- 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-grc2:5.91.1-5.91.3
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-10
The Spartans, fearing that a free Athens would grow too powerful and refuse to obey them, recall the exiled tyrant Hippias. Summoning the envoys of their allies, they confess their past error in expelling him and propose a joint expedition to restore Hippias to power in Athens.
τότε δὲ ὡς ἀνέλαβον οἱ Λακεδαιμόνιοι τοὺς χρησμοὺς καὶ τοὺς Ἀθηναίους ὥρων αὐξομένους καὶ οὐδαμῶς ἑτοίμους ἐόντας πείθεσθαι σφίσι, νόῳ λαβόντες ὡς ἐλεύθερον μὲν ἐὸν τὸ γένος τὸ Ἀττικὸν ἰσόρροπον ἂν τῷ ἑωυτῶν γίνοιτο,1 κατεχόμενον δὲ ὑπὸ τυραννίδος ἀσθενὲς καὶ πειθαρχέεσθαι ἕτοιμον· μαθόντες δὲ τούτων ἕκαστα μετεπέμποντο Ἱππίην τὸν Πεισιστράτου ἀπὸ Σιγείου τοῦ ἐν Ἑλλησπόντῳ ἐς ὃ καταφεύγουσι οἱ Πεισιστρατίδαι.
At that time, when the Lacedaemonians had recovered the oracles and saw that the Athenians were increasing in power and were in no way ready to obey them, they took to heart that while the Attic race, if it were free, would become a match for their own, yet if held down under a tyranny, it would be weak and ready to obey. Having learned each of these things, they sent for Hippias the son of Pisistratus from Sigeum on the Hellespont, to which place the Pisistratidae had fled for refuge.
ἐπείτε δέ σφι Ἱππίης καλεόμενος ἧκε, μεταπεμψάμενοι καὶ τῶν ἄλλων συμμάχων ἀγγέλους ἔλεγόν σφι Σπαρτιῆται τάδε. ἄνδρες σύμμαχοι, συγγινώσκομεν αὐτοῖσι ἡμῖν οὐ ποιήσασι ὀρθῶς·2 ἐπαερθέντες γὰρ κιβδήλοισι μαντηίοισι ἄνδρας ξείνους ἐόντας ἡμῖν τὰ μάλιστα καὶ ἀναδεκομένους ὑποχειρίας παρέξειν τὰς Ἀθήνας,3 τούτους ἐκ τῆς πατρίδος ἐξηλάσαμεν, καὶ ἔπειτα ποιήσαντες ταῦτα δήμῳ ἀχαρίστῳ παρεδώκαμεν τὴν πόλιν· ὃς ἐπείτε διʼ ἡμέας ἐλευθερωθεὶς ἀνέκυψε, ἡμέας μὲν καὶ τὸν βασιλέα ἡμέων περιυβρίσας ἐξέβαλε, δόξαν δὲ φύσας αὐξάνεται, ὥστε ἐκμεμαθήκασι μάλιστα μὲν οἱ περίοικοι αὐτῶν Βοιωτοὶ καὶ Χαλκιδέες, τάχα δέ τις καὶ ἄλλος ἐκμαθήσεται ἁμαρτών.4
And when Hippias came to them at their call, the Spartans, having also summoned messengers from the other allies, spoke to them as follows: “Allies, we acknowledge to ourselves that we did not act rightly; for, incited by deceitful oracles, we drove out from their fatherland men who were our closest guest-friends and who undertook to keep Athens subject to us, and then, having done this, we handed over the city to an ungrateful people. This people, when they had been set free through us, raised their head and cast out both us and our king with insolence, and, having grown in pride, are increasing in power, so that their neighbours, the Boeotians and Chalcidians above all, have learned this thoroughly, and soon perhaps someone else will also learn it to his cost, by having erred.
ἐπείτε δὲ ἐκεῖνα ποιήσαντες ἡμάρτομεν, νῦν πειρησόμεθα σφέας ἅμα ὑμῖν ἀπικόμενοι τίσασθαι· αὐτοῦ γὰρ τούτου εἵνεκεν τόνδε τε Ἱππίην μετεπεμψάμεθα καὶ ὑμέας ἀπὸ τῶν πολίων, ἵνα κοινῷ τε λόγῳ καὶ κοινῷ στόλῳ ἐσαγαγόντες αὐτὸν ἐς τὰς Ἀθήνας ἀποδῶμεν τὰ καὶ ἀπειλόμεθα.5
Since, then, we made a mistake in doing those things, now we will try, having come together with you, to take vengeance on them; for, for this very reason we have sent for Hippias here and for you from your cities, so that by a common counsel and a common expedition we may lead him back into Athens and restore to him what we also took away.”
- 5.91.1ἐλεύθερον μὲν ἐὸν ... ἰσόρροπον ἂν ... γίνοιτο
The participle ἐὸν (equivalent to Attic ὄν) functions as a conditional clause ('if it were free'), forming a potential/hypothetical condition with the optative + ἄν (ἰσόρροπον ἂν ... γίνοιτο) in the indirect discourse.
- 5.91.2συγγινώσκομεν αὐτοῖσι ἡμῖν οὐ ποιήσασι ὀρθῶς
The verb συγγινώσκω is used here with the dative reflexive pronoun αὐτοῖσι ἡμῖν and the agreeing participle ποιήσασι (negated by οὐ) to mean 'to acknowledge/confess to oneself that one has done wrong.'
- 5.91.2ἀναδεκομένους ὑποχειρίας παρέξειν τὰς Ἀθήνας
The participle ἀναδεκομένους (Ionian for ἀναδεχομένους) means 'undertaking/promising' and takes the future infinitive clause ὑποχειρίας παρέξειν τὰς Ἀθήνας. ὑποχειρίας is the feminine plural accusative of the adjective ὑποχείριος (under the hand of, subject to), functioning predicatively with τὰς Ἀθήνας.
- 5.91.2ἐκμαθήσεται ἁμαρτών
The aorist participle ἁμαρτών (having erred/by making a mistake) functions as a participle of manner, means, or condition ('by making a mistake' or 'if they err') modifying the future main verb ἐκμαθήσεται (will learn thoroughly).
- 5.91.3τὰ καὶ ἀπειλόμεθα
The relative pronoun τὰ contains its own antecedent (equivalent to ταῦτα ἅ), meaning 'the things which.' ἀπειλόμεθα is the Ionian form of ἀφειλόμεθα (1st person plural aorist middle of ἀφαιρέομαι, 'to take away/deprive'). καί emphasizes the action ('actually' or 'also').