History of the Wars, Books V and VI | Page 7

violent
practices.
At about this same time[I] Atalaric, being quite wasted away by the
disease, came to his end, having lived eight years in office. As for
Amalasuntha, since it was fated that she should fare ill, she took no
account of the nature of Theodatus and of what she had recently done
to him, and supposed that she would suffer no unpleasant treatment at
his hands if she should do the man some rather unusual favour. She
accordingly summoned him, and when he came, set out to cajole him,
saying that for some time she had known well that it was to be expected
that her son would soon die; for she had heard the opinion of all the

physicians, who agreed in their judgment, and had herself perceived
that the body of Atalaric continued to waste away. And since she saw
that both Goths and Italians had an unfavourable opinion regarding
Theodatus, who had now come to represent the race of Theoderic, she
had conceived the desire to clear him of this evil name, in order that it
might not stand in his way if he were called to the throne. But at the
same time, she explained, the question of justice disturbed her, at the
thought that those who claimed to have been wronged by him already
should find that they had no one to whom they might report what had
befallen them, but that they now had their enemy as their master. For
these reasons, then, although she invited him to the throne after his
name should have been cleared in this way, yet it was necessary, she
said, that he should be bound by the most solemn oaths that while the
title of the office should be conferred upon Theodatus, she herself
should in fact hold the power no less than before. When Theodatus
heard this, although he swore to all the conditions which Amalasuntha
wished, he entered into the agreement with treacherous intent,
remembering all that she had previously done to him. Thus
Amalasuntha, being deceived by her own judgment and the oaths of
Theodatus, established him in the office. And sending some Goths as
envoys to Byzantium, she made this known to the Emperor Justinian.
DATE: [I]Oct. 10, 534 A.D.
But Theodatus, upon receiving the supreme power, began to act in all
things contrary to the hopes she had entertained and to the promises he
had made. And after winning the adherence of the relatives of the
Goths who had been slain by her--and they were both numerous and
men of very high standing among the Goths--he suddenly put to death
some of the connections of Amalasuntha and imprisoned her, the
envoys not having as yet reached Byzantium. Now there is a certain
lake in Tuscany called Vulsina,[14] within which rises an island,[15]
exceedingly small but having a strong fortress upon it. There Theodatus
confined Amalasuntha and kept her under guard.[J] But fearing that by
this act he had given offence to the emperor, as actually proved to be
the case, he sent some men of the Roman senate, Liberius and Opilio
and certain others, directing them to excuse his conduct to the emperor

with all their power by assuring him that Amalasuntha had met with no
harsh treatment at his hands, although she had perpetrated irreparable
outrages upon him before. And he himself wrote in this sense to the
emperor, and also compelled Amalasuntha, much against her will, to
write the same thing.
DATE: [J]Apr. 30, 535 A.D.
Such was the course of these events. But Peter had already been
despatched by the emperor on an embassy to Italy with instructions to
meet Theodatus without the knowledge of any others, and after
Theodatus had given pledges by an oath that none of their dealings
should be divulged, he was then to make a secure settlement with him
regarding Tuscany; and meeting Amalasuntha stealthily he was to
make such an arrangement with her regarding the whole of Italy as
would be to the profit of either party. But openly his mission was to
negotiate with regard to Lilybaeum and the other matters which I have
lately mentioned. For as yet the emperor had heard nothing about the
death of Atalaric or the succession of Theodatus to the throne, or the
fate which had befallen Amalasuntha. And Peter was already on his
way when he met the envoys of Amalasuntha and learned, in the first
place, that Theodatus had come to the throne; and a little later, upon
reaching the city of Aulon,[16] which lies on the Ionian Gulf, he met
there the company of Liberius and Opilio, and learned everything
which had taken place, and reporting this to the emperor he remained
there.
And when the Emperor Justinian heard these things, he formed the
purpose