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| Saint Isaac, the Monk, predicts the Death of Valens. Valens in his Flight enters a Chaff-House, is consumed, and so yields up his Life.
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Chapter XL.—Saint
Isaac, the Monk, predicts the Death of Valens. Valens in his Flight
enters a Chaff-House, is consumed, and so yields up his Life.
When Valens was on the point of
departing from Constantinople,1515
| 1515Philost. ix. 17; Soc. iv. 38; Ruf. H. E. ii.
13. Cf. Theodoret, H. E. iv. 31–36; Eunap. Fr. i.
6; ii. 40, 41; Am. Marcel. xxxi. 11–14; Zos. iv. 24. Soz. has
wrought with some other material as well.
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Isaac, a monk of great virtue, who feared no danger in the cause of
God, presented himself before him, and addressed him in the following
words: “Give back, O emperor, to the orthodox, and to those who
maintain the Nicene doctrines, the churches of which you have deprived
them, and the victory will be yours.” The emperor was offended at
this act of boldness, and commanded that Isaac should be arrested and
kept in chains until his return, when he meant to bring him to justice
for his temerity. Isaac, however, replied, “You will not return
unless you restore the churches.” And so in fact it came to pass.
For when Valens marched out with his army, the Goths retreated while
pursued. In his advances he passed by Thrace, and came to Adrianople.
When at not great distance from the barbarians, he found them encamped
in a secure position; and yet he had the rashness to attack them before
he had arranged his own legions in proper order. His cavalry was
dispersed, his infantry compelled to retreat; and, pursued by the
enemy, he dismounted from his horse, and with a few attendants entered
into a small house or tower, where he secreted himself. The barbarians
were in full pursuit, and went beyond the tower, not suspecting that he
had selected it for his place of concealment. As the last detachment of
the barbarians was passing by the tower, the attendants of the emperor
let fly a volley of arrows from their covert, which immediately led to
the exclamation that Valens was concealed within the building. Those
who were a little in advance heard this exclamation, and made known the
news with a shout to those companions who were in advance of them; and
thus the news was conveyed till it reached the detachments which were
foremost in the pursuit. They returned, and encompassed the tower. They
collected vast quantities of wood from the country around, which they
piled up against the tower, and finally set fire to the mass. A wind
which had happened to arise favored the progress of the conflagration;
and in a short period the tower, with all that it contained, including
the emperor and his attendants, was utterly destroyed. Valens was fifty
years of age. He had reigned thirteen years conjointly with his
brother, and three by himself.
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