A Dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology. By various writers. Ed. by William Smith. Illustrated by numerous engravings on wood.

NICETAS. NICETAS. 1l83
portance, and he was honoured with the title of Nicetas also wrote: O(rsaavpos ZpOootias, in
senator. He was present at the capture of Con- twenty-seven books, the first five of which were
stantinople by the Latins in 1204, of which he translated into Latin by P. Morel (Morellus),
has given us a most impressive and, undoubtedly, Paris, 1561, 8vo., 1579, 1610; Geneva, 1629.
faithful description. His palace was burnt down They are also in the 12th vol. of the Bibl. Patr.
during the storm, and after many dangerous Colon. But the whole is as yet unpublished.
adventures he escaped, with his family, to Nicaea, The complete work is extant in MS. in the Royal
through the assistance of a generous Venetian Library at Paris; and there is another, but somemerchant. There he continued to live at the court what abridged copy in the Bodleian. Some minor
of the emperor Theodore Lascaris, and- employed productions of Nicetas, among which a fragment
his time in writing that great historical work which on the ceremonies observed when a Mohammedan
has brought his name down to posterity. He died adopted the Christian religion, are extant in difat Nicaea in, or perhaps after 1216. Modern ferent libraries in Europe. Michael Choniates, the
travellers have tried, but in vain, to discover his elder brother of Nicetas, wrote Movosia, being the
tomb. The Historia is a corollary of ten distinct life of Nicetas in bombastic verses, translated into
works, each of which contains one or more books, of Latin, and published by P. Morel, Paris, 1566,
which there are twenty-one, giving the history of 8vo.; and also in the 25th vol. of the Bibl. Patr.
the emperors from 1 118 down to 1206: viz. Joannes Lugdun. (Fabric. Bibl. Gracec. vol. vii. p. 737, &c.;
Comnenus (1118-1143), in one book; Manuel Hankius, Script. Byzant.; Leo Allatius, De Nicetis;
Comnenus (1143-1180), in seven books; Alexis Hamberger, ANachric7den eon gelehteen Miinnern;
Comnenus (1180-1183), in one book; Andro- Harris,.ec.)
nicus Comnenus (1183-1185) in two books; 2. ARCHIDIACONUS et Chartophylax Magnae
Isaac Angelus (1185-1195), in three books; Ecclesiae Constantinopolitanae, lived about 1080,
Alexis Angelus (1195-1203), in three books; and wrote'AvaOEJsaTr''Poi II., -Anathematisnzi
Isaac Angelus and his son Alexis (1203-1204), contra Joannenz Philosophnum Italumn, a treatise on
in one book; Alexis Ducas Murzuplus (1204), in the orthodox faith, which is still esteemed in the
one book; Urbs Capta, or the events during and Greek church, though it was never printed. It is
immediately after the taking of Constantinople extant in MS. at Venice. (Cave, Hist. Liter. ad
(1204), in one book; Baldwin of Flanders (1201 an. 1080; Leo Allat. De Consensa Utriusque
-1206), in one book. The mode of quoting this Eccles. i. ii. c. 10.)
historical work is thus: Nicetas, Isaac Angelus, 3. BYZANTINUS, a monk who lived about 1120,
i. 3; Urbs Capta, c. 1; Andron. Comnen. ii. 5, &c. wrote Tractatus Apologeticus pro Synodo Cial/ceEditions: Ed. princeps, by H. Wolf, with a Latin donensi adversus Armeniae Principem, ed. Leo
version, Base], 1557, fol.; reprinted, with an index Allatius, Graece et Latine, in the first vol. of
and a chronology by Simon Goulartius, Geneva, Graecia Ortlhodoxa, Rome, 1652, 4to.; some ascribe
1593, 4to; by Fabrot, with a most valuable Glos- this work to Nicetas Paphlago. (Cave, Hist. Liter;
sarium Graeco-barbarum, and a revised translation, ad an. 1120; Fabric. Bibl. Graec. vol. vii. p. 746.)
notes, &c.; Paris, 1647, fol. in the Paris collection 4. DAVID. [See No. 9.]
of the Byzantines; the same badly reprinted, 5. EUGENIANUS, lived probably towards the
Venice, 1729, fol. The last edition is in the Bonn end of the the twelfth century, and wrote in poetry
collection of the Byzantines, edited by J. Bekker, "The History of the Lives of Drusilla and Cha1835. ricles," which is the worst of all' the Greek
A Greek MS. in the Bodleian, divided into romances that have come down to us. It was
two books, and giving an account of the conquest published for the first time by Boissonade, together
of Constantinople, with special regard to the with the fragments of an erotic poem by Constatues destroyed by the Latins, is ascribed to stantinus Manasses, 1819, 2 vols.
Nicetas, but it seems to have been altered by a 6. GEORGIUS, of uncertain age, wrote Epistolae
later writer, who made additions. The account of de Creatione Honzinis, extant in MS. at Vienna.
the statues, which is -of great interest, is given by (Fabric. Bibl. Graec. vol. xii. p. 53.)
Fabricius quoted below, and critical investigations 7. MARONITA, chartophylax, and afterwards
concerning this MS. are given by Harris, in his archbishop of Thessalonica, lived about 1200, and
Philological Enquiries (part-iii. c. 5). The work showed himself well disposed towards the conitself has been published by Wilken, under the templated union of the Greek and Latin churches.
title of NVicetae Narratio de- Statuis antiquis, quas He wrote: 1. De Processione Spiritus Sancti DiaF'ranci, post captamn anno 1204 Constantinopolin logorum Libri VII., in which he introduces a
destruxerunt, Lips 1830. The four splendid Greek and a Latin discussing the above subject.
brass horses at Venice were taken by the Vene- Leo Allatius (Contra Hottinger. c. 19) gives some
tians during the plunder of Constantinople in fragments of it. 2. Responsio ad Interrogationes
1204, and fortunately escaped the barbarous Basilii Monachi, Graec. et Lat. in Leunclavius,
avarice of the Latin soldiery. We cannot wonder Jus Graeco-Rom. 3. Responsio ad Interrogationes
at seeing Nicetas deeply incensed against the con- de diversis Casibus Ecclesiast., ibid. 4. De Miiraquerors; but though very partial in his expressions, culis S. Denmetrii lfartyris, extant in the Bodleian.
he is generally impartial as to facts. His style is 5. Expositio Canonum s. Canticorum S. Joan. Dabombastic, yet some portions of his work are most masceni, extant in MS. in Vienna. He also wrote
expressive and even beautiful. The HIistory of some minor works. (Cave, Hist. Liter. ad an.
Nicetas, as far as it treats the conquest of Con- 1201.)
stantinople, ought not to be studied without com- 8. NICAEANUS, chartophylax at Nicaea, of
paring it with Villehardouin's De la Conqueste de uncertain age, wrote De Sc/hismate inter Eccles.
Constantinoble, and Paolo Ramusio's elegant work, Graecarn et Romanam, extant in MS. in Paris
De Bello Constantinopolitano, 4-c., Venice, 1635, and elsewhere; Leo Allatius gives a fragment of
fol. it in De Syrnodo l'hotian. Also perhaps De Azy