Plot disrupted festival of St Georgios at Mangana & drove Konstantinos X & his family to take ship

Summary:
Konstantinos X & his family, following the custom established by Konstantinos IX, went to the shrine of Hagios Georgios at Mangana in order to present the usual offering, and spent the feastday there watching the ceremony. A plot against him was uncovered, the conspirators planning to drown him on his way back to the palace by boat. The conspirators calculated that, if a disturbance taking place in the Forum of the city were reported to him, he would at once depart by sea to the Great Palace. The participants were not only the common and anonymous but included the well-born and prominent. At a signal some would attack from the sea, others from the land 
Dates:
1061 April 23 
conspirators against Konstantinos X (Anonymi 6039)
  • For Konstantinos 10 was in the palace of the Mangana, but they considered that, if a disturbance taking place in the Forum of the city were reported to him, he would at once depart by sea to the Great Palace (:) Zonaras 18.8.4
  • Prearranged that the imperial trireme and her helmsmen (whom the popular language calls chief-yachtsmen) were not there [at the Mangana] (:) οὕς πρωτοκαράβους ἡ δημώδης λέγει φωνή Zonaras 18.8.5
Emperor Konstantinos X Doukas (Konstantinos 10)
  • Following the custom established by Monomachos (Konstantinos 9) he went to the shrine of Hagios Georgios in order to present the usual offering, and spent the feastday there watching the ceremony (on the feastday of Saint George (April 23):τῆς ἐπετείου ἑορτῆς τοῦ ἐν μάρτυσι περιωνύμου ἁγίου Γεωργίου) κομίσασθαι μέλλων τὸ προσωρισμένον τάλαντον Attaleiates: History 71.22-72.7 / 55.1-8
  • Went to Mangana to pay his respects to the martyr as customary and escaped through God's intervention an evil plot (hatched by officials including Anonymus 103) to throw him and his family into the sea while sailing back to the palace after the feast (on the feastday of St George (April 23): Ἐπιστάσης δὲ τῆς τοῦ ἁγίου μεγαλομάρτυρος Γεωργίου μνήμης) Skylitzes Continuatus 111.18-27
  • Went to the monastery at Mangana to venerate St George and a plot against him was uncovered, the conspirators planning to drown him on his way back to the palace by boat (on the feastday of St George:κατὰ τὴν μνήμην τοῦ μεγαλομάρτυρος Γεωργίου) ἀποπνῖξαι αὐτὸν ἐμελέτων οἱ προύχοντες Glykas 604.13-18
  • When a plot was organised against him, he was all but submerged (:) Zonaras 18.8.3
  • For he was in the palace of the Mangana, but the conspirators (Anonymi 6039) considered that, if a disturbance taking place in the Forum of the city were reported to him, he would at once depart by sea to the Great Palace (:) Zonaras 18.8.4
  • A plot was contrived to remove him from power and put another in charge; the participants were not only the ignoble and anonymous but included the well born and prominent; at a signal some would attack from the sea, others from the land (:) τὸ δὲ βούλευμα, ἐξῶσαι τοῦτον τῆς ἡγεμονίας καὶ ἕτερον ἐγκαταστῆσαι τοῖς πράγμασιν Psellos: Chronographia VIIa 22.6-8