Oinaion, Pontus
June 15, 1181

The Lord Andronicus to his Holiness, the Patriarch Theodosius the Boradiote: Greetings.

I write to your Holiness out of my deep distress at the continuing ill tidings that come to me, even here in my isolation on the mist-shrouded coast of Pontus, of events in the great city of Constantinople. As a father, I am of course severely distressed by the news of the arrest of my two legitimate sons, Manuel and John – among the finest young men of the Court, as you know – who stand falsely accused of the darkest crimes, but are denied a fair opportunity to answer and refute these baseless allegations. Even now that the Caesar and Caesarissa have been granted immunity from prosecution – and I of course do not grudge them their own escape from the sham courts established by the protosebastos – my two boys continue to languish in the dark dungeon of the Prison of Anemas, the very place where I was myself unjustly confined for so many years because the late Emperor Manuel (may he rest in peace) was led astray by the false voices of envious, self-seeking men.

But even deeper than my distress as a father is my anxiety as a citizen of the Empire; as a loyal subject of our young Emperor Alexius II; and as a man who honors the memory of the late Emperor Manuel at the reports that come to my ears. I hear that the great offices of the State have been transformed into a "den of thieves" – that these positions are no longer treated as sacred trusts of honor and responsibility, but as mere goods in commerce that may be bartered and exploited for private enrichment. I hear that those who have assumed the heavy responsibility of acting as guardians and teachers of our young Emperor instead slyly encourage him in frivolous pursuits, hoping thereby to prolong their own power, when they should instruct him in the burdens and duties of statesmanship. Most shocking of all, I hear that the Empress-Mother Maria of Antioch, who with solemn oaths promised her late Lord and husband that she would take the veil upon his death and wholly devote herself to raising the heir to the Empire, instead indulges herself in the warmth and luxury of a lustful bed. Oh, foolish, frivolous people! "Be not deceived; God is not mocked; for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap." Galatians 6:7.

Your Holiness will recall the solemn oath I swore in your presence to my late cousin, the Emperor Manuel, not one year ago: that "should I see or perceive or hear anything bringing dishonor to you or inflicting any injury upon your crown, I shall relay this information to your Holiness and thwart any attempt so far as I am able." I have lived long, and as your Holiness knows, have fallen into sin, like any mortal man; but let no one say of me that I forget my oaths, or swear falsely while hiding in my heart a purpose of evasion. I am advanced in years, and I am far from Constantinople – but I will pledge the strength and vigor that I still have to protect and serve the State and the young Emperor.

Let the word therefore go out – I am watchful; I am listening; and I, at least, shall act in accordance to my oath. To those who share my distress at the corruption of the current regime, as well as to those who are most full of guilt, I say in the words of the Apostle Paul, "Now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now is our salvation nearer than we believed. The night is far spent; the day is at hand; let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light." Romans 13:11.

Your Servant and Supporter,

ANDRONICUS COMNENUS

Principal Source:

Harry J. Magoulias, editor and translator, O City of Byzantium, Annals of Nicetas Choniates (1985), at pp. 129-30