- 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-grc2:6.111.1-6.111.3
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-08
Once the presidency came to Miltiades, the Athenians drew up their battle line with Callimachus on the right wing and the Plataeans on the left. To match the length of the Persian line, the Athenian center was made thin while the wings were reinforced.
ὡς δὲ ἐς ἐκεῖνον περιῆλθε,1 ἐνθαῦτα δὴ ἐτάσσοντο ὧδε οἱ Ἀθηναῖοι ὡς συμβαλέοντες· τοῦ μὲν δεξιοῦ κέρεος ἡγέετο ὁ πολέμαρχος Καλλίμαχος· ὁ γὰρ νόμος τότε εἶχε οὕτω τοῖσι Ἀθηναίοισι, τὸν πολέμαρχον ἔχειν2 κέρας τὸ δεξιόν· ἡγεομένου δὲ τούτου ἐξεδέκοντο ὡς ἀριθμέοντο αἱ φυλαὶ ἐχόμεναι ἀλληλέων, τελευταῖοι δὲ ἐτάσσοντο ἔχοντες τὸ εὐώνυμον κέρας Πλαταιέες.
When the presidency came round to him, then indeed the Athenians drew up their line in the following manner, intending to join battle: the polemarch Callimachus led the right wing, for the law at that time was so for the Athenians, that the polemarch should hold the right wing. As he led, the tribes succeeded in order as they were numbered, adjacent to one another, and the Plataeans were drawn up last, holding the left wing.
ἀπὸ ταύτης σφι τῆς μάχης, Ἀθηναίων θυσίας ἀναγόντων ἐς τὰς πανηγύριας τὰς ἐν τῇσι πεντετηρίσι γινομένας, κατεύχεται ὁ κῆρυξ ὁ Ἀθηναῖος ἅμα τε Ἀθηναίοισι λέγων γίνεσθαι τὰ ἀγαθὰ καὶ Πλαταιεῦσι.
From this battle, whenever the Athenians bring sacrifices to the festivals that take place every five years, the Athenian herald prays, pronouncing that good things should come to the Plataeans as well as to the Athenians.
τότε δὲ τασσομένων τῶν Ἀθηναίων ἐν τῷ Μαραθῶνι ἐγίνετο τοιόνδε τι· τὸ στρατόπεδον ἐξισούμενον3 τῷ Μηδικῷ στρατοπέδῳ, τὸ μὲν αὐτοῦ μέσον ἐγίνετο ἐπὶ τάξιας ὀλίγας,4 καὶ ταύτῃ ἦν ἀσθενέστατον τὸ στρατόπεδον, τὸ δὲ κέρας ἑκάτερον ἔρρωτο πλήθεϊ.
But at that time, as the Athenians were being drawn up at Marathon, the following happened: their army being made equal in length to the Persian army, the center of it was only a few ranks deep, and here the army was weakest, but each of the two wings was strong in numbers.
- 6.111.1ἐς ἐκεῖνον περιῆλθε
The subject of the intransitive verb περιῆλθε (came round) is omitted, to be supplied from the daily presidency (πρυτανηίη) mentioned in the preceding chapter (6.110.1).
- 6.111.1τὸν πολέμαρχον ἔχειν
Accusative with infinitive construction explaining the content of the impersonal expression ὁ νόμος ... εἶχε οὕτω (the law was so), meaning 'that the polemarch should hold the wing.'
- 6.111.3ἐξισούμενον
Present participle (neuter singular) modifying τὸ στρατόπεδον (the army). It is used here in a passive or reflexive sense ('being made equal in length to'), indicating that the Athenian line was stretched out to match the long Persian front.
- 6.111.3ἐπὶ τάξιας ὀλίγας
The preposition ἐπί with the accusative plural expresses the military depth of the formation, meaning 'only a few ranks deep.'