Butumites meanwhile with Monastras and the picked officers who remained with him, reached Cilicia and found that the Armenians had already concluded a truce with Tancred. So he passed them by and seized Marasin and all the neighbouring villages and forts; then he left the semibarbarian Monastras (who has often been mentioned in this history) as governor with sufficient troops to protect the whole country, and himself returned to the capital.
Cephalenia and Zacynthus
X When the Franks moved out of Jerusalem to take the cities of Syria, they promised the Bishop of Pisa large rewards, if he would assist them in their proposed object. He agreed to their request and stirred up two others who dwelt on the coast to do the same; and then without any delay equipped biremes and triremes and ‘dromones’ and other fast-sailing ships amounting to nine hundred and sailed forth to meet them. He detached a number of the ships and sent them to pillage Corfu, Leucas, Cephalenia and Zacynthus. On hearing this the Emperor ordered ships to be furnished by all the countries under the Roman sway.
He had a number built in the capital itself and would at intervals go round in a monoreme and instruct the shipwrights how to make them As he knew that the Pisans were skilled in sea warfare and dreaded a battle with them, on the prow of each ship he had a head fixed of a lion or other land-animal, made in brass or iron with the mouth open and then gilded over, so that their mere aspect was terrifying. And the fire which was to be directed against the enemy through tubes he made to pass through the mouths of the beasts, so that it seemed as if the lions and the other similar monsters were vomiting the fire.
In this manner then these ships were prepared; he next sent for Taticius, newly returned from Antioch, and gave him these ships and named him their supreme head. But the whole fleet he put under the command of Landulph and raised him to the dignity of Great Duke, as he was the most experienced in naval warfare. They left the capital in the course of the month of April and sailed to Samos with the Roman fleet.
There they disembarked and hauled the ships up on land in order to make them stronger and more durable by tarring them over. But when they heard that the Pisan fleet had sailed past, they heaved up their anchors and hurried after them towards Cos; and reached that island in the evening while the Pisans had reached it in the morning. As they did not meet the Pisans they sailed to Cnidus which lies on the Eastern Continent. On arriving there, although they missed their prey, yet they found a few Pisans who had been left behind and enquired of them whither the Pisan fleet had gone, and they answered ‘ to Rhodes.’ So they immediately loosed their cables and soon overtook them between Patara and Rhodes.
Read More about Silence part 9
