onarch thought it
enough to employ generals. The war now languished for a short space; but
in A.D. 605 Chosroes came up in person against Daras, the great Roman
stronghold in these parts, and besieged it for the space of nine months,
at the end of which time it surrendered. The loss was a severe blow to
the Roman prestige, and was followed in the next year by a long
series of calamities. Chosroes took Tur-abdin, Hesen-Cephas, Mardin,
Capher-tuta, and Amida. Two years afterwards, A.D. 607, he captured
Harran (Carrhse), Ras-el-ain (Resaina), and Edessa, the capital of
Osrhoene, after which he pressed forward to the Euphrates, crossed with
his army into Syria, and fell with fury on the Roman cities west of the
river. Mabog or Hierapolis, Kenneserin, and Berhoea (now Aleppo), were
invested and taken in the course of one or at most two campaigns; while
at the same time (A.D. 609) a second Persian army, under a general
whose name is unknown, after operating in Armenia, and taking Satala
and Theodosiopolis, invaded Cappadocia and threatened the great city of
Caesarea Mazaca, which was the chief Roman stronghold in these parts.
Bands of marauders wasted the open country, carrying terror through the
fertile districts of Phyrgia and Galatia, which had known nothing of
the horrors of war for centuries, and were rich with the accumulated
products of industry. According to Theophanes, some of the ravages even
penetrated as far as Chalcedon, on the opposite side of the straits
from Constantinople; but this is probably the anticipation of an event
belonging to a later time. No movements of importance are assigned to
A.D. 610; but in the May of the next year the Persians once more crossed
the Euphrates, completely defeated and destroyed the Roman army which
protected Syria, and sacked the two great cities of Apameia and Antioch.

Meantime a change had occurred at Constantinople. The double revolt of
Heraclius, prefect of Egypt, and Gregory, his lieutenant, had brought
the reign of the brutal and incapable Phocas to an end, and placed
upon the imperial throne a youth of promise, innocent of the blood
of Maurice, and well inclined to avenge it. Chosroes had to consider
whether he should adhere to his original statement, that he took up arms
to punish the murderer of his friend, and benefactor, and consequently
desist from further hostilities now that Phocas was dead, or whether,
throwing consistency to the winds, he should continue to pro