emperor's affability, but they behaved very insolently, wrecking
palaces, burning public buildings, tearing the roofs of churches that
were covered with lead, and then offering to sell the lead back to
the Greeks. Disturbed by such foul arrogance, the emperor instructed
them to delay their crossing of the waters of the Arm no longer.
Once they had made the crossing, they continued to behave as they had
on the other side; those who had taken a vow to fight against the
pagans fought against men of our own faith, destroying churches
everywhere, and stealing the possessions of Christians. Since they
were not subject to the severity of a king, who might correct their
errors with judicial strength, nor did they reflect soberly upon
divine law, which might have restrained the instability of their
minds, they fell to sudden death, because death comes to meet the
undisciplined, and the man who cannot control himself does not last
long.

When they finally reached Nicomedia,[100] the Italians, Lombards, and
Germans, unable to bear the pride of the Franks, separated from them.
For the Franks, as their name indicates,[101] were famous for their
great energy, but, in large groups, unless they are restrained by a
firm hand, they are fiercer than they should be. And so the people
from beyond the Alps, having separated, as we just said, from the
Franks, chose as their leader a certain Rainald, and entered the
province which is called Romania.[102] Four days march from
Nicomedia, they came upon a castle which its builder had been pleased
to call Exorogorgum,[103] and which, since it had been abandoned by
its inhabitants, lay open to the troops, who immediately rushed in.
The inhabitants had fled out of fear of the invaders; desperate to
save themselves, they gave no thought to carrying with them their
goods, of which they had a considerable amount. Thus the troops