- Source
- Herodotus. Godley, Alfred Denis, editor. Cambridge, MA; London: Harvard University Press; William Heinemann, Ltd., 1920-1925 (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:tlg0016.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:1.190.1-1.190.2
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-02
After taking revenge on the river, Cyrus marches against Babylon in the following spring, defeating the inhabitants in battle and cornering them within their city, but the siege stalls as the prepared citizens ignore it.
ὡς δὲ τὸν Γύνδην ποταμὸν ἐτίσατο1 Κῦρος ἐς τριηκοσίας καὶ ἑξήκοντα διώρυχάς μιν διαλαβών, καὶ τὸ δεύτερον ἔαρ ὑπέλαμπε, οὕτω δὴ ἤλαυνε ἐπὶ τὴν Βαβυλῶνα. οἱ δὲ Βαβυλώνιοι ἐκστρατευσάμενοι ἔμενον αὐτόν. ἐπεὶ δὲ ἐγένετο ἐλαύνων2 ἀγχοῦ τῆς πόλιος, συνέβαλόν τε οἱ Βαβυλώνιοι καὶ ἑσσωθέντες τῇ μάχῃ κατειλήθησαν ἐς τὸ ἄστυ.
When Cyrus had taken his revenge on the river Gyndes by dividing it into three hundred and sixty canals, and the second spring was beginning to shine forth, he finally marched against Babylon. The Babylonians, having marched out, awaited him. When in his march he came near the city, the Babylonians joined battle with him, but being defeated in the fight, they were shut up within their walls.
οἷα δὲ ἐξεπιστάμενοι3 ἔτι πρότερον τὸν Κῦρον οὐκ ἀτρεμίζοντα, ἀλλʼ ὁρέοντες αὐτὸν παντὶ ἔθνεϊ ὁμοίως ἐπιχειρέοντα, προεσάξαντο σιτία ἐτέων κάρτα πολλῶν. ἐνθαῦτα οὗτοι μὲν λόγον εἶχον τῆς πολιορκίης οὐδένα, Κῦρος δὲ ἀπορίῃσι ἐνείχετο, ἅτε χρόνου τε ἐγγινομένου συχνοῦ ἀνωτέρω τε οὐδὲν τῶν πρηγμάτων προκοπτομένων.4
Since they knew well even beforehand that Cyrus was never at rest, and saw him attacking every nation alike, they had provisioned themselves with food for very many years. Thereupon, they took no account of the siege, but Cyrus was beset with difficulties, inasmuch as a long time was passing and his affairs made no progress at all.
- 1.190.1ὡς δὲ ... ἐτίσατο
The temporal conjunction ὡς (when) governs both the verb ἐτίσατο and, after καὶ, the verb ὑπέλαμπε. The main clause is οὕτω δὴ ἤλαυνε, indicating that the march resumed once both conditions—the completion of the revenge and the arrival of spring—were met.
- 1.190.1ἐγένετο ἐλαύνων
A periphrastic-like expression combining the aorist ἐγένετο with the present participle ἐλαύνων, dynamically expressing the process and completion of the movement ('he came marching' or 'he arrived in his march').
- 1.190.2οἷα δὲ ἐξεπιστάμενοι
The particle οἷα is used with participles (here ἐξεπιστάμενοι and ὁρέοντες) to express an objective reason or cause ('inasmuch as they knew well'). It emphasizes the background reason for the Babylonians' prior stocking of provisions.
- 1.190.2ἅτε χρόνου τε ἐγγινομένου ... προκοπτομένων
Two parallel (marked by τε... τε...) genitive absolute constructions introduced by the causal particle ἅτε. The subject of the first is χρόνου, and the subject of the second is οὐδὲν τῶν πρηγμάτων. This explains the reason for Cyrus's state of helplessness.