← Thucydides

History of the Peloponnesian War

§8.49.1

Dispatch of Peisander and Plot to Overthrow Democracy

The conspirators assembled in Samos agree to accept the proposals and prepare to send Peisander and other envoys to Athens to negotiate Alcibiades' return, the overthrow of the democracy, and an alliance with Tissaphernes.

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§8.49.1

οἱ δὲ ξυλλεγέντες τῶν ἐν τῇ ξυνωμοσίᾳ,1 ὥσπερ καὶ τὸ πρῶτον αὐτοῖς ἐδόκει, τά τε παρόντα2 ἐδέχοντο καὶ ἐς τὰς Ἀθήνας πρέσβεις Πείσανδρον καὶ ἄλλους παρεσκευάζοντο πέμπειν, ὅπως περί τε τῆς τοῦ Ἀλκιβιάδου καθόδου πράσσοιεν καὶ τῆς τοῦ ἐκεῖ δήμου καταλύσεως καὶ τὸν Τισσαφέρνην φίλον τοῖς Ἀθηναίοις ποιήσειαν.3

​Meanwhile, those of the conspirators who had assembled, just as it had seemed good to them at first, accepted the present proposals, and prepared to send Peisander and others as ambassadors to Athens, in order that they might negotiate concerning both the return of Alcibiades and the overthrow of the democracy there, and make Tissaphernes a friend to the Athenians.

Syntax notes3 items
  1. 8.49.1τῶν ἐν τῇ ξυνωμοσίᾳ

    This is a partitive genitive depending on the substantivized participle οἱ ξυλλεγέντες ('those who had assembled'), meaning 'those of the conspirators who had assembled (at that place)'.

  2. 8.49.1τά τε παρόντα

    Literally 'the present things', this refers not to the general 'present situation' but specifically to the proposals or terms offered by Alcibiades (referred to in 8.48.3 as τὰ ἀπὸ τοῦ Ἀλκιβιάδου).

  3. 8.49.1ὅπως ... πράσσοιεν ... ποιήσειαν

    The verbs πράσσοιεν (present optative) and ποιήσειαν (aorist optative) in the clause introduced by the final conjunction ὅπως are in the optative mood because the main verb is in a past tense (the imperfect παρεσκευάζοντο), representing the optative of sequence after a historical tense.

Translated by Gemini 3.5 Flash (published 2026-05-25)urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0003.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:8.49.1