- Source
- Thucydides. Historiae, Vol 1-2. Jones, Henry Stuart, editor. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1910. (1942 printing).
- Translation
- AI-generated (gemini-3.5-flash) — machine translation; may contain errors
- Languages
- 日本語 · English · 简体中文 · 한국어
- CTS URN
- urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0003.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:4.126.1-4.126.6
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-10-31
Brasidas exhorts his Peloponnesian soldiers not to fear their isolation or the numerous barbarians, explaining that the enemy's terrifying appearance and threats are mere bluster without discipline.
‘εἰ μὲν μὴ ὑπώπτευον,1 ἄνδρες Πελοποννήσιοι, ὑμᾶς τῷ τε μεμονῶσθαι καὶ ὅτι βάρβαροι οἱ ἐπιόντες καὶ πολλοὶ ἔκπληξιν ἔχειν, οὐκ ἂν ὁμοίως διδαχὴν ἅμα τῇ παρακελεύσει ἐποιούμην· νῦν δὲ πρὸς μὲν τὴν ἀπόλειψιν τῶν ἡμετέρων καὶ τὸ πλῆθος τῶν ἐναντίων βραχεῖ ὑπομνήματι καὶ παραινέσει τὰ μέγιστα πειράσομαι πείθειν.
”If I did not suspect, men of the Peloponnese, that you are in a state of fear because of your being left alone and because those who are attacking are barbarians and numerous, I should not have given you instruction at the same time as encouragement. But as it is, in the face of the desertion of our allies and the multitude of our opponents, I will try to persuade you of the most important things with a brief reminder and exhortation.
ἀγαθοῖς γὰρ εἶναι ὑμῖν προσήκει2 τὰ πολέμια οὐ διὰ ξυμμάχων παρουσίαν ἑκάστοτε, ἀλλὰ δι’ οἰκείαν ἀρετήν, καὶ μηδὲν πλῆθος πεφοβῆσθαι ἑτέρων, οἵ γε μηδὲ ἀπὸ πολιτειῶν τοιούτων ἥκετε,3 ἐν αἷς οὐ πολλοὶ ὀλίγων ἄρχουσιν, ἀλλὰ πλεόνων μᾶλλον ἐλάσσους, οὐκ ἄλλῳ τινὶ κτησάμενοι τὴν δυναστείαν ἢ τῷ μαχόμενοι κρατεῖν.
For it is fitting for you to be brave in war, not because of the presence of allies on each occasion, but because of your own courage, and to fear no multitude of others, since indeed you do not come from such states where the many rule the few, but rather the fewer rule the many, having acquired their dominion by no other means than by being victorious in battle.
βαρβάρους δὲ οὓς νῦν ἀπειρίᾳ δέδιτε μαθεῖν χρή, ἐξ ὧν τε προηγώνισθε τοῖς Μακεδόσιν αὐτῶν4 καὶ ἀφ’ ὧν ἐγὼ εἰκάζω τε καὶ ἄλλων ἀκοῇ ἐπίσταμαι, οὐ δεινοὺς ἐσομένους.
And concerning the barbarians whom you now fear through inexperience, you ought to know, both from your previous struggles against them with the Macedonians and from what I myself conjecture and know by report from others, that they will not be formidable.
καὶ γὰρ ὅσα μὲν τῷ ὄντι ἀσθενῆ ὄντα τῶν πολεμίων δόκησιν ἔχει ἰσχύος, διδαχὴ ἀληθὴς προσγενομένη περὶ αὐτῶν ἐθάρσυνε μᾶλλον τοὺς ἀμυνομένους· οἷς δὲ βεβαίως τι πρόσεστιν ἀγαθόν, μὴ προειδώς τις ἂν αὐτοῖς τολμηρότερον προσφέροιτο.
For indeed, whatever elements on the enemy’s side are really weak but present an appearance of strength, a true instruction concerning them rather encourages those who defend themselves; whereas against those who possess some real advantage, one who does not know it beforehand would advance more boldly.
οὗτοι δὲ τὴν μέλλησιν μὲν ἔχουσι τοῖς ἀπείροις φοβεράν· καὶ γὰρ πλήθει ὄψεως δεινοὶ καὶ βοῆς μεγέθει ἀφόρητοι, ἥ τε διὰ κενῆς ἐπανάσεισις τῶν ὅπλων ἔχει τινὰ δήλωσιν ἀπειλῆς. προσμεῖξαι δὲ τοῖς ὑπομένουσιν αὐτὰ οὐχ ὁμοῖοι· οὔτε γὰρ τάξιν ἔχοντες αἰσχυνθεῖεν ἂν λιπεῖν τινὰ χώραν βιαζόμενοι ἥ τε φυγὴ καὶ ἡ ἔφοδος αὐτῶν ἴσην ἔχουσα δόξαν τοῦ καλοῦ ἀνεξέλεγκτον καὶ τὸ ἀνδρεῖον ἔχει (αὐτοκράτωρ δὲ μάχη5 μάλιστ’ ἂν καὶ πρόφασιν τοῦ σῴζεσθαί τινι πρεπόντως πορίσειε), τοῦ τε ἐς χεῖρας ἐλθεῖν πιστότερον τὸ ἐκφοβῆσαι ὑμᾶς ἀκινδύνως ἡγοῦνται· ἐκείνῳ γὰρ ἂν πρὸ τούτου ἐχρῶντο.
These men, indeed, have a demonstration of attack that is terrifying to the inexperienced; for they are formidable in the multitude of their appearance and unbearable in the loudness of their shouting, and the empty brandishing of their weapons has some display of threat. But they are not the same when it comes to joining battle with those who withstand them; for having no order, they would not be ashamed of leaving any position when hard pressed, and their flight and charge, having an equal reputation for honor, leave their courage untested (for a battle where each is his own master would especially provide a convenient excuse for saving oneself), and they think that to terrify you without risk is more reliable than to come to close quarters; otherwise they would have employed the latter before this.
σαφῶς τε πᾶν τὸ προϋπάρχον δεινὸν ἀπ’ αὐτῶν ὁρᾶτε ἔργῳ μὲν βραχὺ ὄν, ὄψει δὲ καὶ ἀκοῇ κατασπέρχον. ὃ ὑπομείναντες6 ἐπιφερόμενον καί, ὅταν καιρὸς ᾖ, κόσμῳ καὶ τάξει αὖθις ὑπαγαγόντες, ἔς τε τὸ ἀσφαλὲς θᾶσσον ἀφίζεσθε καὶ γνώσεσθε τὸ λοιπὸν ὅτι οἱ τοιοῦτοι ὄχλοι τοῖς μὲν τὴν πρώτην ἔφοδον δεξαμένοις ἄπωθεν ἀπειλαῖς τὸ ἀνδρεῖον μελλήσει ἐπικομποῦσιν, οἳ δ’ ἂν εἴξωσιν αὐτοῖς, κατὰ πόδας τὸ εὔψυχον ἐν τῷ ἀσφαλεῖ ὀξεῖς ἐνδείκνυνται.’
And you clearly see that all the terror previously existing on their part is small in reality, though overwhelming to the sight and hearing. If you withstand its onset and, when opportunity offers, retreat again in good order and discipline, you will reach safety more quickly, and you will know for the future that such crowds boast of their courage with threats from a distance when they encounter those who receive their first charge, but against those who yield to them, they are quick to display their spirit from a safe position by pressing close on their heels.”
- 4.126.1ὑπώπτευον
Imperfect tense forming a contrary-to-fact condition with the following οὐκ ἂν ... ἐποιούμην. It governs the accusative-with-infinitive construction with ὑμᾶς as the subject and ἔκπληξιν ἔχειν as the infinitive clause ("suspect that you are in a state of fear").
- 4.126.2ἀγαθοῖς γὰρ εἶναι ὑμῖν προσήκει
The impersonal verb προσήκει ("it is fitting") governs the infinitive εἶναι, whose logical subject is the dative ὑμῖν. The predicate adjective ἀγαθοῖς agrees in case with the dative subject.
- 4.126.2οἵ γε μηδὲ ἀπὸ πολιτειῶν τοιούτων ἥκετε
The relative pronoun οἵ (agreeing with the second-person plural verb ἥκετε) carries a causal force ("since you indeed..."), explaining the underlying reason why they ought to be brave based on their civic background (oligarchical states where the few rule the many).
- 4.126.3προηγώνισθε τοῖς Μακεδόσιν αὐτῶν
The genitive αὐτῶν is a partitive genitive referring to the barbarians. The dative τοῖς Μακεδόσιν is a dative of accompaniment, meaning "having previously fought along with the Macedonians against some of them."
- 4.126.5αὐτοκράτωρ δὲ μάχη
Refers to an undisciplined form of fighting where there is no unified command, and each soldier acts (or retreats) on his own initiative.
- 4.126.6ὃ ὑπομείναντες
The relative pronoun ὃ is in the neuter singular accusative, referring back to the preceding phrase πᾶν τὸ προϋπάρχον δεινὸν ("all the terror existing on their part"), serving as the direct object of the participle ὑπομείναντες.