The Secret History of the Court of Justinian | Page 4

of Joannina, his daughter, to Anastasius, grandson of Theodora--Belisarius appointed Count of the Royal Stable and again commander of the army in Italy--Comparison of the two expeditions.
CHAPTER V
Conduct of Belisarius in Italy--His greed--Defection of Herodianus--Loss of Spoletum--Success of Totila and his Goths--Rupture with John--Betrothal of the latter to Justina, daughter of Germanus--Recall of Belisarius--Perusia taken by the Goths--The marriage between Joannina and Anastasius consummated by a trick on the part of the dying Empress--Return of Antonina, who separates the young pair--Belisarius despised for his weakness--Sergius causes the loss of the Roman army in Africa--Murder of Pegasius by Solomon--The vengeance of Heaven.
CHAPTER VI
History of Justin and his two brothers, poor Illyrian husbandmen--Their enrolment in the army--Their admission into the Palace Guards, in the reign of Leo--Justin condemned to death, during the reign of Anastasius, by the General John Kyrtus, for some breach of discipline--His escape by divine intervention--He becomes praefect of the Praetorian guards--In spite of his ignorance, he is proclaimed Emperor--The way in which he was assisted to sign imperial documents--The Empress Lupicina-Euphemia--Justinian, the nephew of Justin, the real master of the Empire--His cruelty, his avarice, his inconsistency in regard to the laws--He oppresses Italy, Africa, and the rest of the Empire--Amantius condemned, to avenge an outrage upon the bishop John--Perjury towards Vitalianus.
CHAPTER VII
Byzantium divided between two factions: the Blues and the Greens--Justinian puts himself at the head of the former--The Empire entirely upset by the quarrels between these factions--The Blues dress their hair after the manner of the Huns--Their general attire--Their excesses--Behaviour of the Greens--Corruption of the morals of young men--Murder committed with impunity--Inaction on the part of the authorities--Acts of violence committed upon both sexes--A woman throws herself into the sea to save her virtue--Culpability of Justinian--His partiality for the oppressors, upon whom he bestows favours and dignities.
CHAPTER VIII
Calamities in the provinces--Justinian's apathy--Waste of the public money during his reign--Useless presents of money made to the Huns--Extravagance in buildings on the sea-shore--Attack upon the fortunes of private individuals--Description of Justinian's personal appearance--His resemblance to Domitian--Domitian's wife--Alterations in established institutions.
CHAPTER IX
The bear-keeper Acacius, Theodora's father--His widow loses her place in the amphitheatre of the Greens and takes another in that of the Blues--Her daughters--The beginning of Theodora's career--Her precocious immorality--Her accomplishments--Her debaucheries--Her intercourse with Hecebolus, governor of Pentapolis--Her return from the East--Justinian, enamoured of her, wishes to marry her--Assassination of Hypatius--The Praefect Theodotus Colocynthius--Punishment of malefactors--His exile and death.
CHAPTER X
The Empress Euphemia--Her opposition to the marriage of Justinian and Theodora--Justin repeals the law prohibiting the marriage of a patrician with a stage-performer--Justinian and Theodora colleagues on the throne--Death of Justin--Effect of the marriage--Adulation of the senate, clergy, people, and army--General feeling of discouragement--Personal advantages of Theodora--Pretended antagonism between her and Justinian--Theodora deceives the Christians and the factions--Consolidation of despotism.
CHAPTER XI
Legislative innovations--Avarice and cruelty of Justinian--Barbarian invasions provoked--Exorbitant subsidies to the chiefs of the Huns and Chosroes King of Persia, followed by disturbances and violation of truce--Saracens, Slavs, Antes, and other barbarous peoples--Desolation of the provinces--Religious persecutions and confiscation of Church property--Montanists, Sabbatians, Arians, and Samaritans--Pretended conversions--Manicheans and Polytheists--Caesarea, the author's birthplace--Revolt of the peasants under Julian--Hellenism--Law against paederasty--Persecution of astrologers--Continuous emigration.
CHAPTER XII
Downfall and death of Zeno, grandson of Anthemius, Emperor of the West--Robbery of Tatian, Demosthenes, the wealthy Hilara, Dionysus of Libanus and John of Edessa--Forged wills--Theodora and Justinian evil spirits, not simple human beings--Justinian the putative son of Sabbatius--His mother's intimate relations with a spirit--The adventure of a monk--Justinian's temperate manner of living--His fondness for women--Theodora's intercourse with a spirit--Reputation of Macedonia during Justin's time--Her prediction to Theodora--Dream of her marriage with the Prince of the Demons.
CHAPTER XIII
Justinian's qualities--His accessibility--His partiality for the clergy--His gifts to the churches--His passion for blood and money, shared by him with Theodora--Flattery of Tribonianus--Justinian's fickleness and ill-faith--Venality of justice--Corruption of officials--Justinian's fasting and temperate mode of life.
CHAPTER XIV
Abolition of various old customs--The attributes of the quaestor and imperial secretaries--The senate a mere cipher--Corruption of the "Referendaries"--Guilty conduct of Zeno, the Cilician.
CHAPTER XV
Cruelty of Theodora--Her voluptuous life--Her ambition--Her character and Justinian's compared--Her harshness towards persons of rank--Their servility--Pretended mildness of Justinian--Theodora's eagerness for vengeance--Her partiality--The insult offered by her to a patrician--Her stay at Heraeum, on the sea-shore.
CHAPTER XVI
Assassination of Amalasunta, Queen of the Goths, by Peter, Theodora's agent--The secretary, Priscus, obliged to enter a cloister--Justinian's hypocrisy--Disgrace of Areobindus, Theodora's lover--Her way of getting rid of persons of rank--Punishment of Basianus--False accusation against Diogenes, a member of the municipal council--Suborning of witnesses--Theodora's courage.
CHAPTER XVII
Murder of Callinicus, governor of Cilicia--His property confiscated by Justinian--Theodora's severe measures against prostitutes--She compels two girls of noble birth to marry--Her frequent abortions--Disappearance of her natural son, John--Corrupt morals of the ladies of the capital--Theodora disposes of ecclesiastical dignities--Takes upon herself the general superintendence of marriages--Adventure of Saturninus--Persecution of John of Cappadocia.
CHAPTER XVIII
Justinian, a devil in the form of