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§6.39.1-6.39.2

Mission of Miltiades to the Chersonese and His Seizure of Power

After the death of Stesagoras, the Pisistratidae dispatch Miltiades to the Chersonese. Upon his arrival, Miltiades imprisons the local ruling men who came to offer condolences, thereby establishing his rule.

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§6.39.1

τελευτήσαντος δὲ καὶ Στησαγόρεω τρόπῳ τοιῷδε, ἐνθαῦτα Μιλτιάδεα τὸν Κίμωνος, Στησαγόρεω δὲ τοῦ τελευτήσαντος ἀδελφεόν, καταλαμψόμενον τὰ πρήγματα ἐπὶ Χερσονήσου ἀποστέλλουσι τριήρεϊ οἱ Πεισιστρατίδαι, οἵ μιν καὶ ἐν Ἀθήνῃσι ἐποίευν εὖ ὡς οὐ συνειδότες δῆθεν1 τοῦ πατρὸς Κίμωνος αὐτοῦ τὸν θάνατον, τὸν ἐγὼ ἐν ἄλλῳ λόγῳ σημανέω ὡς ἐγένετο.

​When Stesagoras had also died in this manner, the Pisistratidae then dispatched Miltiades, the son of Cimon and brother of the deceased Stesagoras, in a trireme to the Chersonese to take control of affairs. They had treated him well in Athens, pretending as if they had no knowledge of the death of his father Cimon—how that death came about, I shall make clear in another part of my history.

§6.39.2

Μιλτιάδης δὲ ἀπικόμενος ἐς τὴν Χερσόνησον εἶχε κατʼ οἴκους,2 τὸν ἀδελφεὸν Στησαγόρεα δηλαδὴ ἐπιτιμέων.3 οἱ δὲ Χερσονησῖται πυνθανόμενοι ταῦτα συνελέχθησαν ἀπὸ πασέων τῶν πολίων οἱ δυναστεύοντες πάντοθεν, κοινῷ δὲ στόλῳ ἀπικόμενοι ὡς συλλυπηθησόμενοι ἐδέθησαν ὑπʼ αὐτοῦ. Μιλτιάδης τε δὴ ἴσχει τὴν Χερσόνησον, πεντακοσίους βόσκων ἐπικούρους, καὶ γαμέει Ὀλόρου τοῦ Θρηίκων βασιλέος τὴν θυγατέρα Ἡγησιπύλην.

​Miltiades, on arriving in the Chersonese, kept himself indoors, ostensibly to show respect for his brother Stesagoras. When the Chersonesians heard of this, the ruling men from all the cities gathered from every side, and having come in a body to offer their condolences, they were bound and imprisoned by him. Thus Miltiades held the Chersonese, maintaining five hundred mercenaries, and married Hegesipyle, the daughter of Olorus, the king of the Thracians.

Syntax notes3 items
  1. 6.39.1ὡς οὐ συνειδότες δῆθεν

    The combination of ὡς with the participle συνειδότες (perfect active participle of σύνοιδα), accompanied by the particle δῆθεν which emphasizes pretense, expresses a subjective pretext or feigned ignorance: "pretending as if they had no complicity/knowledge." The verb συνειδέναι here implies "being privy to" or "having complicity in" the murder of Cimon.

  2. 6.39.2εἶχε κατʼ οἴκους

    The verb ἔχω (imperfect εἶχε) is used intransitively here, with the omission of the reflexive pronoun (such as ἑωυτόν), meaning "to keep oneself" or "to stay." Together with κατʼ οἴκους, it means "he kept himself indoors" or "stayed at home."

  3. 6.39.2δηλαδὴ ἐπιτιμέων

    The participle ἐπιτιμέων (present active participle of ἐπιτιμάω), which usually means "to censure" in Attic, is used here in a sense specific to Herodotus, meaning "to honor (the dead)" or "to pay respect." The adverb δηλαδή (literally "manifestly") here functions to suggest a pretext or ostensible reason: "ostensibly paying respect" or "under the guise of honoring."

Translated by Gemini 3.5 Flash (published 2026-05-25) · Revision history (1, latest 2026-09-21)
  • 2026-09-21 AI review — note 1
urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0016.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:6.39.1-6.39.2