperor Theodosius, while Leo, Dioscorus, Domnus, Juvenal and Flavianus were the bishops of the seats of Rome, Alexandria, Antioch, Jerusalem and Constantinople respectively.
[448 CE]
When Postumianus and Zeno were consuls
A second general synod was brought together in Ephesus. In it Dioscorus the bishop of Alexandria usurped leadership for himself and absolved Eutyches with imperial support after his legitimate damnation. With impious authority and despite the words of the legates of the apostolic seat to the contrary, he condemned the man’s detractors who taught that there were two natures in Christ- Flavianus of Constantinople, Eusebius of Dorylaeum,[ii] Theodoretus of Cyrus[iii] and Ibas of Edessa and the rest of the others. Through the sedition of the monks and military violence, he inclined the whole synod to support him.
[449 CE]
When Asturius and Protogenes were consuls
After being defeated in battle and routed by Valentinian Augustus’ general Aetius, Attila the king of the Huns recovered his strength and made for Italy in an unbearable way. The Roman state in Italy had been badly lulled into complacency by a peace treaty. Attila received an embassy of Pope Leo and thus not only stopped devastating the state, but also withdrew across the Danube after granting peace.
[450 CE]
When Valentian and Avienus were consuls, the former for the seventh time.
1. Emperor Theodosius died aged 62 at Constantinople.
2. The emperor’s prefect Chrysaphius, who made bad use of Eutyches’ friendship, was killed, and Marcianus was made emperor by the consensus of the whole state.
3. Marcianus ruled as the 47th emperor of the Romans for five years and six months. Having regard for the peace of the churches, through his imperial authority he ordered at the beginning of his rule for the synod of Chalcedon to be held.
4. Anatolius became bishop of the church of Constantinople after Flavianus.
[451 CE]
In the consulship of Marcianus Augustus, on the eighth day before the Kalends of October [24 September], when Leo, Dioscorus, Maximus, Juvenal, and Anatolius were the bishops of Rome, Alexandria, Antioch, Jerusalem and Constantinople respectively. On this day, the general synod of Chalcedon was brought together, consisting of 630 bishops. Here, the second Ephesan synod- which should be called as such- was disavowed, while Eutyches was condemned along with his patron Dioscorus the bishop of Alexandria and Nestorius, and the Catholic bishops who had been unjustly condemned by the same Dioscorus in the previously mentioned second synod of Ephesus were absolved. Moreover, the faith of the holy fathers, who convened in holy synods of Nicene, Constantinople and Ephesus (the first one), was explained. And so after these matters were explained and affirmed through the signatures of the entire synod, Eusebius of Dorylaeum, Theodoretus of Cyrus and Ibas of Edessa were restored to their own churches, while those whom the heretic Dioscorus had put in place of them were expelled. So after all this, all those things that pertain to the status of the church were arranged and received an established boundary.
[453 CE]
When Opilio and Vincomalus were consuls
1. After Dioscorus was relegated to exile in Gangras, Proterius became bishop of the church at Alexandria.
2. In this time Attila died. While his sons fought over his kingdom, the Huns were subject to devastation and were diminished from then on.
[454 CE]
When Aetius and Studius were consuls
Aetius the patrician was first struck by the hand of Valentinian Augustus inside the palace, and then he was killed in a cruel death by the swords of the bystanders. Boethius the prefect was also killed.
[455 CE]
When Valentinian and Anthemius were consuls, the former for the eighth time
Valentinian the emperor was killed in the Campus Martius at Rome through the tricks of Maximus the patrician and Heraclius the prefect. The same Maximus- a former consul and a patrician- became emperor for 77 days. Thus, here appeared the evil that lay hidden. Soon afterwards he married Valentinian’s widow the Augusta, not permitting her to grieve over the death of her husband. But things worse than these evils appeared. While he feared the arrival of Genseric the king of the Vandals and he granted all those who wished the option to withdraw from the city, he was killed, cut up limb by limb and thrown into the river Tiber before he could flee as he intended. On the third day after Maximus was killed, Genseric the king of the Vandals entered the city of Rome and took away his wife and many thousands of captives. The intercession of Pope Leo managed to make him refrain from fire, instruments of torture and the sword. Also on day 75 after Rome was captured, Avitus- a man of total simplicity- became emperor in the Gallic lands.
[456 CE]
When John and Varanes were consuls
Ricimer the patrician defeated Avitus, but sparing the man for his innocence, he made him bishop of the city of Piacenza.
[457 CE]
When Constantinus and Rufus were consuls
1. Marcianus the emperor died at Constantinople, and Leo was made emperor in his place.
2. As the 48th emperor of the Romans, Leo ruled for 16 years.
3. Alexandria and Egypt, languishing in Dioscorus’ error, did not accept the decrees of the Chalcedonian synod. Dioscorus’ ilk created sedition and on the instigation of Timothy (surnamed Ellurus) killed the bishop Proterius, who was Dioscorus’ successor and the guardian of the decrees of the Chalcedonian synod. They did this on the sixth day before the Kalends of April [27 March] on the Friday of the last week of fasting, on which day our Lord and Saviour was crucified by the Jews. For at that time Easter Sunday was celebrated on the fourth day before the Kalends of April [29 March]. And so after Proterius was killed, the aforementioned Timothy- surnamed Ellurus and a detractor of the Chalcedonian synod- usurped his episcopate and church.
[458 CE]
When Leo Augustus was consul
1. Majorian became emperor at Rome.
2. Timothy, who occupied the church at Alexandria, persecuted the defenders of the Chalcedonian synod.
[459 CE]
When Patricius and Ricimer were consuls
Juvenal the bishop of Jerusalem was armed with the letters of Leo the bishop of Rome against the error of Eutyches and Dioscorus.
[460 CE]
When Magnus and Apollonius were consuls
The bishop Timothy, who had killed the bishop Proterius, was arrested on the orders of Emperor Leo very shortly after the massacre of the church of Alexandria, and he was relegated to Chersonas[iv] in exile. Five months later, another Timothy was ordained bishop for the same church of Alexandria in his place. His surname was Salafaciarius[v] and he was a defender of the Chalcedonian synod.
[461 CE]
When Gadalaifus and Severinus were consuls
[462 CE]
When Leo Augustus was consul for the second time
[463 CE]
When the very distinguished man Vivianus was consul
1. Quodvultdeus[vi] was ordained bishop of the church of Carthage after Capreolus, and Eugenius was ordained bishop after Quodvultdeus and Deogratias.[vii]
2. Majorian was killed at Rome and Severus became emperor on the Nones of July [7 July].
[464 CE]
When Olybrius and Rusticus were consuls
After inflicting disasters on many provinces and plundering and killing the Christian people in Africa, Genseric the king of the Vandals died in the 40th year of his rule.[viii] After him, his son Hugneric ruled for seven years and five months. Genseric handed over Valentinian’s daughter in marriage to this Hugneric. She had been led away as a captive from Rome by Genseric.
[465 CE]
When Hermias and Basiliscus were consuls
1. Alexander became bishop of the church of Alexandria after Maximus.
2. Anastasius came to preside over the church of Jerusalem after Juvenal.
[466 CE]
When Leo Augustus was consul for the third time
Hugneric the king of the Vandals, roused with Arian fury, persecuted the Catholics throughout Africa more than his father did. He took away the churches of the Christians and sent the Catholic priests into exile.
[467 CE]
When Pusaeus and John were consuls
1. For 40 days, a sign appeared in the sky from a cloud, like a pole.
2. Anthemius became emperor at Rome.
[468 CE]
When Leo and Anthemius were consuls, the latter for the second time, and the former for the fourth time
Leo Augustus was moved by the entreaties of the Egyptians that there should be a synod to bring judgement concerning the proceedings of the Chalcedonian synod. So he wrote separately to each of the bishops of the churches in order to know the faith of each of them, and from each of them he received letters that were in harmony with each other as though they were from one compilation, so he understood that this judgement could not take place in any way, but rather that the proceedings of the Chalcedonian synod were enduring more and more in their own perpetuity. Those documents called encyclia in the Greek language are still extant.
[469 CE]
When Zeno and Marcianus were consuls
Hilarus became bishop of the Roman church after Leo.
[470 CE]
When John and Severus were consuls
Leo Augustus made Aspar’s son Patricius Caesar.
[471 CE]
When Leo Augustus and Probinus were consuls, the latter for the fifth time
Aspar and his two sons Patricius Caesar and Ardaburius were killed at Constantinople on the orders of Leo Augustus.
[473 CE]
When Leo Augustus and Probinus were consuls, the latter for the sixth time
1. Leo Augustus appointed his grandson Leo (the son of his daughter the wife of Zeno) as Caesar. The latter ruled for two years.
2. Simplicius was ordained bishop of the church of Rome after Hilarius, and then Felix after Simplicius.
3. Gennadius succeeded Anatolius as bishop of the church of Constantinople. Gennadius was succeeded by Acacius.
4. Marturius was ordained bishop of the church of Antioch after Alexander, and then Julian after Marturius.
5. Marturius was bishop of the church of Jerusalem after Anastasius.
6. When these men were consuls, Olybrius came to Rome and became emperor through the action of Ricimer the patrician, while Anthemius was reigning. After coming to know of this, Anthemius was put to flight and killed.
7. After some days, Herculanus the son of Orestes seized imperial power but was killed along with his father, and Nepos assumed rule in his place.
[474 CE]
When the younger Leo Augustus was the new consul
1. The elder Leo Augustus died at Constantinople.
2. Zeno was crowned by his son Leo Augustus in the Septimus against custom.
3. Zeno ruled as 49th emperor of Romans for 17 years.
[475 CE]
After the consulship of the younger Leo Augustus.
1. Emperor Zeno sought to kill his son Leo Augustus and usurp his rule, so his wife Ariagne the Augusta offered another similar boy to be killed in his place, and she secretly shaved the same Augustus and made him a cleric of a church of Constantinople. This Leo lived until the times of the Emperor Justinian.
2. In the same consulship, Basiliscus became emperor at Constantinople with his son Marcus through a coup.
3. Zeno Augustus fled to Isauria,[ix] from where he had originated, and Ariagne Augusta followed him amid the danger of winter through a naval journey.
4. When these men were consuls, Basiliscus the usurper passed a law and ordered for the Chalcedonian synod to be damned and the second Ephesian synod to be absolved and adopted.
5. Timothy the bishop- surnamed Ellurus and equally the successor and killer of Proterius- returned from exile at Chersonas. He again usurped the church of Alexandria after putting to flight the other bishop Timothy, who was surnamed Salafaciarius and was the defender of the Chalcedonian synod.
[476 CE]
When Basiliscus the usurper and Armatus were consuls
Zeno Augustus brought together an army in the twentieth month and returned from Isauria to Constantinople. He took back his imperial power, sent Basiliscus with his children and wife into exile in Sasemae of Cappadocia, and brought about a wretched end of life for him there.
Amid these events, as no consul acceded and Basiliscus the usurper withdrew from the consulship, Armatus remained consul in the present year
[477 CE]
After the consulship of the very distinguished man Armatus
1. Timothy Ellurus the detractor of the Chalcedonian synod and killer of Proterius the bishop died, and the other Timothy surnamed Salafaciarius and the defender of the Chalcedonian synod became bishop of the church of Alexandria again.
2. Sallust succeeded Marturius as bishop of the church of Jerusalem.
3. Petrus surnamed Fullo was ordained bishop of Antioch after Julian, who had succeeded Marturius.
[479 CE]
When Zeno Augustus was consul
1. Hugneric the king of the Vandals, insisting on persecution throughout all of Africa, relegated the Catholics- now not only the priests and clerics of every order, but also the monks and lay people (around 4000 people)- to rather harsh exiles in Tubunae,[x] Macri,[xi] Nippis[xii] and other parts of the desert, besides making confessors and martyrs and cutting off the tongues of the confessors. The royal city attests to the fact that these confessors (whose bodies lie in that place) spoke perfectly till the end of their life even as their tongues were cut off. Then Laetus the bishop of the city of Nepta[xiii] was gloriously crowned with martyrdom on the eighth day before the Kalends of October [24 September]. Eugenius the bishop of the church of Carthage is considered to have been outstanding for the very many afflictions and punishments he suffered after the dreadful exile of the desert.
2. And so amid the innumerable massacres of his impieties that he carried out against the Catholics, this Hugneric poured out his entrails like his father Arrius and miserably came to the end of his life in the eighth year of his rule. He was succeeded by Guntamund, who ruled for 12 years and immediately recalled our people from exile.
[480 CE]
In the third year after Zeno’s consulship
Timothy surnamed Salafaciarius and the defender of the Chalcedonian synod died, and in his place, the priest and oeconomus John of Tabenna[xiv]- the defender of the Chalcedonian synod- was ordained bishop of the church of Alexandria. By order of the Emperor Zeno, Peter, who had been ordained by the heretics while the bishop Timothy Salafaciarius was still alive, cast out this man and usurped the church of Alexandria. With the support of the Emperor Zeno, he immediately damned the Chalcedonian synod from the pulpit in the presence of the peoples. He removed the names of Proterius and Salafaciarius from the diptychs[xv] of the church and wrote the names of Dioscorus and Timothy Ellurus, who had killed Proterius. As for the body of the aforementioned Timothy Salafaciarius, he cast it out from the church and threw it forth into a deserted place outside the city.
[482 CE]
When Tricundius was consul
Emperor Zeno, who had been deprived of his senses through the cup of the Eutychean error, united Acacius the bishop of Constantinople with bishop Peter of Alexandria and bishop Peter of Antioch, both of whom condemned the Chalcedonian synod. He did so through the Henoticon[xvi] that he had brought forth. Thus he was defiled with their communion and he receded with them from the Catholic faith.
[483 CE]
After the consulship of Tricundius
Leontius the usurper usurped imperial power in Isauria through the action of Illus the patrician.
[484 CE]
When Theodoric was consul
Felix the bishop of the church of Rome wrote to the monks and clerics residing throughout the East, Egypt and Bithynia. He ordered them to shun Peter the bishop of Alexandria and detractor of the Chalcedonian synod, as well as his partners, as though they were heretics.
[485 CE]
After the consulship of Theodoric
Through Zeno’s Henoticon, the eastern bishops (with a few exceptions) were defiled by communion and agreement with the bishops Peter of Alexandria, Peter of Antioch and Acacius of Constantinople, and thus they rejected the Chalcedonian synod.
[486 CE]
When Longinus was consul
Acacius the bishop of Constantinople had been warned by the letters of Felix the bishop of Rome to avoid the communion and company of those damned by the Chalcedonian synod. After this he had Felix’s ambassadors taken into custody.
[487 CE]
After the consulship of the very distinguished man Longinus
The bishops Acacius of Constantinople, Peter of Alexandria and Peter of Antioch- the enemies of the Chalcedonian synod- were damned by Felix the bishop of the Roman Church and the synod convened in Italy. That damnation was presented to Acacius at Constantinople by the monks of the Acoemetae[xvii] monasteries of Basianus and Dius, following the dispatch of ambassadors.
[488 CE]
In the second year after the consulship of the very distinguished man and consul Longinus
1. The body of the apostle Saint Barnabas was found in Cyprus along with the Gospel according to Matthew written in his hand, through Saint Barnabas’ revelation.
2. Leontius the usurper and Illus the patrician were captured because of the betrayal of the castle and perished in a very disgraceful death.
3. Peter the bishop of Antioch died under damnation and Stephan was ordained in his place. Acacius of Constantinople killed the latter through his own agents and ordained Calendio in his place. But the eastern bishops- as though they did not know of this- consecrated John (surnamed Campaneus)[xviii] as bishop of the same church of Antioch. This man was succeeded by the heretic Peter.
[489 CE]
When the very distinguished man Eusebius was consul
Acacius the bishop of Constantinople died under damnation. Fravitas was ordained as bishop in his place. In the third month following his elevation, he died, and was succeeded in the episcopate by Euphemius, the guardian of the decrees of the Chalcedonian synod.
[490 CE]
After the consulship of the very distinguished man Longinus
1. Peter the occupier of the church of Alexandra died under damnation. His episcopate and error were simultaneously taken up by Athanasius.
2. Calendio the bishop of Antioch gathered the remains of his predecessor Eustachius the bishop and confessor from Philippopolis in Macedonia, and he led them with the utmost honour to Antioch.
3. In this time the hermit Annianus cured those suffering gout through prayer over the River Euphrates; while the hermit Auxentius put demons to flight, and the hermits Daniel, Anastasius, Vindimiolus, Manasse, Severus and the rest of the others became renowned for their various virtues and foreknowledge throughout the various places of the desert.
[491 CE]
When the very distinguished man Olybrius was consul
1. Zeno the emperor died aged 42 at Constantinople. Zeno’s widow- Ariagne Augusta- designated as emperor the Illyrian[xix] silentiary[xx] Anastasius, whose father was Dyrrachian, and his mother Arian. On account of Anastasius’ faith (or to put it more accurately, perfidy)[xxi] that was already known to the country from afar, he was compelled at the insistence of bishop Euphemius of Constantinople to promise in writing that he would do nothing harmful against the apostolic faith and the Chalcedonian synod. Bishop Euphemius received his signature and deposited it in the church archive.
2. As 50th emperor of the Romans, Anastasius ruled for 27 years. Taking up his imperial power, he violently took back his signature from Bishop Euphemius and ferociously vented his rage against the defenders of the Chalcedonian synod. Amid these events came the death of Peter the bishop of Antioch, who had been ordained by the heretics in the times of Emperor Zeno while Calendio the defender of the Chalcedonian synod was still alive. After this, the emperor changed his opinion for the worse, such that Calendio was led from bad to worse and Palladius was ordained in Peter’s place.
[492 CE]
When Anastasius and Rufus were consuls
1. Gelasius succeeded Felix as bishop of the Roman church, and Anastasius then succeeded Gelasius. As for the church of Alexandria, Athanasius the heretic was in charge of it, while Palladius had been made bishop of Antioch while Calendio was still alive, and Sallust bishop of Jerusalem.
2. Euphemius the bishop of Constantinople had anticipated Emperor Anastasius’ cunning and so he brought together a synod and affirmed the decrees of the Chalcedonian synod.
[494 CE]
When Asterius and Praesidius were consuls
John the bishop of Alexandria came from the church at Rome and begged Emperor Anastasius to restore him to his throne for the sake of their old friendship. However, he did not get this wish of his because of his defence of the Chalcedonian synod, and so he secretly returned to Rome from where he had come.
[495 CE]
When the very distinguished man Viator was consul
1. The Isaurian war raged. The usurpers Athenodorus and Longinus were killed.
2. After Athanasius of Alexandria died, John- surnamed Mula- succeeded. The latter passed away after a few days and was succeeded as bishop by another John, whose surname was Niceta.
[496 CE]
When the very distinguished man Paul was consul
Emperor Anastasius convened a synod of heretics, affirmed Zeno’s Henoticon, and deposed Euphemius the bishop of Constantinople and defender of the Chalcedonian synod. Sending the man into exile at Euchaita,[xxii] he installed Macedonius in his place.
[497 CE]
When Anastasius Augustus was consul for the second time
1. Macedonius the bishop of Constantinople convened a synod and condemned those who accepted the decrees, while supporting those who defended the teachings of Nestorius and Eutyches.
2. After Anastasius the bishop of Rome died, he was succeeded by Symmachus. Another faction ordained Laurentius, who did not want to be content with being bishop of the city of Nuceria,[xxiii] but was thrown out of the priestly meeting when the synod was held at Rome.
3. Palladius of Antioch died and Flavianus was ordained bishop in his place. John surnamed Niceta still presided over the church of Alexandria. Meanwhile Helias became bishop at Jerusalem after Sallust.
4. After Gunthamund the king of the Vandals died at Carthage, Thrasamund reigned for 27 years and four months. This man, full of Arian madness, persecuted the Catholics, shut the churches of the Catholics and sent 120 bishops with all the African church into exile in Sardinia.
5. In that time Fulgentius the bishop of the Ruspe became renowned for his teaching of our dogma.
[498 CE]
When John Scytha[xxiv] and Paul were consuls
In the royal city[xxv] at the baths that are called Heleniana, a certain Arian- Olympius- was blaspheming against the holy and co-substantial Trinity. There, through the ministry of an angel, he was struck with three fiery javelins in the pool of cold water and thus came to the end of his life in a manner that was both impious and at the same time wondrous.[xxvi]
[499 CE]
When the very distinguished man Gibbus was consul
Emperor Anastasius brought together a synod at Constantinople while Flavianus and Filoxenus were bishops of Antioch and Hierapolis[xxvii] respectively. He persuaded them to declare anathema against all of the following: the bishops Diodorus of Tarsus, Theodorus of Mopsuestia[xxviii] and his writings, Thoeoderetus of Cyrus, Ibas of Edessa, Andreas, Eucherius, Cyrus and John, the rest of the others who preached that there were two natures and forms in Christ and who did not profess that one of the Trinity was crucified, and Leo the bishop of Rome, his tome and the Chalcedonian synod.
[500 CE]
When Patricius and Hypatius were consuls
While a certain bishop of the Arian error called Barbas was trying (contrary to the rules) to say the following over a man to be baptised: “Barbas baptises you in the name of the Father through the Son in the Holy Spirit,” suddenly the water from which he was about to baptise the man was nowhere to be found. Indeed, the vessel in which the water was broken. The man who was to be baptised considered this, and so he immediately rushed to the Catholic church and received baptism in accordance with the rules.
[501 CE]
When Avienus and Pompeius were consuls
Emperor Anastasius seized from the church and sent into exile Bishop Macedonius of Constantinople along with some clergymen, as Macedonius did not wish to damn the decrees of the Chalcedonian synod. In Macedonius’ place he appointed the priest Timothy as bishop. Timothy immediately received in communion those who damned the Chalcedonian synod.
[502 CE]
When Avienus the younger was consul
A massive earthquake occurred with great thunder, lightning, hail and shaking of the whole sky and earth.
[504 CE]
When the very distinguished man Cethegus was consul
Flavianus the bishop of Antioch abandoned Emperor Anastasius in an act of late repentance: after abandoning his throne, he retired to his property called Platanus.[xxix] Emperor Anastasius appointed Severus (an enemy of the Chalcedonian synod) in place of this man. He ministered great scandals for the Church of the East.
[505 CE]
When the very distinguished man Theodorus was consul
Eugenius the bishop of Carthage died as a confessor. The bishops Julian Bostrenus and John Paltensis willingly abandoned their own churches and others were appointed in their place.
[506 CE]
When the very distinguished man Messala was consul
By the order of Emperor Anastasius at Constantinople, the holy Gospels were criticised and emended as though they had been composed by uneducated evangelists.
[507 CE]
When Venantius and Celer were consuls
The people of Alexandria and all those of the whole of Egypt (small and great, free and slave, clerics and monks, with the exception of the foreigners) were seized by unclean spirits. Deprived of human speech, they began to bark like dogs all day and all night, such that they were bound with iron chains and then dragged to the churches in order to regain their sanity. For all of them as a collective were eating their hands and their arms at the same time. While these events were occurring, an angel in the form of a man appeared to certain individuals of the people, saying that this had happened to them because they had declared anathema on the Chalcedonian synod, and warning them with threats that from now on they should not dare to do something like that.
[508 CE]
When the very distinguished man Venantius the younger was consul
The fort of Zundaber[xxx] was full of very many treasures from the beginning of its founding and had been entrusted to the legions[xxxi] of demons and fortified with guards. No one was ever able to enter it. However, Kavad[xxxii] the king of the Persians captured it through the prayers of the Christian priests, and after entering it, he brought out all the treasures from it.
[509 CE]
When the very distinguished man Importunus the younger was consul
Despite Emperor Anastasius’ orders, Helias the bishop of Jerusalem and defender of the Chalcedonian synod did not want to receive in communion Severus of Antioch who was an enemy of the apostolic faith. As a result, he was pushed into exile at the Paraxenensian fort, and John the guardian of the cross was ordained as bishop in his place. He immediately received Severus of Antioch in communion and damned the Chalcedonian synod.
[510 CE]
When the very distinguished man Boethius was consul
Count Vitalianus- the son of Patriciolus- realised the subversion of the Catholic faith, the damnation of the Chalcedonian synod, the removals of the orthodox bishops and the successions of the heretics. As a result, he brought together a strong force of brave men and rebelled against Anastasius’ rule as emperor.
[511 CE]
When the very distinguished man Felix was consul
Count Vitalianus engaged in a battle with Emperor Anastasius’ grandson who was supreme commander of the Roman military. After killing 65,000 men of the Roman military killed, he captured the latter alive, bound him in bronze chains, shoved him into the confinement of an iron cell, and later tore him to pieces.
[512 CE]
When Paulus and Muscianus were consuls
Through his argument that was made in his barbarous tongue,[xxxiii] the Saracens’ king Alamundar[xxxiv] (who had been baptised by the defenders of the Chalcedonian synod) remarkably outwitted and refuted the Theopaschist[xxxv] bishops who had been sent with letters to him by Bishop Severus of Antioch. Thus he demonstrated that God is immortal.
[513 CE]
When the very distinguished man Probus was consul
By order of Emperor Anastasius, Plato the city prefect and Marinus ascended the pulpit of the church of Saint Theodore and in an act of innovation added these words to the hymn that the Greeks call the Trisagion[xxxvi]: “The one crucified for us.” Singing this through Constantine’s Forum, they came to the grand church, and then clouds suddenly emitted ash over them instead of rain and covered the whole city and province. On account of this innovation of theirs many evils came upon the city of Constantinople and many were unfortunately killed. Amid 1000 injustices and evils, the crowds of the green charioteers as well as those of the blues[xxxvii] united against Emperor Anastasius and set fire to the city. The city was burned from what they call the Chalke[xxxviii] to Constantine’s forum, over a length of the broad street of 94 columns.
[514 CE]
When the very distinguished man Senator was consul
Count Vitalianus came with a strong force of barbarians to Constantinople and encamped at Sosthenes. On being requested, he only promised Emperor Anastasius peace if he first restored the exiled defenders of the Chalcedonian synod to their own seats, and united all the churches of the East with the Roman church.
[515 CE]
When the very distinguished man Florentius was consul
1. The Huns viciously afflicted Armenia, Cappadocia, Galatia and Pontus.[xxxix]
2. In that time Euphemius the bishop of Constantinople passed away at Ancyra[xl] in Galatia, while Ariagne Augusta passed away in the royal city.
[516 CE]
When the very distinguished man Peter was consul
All the archimandrites and the monks of the desert across Palestine and the River Jordan wrote to Emperor Anastasius in favour of the status of the Chalcedonian synod and against the impieties of Bishop Severus of Antioch.
[517 CE]
When the very distinguished man Agapitus was consul
1. John the bishop of Alexandria died and Dioscorus was ordained in his place.
2. Timothy the bishop of Constantinople and detractor of the Chalcedonian synod died on the fifth of April and handed over the episcopate to John Cappadox his own syncellus[xli] and a priest. Anastasius compelled this man to condemn the Chalcedonian synod before his ordination.
[518 CE]
When Agapitus and Magnus were consuls, the former for the second time
1. Emperor Anastasius was put to flight inside his own palace by the terror of thunder. He was struck by a lightning bolt in the bedroom where he had hidden and thus he died. With ignominy and without the usual funeral rites, he was led to a grave in year 88 of his life.
2. Justinus ruled for eight years and nine months as the 51st emperor of the Romans. He was Illyrian, Catholic, and a lover and defender of the Chalcedonian synod: his wife was called Lupicina, but the people of Constantinople later called her Euphemia. His grandson, called Justinian, performed the military service of a candidatus.[xlii]
[519 CE]
When Justinus Augustus and Heraclius were consuls
Amantius the prefect stirred up sedition among the people and was thus posited as another emperor. He was killed along with the chamberlain Andreas on the orders of Emperor Justinus, and thrown into the sea.
[520 CE]
When the very distinguished man Rusticio was consul
1. John, who had been chosen to be emperor before Justinus, was ordained bishop at Heraclia in Thrace.
2. Justinian the grandson of Justinus Augustus was made magister militum ordinarius[xliii] after being a candidatus.
[521 CE]
When Valerius and Justinian were consuls
1. Timothy succeeded Bishop Dioscorus of the church of Alexandria after the latter died. As for the church of Antioch, Severus was its chief of heresy, while John was bishop of the church of Jerusalem.
2. As for the Eastern bishops who had been associated with the old error because of the wicked bishops Acacius of Constantinople, Peter of Alexandria and Peter of Antioch, the Emperor Justinus united them with the Western bishops in worthy satisfaction. He also revived the decrees of the Chalcedonian synod that had been disavowed in the times of the emperors Zeno and Anastasius.
[522 CE]
When Symmachus and Boethius were consuls
Vitalianus received the sacrament and returned to Constantinople. He was welcomed by Justinus Augustus, who made him magister militum and authorised giving him the consulship.
[523 CE]
When the very distinguished man Maximus was consul
1. Thrasamund the king of the Vandals died at Carthage. His wife Amalafrida fled to the barbarians, and a fight occurred, following which she was captured at Capsa adjacent to the desert. She died in private custody.[xliv]
2. Hilderic ruled for seven years and three months. He had been born to the Emperor Valentinian’s daughter, who had been taken captive by Gaiseric and married off to Huneric. This man had been bound in an oath by his deceased predecessor Thrasamund, whereby he vowed that he would not open the churches to the Catholics during his reign or restore them their privileges. So before he should rule, lest he should overstep the boundaries of the oath, he ordered for the Catholic priests to return from exile and for the opening of the churches. At the request of the whole city, he consecrated Boniface- who was sufficiently strenuous in the divine dogmas- as bishop of the church of Carthage.
3. Through the faction of the patrician Justinian, Vitalianus is said to have been killed at Constantinople inside the palace, specifically in the place that they call by the Greek word Delphicon.
[524 CE]
When Justinus Augustus and Apio were consuls, the former for the second time
Hormisda succeeded Symmachus who had died in his episcopate of the church of Rome. Timothy was still bishop of the church of Alexandria. Severus the bishop of the church of Antioch and detractor of the Chalcedonian synod was wanted for punishment by the Emperor Justinus, and so he fled, and Paulus was put in his place. John was in charge of the church of Jerusalem. As for the church of Constantinople, Epiphanius succeeded John as bishop.
[525 CE]
In the second year after the consulship of Justinus and Apio
At the request of the senators, Justinus Augustus unwillingly made his grandson Justinian Caesar.
[525 CE]
When Philoxenus and Probus were consuls
[527 CE]
When Mavortius was consul
Emperor Justinus died.
Justinian ruled for 39 years and seven months as the 52nd emperor of the Romans. He had a wife called Theodora.
[528 CE]
When Justinian Augustus was consul
On the orders of the same emperor, the Eastern churches publicly had the four synods (Nicene, Constantinople, Ephesus I and the Chalcedon) and the faith of the 150 holy fathers recited, with sacrifices present.
[529 CE]
When the very distinguished man Decius was consul
The faction of Theodora Augusta did not assert that one of the Trinity suffered according to any aspect, but in an absolute sense.[xlv] Through a general law they imposed on all the adoption of this belief, and violently demanded signatures from the clergy and monks. For this reason, very many withdrew from the church and the monks withdrew from their own monasteries, asserting that the faith of those who agreed on the aforementioned four holy synods sufficed for them.
[530 CE]
When Lampdius and Orestes were consuls
Hypatius the grandson of Emperor Anastasius launched a coup at Constantinople. After many thousands of men were slaughtered by the military sword in a circus spectacle, he was captured. He was killed at night with Pompeius and tossed into the sea.
[531 CE]
In the second year after the consulship of Lampadus and Orestes
In Africa, Gelimer seized rule via a coup, and after entering Carthage he deprived Hilderic of rule and confined him to custody with his children, and he killed Oamer Asdingus and many of the nobles.
[532 CE]
In the third year after the consulship of Lampadus and Orestes
Belesarius the supreme commander of the Roman military, remarkably defeated the Persians in a third battle after already defeating them in two battles.
[533 CE]
When Justinian Augustus was consul for the third time
Gelimer the usurper cruelly killed many of the nobles of the African province, and took away the possessions of many through Boniface.
[534 CE]
When Justinian Augustus was consul for the fourth time
1. On account of a visitation of the bishop Laetus who had been made a martyr by Huneric the king of the Vandals, the Emperor Justinian sent an army, led by Belesarius the magister militum, against the Vandals in Africa. The same Belesarius defeated them in battle and killed the king’s brothers Gunthimer and Gebamund Asdingi. Gelimer the king was put to flight, and thus Belesarius captured Africa in the 97th year of the entry of the Vandals. Also, upon Belesarius’ entry and before the fight could take place, Gelimer the usurper killed King Hilderic along with certain members of his kin.
2. Belesarius the magister militum and patrician captured the usurper Gelimer and led him with riches acquired from the spoils of Africa to the Emperor Justinian at Constantinople.
[535 CE]
When the very distinguished man Belesarius was consul
Reparatus became bishop of the church of Carthage after Boniface. As for the church of Jerusalem, Peter succeeded John as bishop after the latter’s death.
[536 CE]
In the second year after the consulship of Belesarius
The Emperor Justinian published books about the incarnation of the Lord and compelled the Illyrian bishops to sign.
[537 CE]
In the third year after the consulship of the very distinguished man Belesarius
After the death of Epiphanius the bishop of the church of Constantinople (he had succeeded John), Anthimus the bishop of Trabzon- a follower of Eutyches- usurped the church of Constantinople through the machination of Theodora Augusta.
[538 CE]
When the very distinguished man John was consul
1. After Hormisda, John was ordained as bishop of the church of Rome, then Felix after John, Boniface after Felix, another John after Boniface, and then Agapitus after this John.
2. Following the death of Timothy of the church of Alexandria (who had succeeded the younger Dioscorus), two bishops were ordained in one day by the election of the perverse people: namely, Theodosius and Gaianus. Following their ordination, Alexandria was divided between both enemies of Christ. For the Theodosians wished to be called as such after Theodosius and the Gaianitians after Gaianus, although both of them did not accept the Chalcedonian synod and made the errors of Eutyches and Dioscorus their own.
[539 CE]
When the very distinguished man Apio was consul
On the orders of the Emperor Justinian, the bishops Severus of Antioch (the leader of the heresy, after whom the Severans are named) and Julian of Halicarnassus- assailers of the apostolic faith and the Chalcedonian synod- were sent into exile at Alexandria. There, writing against the followers of the Chalcedonian synod, they said that in Christ there was one nature out of two.[xlvi] Severus for a long time construed this nature as corrupt, whereas Julian construed it as incorrupt. Alexandria, Egypt and Libya became divided between both enemies of Christ. For the Theodosians followed Severus, and the Gaianitians Julian. But two other heresies emerged from the Theodosians: one of the Agnoites and the other of the Tritheites.[xlvii] The Agnoites added the following to the perversity from which they emerged: they claimed that the divinity of Christ does not know the things to come that were written about with regards to the day and final hour. As for the Tritheites, they construed three parts in the Trinity, such that they also construed that there are three gods, contrary to what has been written: “Hear Israel: the Lord God- your God- is one”[xlviii]; “No God except the One”; and “I am God and there is no other besides Me.”[xlix]
[540 CE]
When the very distinguished man Justinus was consul
1. Agapitus the archbishop of Rome came to Constantinople and deposed Anthimus the usurper bishop of the church of Constantinople and the enemy of the Chalcedonian synod. He deprived his sponsor Theodora Augusta of communion and immediately made Menas the bishop of the church of Constantinople.
2. The Alexandrian bishops Theodosius and Gaianus, damned along with their error, were transported into exile. But Theodosius, relegated to Sycae in Constantinople, stained almost the whole palace and the largest part of the royal city with his perfidy. This occasion gave license to almost all heresies, such that not only the Theodosians but also the Gaianitians had managed to build monasteries and places of prayer in the royal city. For the aforementioned heretic Theodosius lived until the first consulship of the younger Justinus Augustus. In that year, Eufrasius was made bishop of Antioch, while bishop Paul was still alive.
[541 CE]
When the very distinguished man Basilius was consul
1. After Agapitus the Roman archbishop died at Constantinople, Silverius was ordained bishop in his place. As for the church of Alexandria, after Theodosius and Gaianus were exiled, Paul (prior for the Tabennesiotian monks) was ordained bishop by the defenders of the Chalcedonian council. This man, celebrating the deposition of Dioscorus his heretic predecessor, was deposed by the Palestinian council, and Zoilus was ordained bishop in his place.
2. In the aforementioned consulship, Stuzas seized control of the realm of Africa in the desert regions via a coup.
[542 CE]
In the second year after the consulship of the very distinguished man Basilius
1. Through the machination of Theodora Augusta, who never ceased to be a hidden enemy of the Chalcedonian synod from the time she began to rule, the ambushes of proscriptions were prepared, Silverius the bishop of Rome was sent into exile, and Vigilius was ordained in his place. In a secret document, the aforementioned Theodora Augusta elicted from Vigilius before he should be ordained that after being made Pope, he should condemn three chapters of the Chalcedonian synod in proscribing it: namely, the letter of Ibas the bishop of Edessa to Maris the Persian, which was approved by the judgement of the Chalcedonian synod, judged orthodox and made part of the synodal gesta[l]; then Theodorus of Mopsuestia who had been similarly praised in the synod’s gesta at Antioch under John the bishop of the same church and at Chalcedon; and the words of bishop Theodoretus of Cyrus that were praised along with the same Theodoretus by the voices of the Chalcedonian synod. And so when this Vigilius was made Pope, he was compelled by Antonina the patrician wife of Belesarius the patrician, to write to Theodosius of Alexandria, Anthimus of Constantinople, and Severus of Antioch (who had long ago been damned by the apostolic seat) as though they were Catholics, and to adopt the same opinions as they had about the faith.
The contents of that letter of hers is proven to have been as follows: “Viglius the bishop to the lords and brothers united in the kindness of our Saviour Christ the God: the bishops Theodosius, Anthimus and Severus. I indeed know that the credulity of my faith has previously reached your holiness by God’s help. But now also the very Christian glorious mistress and daughter of mine- the patrician Antonina- has caused my desires to be fulfilled, so that I should send across the present writings to you brothers. Therefore as I salute with the grace by which we are joined in our God Christ the Lord and Saviour, I indicate that through God’s help I have both held and still hold that faith that you hold. I say this knowing that we preach and read that among ourselves, that we have both one mind and one heart in God. Through God’s help, I have hastened to announce to you the joys of my advancement, which is yours, as I know in my mind that you brothers also gladly embrace those things you desire. Therefore, it is necessary that no one should know these things I write to you, but rather in your wisdom you should kindly before others consider me as though I am under suspicion, so that God can more easily do and accomplish what He has begun.” Also, the signing off: “Pray for me, my lordly brothers joined in the kindness of Christ the God, our Saviour.”
2. A general global mortality followed the beginnings of these evils, and a better part of the population were devoured by an affliction of the groins.
[543 CE]
In the third year after the consulship of the very distinguished man Basilius
Stuzas the usurper brought together a multitude of the peoples and at Cillium[li] he confronted Solomon the supreme commander of the military and patrician of Africa, along with the rest of the generals of the Roman military. Here a battle took place, and the military of the Roman state was defeated because of Africa’s sins, and Solomon- the strenuous man of both powers- died in battle.
[544 CE]
In the fourth year after the consulship of the very distinguished man Basilius
1. Emperor Justinian, instigated by the crafty persuasions of the acephali,[lii] subtly compelled Vigilius the bishop of the Romans to hurry to the royal city and condemn the three chapters under the guise of gathering those who were separated from the community of the church.
2. Macarius became bishop of the church of Jerusalem after Peter.
[545 CE]
In the fifth year after the consulship of the very distinguished man Basilius
In Africa at the harbour of Thacia, Stuzas the usurper fought in a battle and was struck by the javelin of John the general of the Roman military, and likewise also was John struck by that of Stuzas. Both of them immediately fell by each other’s sword and died on Sunday, when the battle was held.
[546 CE]
In the sixth year after the consulship of the very distinguished man Basilius
1. Ferrandus is considered to have been an outstanding deacon of the church of Carthage.
2. Inside the palace at Carthage by night, Guntharith the magister militum killed Ariobindas the patrician and chief of the Roman military in Africa, who had been sent in that time by the emperor. He also seized rule in a coup. General Artabanus of Carthage killed this man in the 36th day of his rule while he was having lunch.
[548 CE]
In the eighth year after the consulship of the very distinguished man Basilius
1. Emperor Justinian most insistently wrote letters to be sent throughout the various provinces defined as being in the borders of his realm, and he compelled all the bishops to damn the aforementioned three chapters.
2. Domninus succeeded Euphemius as bishop of Antioch.
[549 CE]
In the ninth year after the consulship of the very distinguished man Basilius
1. The Illyrian synod wrote to Justinian Augustus in defence of the three chapters and condemned Benenatus, the bishop of the city of Justiniana Prima[liii] and detractor of the same three chapters.
2. Theodora Augusta- the enemy of the Chalcedonian synod- came to the end of her life in a wondrous way as the plague of cancer had spread throughout her whole body.
[550 CE]
In the tenth year after the consulship of the very distinguished man Basilius
1. In their synod, African bishops excluded the bishop of Rome and condemner of the three chapters Vigilius from the Catholic communion, reserving a place for him to repent. In defence of the aforementioned three chapters, they sent sufficiently suitable letters to Emperor Justinian through Olympius the magistrianus.
2. In that time 12 books of Facundus the bishop of the church of Hermiana[liv] became renowned. In them he declared very evidently that the three oft-mentioned chapters had been damned in an attempt to attack the Catholic and apostolic faith and the Chalcedonian council.
[551 CE]
In the eleventh year after the consulship of the very distinguished man Basilius
1. Reparatus the archbishop of the church of Carthage, Firmus the primate of the Numidian bishops, Primasius and Verecundus the bishops of the council of Byzacena[lv] were summoned to the royal city on the orders of the same emperor for the sake of the faith.
2. Apollinarius was made bishop of the church of Alexandria in place of Zoilus who did not want to damn the three aforementioned chapters.
[552 CE]
In the twelfth year after the consulship of the very distinguished man Basilius
1. The archbishop Reparatus was assailed with very many calumnies because he did not give assent to the damnation of the aforementioned three chapters. Deprived of office and expenses, he was relegated to Euchaita in exile, and Primosus the deacon and his apocrisiary[lvi] was ordained bishop of the church of Carthage against the will of the clergy as well as the people, while Reparatus was still alive. Primosus was ordained after he damned those things that were defended in synods and universally.
2. Firmus the primate of the council of Numidia, corrupted by the emperor’s gifts, gave his assent to the damnation of the same chapters, but while returning to his own abodes he perished in a most disgraceful death on his ship.
Primasius was also relegated to an Acoemetae monastery, but as Boethius the primate of the council of Byzacena was prevented by his own death from succeeding him, he immediately assented to the aforementioned damnation. Returning to his own abodes, he assailed with very intense persecutions what he previously defended, by bringing calumnies against the faithful and taking away their properties. But he could not take delight in the sins he committed, since after he was condemned for his errors by the Catholic bishops of his council, he perished in an unhappy death, and the judges took away what he had fraudulently acquired. As for Verecundus the bishop of the church of Junca,[lvii] he continued throughout to defend the aforementioned chapters, and migrated from this life to God at Chalcedon, where he had taken refuge in the inn-house of the glorious mother Euphemia. Macarius the bishop of Jerusalem was expelled and Eustochius was ordained while the former was still alive.
[553 CE]
In the thirteenth year after the consulship of the very distinguished man Basilius
1. A synod was brought together at Constantinople on the orders of Emperor Justinian. The bishops of the seats attending it were Vigilius the bishop of Rome (ordained while Silverius was still alive), Apollinarius of Alexandria (promoted while Zoilus was alive), Domninus of Antioch, Eustochius (who had been made bishop of Jerusalem after Macarius was removed), and Eutyches of Constantinople, who had been elevated in place of Menas. There, they subjected those three oft-mentioned chapters- along with their defenders- to damnation, and as punishment they shut off to themselves the return of repentance, binding themselves with such perpetual anathema, if they should ever try to absolve what they subjected to the pronouncement of damnation. Rusticus the deacon of the church of Rome and Felix the leader of the monastery of Guillum of the African province opposed their decrees, and so by written order they were sent across into exile at Thebaida with their allies.
2. With these things thus carried out, an earthquake shook the royal city from its foundations and cast down very many buildings and porticos, and laid low almost all the altars while the basilicas remained standing.
[554 CE]
In the fourteenth year after the consulship of the very distinguished man Basilius
1. Frontinus the bishop who had been summoned to the royal city to defend those three same chapters, was sent into exile at the city of Antinoe of Prima Thebaida. In his place, Peter was ordained bishop of the church of Salon by the heretics.
2. The priests of the proconsular council of the province of Afric were tricked by the skill of the bishops Rufinus and Vibus (detractors of archbishop Reparatus), and so they seemingly met defenders of the faith and (with very few exceptions) they were defiled by communion with Primosus the prevaricator of the church of Carthage.
3. Datius the bishop of Mediolanum[lviii] came to Constantinople and while agreeing with the damnation of those same three chapters, he perished on that day after being struck.
4. Narses the eunuch, a former prefect turned patrician, wondrously defeated Totila the king of the Goths in battle in Italy, killed him and took away all his riches.
[555 CE]
In the fifteenth year after the consulship of the very distinguished man Basilius
1. The bishops of the council of Numidia, brought together like the proconsular priests, came to Carthage. There they were defiled in communion with Primosus who occupied the same church and having been made prevaricators they returned to their own abodes.
2. Victor the bishop of the church of Tunnuna and author of this work suffered terms of imprisonment and beatings on the Balearic Islands. After this, on account of his defence of the three aforementioned chapters, he was also sent into exile with Theodorus the bishop of the church of Cebarsussi, the first exile being in the monastery of Mandracium, the second on the Aegimuritanian island,[lix] and third at Alexandria. He was then shoved into the prison of the fort of Diocletian after being confined in the praetorian prison.
3. Anastasius succeeded Domninus as bishop of Antioch.
[556 CE]
In the sixteenth year after the consulship of the very distinguished man Basilius
1. Primosus who occupied the church of Carthage punished those who did not want to give him assent, first with clubs, then terms of imprisonment and then also exile.
2. Victor and Theodorus the aforementioned African bishops were thrown out of prison. After disputes that continued for 15 days in the governor’s residence, they were sent to another term of imprisonment at the monastery of the Tabennesiotians, which is at Canopum, 12 miles from the city of Alexandria.
[557 CE]
In the seventeenth year after the consulship of the very distinguished man Basilius
1. After Vigilius the bishop of Rome fell into error, he died on the island of Sicily under the excommunication of the bishops of the whole church of Africa.
2. In that time, Felix the leader of the monastery of Guillum migrated from this life to the Lord in exile at Sinope.[lx]
[558 CE]
In the eighteenth year after the consulship of the very distinguished man Basilius
Pelagius the Roman archdeacon, once a defender of the aforementioned chapters, returned from exile through the persuasion of Emperor Justinian. Condemning those chapters that he used to defend with utmost steadfastness for a long time, he was ordained bishop of the church of Rome by the prevaricator. He lasted for five years.
[559 CE]
In the nineteenth year after the consulship of the very distinguished man Basilius
1. With the exception of small monasteries and a few faithful, the Illyrian bishops came to agreement after having endured persecutions, leading their original faith into worthlessness.
2. In that time the Huns very gravely vexed Armenia.
[560 CE]
In the twentieth year after the consulship of the very distinguished man Basilius
The Bulgars invaded Thrace and came all the way to Sycae at Constantinople. They captured and also tore apart the patrician Sergius, who had for a long time been commander of the African military. But decisively defeated and equally put to flight by the arms of the patrician Belisarius, they crossed the Danube.
[561 CE]
In the twenty-first year after the consulship of the very distinguished man Basilius
The body of Saint Antony that had been found was led with the greatest honour to Alexandria and was placed with honours in the basilica of Saint John the Baptist.
[562 CE]
In the twenty-second year after the consulship of the very distinguished man Basilius
1. Frontinianus the bishop of Salon was transferred from the exile of Antinoe to Ancyra in Galatia.
2. Peter the occupier of his church died. Proclinus was put in his place.
[563 CE]
In the twenty-third year after the consulship of the very distinguished man Basilius
1. On the seventh day before the Ides of January [9 January], the archbishop Reparatus of the church of Carthage crossed in glorious confession to the Lord while in exile at Euchaita.
2. In that year the Emperor Justinian was the first to receive the first ambassadors of the people of the Avars. He had them return with the greatest gifts to the place from where they had come.
[564 CE?]
In the 37th year of the rule of the aforementioned Emperor Justinian
1. Pelagius the bishop of Rome died. He was in charge for 11 years.
2. Eustochius the bishop of Jerusalem, who had been ordained while Macarius was still alive, was expelled. Macarius was restored again.
[565 CE?]
In the 38th year of the rule of the same man’s rule
By imperial order, the bishops Musicus, Brumasius, Donatius and Chrysonius were called out from Africa and similarly the bishops Victor and Theodorus from Egypt to the royal city. In the presence of the same Emperor Justinian, and then in dispute with Eutychius the bishop of the royal city, they resisted the new superstition. As a result, they were separated from each other and sent to confinement throughout the monasteries of the same city.
[566 CE?]
In the 39th year of the rule of the same man’s rule
1. Justinian exiled Eutychius the bishop of Constantinople, who condemned the three chapters as well as Euvagrius the hermi deacon and Didymus the monk and confessor of Alexandria, whose praises we have earlier brought forth on the authority of illustrious men. In Eutychius’ place he appointed John as bishop, who similarly upheld the same error.
2. In that year the green charioteers caused civil war in the royal city and laid low many men of the state by the sword in frequent battles. But subsequently very many fierce men among them were wiped out by the prefect Julianus.
[567 CE?]
In the 40th year of his rule
1. Justinian came to the end of his life in the 15th indiction.[lxi]
2. Theodorus the bishop of Cebarsussi- the defender of the three chapters- died in exile at the royal city in the same month and on the same day as Justinian did. He was buried next to the confessors whose tongues had been cut off by Hugneric the king of the Vandals.
3. Justinus the younger- the son of Vigilantia the sister of Justinian Augustus and whose father was Dulcidius- assumed control of the empire with the utmost tranquillity of the people. Sophia- the granddaughter of Theodora Augusta- was proclaimed his wife.
All the years from Adam the first man until the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ in the flesh: 5199 years. Then from the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ in the flesh, which occurred in year 43 of the rule of the Augustus Octavian Caesar, until the first year of Justinus the Emperor of the Romans who succeeded Justinian in rule: 567 years. So from Adam until the first year of the aforementioned emperor of the Romans: 5766 years.
Notes
[i] A monastery superior.
[ii] Located in northwest Asia Minor (now northwest Turkey)
[iii] Cyrrhus, located near Azaz in what is now northern Syria.
[iv] Corresponding to Kherson in Ukraine.
[v] Salophakiolos: “the wobble-cap.”
[vi] Lit. “What God wills.”
[vii] Lit. “Thanks be to God.”
[viii] Gaiseric’s death is more traditionally dated to 477 CE.
[ix] A mountainous region in central Asia Minor (now central Turkey).
[x] Tobna in what is now Algeria.
[xi] Magra in what is now Algeria.
[xii] Probably also in Algeria.
[xiii] Corresponding to Nefta in what is now southern Tunisia.
[xiv] An Egyptian monastic community located in what is now southern Egypt.
[xv] i.e. The records.
[xvi] A document promulgated by Emperor Zeno that attempted to reconcile supporters and opponents of the Council of Chalcedon.
[xvii] Lit. “Sleepless ones,” referring to monasteries that held prayers and acts of devotion without intermission in the day and night.
[xviii] Or “Codonatus.”
[xix] Illyria is a region of southeastern Europe roughly corresponding with the Balkans today.
[xx] An official responsible for maintaining court silence.
[xxi] Perfidy in the sense of “disbelief.”
[xxii] Located in northern Asia Minor (now Turkey).
[xxiii] A locality in southern Italy.
[xxiv] i.e. “The Scythian.”
[xxv] Constantinople.
[xxvi] i.e. Impious in the sense that he was killed while blaspheming, wondrous in terms of the manner of his death.
[xxvii] Corresponding to what is now Manbij in Aleppo province (northern Syria).
[xxviii] A city located in what is now southern Turkey.
[xxix] Probably a locality in the Levant region, though precise location is uncertain.
[xxx] Identified with the temple of az-Zun located in what is now Afghanistan (cf. Nicola di Cosmo and Michael Mass (eds.), “Empires and Exchanges in Late Antiquity: Rome, China and the Steppe ca. 250-750,” p. 297).
[xxxi] Or perhaps “lions.”
[xxxii] Kavad I, a Sassanid king.
[xxxiii] There is some uncertainty surrounding the construction of the phrasing here. However, the general meaning appears to be that the Arab king expounded his argument against Severus’ heretical bishops in Arabic and refuted them in a way that seemed surprising. His exposition in Arabic is deemed ‘barbarous’ not necessarily out of contempt for Arabs but rather because the main linguae francae of the region were Aramaic and Greek.
[xxxiv] Probably: المنذر (al-Munḏir).
[xxxv] The idea that God suffered and died on the Cross, rather than Christ in his humanity (the latter proposition supposedly in keeping with the idea that the concept of the suffering and death of God would contradict God’s immortality). That this is the debate meant here is shown by the last part of the entry here about Alamundar’s demonstration of God’s immortality. I thus cannot see a reason for rendering Theopaschist as “God-nurtured.”
[xxxvi] The hymn that goes: “Holy God, Holy Mighty One, Holy Immortal One, have mercy on us.” The addition of the words “The one crucified for us” seems to be an affirmation of Theopaschist teaching.
[xxxvii] The greens and blues referred to colours identifying different groups of charioteers at the games.
[xxxviii] Probably the Bronze Gate that would lead to the Great Palace of Constantinople.
[xxxix] Cappadocia, Galatia and Pontus are all regions of Asia Minor (now Turkey).
[xl] Now Ankara in Turkey.
[xli] Bishop’s adviser.
[xlii] “Guardsman”: a type of Byzantine military officer.
[xliii] Lit. “ordinary master of soldiers.” This phrasing is perhaps analogous to the sense of “consul ordinarius” (“ordinary consul”) and possibly means the highest commanding position in the military.
[xliv] Original Latin: “custodia privata moritur.” The concept of “custodia privata” as opposed to “custodia publica” is well-established, but what precisely “private custody” means here is not clear. For example, was she delegated to some kind of house-arrest? I do not believe the interpretation of “deprived of food” is valid here. Another possible interpretation has been suggested: namely, that “custodia privata” should be taken as an ablative absolute phrase, with privare having the sense of deprivation, and thus the meaning is that her bodyguard was killed or taken away. Yet I do not think this interpretation is plausible.
[xlv] i.e. The beliefs espoused represent some sort of Theopaschism deemed deviant by the author.
[xlvi] i.e. A form of Miaphysitism (or Monophysitism, depending on definitions).
[xlvii] Lit. “The Knowing-Nots” and the “Three Theists.”
[xlviii] Cf. Deuteronomy 6:4.
[xlix] Cf. Deuteronomy 4:35 and 1 Corinthians 8:4.
[l] The acts/recorded acts.
[li] Corresponding to Kasserine in western Tunisia.
[lii] Lit. “Those without a head”: referring to those lacking a patriarch.
[liii] A city located in what is now southern Serbia.
[liv] Located in North Africa.
[lv] A region corresponding to central Tunisia.
[lvi] An emissary.
[lvii] Corresponding to Ounga in central Tunisia.
[lviii] Milan in Italy.
[lix] This island has been equated with the island of Zembra off the coast of Tunisia.
[lx] A city located in what is now northern Turkey.
[lxi] A fiscal period of 15 years introduced by Constantine in 313 CE.