Liudprand in Constantinople

When Liudprand of Cremona went to Constantinople a second time, it was specifically to arrange a marriage between the son of Holy Roman Emperor Otto I and Anna Porphyrogeneta, daughter of former Emperor Romanus II.

The atmosphere in Constantinople was not as welcoming as his first visit there, and he described it in a letter to Otto:

On the day before the Nones of June (June 4) we came to Constantinople, and there, as a mark of disrespect to yourselves, being shamefully received, we were harshly and shamefully treated. We were shut up in a palace large enough, indeed, but uncovered, neither keeping out the cold nor warding off the heat. Armed soldiers were made to stand guard who were to prevent all of my companions from going out and all others from coming in. This dwelling, into which we alone who were shut up could pass, was so far removed from the palace that our breath was taken away when we walked there - we did not ride. To add to our calamity the Greek wine, on account of being mixed with pitch, resin, and plaster was to us undrinkable - The house itself was without water, nor could we even for money buy water to still our thirst. To this great torment was added another torment - our warden namely, who cared for our daily support. If one were to look for his like, not earth. but perhaps hell, would furnish it; for he, like an inundating torrent, poured forth on us whatever calamity, whatever plunder, whatever expense, whatever torment, whatever misery he could invent.- Nor among a hundred and twenty days did a single one pass without bringing us groaning and grief. [source]

Why such a different reception?

The current Byzantine Emperor, Nicephorus Phocas, still lay claim to Benevento and Capua in Italy, and Byzantine forces had clashed recently with Otto's forces. Nicephorus, as the Eastern Emperor, also objected to Otto calling himself Holy Roman Emperor. Nicephorus was also annoyed that, in a letter from Pope John XIII, Nicephorus had been called "Emperor of the Greeks," when technically he was emperor over the entirety of the Roman Empire, including the western parts.

The "insult" went both ways. Liudprand was brought before the emperor's brother, who (he says in the letter to Otto):

...called you not emperor, which is Basileus in his tongue, but, to insult you, Rex, which is king in ours. And when I told him that the thing signified was the same although the terms used to signify it, were different, he said that I had come not to make peace but to excite discord;

Liudprand was not the most diplomatic of diplomats. He relates how, after he purchased purple cloth, and they were confiscated because (they tell him) this is reserved for royals because it is unique, he replies:

"Such a garment can hardly be called unique," I answered, " when with us the street-walkers and conjurers wear them."

A marriage between Otto II and Anna never took place. Liudprand might have gone to Constantinople one more time after that, during the negotiation that led to Otto getting a Byzantine bride, but there is no account of it.

A new bishop of Cremona was installed in 973, so Liudprand must have died by then. But we have no other stories from him except his histories. How Otto got his Byzantine bride, however, will come next. See you tomorrow.