The Sclavene Scout at Auximum

This Good Works Translation completes the Book 6 Procopius dossier passages from the Greek.

The chapter matters for the Scythian shelf because Procopius gives a small but precise tactical note on Sclavene practice along the Ister: concealment beneath stone or bush, sudden capture, and the use of that frontier skill inside the Gothic War in Italy.

The translation is newly made from the Greek source text printed below. Dewing's public-domain English translation was used only as a control.

Translation

Wars 6.26.1-26

Thus Theudebert, after campaigning into Italy, made his withdrawal. The men around Martin and John turned back no less, so that the enemy would not make some attack upon those besieging them.

The Goths in Auximum had learned nothing about the arrival of the Franks. They had given up on the hope from Ravenna, since it delayed in this way; and although they intended again to call Vittigis as witness, they could not escape the enemy guard and were grieving.

Afterward, when they saw one of the Romans, a Bessian by race named Burcentius, who was under Narses the Armenian, keeping watch alone at midday so that no one from the city might go out to get grass, they came nearer, entered into conversation with him, gave pledges that they would do him no harm, and invited him to meet with them, promising him great sums of money from themselves.

When they came together in the same place, the barbarians begged the man to carry a certain letter to Ravenna. They set a stated amount of gold for him at once, and promised to give more when he returned bringing letters from Vittigis to them.

The soldier, persuaded by the money, agreed to serve them in these matters and fulfilled the promise. Taking sealed letters, he came quickly to Ravenna. When he came into the sight of Vittigis, he handed over the letter.

It declared these things: "You will know clearly how present matters stand with us when you learn who the carrier of the letter is.

"For it is impossible for a Gothic man to get outside the circuit-wall. The most abundant food for us happens to be the grass beside the wall; and now we are not allowed even to touch it, except by losing many men in the struggle over it. You and the Goths in Ravenna must reckon to what end these things will come for us."

When Vittigis read these things, he answered in this way: "Let no one suppose, dearest of all men, that we have fallen back, or that we have come to such baseness that through slackness we are throwing away the affairs of the Goths.

"For my preparation for the march had recently been practiced as far as possible, and Uraias had been summoned from Mediolanum with the whole army.

"But the attack of the Franks, falling upon us unexpectedly, checked all that had been prepared by us; and I could not justly bear the blame for this.

"For things greater than human power grant blamelessness to those who have stumbled, since fortune always draws the accusations from events onto herself.

"Now, however, since we also hear that Theudebert has moved out of our way, we shall, if God wills, be present with you before long with the whole army of the Goths.

"You must bear what befalls bravely and suitably to necessity, reckoning your own courage, on account of which I chose you out from all and stationed you in Auximum, and feeling shame before the reputation that all Goths have for you, since they have set you before Ravenna and their own safety."

After writing these things, Vittigis gave the man much money and sent him away. When Burcentius came to Auximum, he went to his own companions and pretended that some illness had happened to him, and that because of it he had spent time at a certain shrine not far away. He then took up again the guard duty in which he was accustomed to stand, escaped everyone's notice, and gave the letters to the enemy. When they were read aloud to the multitude, they strengthened everyone still more,

although they were being pressed by hunger. Therefore they were in no way willing to go over to Belisarius, though he tried many ways to tame them. Again, since no army from Ravenna was reported to have come out for them, and they were now exceedingly distressed by lack of necessities, they sent Burcentius again, revealing only this in the letters: that they could no longer fight against famine for the remaining five days. He came back to them again, carrying a letter from Vittigis that hung them on the same hopes.

The Romans were no less distressed, because they had made so long a siege in a deserted country, and they were at a loss seeing that the barbarians, amid such evils, would not give in to them.

Therefore Belisarius was eager to take alive some notable man among the enemy, so that he might know why the barbarians were enduring these terrible things. Valerian readily promised that he would serve him in such a matter.

For he said that there were some men among his followers from the nation of the Sclaveni, who are accustomed to hide under a small stone or any bush that happens to be at hand and snatch up an enemy man.

They always display this skill beside the river Ister, where they are settled, against both Romans and the other barbarians. Belisarius was pleased with the account and ordered him to attend to the work quickly.

Valerian chose one of the Sclaveni, a man well fitted in size of body and especially active, and ordered him to bring an enemy man, assuring him that great money would be given to him by Belisarius.

He said that the man would do this easily in the place where the grass was; for because of their lack of necessities, the Goths had long been feeding there.

So the Sclavene came very close to the circuit-wall in the deep dawn, covered himself in a certain bush, gathered his body into a small compass, and hid near the grass.

At daybreak a Gothic man came there and quickly gathered the blades, suspecting nothing troublesome from the bush, but often looking around toward the enemy camp, lest someone should come against him from there.

The Sclavene fell upon him suddenly from behind and made him captive. Holding the man tightly around the middle with both hands, he carried him into the camp and delivered him to Valerian.

When Valerian questioned him, asking in what the Goths trusted, and what security they had, that they were least of all willing to go over to the Romans but voluntarily endured the most terrible things, the barbarian told the whole story about Burcentius; and when Burcentius came into his sight, he proved it against him.

Burcentius, when he perceived that he had already been found out, concealed none of what had been done. Therefore Belisarius handed him over to his companions to use as they wished. Not long afterward they burned him alive, while the enemy watched what was being done. Thus Burcentius profited from his love of money.

Colophon

This Good Works Translation was prepared for the Scythian shelf by the New Tianmu Anglican Church from the Greek source text printed below. The Greek text was downloaded from the PerseusDL canonical Greek repository as tlg4029.tlg001.perseus-grc2.xml and inspected locally. Dewing's public-domain English, preserved in the local ToposText capture and Ready archival dossier, was used only as a control.

This is the sixteenth unit in the Procopius Wars steppe and Black Sea translation dossier, and the fourth Book 6 unit.

Compiled and formatted for the Good Work Library by the New Tianmu Anglican Church, 2026.

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Source Text: Procopius, Wars 6.26.1-26

Greek source text from Procopius, Wars 6.26. Presented here for reference, study, and verification alongside the English translation above.

Wars 6.26

§ 6.26.1 Οὕτω μὲν Θευδίβερτος στρατεύσας ἐς Ἰταλίαν τὴν ἄφοδον ἐποιήσατο. οἵ τε ἀμφὶ Μαρτῖνον καὶ Ἰωάννην ἀνέστρεψαν οὐδέν τι ἧσσον, ὅπως μή τινα οἱ πολέμιοι ἔφοδον ἐπὶ σφῶν τοὺς πολιορκοῦντας ποιήσονται.

§ 6.26.2 Γότθοι δὲ οἱ ἐν Αὐξίμῳ, Φράγγων μὲν ἀφίξεως πέρι οὐδὲν πεπυσμένοι, ἀπειρηκότες δὲ πρὸς τὴν ἐκ Ῥαβέννης ἐλπίδα οὕτω μέλλουσαν, αὖθις μὲν Οὐίττιγιν διενοοῦντο μαρτύρεσθαι, λαθεῖν δὲ τῶν πολεμίων τὴν φυλακὴν οὐχ οἷοί τε ὄντες ἐπένθουν.

§ 6.26.3 μετὰ δὲ τῶν τινα Ῥωμαίων, Βέσον γένος Βουρκέντιον ὄνομα, ὑπὸ Ναρσῇ τεταγμένον τῷ Ἀρμενίῳ, μόνον ἰδόντες ἐς μέσην ἡμέραν φυλακὴν ἔχοντα, ὡς μή τις ἐκ τῆς πόλεως ἐπὶ τὴν πόαν ληψόμενος ἴοι, ἔς τε λόγους αὐτῷ ξυνῆλθον ἐγγυτέρω ἥκοντες καὶ τὰ πιστὰ δόντες ὡς οὐδὲν ἐς αὐτὸν κακουργήσωσι ξυγγενέσθαι σφίσιν ἐκέλευον, ἔσεσθαί οἱ μεγάλα ἐπαγγειλαμένοις παρὰ σφῶν χρήματα.

§ 6.26.4 καὶ ἐπειδὴ ἐν τῷ αὐτῷ ἐγένοντο, ἐδέοντο τοῦ ἀνθρώπου οἱ βάρβαροι ἐπιστολήν τινα ἐς Ῥάβενναν διακομίσαι, τάξαντες μέν οἱ ἐν τῷ παραυτίκα χρυσίον ῥητόν, πλέον δὲ ὑποσχόμενοι δώσειν, ἐπειδὰν σφίσιν Οὐιττίγιδος γράμματα ἐπανήκοι φέρων.

§ 6.26.5 τοῖς δὲ χρήμασιν ὁ στρατιώτης ἀναπεισθεὶς ὑπουργήσειν τε ὡμολόγησε ταῦτα καὶ ἐπιτελῆ ἐποίησε τὴν ὑπόσχεσιν. γράμματα γοῦν κατασεσημασμένα λαβὼν ἐς Ῥάβενναν κατὰ τάχος ἀφίκετο. καὶ Οὐιττίγιδι ἐς ὄφιν ἐλθὼν τὴν ἐπιστολὴν ἐνεχείρισεν.

§ 6.26.6 ἐδήλου δὲ τάδε· “Ὅπη μὲν ἡμῖν τὰ παρόντα ἔχει σαφῶς εἴσεσθε, πυνθανόμενοι ὅστις ποτὲ ὁ τῆς ἐπιστολῆς παραπομπὸς εἴη.

§ 6.26.7 Γότθῳ γὰρ ἀνδρὶ ἔξω γενέσθαι τοῦ περιβόλου ἀμήχανά ἐστι. τῶν δὲ βρωμάτων ἡμῖν τὸ εὐπορώτατον ἡ παρὰ τὸ τεῖχος πόα τυγχάνει οὖσα, ἧς γε ἡμῖν οὐδὲ ὅσον ἅψασθαι τανῦν ἔξεστιν, ὅτι μὴ πολλοὺς ἀποβάλλουσιν ἐν τῷ ὑπὲρ ταύτης ἀγῶνι. ταῦτα ἐς ὅ τι ἡμῖν τελευτήσει σέ τε χρὴ καὶ Γότθους τοὺς ἐν Ῥαβέννῃ λογίζεσθαι.”

§ 6.26.8 Ταῦτα ἐπεὶ ὁ Οὐίττιγις ἀνελέξατο, ἀμείβεται ὧδε· “Ἀναπεπτωκέναι δὲ ἡμᾶς, ὦ φίλτατοι ἀνθρώπων ἁπάντων, οἰέσθω μηδείς, μηδὲ ἐς κακίας τοσόνδε ἥκειν ὥστε ῥᾳθυμίᾳ τὰ Γότθων καταπροΐεσθαι πράγματα.

§ 6.26.9 ἐμοὶ γὰρ ἔναγχος ἥ τε τῆς ἐξόδου παρασκευὴ ὡς ἔνι μάλιστα ἤσκητο καὶ Οὐραΐας παντὶ τῷ στρατῷ ἐκ Μεδιολάνου μετάπεμπτος ἦλθεν.

§ 6.26.10 ἀλλ’ ἡ Φράγγων ἔφοδος παραδόξως ἐπιπεσοῦσα πάντα ἡμῖν τὰ ἐν παρασκευῇ ἀνεχαίτισεν, ὧν ἔγωγε οὐκ ἂν τὴν αἰτίαν δικαίως φεροίμην.

§ 6.26.11 ὅσα γὰρ μείζω ἢ κατὰ ἀνθρώπου δύναμίν ἐστι καὶ τοῖς ἐπταικόσι τὸ ἀνεγκλήτοις εἶναι χαρίζεται, τῆς τύχης ἐφ’ ἑαυτὴν ἐπισπωμένης ἀεὶ τὰ ἐκ τῶν πεπραγμένων ἐγκλήματα.

§ 6.26.12 νῦν μέντοι ʽκαὶ γὰρ Θευδίβερτον ἐκποδὼν ἡμῖν γεγενῆσθαι ἀκούομεν’ οὐκ ἐς μακρὰν ὑμῖν, ἂν θεὸς θέλῃ, πάσῃ τῇ Γότθων στρατιᾷ παρεσόμεθα.

§ 6.26.13 χρὴ δὲ ὑμᾶς τὰ παραπίπτοντα φέρειν ἀνδρείως τε καὶ τῇ ἀνάγκῃ ἐπιτηδείως, λογιζομένους μὲν τὴν ὑμετέραν ἀρετήν, ἧς ἕνεκα ἐκ πάντων ἀπολέξας ὑμᾶς ἐν Αὐξίμῳ κατεστησάμην, αἰσχυνομένους δὲ τὴν δόξαν, ἣν Γότθοι ἅπαντες ἐφ’ ὑμῖν ἔχοντες Ῥαβέννης τε ὑμᾶς καὶ

§ 6.26.14 τῆς σφῶν αὐτῶν σωτηρίας προβέβληνται.” τοσαῦτα γράψας Οὐίττιγις καὶ χρήμασι πολλοῖς τὸν ἄνθρωπον δωρησάμενος ἀπεπέμψατο. ὃς δὴ ἐς Αὔξιμον ἀφικόμενος, παρά τε τοὺς ἑταίρους τοὺς αὐτοῦ ἦλθε καὶ ἀρρώστημα ὅ τι δή οἱ ξυμβεβηκέναι σκηψάμενος ἔς τε ἱερόν τι οὐκ ἄποθεν ὂν διὰ τοῦτο ἐσχολακέναι, κατέστη μὲν αὖθις ἐς τὴν φυλακὴν ᾗπερ εἰώθει, λαθὼν δὲ ἅπαντας τοῖς πολεμίοις τὰ γράμματα ἔδωκεν· ἅπερ ἐς τὸ πλῆθος ἀναγνωσθέντα ἔτι μᾶλλον ἅπαντας,

§ 6.26.15 καίπερ τῷ λιμῷ πιεζομένους, ἐπέρρωσε. διὸ δὴ προσχωρεῖν Βελισαρίῳ πολλὰ τιθασσεύοντι οὐδαμῆ ἤθελον. αὖθις δὲ ʽοὐδὲ γὰρ σφίσι στράτευμα ἐκ Ῥαβέννης ἐξεληλυθὸς ἠγγέλλετο καὶ τῶν ἀναγκαίων τῇ ἀπορίᾳ ὑπερφυῶς ἤδη ἤχθοντὀ Βουρκέντιον πάλιν πέμπουσι, τοῦτο ἐν γράμμασι δηλώσαντες μόνον, ὡς πέντε ἡμερῶν οὐκέτι τὸ λοιπὸν οἷοί τέ εἰσι τῷ λιμῷ μάχεσθαι. ὁ δὲ αὐτοῖς ἐπανῆκεν αὖθις, Οὐιττίγιδος ἐπιστολὴν ἔχων ταῖς ὁμοίαις ἐλπίσιν αὐτοὺς ἀναρτῶσαν.

§ 6.26.16 Ῥωμαῖοι δὲ οὐδέν τι ἧσσον ἀχθόμενοι, ὅτι δὴ ἐν χώρᾳ ἐρήμῳ μακρὰν οὕτω προσεδρείαν πεποίηνται, διηποροῦντο, οὐκ ἐνδιδόντας σφίσιν ἐν τοσούτοις κακοῖς τοὺς βαρβάρους ὁρῶντες.

§ 6.26.17 διὸ δὴ Βελισάριος ἐν σπουδῇ ἐποιεῖτο ζῶντά τινα τῶν ἐν τοῖς πολεμίοις δοκίμων λαβεῖν, ὅπως ἂν γνοίη ὅτου δὴ ἕνεκα τὰ δεινὰ καρτεροῦσιν οἱ βάρβαροι, καί οἱ Βαλεριανὸς τὸ τοιοῦτον ὑπουργήσειν εὐπετῶς ὡμολόγει.

§ 6.26.18 εἶναι γάρ τινας τῶν οἱ ἑπομένων ἐκ τοῦ Σκλαβηνῶν ἔθνους, οἳ κρύπτεσθαί τε ὑπὸ λίθῳ βραχεῖ ἢ φυτῷ τῳ παρατυχόντι εἰώθασι καὶ ἀναρπάζειν ἄνδρα πολέμιον.

§ 6.26.19 τοῦτό τε ἀεὶ παρὰ ποταμὸν Ἴστρον, ἔνθα ἵδρυνται, ἔς τε Ῥωμαίους καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους βαρβάρους ἐνδείκνυνται. ἥσθη τῷ λόγῳ Βελισάριος καὶ τοῦ ἔργου ἐπιμελεῖσθαι κατὰ τάχος ἐκέλευε.

§ 6.26.20 Βαλεριανὸς οὖν ἀπολέξας τῶν Σκλαβηνῶν ἕνα σώματός τε μεγέθους πέρι εὖ ἥκοντα καὶ διαφερόντως δραστήριον, ἄνδρα πολέμιον ἄγειν ἐπέστελλε, χρήματά οἱ μεγάλα πρὸς Βελισαρίου ἰσχυρισάμενος ἔσεσθαι.

§ 6.26.21 δράσειν δὲ τοῦτο αὐτὸν ἐν τῷ χωρίῳ εὐπετῶς ἔφασκεν οὗπερ ἡ πόα τυγχάνει οὖσα· χρόνου γὰρ πολλοῦ ταύτῃ τοὺς Γότθους ἀπορίᾳ τῶν ἀναγκαίων σιτίζεσθαι.

§ 6.26.22 ὁ μὲν οὖν Σκλαβηνὸς ὄρθρου βαθέος ἄγχιστα τοῦ περιβόλου γενόμενος, ἐν θάμνῳ τινὶ ἐγκαλυψάμενός τε καὶ τὸ σῶμα ἐς ὀλίγον ξυναγαγὼν ἀμφὶ τὴν πόαν ἐκρύπτετο.

§ 6.26.23 ἅμα δὲ ἡμέρᾳ Γότθος ἀνὴρ ἐνταῦθα ἥκων τὰς βοτάνας κατὰ τάχος ξυνέλεγεν, ἐκ μὲν τοῦ θάμνου ὑποτοπάζων οὐδὲν ἄχαρι, συχνὰ δὲ περισκοπῶν ἐς τὸ τῶν ἐναντίων στρατόπεδον, μή τις ἐνθένδε ἐς αὐτὸν ἴοι.

§ 6.26.24 καί οἱ ἐπιπεσὼν ὄπισθεν ὁ Σκλαβηνὸς ἐκ τοῦ αἰφνιδίου ἀνάρπαστον ἐποιήσατο, σφίγγων τε μέσον καρτερῶς χερσὶν ἀμφοτέραις τὸν ἄνθρωπον, ἔς τε τὸ στρατόπεδον ἤνεγκε καὶ φέρων Βαλεριανῷ ἐνεχείρισεν.

§ 6.26.25 ᾧ δὴ πυνθανομένῳ, ὅτῳ ποτὲ Γότθοι πιστεύοντες καὶ τί τὸ ἐχυρὸν ἔχοντες ἥκιστα ἐθέλουσι προσχωρεῖν σφίσιν, ἀλλ’ ἑκούσιοι τὰ δεινότατα ἐγκαρτεροῦσι, τὸν πάντα λόγον ἀμφὶ τῷ Βουρκεντίῳ ὁ βάρβαρος ἔφρασε καὶ αὐτόν οἱ ἐς ὄψιν ἥκοντα ἤλεγχεν.

§ 6.26.26 ὁ δὲ Βουρκέντιος, ἐπεὶ ἔκπυστος ἤδη γεγονὼς ᾔσθετο, οὐδὲν τῶν πεπραγμένων ἀπέκρυψε. διὸ δὴ Βελισάριος μὲν τοῖς ἑταίροις αὐτὸν ὅ τι βούλοιντο παρέδωκε χρῆσθαι, οἱ δὲ αὐτὸν ζῶντα οὐκ ἐς μακρὰν ἔκαυσαν, θεωμένων τὰ ποιούμενα τῶν πολεμίων. Βουρκέντιος μὲν οὕτω τῆς φιλοχρηματίας ἀπέλαυσε.

Source Colophon

Greek source text from the PerseusDL canonical Greek repository file tlg4029.tlg001.perseus-grc2.xml, inspected locally for this translation unit.

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