- 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-grc2:6.54.1-6.54.7
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-07
To demonstrate that the attempt of Aristogiton and Harmodius was sparked by a private love affair, the author explains the moderate and law-abiding nature of the Pisistratidae's rule and provides epigraphical evidence to support his claims.
τὸ γὰρ Ἀριστογείτονος καὶ Ἁρμοδίου τόλμημα δι’ ἐρωτικὴν ξυντυχίαν ἐπεχειρήθη, ἣν ἐγὼ ἐπὶ πλέον διηγησάμενος ἀποφανῶ οὔτε τοὺς ἄλλους οὔτε αὐτοὺς Ἀθηναίους περὶ τῶν σφετέρων τυράννων οὐδὲ περὶ τοῦ γενομένου ἀκριβὲς οὐδὲν λέγοντας.1
For the daring deed of Aristogiton and Harmodius was undertaken because of a love affair, which I shall relate at greater length to show that neither other people nor the Athenians themselves speak with any accuracy about their own tyrants or about what happened.
Πεισιστράτου γὰρ γηραιοῦ τελευτήσαντος ἐν τῇ τυραννίδι οὐχ Ἵππαρχος, ὥσπερ οἱ πολλοὶ οἴονται, ἀλλ’ Ἱππίας πρεσβύτατος ὢν ἔσχε τὴν ἀρχήν. γενομένου δὲ Ἁρμοδίου ὥρᾳ ἡλικίας λαμπροῦ Ἀριστογείτων ἀνὴρ τῶν ἀστῶν, μέσος πολίτης, ἐραστὴς ὢν εἶχεν αὐτόν.
For when Pisistratus died at an advanced age in the tyranny, it was not Hipparchus, as the multitude think, but Hippias, who was the eldest son, that succeeded to the power. Now Harmodius being in the flower of youth and beauty, Aristogiton, a citizen of middle rank, became his lover and possessed him.
πειραθεὶς δὲ ὁ Ἁρμόδιος ὑπὸ Ἱππάρχου τοῦ Πεισιστράτου καὶ οὐ πεισθεὶς καταγορεύει τῷ Ἀριστογείτονι. ὁ δὲ ἐρωτικῶς περιαλγήσας καὶ φοβηθεὶς τὴν Ἱππάρχου δύναμιν μὴ βίᾳ προσαγάγηται αὐτόν, ἐπιβουλεύει εὐθὺς ὡς ἀπὸ τῆς ὑπαρχούσης ἀξιώσεως2 κατάλυσιν τῇ τυραννίδι.
Harmodius, having been solicited by Hipparchus, the son of Pisistratus, without success, reported the matter to Aristogiton. The latter, deeply pained as a lover and fearing the power of Hipparchus, lest he should take him by force, immediately began to plot, as far as his position in life permitted, the overthrow of the tyranny.
καὶ ἐν τούτῳ ὁ Ἵππαρχος ὡς αὖθις πειράσας οὐδὲν μᾶλλον ἔπειθε τὸν Ἁρμόδιον, βίαιον μὲν οὐδὲν ἐβούλετο δρᾶν, ἐν τρόπῳ δέ τινι ἀφανεῖ ὡς οὐ διὰ τοῦτο δὴ παρεσκευάζετο προπηλακιῶν3 αὐτόν.
Meanwhile Hipparchus, having made another attempt and with no better success in persuading Harmodius, did not wish to use any violence, but prepared to insult him in some covert way, as if indeed it were not on this account.
οὐδὲ γὰρ τὴν ἄλλην ἀρχὴν ἐπαχθὴς ἦν ἐς τοὺς πολλούς, ἀλλ’ ἀνεπιφθόνως κατεστήσατο· καὶ ἐπετήδευσαν ἐπὶ πλεῖστον δὴ τύραννοι οὗτοι ἀρετὴν καὶ ξύνεσιν, καὶ Ἀθηναίους εἰκοστὴν μόνον πρασσόμενοι τῶν γιγνομένων τήν τε πόλιν αὐτῶν καλῶς διεκόσμησαν καὶ τοὺς πολέμους διέφερον καὶ ἐς τὰ ἱερὰ ἔθυον.
For indeed their rule in other respects was not oppressive to the many, but was established without exciting jealousy; and these tyrants cultivated wisdom and virtue for a very long time, and while demanding from the Athenians only a twentieth of their produce, they beautified their city, carried on their wars, and offered sacrifices in the temples.
τὰ δὲ ἄλλα αὐτὴ ἡ πόλις τοῖς πρὶν κειμένοις νόμοις ἐχρῆτο, πλὴν καθ’ ὅσον αἰεί τινα ἐπεμέλοντο σφῶν αὐτῶν ἐν ταῖς ἀρχαῖς εἶναι. καὶ ἄλλοι τε αὐτῶν ἦρξαν τὴν ἐνιαύσιον Ἀθηναίοις ἀρχὴν καὶ Πεισίστρατος ὁ Ἱππίου τοῦ τυραννεύσαντος υἱός, τοῦ πάππου ἔχων τοὔνομα, ὃς τῶν δώδεκα θεῶν βωμὸν τὸν ἐν τῇ ἀγορᾷ ἄρχων ἀνέθηκε καὶ τὸν τοῦ Ἀπόλλωνος ἐν Πυθίου.
In other respects the city itself continued to use the laws previously established, except in so far as they always took care that one of their own family should be in office. And among others of them who held the annual archonship at Athens was Pisistratus, the son of the tyrant Hippias, who bore his grandfather’s name, and who, when archon, dedicated the altar of the Twelve Gods in the market-place, and that of Apollo in the Pythium.
καὶ τῷ μὲν ἐν τῇ ἀγορᾷ προσοικοδομήσας ὕστερον ὁ δῆμος Ἀθηναίων μεῖζον μῆκος τοῦ βωμοῦ ἠφάνισε τοὐπίγραμμα· τοῦ δ’ ἐν Πυθίου ἔτι καὶ νῦν δῆλόν ἐστιν ἀμυδροῖς γράμμασι λέγον τάδε· "μνῆμα τόδ’ ἧς ἀρχῆς4 Πεισίστρατος Ἱππίου υἱός θῆκεν Ἀπόλλωνος Πυθίου ἐν τεμένει."
And as for the altar in the market-place, the Athenian people afterwards added to its length and so effaced the inscription; but that on the altar in the Pythium is even now visible, reading as follows in faded letters: “This memorial of his office Pisistratus, the son of Hippias, dedicated in the sacred precinct of Pythian Apollo.”
- 6.54.1ἣν... ἀποφανῶ ... λέγοντας
The relative pronoun ἣν has the preceding ἐρωτικὴν ξυντυχίαν as its antecedent. The verb ἀποφανῶ (future of ἀποφαίνω, "to show") takes the supplementary participle λέγοντας (agreeing with the accusatives τοὺς ἄλλους and αὐτοὺς Ἀθηναίους), forming an accusative-with-participle construction meaning "to show that they do not speak... with accuracy."
- 6.54.3ὡς ἀπὸ τῆς ὑπαρχούσης ἀξιώσεως
The prepositional phrase ἀπὸ τῆς ὑπαρχούσης ἀξιώσεως ("based on his existing status") is preceded by ὡς, expressing a subjective limitation or estimate: "in so far as his existing position in life as a citizen allowed."
- 6.54.4ὡς οὐ διὰ τοῦτο δὴ παρεσκευάζετο προπηλακιῶν
The conjunction ὡς introduces a pretext: "as if indeed it were not on this account." The future participle προπηλακιῶν (from προπηλακίζω, "to insult") is used with the verb παρεσκευάζετο ("was preparing") to express purpose: "prepared to insult him."
- 6.54.7μνῆμα τόδ’ ἧς ἀρχῆς
This line is the hexameter opening of an elegiac distich. The relative pronoun ἧς is attracted to the case of its noun ἀρχῆς (Attic attraction), functioning virtually as a possessive relative adjective ("of his own office"). μνῆμα is in apposition with τόδε, denoting the dedicated object itself.