Then the Turks made a sudden descent upon the camp and carried off everything and afterwards pursued and overtook the infantry and annihilated them completely, except for a few whom they captured and carried back to Chorosan as specimens. Such were the exploits of the Turks against the Normans; and Isangeles and Tzitas with the few surviving knights reached the capital. The Emperor received them, and gave them plenty of money, and after they were rested asked them whither they wanted to go; and they chose Jerusalem. Accordingly he lavished more presents upon them and sent them by sea, leaving everything to their discretion.
Immediately wrote to the Duke of Cyprus
But Isangeles on leaving the capital desired to return to his own army and therefore went back to Tripolis, which he longed to subdue. Afterwards he fell a victim to a mortal disease and, when breathing his last, sent for his nephew Gelielmus and bequeathed to him as a species of inheritance all the towns he had conquered and appointed him leader and master of all his troops. When the news of his death was brought to the Emperor, he immediately wrote to the Duke of Cyprus, and ordered him to send Nicetas Chalintzes with plenty of money to Gelielmus in order to propitiate him and influence him to swear on oath that he would maintain unbroken fidelity to the Emperor just as his deceased uncle Isangeles had preserved his to the end.
IX Soon the Emperor learnt of the seizure of Laodicea by Tancred, and therefore sent a letter to Bohemund which ran as follows: “You know the oaths and promises which not only you but all the Counts took to the Roman Empire. Now you were the first to break them, by retaining possession of Antioch, and then taking more fortresses and even Laodicea itself.
Therefore withdraw from Antioch and all the other cities and do what is just and right, and do not provoke more wars and troubles for yourself.” Now Bohemund after reading the Emperor’s letter could not reply by a falsehood, as he usually did, for the facts openly declared the truth, so outwardly he assented to it, but put the blame for all the wrong he had done upon the Emperor and wrote to him thus, “It is not I, but you, who are the cause of all this.
For you promised you would follow us with a large army, but you never thought of making good your promise by deeds. When we reached Antioch we fought for three months under great difficulty both against the enemy and against famine, which was more severe than had ever been experienced before, with the result that most of us ate of the very foods which are forbidden by law. We endured for a long time and while we were in this danger even Taticius, your Majesty’s most loyal servant, whom you had appointed to help us, went away and left us to our danger.
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