B00K14 The Reign of Theodosius the Younger to the Reign of Leo the Younger

1. (351) After the reign of , the most sacred Theodosius the Younger, the son of the emperor (brother of Honorius), reigned alone. He had been crowned by his father during the consulship AD400 of Stilicho and Aurelianus. He reigned in all SO years and seven months. 2. He favoured· the Green faction and took their side in each city, In , where they had formerly watched the races from the section on his right, he moved them and made them watch from the seats on the left, and he transferred the garrison troops who used to watch from opposite the .kot./J1~"{/f/dtothe Blue section, and he gave these seats, which extended over six column spaces, to the members of the Green faction, He told the prefect Kyros, "Those whomI support. (352) I wish to watch opposite me". Th.en the members of the Green faction chanted in Constantinople to the emperor, "To each his own!" He sent them proclamations by his chief courier, saying, "It was to honour you that I moved you to the left of the .kat./JL"{/f/dfrom which I watch the races", and they acclaimed him. He gave orders that in each city the Greens should watch on the left of the officials, 3. Theodosius had begun to reign as a boy; when he grew older, the emperor used to study in the palace in his father Arcadius' lifetime, After the death of his father, he was joined in his studies by another very talented youth named Paulinus, son of a comes domesticorum, After the death of his father, the emperor Theodosius, having reached manhood, wanted to take a wife in marriage, He pestered his sister the lady who was a virgin; as she was fond of her brother, she had chosen not to marry anybody, She thoroughly investigated many virgin girls, daughters of patricians or of imperial blood and reported to her brother the emperor Theodosius, since she lived in the palace with him. The emperor Theodosius said to her, "I want you to find me a really lovely young girl, so that no other woman in Constantinople, - whether she be of imperial blood or of the highest (353) senatorial family - may possess such beauty, If she is not superlatively beautiful, I am not interested, neither in high rank or imperial blood or wealth. But whoever's daughter she is, providing she

1. Bo 351.1-4; LH 437,3; Slav: Soph 118 (= Ist 101,1-3). SO years and seven months (351.4): '48 years' LH, Slav. 2. Bo 351.5-352.7. 3. Bo 352.8-353.6; CP 575,3-576.4 (AD420), JN 87,1; Slav: Soph 118 (= 1st 10.4-6), ~ dat11est.icrJIU11(352.12): CP. Slav add 'and Theodosius loved him'. ard reported ••• vith him (352.18-19): cf 'wishing to live with her brother in the palace' CP. 192 Book 14 is a virgin and exceedingly beautiful, her I shall marry". Hearing this, the lady Pulcheria sent messengers in all directions to continue her investigations. Paulinus, too, rushed around to please him. 4. In the meantime there happened to arrive in Constantinople, together with her relatives, a beautiful, eloquent girl from , named Athenais, later renamed Eudokia. She was .the daughter of the very wealthy Athenian philosopher Leontios. Athenais Eudokia had been compelled to come to the imperial city to stay with her aunt for the following reason. The philosopher Leontios, her father, had two full• grown sons, When he was on the point of death, he drew up a will, according to which he provided that his two sons, Valerius and Gessius, should inherit the whole of the fortune which he left behind him. He stated in the will, "To Athenais, my beloved and legitimate daughter, I bequeath 100 nom.i..WldtBonly; for her good fortune, which exceeds that of all other women, is sufficient for her". And Leontios the philosopher died in Athens. After he had departed this life, Athenais Eudokia pleaded with her brothers, since they were older than she, throwing herself before them and entreating them not to adhere to the will, but to give her a third share with them of (354) their father's possessions, saying, "I have done no wrong, as you yourselves know, to your father. I do not know why, on the point of death, he left me destitute and bestowed upon me merely the wealth which may come· by good fortune after his death". Her brothers remained unmoved, and in their anger even drove her out of their father's house, in which she lived with them. Her mother's sister took her in as she was an orphan, and protected her as a virgin. She took her with her and went off to her other aunt, her father's sister, in Constantinople. They took her to make a petition against her brothers, and prepared her to approach the most pious lady Pulcheria, sister of the emperor Theodosius. The girl was admitted and explained in an eloquent address that she had been treated with violence by her brothers. Observing that she was beautiful

Paulinus (353.5): 'Paulinus, his fellow-student and friend' CP. to please him (353.6): CP adds 'in this matter'. 4. Bo 353.7-355.10; Ev I 20 (28.23-30), CP 576.4-578.8,13-19 (AD420), GM 608.10-609.3, Ke 590,9-18, JN 84.25-34, 37; Slav: Soph 118 (= Ist 10. 7-8). later renamed Eudokia (353.9) cf JN 84.28: CP does not mention the name 'Eudokia' until the very end of this whole episode. Leontios (353.10, 13, 20; cf Ke, Soc HE vii 21): cf 'Herakleitos' CP, JN, Valerius (353.16): cf '' CP, JN. the inilosoJi}er died in Athens (353.19-20) Ke: cf 'the wise Athenian died' CP. After he had departed this life (353.20): cf CP which adds 'and the contents of his will had become clear'. as you yourselves know, to y<>U['father (354.1-2): 'and you yourselves know how I felt towards our commonfather' CP. as she was an orphan ••• virgin (354.7): cf 'and looked after her not only as an orphan but as a virgin and her niece' CP. her other aunt, her father's sister (354.8-9) CP: Ba would more naturally read 'her aunt, her father's other sister', which it is tempting to link to a confused reference in JN to a third aunt.