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This complete document is over 23 pages long, so I have edited out the early part that does not refer to Muslem invasions, and shortened it by removing a few other paragraphs that do not contain interesting info. However, the first chapter listed below contains information about the few years before Islam began to wage war, and shows the type of political and religious troubles that the Byzantine (easter Roman Empire) was dealing with.
It will be noticed in reading this that the author refers to Mohommad as "the beast" and speaks of the troubles that the Christians went through as a time of great tribulation. It was probably a foreshadowing of the final time of Great Tribulation. The author also says the troubles came upon them because of false Christianity. Based on the information which he provides, I agree 100%.
A small amount was lost in translation, from Arabic to Ethopic, to English, but not much.
http://www.ccel.org/p/pearse/morefathers/nikiu1_intro.htm
Chronicle of John, Bishop of Nikiu: London (1916). English Translation
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TRANSLATED FROM ZOTENBERG'S ETHIOPIC TEXT BY R. H. CHARLES, D.Litt, D.D.CANON OF WESTMINSTER
FELLOW OF THE BRITISH ACADEMYPUBLISHED FOR THE TEXT AND TRANSLATION SOCIETY BY
WILLIAMS & NORGATE
14 HENRIETTA STREET, COVENT GARDEN, LONDON
AND 7 BROAD STREET, OXFORD, 1916
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PRINTED AT THE OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS
BY FREDERICK HALL
PRINTER TO THE UNIVERSITYCHAPTER CVIII. 1. And there was a holy aged man, named Theophilus the confessor, who lived on the top of a pillar, near the banks of the river, and he was endowed with the spirit of prophecy. This old man lived thirty years on the top of the pillar. 2. Now Nicetas used to visit him frequently. And Theodore the general and Menas the coadjutor, and Theodosius, who were agents of |173 Nicetas, informed him of the virtues of this holy man. 3. And Nicetas went to him and besought him and said: ' Who will be victor in this war ?'—for he feared lest evil should overtake him as it had done Bonakis. 4. And the holy man said to Nicetas: 'Thou shalt conquer Bonosus and overthrow the empire of Phocas, and Heraclius will become emperor this year.' 5. And Nicetas was guided by the prophecy of the aged man of God and said to the inhabitants of Alexandria: ' Fight no longer from the top of the wall but open the gate of On and meet Bonosus in close encounter.' . . . And the affairs of Bonosus grew (daily) worse, while those of Nicetas daily advanced in strength. . . .
CHAPTER CX. . . . . 7. And next they took the bodies of |178 Phocas and Leontius and Bonosus and they conveyed them to the city of Constantinople, and they burnt them with fire, and scattered the ashes of their bodies to the winds; for they were detested by all men. 8. And thus the vision was accomplished which Benjamin of the city of Antinoe had received from God, and the inhabitants of Byzantium did not slight a detail in it. 9. On the contrary, they conducted Heraclius against his will to the church of S. Thomas the Apostle and placed the imperial crown on his head. When he had completed his prayers, he went and entered into the palace, and all the + wise+ congratulated him. . . .
The vision must have been mentioned in an earlier chapter, because none of the previous chapters in this document contained a mention of the vision.
CHAPTER CXI. 1. Now Theodore was commander-in-chief in Egypt. And when the messengers of Theodosius the prefect of Arcadia informed him regarding the death of John,280 general of the local levies, he thereupon turned with all the Egyptian troops and his auxiliary forces and marched to Lôkjôn, which is an island. 2. Moreover he feared lest, owing to the dissensions prevailing amongst the inhabitants of that district, the Moslem should come and seize the coast of Lôkjôn and dislodge the communities of the servants of God who were subjects of the Roman emperor. 3. And his lamentations were more grievous than the lamentations of David over Saul when he said: 'How are the mighty fallen, and the weapons of war perished. For not only had John the general of the forces perished, but likewise John the general, who was of the city of Mârôs, had been slain in battle and fifty horsemen with him.
4. I will acquaint you briefly with what befell the former inhabitants of Fajûm.
5. John and his troops, the warriors whom we have just mentioned, had been appointed by the Romans to guard the district. Now these posted other guards near the rock of the city of Lâhûn in order to keep guard continually, and to give information to the chief of the forces of the movements of their enemies. 6. And subsequently they got ready some horsemen and a body of soldiers and archers, and these marched out to fight the Moslem, purposing to prevent the advance of the Moslem. 7. And subsequently the Moslem directed their march to the desert and seized a large number of sheep and goats from the high grounds without the cognizance of the Egyptians. 8. And when they reached the city of Bahnasâ, all the troops on the banks of the river came (to the succour) with John, but were unable on that occasion to reach Fajûm.
9. And the general Theodosius, hearing of the arrival of the Ishmaelites, proceeded from place to place in order to see what was likely to befall from these enemies. 10. And these Ishmaelites came and slew without mercy the commander of the troops and all his companions. And forthwith they compelled the city to open its gates, and they put to the sword all that surrendered, and they spared none, whether old men, babe, or woman. 11. And they proceeded against the general John. And he took all the horses and they hid themselves in the enclosures and plantations lest their enemies should discover them. Then they arose by night and marched to the great river of Egypt, to Abûît, in order to secure their safety. Now this matter was from God.
12. And the chief of the faction who was with Jeremiah informed the Moslem troops of the Roman soldiers who were hidden. And so these took them prisoners and put them to death. 13. And tidings of these events were brought to the general Theodosius, and to Anastasius, who were then twelve miles distant from Nakius. And they betook themselves immediately to the citadel of Babylon, and they remained there, sending the general Leontius to the city |180 of Abûît. 14. Now he was obese in person, quite without energy and unacquainted with warlike affairs. And when he arrived he found the Egyptian troops and Theodore fighting with the Moslem and making sorties every day from the city of Fajûm in order to <re>take the city.283 And taking half the troops he returned to Babylon in order to acquaint the governors (with the state of affairs), and the other half of the troops remained with Theodore.
It appears that the Muslems were murdering many innocent civilians and even murdering the soldiers who were captured or surrendered, which is what many other sources also make very clear. These other sources will be included on this web site in the near future.
15. And Theodore sought with great diligence for the body of John, who had been drowned in the river. And with much lamentation he had the body drawn forth in a net, and placed in a bier and sent to the governors, who also (in turn) sent it to Heraclius.
16. And such (of the Romans) as were in Egypt sought refuge in the citadel of Babylon. And they were also awaiting the arrival of the general Theodore in order to join with him in attacking the Ishmaelites before the rise of the river and the time of sowing, when they could not make war lest their sowings should be destroyed (and) they should die of famine together with their children and cattle.
CHAPTER CXII. 1. Moreover, there prevailed great indignation between Theodore the general and the governors owing to the charges brought by the emperor. 2. And both Theodosius and Anastasius went forth to the city of On, on horseback, together with a large body of foot soldiers, in order to attack 'Amr the son of Al-As [this guy was the Muslem commander]. Now the Moslem had not as yet come to know the city of Misr. 3. And paying no attention to the fortified cities they came to a place named Tendunias, and embarked on the river. 4. And 'Amr showed great vigilance and strenuous thought in his attempts to capture the city of Misr. But he was troubled because of his separation from (a part of) the Moslem troops, who being divided into two corps on the east of the river were marching towards a city named 'Ain Shams, i. e. On, which was situated on high ground. 5. And 'Amr the son of Al-As sent a letter to Omar the son of Al-Khattab in the province of Palestine to this effect: 'If thou dost not send Moslem reinforcements, I shall not be able to take Misr.' 6. And he sent him 4,000 Moslem warriors. And their general's name was Walwarja. He was of barbarian descent. 7. And he divided his troops into three corps. One corps he placed near Tendunias, the second to the north of Babylon in Egypt; and he made his preparations with the third corps near the city of On. 8. And he gave the following orders: 'Be on the watch, so that when the Roman troops come out to attack us, you may rise up in their rear, whilst we shall be on their front, and so having got them between us, we shall put them to the sword.' 9. And thus when the Roman troops, unaware (of this design), set out from the fortress to attack the Moslem, these Moslem thereupon fell upon their rear, as they had arranged, and a fierce engagement ensued. And when the Moslem came in great numbers against them, the Roman troops fled and betook themselves to the ships. 10. And the Moslem army took possession of the city of Tendunias; for its garrison had been destroyed, and there survived only 300 soldiers. And these fled and withdrew into the fortress and closed the gates. But when they saw the great slaughter that had taken place, they were seized with panic and fled by ship to Nakius in great grief and sorrow. 11. And when Domentianus of the city of Fajûm heard of these events, he set out by night without informing the inhabitants of (A)bûît that he was fleeing to escape the Moslem, and they proceeded to Nakius by ship. 12. And when the Moslem learnt that Domentianus had fled, they marched joyously and seized the city of Fajûm and (A)bûît, and they shed much blood there.
CHAPTER CXIII. 1. And after the capture of Fajûm with all its territory by the Moslem, 'Amr sent Abâkîrî of the city of Dalas requesting him to bring the ships of Rîf in order to transport to the east bank of the river the Ishmaelites who were upon the west. 2. And he mustered all his troops about him in order to carry on a vigorous warfare, And he sent orders to the prefect George to construct for him a bridge on the river of the city Qaljûb with a view to the capture of all the cities of Misr, and likewise of Athrîb and Kuerdîs. And [some of the] people began to help the Moslem. 3. And (the Moslem) captured the cities of Athrîb and Manûf, and all their territories. And he had moreover a great bridge constructed over the river near Babylon in Egypt to prevent the passage of ships to Nakius, Alexandria, and upper Egypt, and to make it possible for horses to cross from the western to the eastern bank of the river. And so they effected the submission of all the province of Misr. 4. But 'Amr was not satisfied with what he had already done, and so he had the Roman magistrates arrested, and their hands and feet confined in iron and wooden bonds. And he forcibly despoiled (them) of much of (their) possession, and he doubled the taxes on the peasants and forced them to carry fodder for their horses, and he perpetrated innumerable acts of violence. 5. And such of the governors as were in the city of Nakius fled and betook themselves to the city of Alexandria, leaving Domentiarius with a few troops to guard the city. And they sent orders also to Dares the chief officer in the city of Samnûd to guard the two rivers. 6. Then a panic fell on all the cities of Egypt, and all their inhabitants took to flight, and made their way to Alexandria, abandoning all their possessions and wealth and cattle.
CHAPTER CXIV. 1. And when those Moslem, accompanied by the Egyptians who had apostatized from the Christian faith and embraced the faith of the beast, had come up, the Moslem took as a booty all the possessions of the Christians who had fled, and they designated the servants of Christ enemies of God. 2. And 'Amr left a large body of his men +in + the citadel of Babylon in Egypt, and marched in person towards the two rivers in the direction of the east against the general Theodore. 3. But the latter dispatched Jeqbarî and Satfârî to seize the city of Samnûd (and) fight with the Moslem. And when they came to the body of local levies, they all refused to war against the Moslem. And they indeed gave battle and put to the sword many of the Moslem <and of those> who were with them. 4. And the Moslem were not able to inflict any injury on the cities which lay on the two rivers; because the water served as a rampart, and the horses could not enter them because of the deep water which surrounded them. 5. And so leaving them they marched towards the province of Rîf and arrived at the city of Bûsîr. And they fortified this city and likewise the approaches which they had previously seized.
6. And in those days the general Theodore went to Kalâdji, and besought him saying : 'Come back to us, come back to the side of Rome.' And Kalâdji, fearing lest they should put to death his mother and wife, (who) were concealed in Alexandria, gave Theodore a great sum of money. 7. And the general Theodore prevailed on Kalâdji, and the latter arose in the night, while the Moslem were asleep, and marching on foot with his men he came to the general Theodore. 8. And thence he proceeded to the city of Nakius and formed a junction with Domentianus in order to war against the Moslem.
9. And subsequently Sabendîs devised an excellent plan and so escaped out of the hands of the Moslem by night. And he betook himself to Damietta to the prefect John. 10. And he indeed sent him to Alexandria with a letter . . . confessing his fault to the governors with many tears in these words: 'I have done this deed because of the blow and the ignominy which John inflicted upon me without showing any consideration for (my) old age. For this reason I joined the Moslem. Heretofore I was a zealous servant of the Romans.'
CHAPTER CXV. 1. And 'Amr the chief of the Moslem spent twelve months in warring against the Christians of Northern Egypt, but failed nevertheless in reducing their cities. 2. And in the fifteenth year of the cycle, during the summer, he marched on the cities of Sakâ and Tûkû-Dâmsis, being impatient to subdue the Egyptians before the rise of the river. But he was unable to do them any hurt. 3. And in the city of Damietta they also refused to admit him, and he sought to burn their crops. 4. And he began to march back to the troops that were in the fortress of Babylon in Egypt, And he gave them all the +booty which he had taken from the city of Alexandria. 5. And he destroyed the houses of the Alexandrians who had fled +, and he took their wood and iron and gave orders for the construction of a road from the fortress of Babylon to the city of the two rivers, in order that they might burn that city with fire. 6. And the inhabitants of that city on hearing of this project took to flight with their possessions, and abandoned their city, and the Moslem burned that city with fire. But the inhabitants of that city came by night and extinguished the fire. 7. And the Moslem marched against other cities to war against them, and they despoiled the Egyptians of their possessions and dealt cruelly with them. 8. But the generals Theodore and Domentianus were unable to do any injury to the inhabitants of the city on account of the Moslem who were amongst them.
9. And 'Amr left lower Egypt and proceeded to war against Rîf. He sent a few Moslem against the city of Antinoe. And when the Moslem saw the weakness of the Romans and the hostility of the people to the emperor Heraclius because of the persecution wherewith he had visited all the land of Egypt in regard to the orthodox faith, at the instigation of Cyrus the Chalcedonian patriarch, they became bolder and stronger in the war. 10. And the inhabitants of the city (Antinoe) sought to concert measures with John their prefect with a view to attacking the Moslem; but he refused, and arose with haste with his troops, and, having collected all the imposts of the city, betook himself to Alexandria; for he knew that he could not resist the Moslem, and (he feared) lest he should meet with the same fate as the garrison of Fajûm, 11. Indeed, all the inhabitants of the province submitted to the Moslem, and paid them tribute. And they put to the sword all the Roman soldiers whom they encountered. And the Roman soldiers were in a fortress, and the Moslem besieged them, and captured their catapults, and demolished their towers, and dislodged them from the fortress. 12. And they strengthened the fortress of Babylon, and they captured the city of Nakius and made themselves strong there.
CHAPTER CXVI. 1. And Heraclius was grieved by the death of John the chief of the local levies, and of John the general who had been slain by the Moslem, as well as by the defeat of the Romans that were in the province of Egypt. 2. And in accordance with the decree of God who takes away the souls of rulers, and of men of war as well as of kings, Heraclius fell ill with fever, and died in the thirty-first year of his reign in the month Yakâtît of the Egyptians, that is, February of the Roman months, in the fourteenth year of the lunar cycle, the 357th year of Diocletian. 3. And some said: 'The death of Heraclius is due to his stamping the gold coinage with the figures of the three emperors—that is, his own and of his two sons on the right hand and on the left—and so no room was found for inscribing the name of the Roman empire.' And after the death of Heraclius they obliterated those three figures.
4. And when Heraclius the elder died, Pyrrhus, the patriarch of Constantinople, passed over Martina <the daughter of> his (i. e. Heraclius's) sister and her children, and nominated Constantine the son of the empress Eudocia, and made him head of the empire in succession to his father. And the two princes were treated with honour and distinction. 5. And David and Marinus seized Pyrrhus, the Roman Chalcedonian patriarch, and banished him to an island in the west of Africa, without any one being cognizant of what had been fulfilled; for no word of the saints falls (to the ground). 6. Now it happened that the great Severus, patriarch of Antioch, wrote to Caesaria the patrician to the following effect: 'No son of a Roman emperor will sit on the throne of his father, so long as the sect of the Chalcedonians bears sway in the world.'
7. And Constantine, the son of Heraclius, on his accession to the empire mustered a large number of ships, and entrusted them to Kîrjûs and Salâkriûs, and sent them to bring the patriarch Cyrus to him that he might take counsel with him as to the Moslem, that he should fight, if he were able, but, if not, should pay tribute; and that he should meet him in the imperial city on the festival of the holy Resurrection, and to cause all the inhabitants of Constantinople to assemble to carry out the same object. 8. And next he sent orders to Theodore 3 to come to him and leave Anastasius296 to guard the city of Alexandria and the |186 cities on the coast. And he held out hopes to Theodore that he would send him a large force in the autumn in order to war with the Moslem. 9. And when in conformity to the command of the emperor they had prepared the ships for setting out, the emperor Constantine forthwith fell ill, and was attacked by a severe malady, and he vomited blood, and when the blood was exhausted he forthwith died. And this malady lasted a hundred days, that is, all the days of his reign wherein he reigned after his father Heraclius. And people mocked at Heraclius and his son Constantine.
10. And the members of the party of Gainas assembled in the church in the city of Dafâshîr near the bridge of the Apostle S. Peter. Now Cyrus the patriarch had robbed the church of large possessions in the time of the persecution, without any authorization on the part of the magistrates. 11. And when the Gainites sought to lay hands on the patriarch Cyrus, Eudocianus, the brother of the prefect Domentianus, being immediately apprised (of their purpose), sent troops against them to shoot them with arrows and prevent them from carrying out their intention. Some of them were so severely smitten that they died, while two had their hands cut off without legal sentence. 12. And proclamation was made throughout the city by the voice of a herald in these terms: 'Let every one of you withdraw to his own church, and let no one do any violence to his neighbour in defiance of the law.' 13. But God, the Guardian of justice, did not neglect the world, but avenged those who had been wronged : He had no mercy on such as had dealt treacherously against Him, but He delivered them into the hands of the Ishmaelites. 14. And the Moslem thereupon took the field and conquered all the land of Egypt. And after the death of Heraclius, the patriarch Cyrus on his return did not cease (his) severities and persecution against the people of God, but rather added violence to violence.
CHAPTER CXVII. 1. And 'Amr the chief of the Moslem forces encamped before the citadel of Babylon and besieged the troops that garrisoned it. 2. Now the latter received his promise that they should not be put to the sword, and on their side undertook to deliver up to him all the munitions of war—now these were |187 considerable. 3. And thereupon he ordered them to evacuate the citadel. And they took a small quantity of gold and set out. And it was in this way that the citadel of Babylon in Egypt was taken on the second day after the (festival of the) Resurrection. 4. Thus God punished them because they had not honoured the redemptive passion of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, who gave His life for those who believe in Him. Yea, it was for this reason that God made them turn their back upon them (i. e. the Moslem). 5. Now on that day of the festival of the holy Resurrection they released the orthodox that were in prison; but, enemies of Christ as they were, they did not let them go without first ill-using them; but they scourged them and cut off their hands. 6. And on that day these (unhappy ones) wept and their tears poured down their faces and they were spurned, even as it is written regarding those unclean persons:
'They have defiled the Church by an unclean faith, and they have wrought apostasies and deeds of violence like the sect of the Arians, such as neither pagan nor barbarian has wrought, and they have despised Christ and His servants, and we have not found any that do the like amongst the worshippers of false idols. 7. But God has been patient with the apostates and heretics who have undergone baptism a second time in submission to despotic emperors. Yet it is the same God who recompenses every man according to his deeds and does justice to him that has been wronged. 8. How then, is it not far better for us to endure patiently the trials and punishments which they inflict upon us ? They indeed think to honour our Lord Christ by so doing, whereas they are found to be perverted in their faith. They have not indeed voluntarily apostatized, but they persecute those who agree not with them in faith. God forbid (such agreement) ! for they are not servants of Christ: yet they think they are such in their thoughts.'
CHAPTER CXVIII. 1. Now the capture of the citadel of Babylon and of Nakius by the Moslem was a source of great grief to the Romans. 2. And when 'Amr had brought to a close the operations of war he made his entry into the citadel of Babylon, and he mustered a large number of ships, great and small, and anchored them close to the fort where he was.
3. And Menas, who was chief of the Green Faction, and Cosmas the son of Samuel, the leader of the Blues, besieged the city of Misr and |188 harassed the Romans during the days of the Moslem. And fighting men had gone up with fear-inspiring boldness from the western bank of the river in ships, and these made expeditions by night.
4. 'Amr and the Moslem army, on horseback, proceeded by land till they came to the city of Kebrias of Abâdjâ. And on this occasion he attacked the general Domentianus. 5. But when the latter learnt of the approach of the Moslem troops, he embarked on a ship and fled [in a ship] and abandoned the army and their fleet. And he sought to enter the small canal which Heraclius had dug during his reign. But finding it closed he returned and entered the city of Alexandria. 6. Now when the soldiers saw that their commander had taken flight, they cast away their arms and threw themselves into the river in the presence of their enemies. 7. And the Moslem troops slaughtered them with the sword in the river, and none escaped save one man only, named Zechariah, a doughty man and a warrior. 8. And when the crews of the ships saw the flight of the troops, they too took to flight and returned to their own country. And thereupon the Moslem made their entry into Nakius, and took possession, and finding no soldiers (to offer resistance), they proceeded to put to the sword all whom they found in the streets and in the churches, men, women, and infants, and they showed mercy to none. 9. And after they had captured (this) city, they marched against other localities and sacked them and put all they found to the sword. And they came also to the city of +Sa+, and there they found Esqutaws and his people in a vineyard, and the Moslem seized them and put them to the sword. Now these were of the family of the general Theodore. 10. Let us now cease, for it is impossible to recount the iniquities perpetrated by the Moslem after their capture of the island of Nakius, on Sunday, the eighteenth day of the month Genbôt, in the fifteenth year of the cycle, and also the horrors committed in the city of Caesarea in Palestine.
11. And the general Theodore, who was in command of the city, even the city of Kîlûnâs, quitted (this) city and proceeded to Egypt, leaving Stephen with the troops to guard the city and contend with the Moslem [those who were in that region]. 12. And there was a certain Jew with the Moslem, and he betook himself to the province of Egypt. And when with great toil and exertion they had cast down the walls of the city, they forthwith made themselves masters of it, and put to the sword thousands of its inhabitants and of the soldiers, and they gained an enormous booty, and took the women and children captive and divided them amongst themselves, and they made that city a desolation (lit. destitute). 13. And shortly after the Moslem proceeded against the country (city?) of +Côprôs+ and put Stephen and his people to the sword.
CHAPTER CXIX. 1. And Egypt also had become enslaved to Satan. A great strife had broken out between the inhabitants of Lower Egypt, and these were divided into two parties. Of these, one sided with Theodore, but the other wished to join the Moslem. 2. And straightway the one party rose against the other, and they plundered their possessions and burnt their city. But the Moslem distrusted them.
3. And 'Amr sent a large force of Moslem against Alexandria, and they captured Kariun, which lies outside the city. And Theodore and his troops who were in that locality fled and withdrew into Alexandria. 4. And the Moslem began to attack them but were not able to approach the walls of the city; for stones were hurled against them from the top of the walls, and they were driven far from the city.
5. And the inhabitants of Misr were at variance with those of Lower Egypt, and their strife ran high, but after a short time they made peace. 6. But when their discord came to an end, Satan stirred up another in the city of Alexandria; for Domentianus the prefect and Menas the general were at variance with each other through lust for office and other motives. . . .
18. And after the death of Constantine, the son of Heraclius, they brought forward Heraclius, his brother on his father's side, though but an infant. But his accession to the empire was as idle as had been that of his brother who died. 19. And the patriarch Pyrrhus, seeing that Heraclius, who was still a child, had become emperor through the intrigues of Martina his mother, whilst he Pyrrhus was still in exile . . . .
22. And subsequently he appointed him (Cyrus) a second time to the city of Alexandria) and the priests who were with him. He gave him power and authority to make peace with the Moslem and check any further resistance against them, and to establish a system of administration suitable to the government of the land of Egypt. And he was accompanied by Constantine, a general of the army, who was master of the local levies. 23. And he had the army from the province of Thrace brought to the city of Constantinople, and he banished Philagrius the treasurer to the province of Africa where Pyrrhus had previously been in banishment. 24. And there were great dissensions, and the inhabitants of the city rose up against Martina and her children because of the banishment of Philagrius the treasurer; for he was greatly beloved.
CHAPTER CXX. 1. Now not only Cyrus the Chalcedonian patriarch desired peace with the Moslem, but also all the people and the patricians and Domentianus, who had enjoyed the favour of the empress Martina—(and so) all these assembled and took counsel with Cyrus the patriarch with a view to making peace with the Moslem. 2. And all the clergy began to stir up odium against the empire of Heraclius the younger, declaring: 'It is not fitting that one derived from a reprobate seed should sit on the imperial throne: rather it is the sons of Constantine, who was the son of Eudocia, |192 that should bear sway over the empire.' And they rejected the will of the elder Heraclius.
3. And when Valentinus was apprised that all men were united against Martina and her sons, he took large sums of money out of the treasury of Philagrius, and distributed them amongst the soldiers and officers, and prevailed on them to act against Martina and her sons. 4. And some of them gave over warring against the Moslem, and turned their hostilities against their own countrymen. 5. And thereupon they sent an envoy secretly to the island of Rhodes with this message to the troops with the patriarch Cyrus: 'Return to the imperial city and do not take sides with him.' 6. And they sent also to Theodore, the prefect of Alexandria, the following message: 'Do not hearken to the voice of Martina, and do not obey her sons.' And they sent likewise to Africa, and to every province under the sway of Rome.
. . .
12. And when the patriarch Cyrus came to the great church of Caesarion, they covered all the way (with carpets) and chanted hymns in his honour (and the crowds increased) till the people trod each other down. And after great exertions they brought him to the Church. 13. Now he extolled highly the well in which the Holy Cross had been found. And he took also (to the Caesarion) the venerable cross from the Convent of the monks of Tabenna which he had received previously to his exile from the general John. 14. And when they began to celebrate divine service on the day of the holy Resurrection, instead of chanting the psalm proper to the day of the Resurrection, which is: 'This is the day which the Lord has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it', the deacon, desiring to praise the patriarch and to congratulate him on his return, gave out another psalm that was not proper (to the day). 15. And when the people heard it, they said : 'This is not the proper psalm : it is an evil augury for the patriarch Cyrus: he will not see a second festival of the Resurrection in the city of Alexandria.' 16. And all the congregation and the monks made predictions after this fashion in public: 'He has acted contrary to what is ordained in the Canons.' But none who heard any of these sayings believed them.
17. And subsequently the patriarch Cyrus set out and went to Babylon to the Moslem, seeking by the offer of tribute to procure peace from them and put a stop to war in the land of Egypt. And 'Amr welcomed his arrival, and said unto him: 'Thou hast done well to come to us.' And Cyrus answered and said unto him : 'God has delivered this land into your hands : let there be no enmity from henceforth between you and Rome : heretofore there has been no persistent strife with you.' 18. And they fixed the amount of tribute to be paid. And as for the Ishmaelites, they were not to intervene in any matter, but were to keep to themselves for eleven months. The Roman troops in Alexandria were to carry off their possessions and their treasures and proceed (home) by sea, and no other Roman army was to return. But those who wished to journey by land were to pay a monthly (?) tribute. 19. And the Moslem were to take as hostages one hundred and fifty soldiers and fifty civilians and make peace. 20. And the Romans were to cease warring against the Moslem, and the Moslem were to desist from seizing Christian Churches, and the latter were not to intermeddle with any concerns of the Christians. 21. And the Jews were to be permitted to remain in the city of Alexandria.
22. And when the patriarch had concluded this negotiation, he returned to the city of Alexandria, and he reported to Theodore and the general Constantine (the conditions of peace), to the intent that they should report them to the emperor Heraclius and support them before him. 23. And straightway all the troops and the people of Alexandria and the general Theodore came together to him and paid their homage to the patriarch Cyrus. And he acquainted them with all the conditions which he had made with the Moslem, and he persuaded them all to accept them. 24. And while things were in this condition, the Moslem came to receive the tribute, though the inhabitants of Alexandria had not yet been informed (of the treaty). And the Alexandrians, on seeing them, made ready for battle. 25. But the troops and the generals held fast to the resolution they had adopted, and said: 'We cannot engage in battle with the Moslem: rather let the counsel of the patriarch Cyrus be observed.' 26. Then the population rose up against the patriarch and sought to stone him. But he said unto them: 'I have made this treaty in order to save you and your children.' And plunged in much weeping and grief he besought them. 27. And thereupon the Alexandrians felt ashamed before him, and offered him a large sum of gold to hand over to the Ishmaelites together with the tribute which had been imposed on them.
28. And the Egyptians, who, through fear of the Moslem, had fled and taken refuge in the city of Alexandria, made the following request to the patriarch : 'Get the Moslem.to promise that we may return to our cities and become their subjects. And he negotiated for them according to their request. And the Moslem took possession of all the land of Egypt, southern and northern, and trepled their taxes.
29. Now there was a man named Menas, who had been appointed prefect of Lower Egypt by the emperor Heraclius : he was a presumptuous man, unlettered and a deep hater of the Egyptians. Now after the Moslem had got possession of all the country, they established him in his (former) dignity: and a man named Sînôdâ they appointed prefect of the province of Rîf: and another named Philoxenus as prefect of the province of Arcadia, that is, Fajum. 30. Now these three men loved the heathen but hated the Christians, and compelled the Christians to carry fodder for the cattle, and they forced them to + carry + milk, and honey, and fruit and leeks, and other things in abundance: Now all these were in addition to the ordinary rations. 31. (The Egyptians) carried out these orders under the constraint of an unceasing fear. (The Moslem) forced them to excavate (anew) the canal of Trajan, which had been destroyed for a long time, in order to conduct water through it from Babylon in Egypt to the Red Sea. 32. And the yoke they laid on the Egyptians was heavier than the yoke which had been laid on Israel by Pharaoh, whom God judged with a, righteous judgement, by drowning him in the Red Sea with all his army after the many plagues wherewith He had plagued both men and cattle. 33. When God's judgement lights upon these Ishmaelites may He do unto them as He did aforetime unto Pharaoh ! But it is because of our sins that He has suffered them to deal thus with us. Yet in His longsuffering our God and Saviour Jesus Christ will look upon us and protect us: and we also trust that He will destroy the enemies of the Cross, as saith the book which lies not.
34. And [after] 'Amr subdued the land of Egypt and sent his men to war against the inhabitants of Pentapolis. And after he had subdued them, he did not permit them to dwell there. And he took from thence plunder and captives in abundance. 35. And Abûljânôs the prefect of Pentapolis and his troops and the rich men of the province withdrew into the city of Dûshera —now its walls were strongly fortified—and they closed the gates. So the Moslem after seizing plunder and captives retired to their own country.
36. Now the patriarch Cyrus was greatly grieved on account of the calamities which had befallen the land of Egypt. For 'Amr had no mercy on the Egyptians, and did not observe the covenant they had made with him, for he was of a barbaric race. 37. And on the festival of Palm Sunday the patriarch Cyrus fell ill of a fever owing to excessive grief, and he died on the fifth day of Holy Week, on the twenty-fifth of the month Magâbît. 38. Thus he did not live to see the festival of the holy Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ as the Christians had predicted regarding him. Now this event took place in the reign of the emperor Constantine the son of Heraclius (II).
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56. (All these events) and the separation of Egypt and Alexandria during the reign of Heraclius the emperor of the Chalcedonians (fell out) as they are recorded in the letters of the great Severus the patriarch of Antioch, which he wrote to the Patrician in the reign of the emperor Anastasius, wherein he prophesied against the Roman empire in these terms: 'No son shall sit on his father's throne so long as the creed of the Chalcedonians prevails, who say that there were two natures in Christ after they became one, a creed which we cannot profess. Their doctrine that the manhood and the Godhead are two distinct natures after having become united, we believers cannot teach. It is not fitting that we should speak as the heretics.' 57. Or according to the statement of Gregory: 'We recognize God the Word to be of one nature derived from two. For God was united to the flesh and became one Substance. The Godhead indeed is not converted into the manhood, nor the manhood into the other nature, but the Word which became flesh had become unchangeable, and no change can affect the Word. But the Word which has become flesh is one divine Substance. 58. But this union is a marvel. That which is invisible has become visible: the Creator has been born and we have seen Him : He has healed us by His wounds!' 59. But we should cease giving citations from the words of the illustrious Fathers of the Church, who have been learned in investigation: for the Romans do not believe in aught now save the Passion. 60. But for those who welcome the flavour of true knowledge I will set it forth briefly. When they rejected the orthodox faith, which is our faith, in like manner were they rejected from the imperial throne. And there has followed the undoing of all Christians that are in the world, and we have not experienced the mercy and compassion of our Lord Jesus Christ.
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69. And the general Valentine and his troops were not able to give any assistance to the Egyptians; but the latter, and particularly the Alexandrians, were very hard pressed by the Moslem. And they were not able to bear the tribute which was exacted from them. And the rich men of the city (country ?) concealed themselves ten months in the islands.70. And, subsequently Theodore the governor and Constantine the commander-in-chief of the army, and the remaining troops, and likewise those which had been hostages in the hands of the Moslem, set out and embarked, and came to Alexandria. 71. And after the festival of the Cross they appointed Peter the deacon to be patriarch on the twentieth of Hamle, on the festival of the holy Theodore the martyr, and placed him on the patriarchal throne.
72. On the twentieth of Maskaram, Theodore and all his troops and officers set out and proceeded to the island of Cyprus, and abandoned the city of Alexandria. And thereupon 'Amr the chief of the Moslem made his entry without effort into the city of Alexandria. And the inhabitants received him with respect; for they were in great tribulation and affliction.
The Muslem historians claim that Muslem troops were welcomed by the cities they actually conquered, but the events described in this document proves that they were never welcome, merely accepted reluctantly by those who knew they were defeated and did not want to be butchered.
CHAPTER CXXI. 1. And Abba Benjamin, the patriarch of the Egyptians, returned to the city of Alexandria in the thirteenth year after his flight from the Romans, and he went to the Churches, and inspected all of them. 2. And every one said : 'This expulsion (of the Romans) and victory of the Moslem is due to the wickedness of the emperor Heraclius and his persecution of the Orthodox through the patriarch Cyrus. This was the cause of the ruin of the Romans and the subjugation of Egypt by the Moslem.
3. And 'Amr became stronger every day in every field of his activity. And he exacted the taxes which had been determined upon, but he took none of the property of the Churches, and he committed no act of spoliation or plunder, and he preserved them throughout all his days. And when he seized the city of Alexandria, he had the canal drained in accordance with the instructions given by the apostate Theodore. 4. And he increased the taxes to the extent of twenty-two batr of gold till all the people hid themselves owing to the greatness of the tribulation, and could not find the wherewithal to pay. And in the second year of the lunar cycle came John of the city of Damietta.
Under Muslem rule there were three choices: (1) Pay the tax, (2) convert to Islam, (3) be put to death. So you can see how the beast gained converts. (Those who did not have the mark of the beast could not buy or sell (Rev. 13): this shows economic pressure and hardship upon those who do not worship the beast, which is what happened to the Egyptians and is explained in detail in my book, The Coming Islamic Empire.)
5. He had been appointed by the governor Theodore, and had lent his aid to the Moslem in order to prevent their destruction of the city. Now he had been appointed prefect of the city of Alexandria when 'Amr entered it, And this John had compassion on the poor, and gave generously to them out of his possessions. And seeing their affliction he had mercy upon them, and wept over their lot. 6. 'Amr deposed Menas and appointed John in his stead. Now this Menas had increased the taxes of the city, which 'Amr had fixed at 22,000 gold dinars, and the sum which the apostate Menas got together was 32,057 gold dinars—he appointed for the Moslem. 7. And none could recount the mourning and lamentation which took place in that city: they even gave their children in exchange for the great sums which they had to pay monthly. And they had none to help them, and God destroyed their hopes, and delivered the Christians into the hands of their enemies. 8. But the strong beneficence of God will put to shame those who grieve us, and He will make His love for man to triumph over our sins, and bring to naught the evil purposes of those who afflict us, who would not that the King of Kings and Lord of Lords should reign over them, (even) Jesus Christ our true God. 9. As for those wicked slaves, He will destroy them in evil fashion: as saith the holy Gospel: 'As for Mine enemies who would not that I should reign over them, bring them unto Me.' 10. And now many of the Egyptians who had been false Christians denied the holy orthodox faith and lifegiving baptism, and embraced the religion of the Moslem, the enemies of God, and accepted the detestable doctrine of the beast, this is, Mohammed, and they erred together with those idolaters, and took arms in their hands and fought against the Christians. 11. And one of them, named John, the Chalcedonian of the Convent of Sinai, embraced the faith of Islam, and quitting his monk's habit he took up the sword, and persecuted the Christians who were faithful to our Lord Jesus Christ.
CHAPTER CXXII. 1. And now let us glorify our Lord Jesus Christ and bless His holy name at all times; for unto this hour He hath preserved us Christians from the errors of the erring heathen, and from the transgressions of the apostate heretics. 2. And may He also strengthen and help us to endure tribulation through hope in His divinity. And He will make us worthy to receive, with a face not put to shame, the inheritance of His eternal (and) incorruptible Kingdom in heaven. And (let us bless) His Father, (pre-eminently) good, and the Holy Lifegiving Spirit for ever and ever, Amen.
CHAPTER CXXIII. 1. (Herewith) ends this blessed book which John the rector bishop of Nikius composed for the profit of the soul. |202 Now it contains divine mysteries and heavenly marvels which have befallen apostates from the faith. 2. At one time the earth quaked on account of the denial (of the faith), and the great city of Nicaea was destroyed. At another it rained fire from heaven : at another the sun was darkened from the hour of dawn till evening. 3. On a certain occasion the rivers rose.and overwhelmed many cities ; while on another houses were overthrown and many men perished and went down to the depths of the earth. 4. And all these things fell out because they divided Christ into two natures, whilst some of them made Him (merely) a created being. 5. Also the Roman emperors lost the imperial crown, and the Ishmaelites and Chuzaeans won the mastery over them, because they did not walk in the orthodox faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, but divided the indivisible.
6. The transcription of this book began on the twenty-eighth day of Hamle, and was finished on Monday on the twenty-second day of Teqmet, . . .
9. We have translated this book with great care from Arabic into Ge'ez, even poor I, the most worthless amongst men and the vilest amongst the people, and the deacon Gabriel the Egyptian, son of the martyr John Kolobos, by the order of Athanasius commander-in-chief of the army of Ethiopia, and by the order of the queen Mârjâm Sena. 10. God grant that it may serve to the salvation of the soul and the preservation of the body. And praise be unto Him, who has given us power to begin and to finish (this work), for ever and ever. Amen and amen. So be it. So be it.