promises sent them away; who as if they had been about their Country work, were after their wonted manner received into the City, without suspition at all. And within a few days after ac∣cording to their promise, at an appointed hour received in by night the aforesaid fifty Souldiers; who aided by them, presently slew the Watch, and brake open the Gate, whereby Alexius en∣tring a little before day, in convenient place put his men in order of Battel, and afterward to the greater terror of the Latines, caused the City to be set on fire in four places, which increasing with the Wind, burnt in most terrible manner, and was in short time come almost unto the Emperors Palace. Who scarce well awaked, and seeing the City all on a fire about his Ears, and the Ene∣my coming on, was about at the first with those few Latines that he had (for Greeks he had none) to have made head against them. But better advised, and perceiving it to be now to no pur∣pose, he (the last of the Latine Emperors that ever reigned in Constantinople) with Iustinian the Latine Patriarch, and some other of his Friends, fled by Sea into Euboea, and so from thence after∣wards to Venice, and afterwards to Lewis the French King, in hope to have been by him and the Venetians relieved. After whom fled also all the rest of the Latines. Thus the Imperial City of Constantinople by great fortune fell again into the hands of the Greeks, in the year 1261. after that it had been in possession of the Latines about 58 years.The joyful news of the recovery of the Impe∣rial City, was in short time carried unto Michael Paleologus the Greek Emperor at Nice; who at the first believed it not, as thinking it scarce possible, so strong a City to have been by so weak a power surprised, whereas he himself not long before was not able with a right puissant Army, and much other like provision, to win the Castle of Galata over against it. But afterwards assured of the truth thereof, with his Hands and Eyes cast up towards Heaven, gave most hearty thanks to God therefore, causing Hymns and Psalms of Thanks∣giving to be solemnly sung in every Church, with all the other signs of Joy and Triumph that could be devised. So setting all other things apart,Paleolo∣gus the Greek Em∣peror ta∣keth pos∣session of the City of Constan∣tinople. he wholly busied himself in making pre∣paration for his going unto Constantinople, now once again the seat of the Greek Empire; wherein, and in travelling having spent many days, he at length with the Empress his Wife and Andronicus his Son, then but two years old, as if it had been in solemn Procession, on foot entred into the City, by the Gate called the Golden Gate; and so after Prayers and Thanks given, went to the Palace prepared for him near unto the Tilt-yard; for the other Im∣perial Palaces of greater beauty (sometime the stately dwellings of the greatest Emperors of the Greeks) had now of long, during the Reign of the Latines, lien ruinous, or altogether defaced. And shortly after, because vertue and true de∣sert should not want their due honour, he caused Alexius Caesar (by whose means the City was recovered) in solemn Triumph in his Robes of Honour, with a Crown upon his Head, not much inferior unto the Imperial Crown, with great Pomp to be carried through all the City; and farther commanded, that his name for one year next following, in all solemn Prayers and Hymns of Thanksgiving, should be joyned with the name of the Emperor himself. And yet not thinking to have done him honour enough, cau∣sed his lively Image afterward to be most curi∣ously made, and as a Trophie to be set upon a fair marble Pillar, before the great Church of the Holy Apostles, in perpetual remembrance of him, and what he had done for the delivery of his Country; which shortly after overthrown by an Earthquake, was by his Son again restored. Now was this great and famous City, sometime the Beauty of the World, by these strange and fa∣tal mutations, wonderfully defaced, and brought to great desolation; in every place was to be seen great Heaps, or rather (to say the truth) great Hills of Rubbidge, the eternal Witnesses of the ruin thereof; the Houses stood some quite fallen down, some ready to follow after, and some other great and stately buildings, now the small reliques of great Fires; for the great beauty thereof was before, at such time as the Latines took it, most defaced by Fire; who all the time that they had it, ceased not night and day to destroy some part or other of it, as if they had known they should not long keep it; neither did this last Fire raised by the Greeks themselves to terrifie the Latines, a little deform it; for which cause the Emperors chief care now was to cleanse the City, and in the best sort he could to reform so great a confusion of things not to be all at once amended; first beginning with the Churches, which ruinous or ready to fall, he re∣paired; and next to that filled the empty houses with new Inhabitants. And albeit that the chief of the Latines were together with the Emperor fled and gone, yet was most part of the Artificers and Tradesmen of the City, Venetians, and of them of Pisa, mingled together; unto whom also to joyn the Genowaies, and so to fill the City with Latines, he thought it not altogether safe, although that by them he reaped great pro∣fit; wherefore he assigned unto them the City of Galatia now called Pera, on the other side of the Haven, for them to inhabit; granting them great Privileges, and every of those Companies to be governed by a Consul or Potestate of their own. As for the Imperial City it self, he stored it, (as near as he could) with Natural Greeks born.Now although all things went as Paleologus the Emperor could himself have wished;Paleolo∣gus jealous of his State. yet could he not rest so contented, for fear lest those which now did eat their own Hearts, and with great grief smouldred their anger, should at length as the rightful Heirs of the Empire by him usurped, break out into open force, and so breed him great troubles, yea and perhaps work his confusion. For such is the tormenting state if usurping Ty∣rants, never to think themselves safe so long as any one liveth, whom they may suspect. Where∣fore at once to rid himself of this fear, he thought it best so to dispose of the Children of the late Emperor Theodorus Lascaris, as that he should not need of them to stand in doubt; to take them out of the way, besides that it was a thing odious, he saw it like to be unto him dangerous; Mary and Theodora (two of the El∣dest Daughters) being before by their Father married unto two great Princes, (one the Despot of Epirus, and the other Prince of Bulgaria) with whom he had much before to do, and of them yet stood in some doubt; but these were safe enough out of his reach. Other two young Sisters there were in his custody, Theodora and Irene, with their Brother Iohn, the only Heir of the Empire; Theodora he married unto one Belicur a Gentleman of Peloponesus; and Irene to one Vigintimilio of Genoa; both Latines, men of no great Birth or Power, such as he needed not to stand in doubt of. These two Ladies, the Daughters of so great an Emperor as was Theodorus, thus basely bestowed; remained only their Brother Iohn, the only Heir of the Empire, then but ten years old, whom Peleologus long before even 0