Letter 12
Maurice, the pious, the fortunate, the famous, to our beloved son Childebert, king of the Franks, greetings.
Your proposal for a joint campaign against the Lombard threat has been received and considered with the seriousness it deserves. We share your assessment of the danger they pose and your belief that a coordinated response is more likely to achieve lasting results than separate campaigns.
We are prepared to enter into such an alliance. The terms we propose are as follows: the Empire will provide a subsidy of gold sufficient to maintain Frankish forces in the field for a full campaigning season; the campaign will be coordinated through ambassadors who will communicate between the Frankish commanders and our generals in Italy; and the territorial settlement of any areas recovered will be negotiated after the campaign in light of what has actually been achieved.
We are aware that this last point may not satisfy you fully — you would prefer to know in advance what you will receive for your investment. We understand this. But the uncertainty of war makes advance partition of territories that have not yet been retaken an unpractical exercise. What we can promise is negotiation in good faith, with recognition of the Frankish contribution to whatever is achieved.
We commend to you Grippo's safe return and look forward to the more detailed discussions that his mission will facilitate.
Given at Constantinople, by order of the Emperor
Modern English rendering for readability. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek for scholarly use.
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