- 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-grc2:6.70.1-6.70.3
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-09
After hearing his mother's explanation, Demaratus flees under the pretense of visiting Delphi and escapes to Asia to join King Darius. He was highly distinguished among the Spartans, being the only Spartan king to have won an Olympic chariot race.
ἣ μὲν δὴ ταῦτα ἔλεγε, ὁ δὲ πυθόμενός τε τὰ ἐβούλετο καὶ ἐπόδια λαβὼν ἐπορεύετο ἐς Ἦλιν, τῷ λόγῳ1 φὰς ὡς ἐς Δελφοὺς χρησόμενος τῷ χρηστηρίῳ πορεύεται. Λακεδαιμόνιοι δὲ ὑποτοπηθέντες Δημάρητον δρησμῷ ἐπιχειρέειν ἐδίωκον.
She indeed said these things, and he, having found out what he wanted to know and having taken journey-money, proceeded to Elis, pretending in word that he was going to Delphi to consult the oracle. But the Lacedaemonians, suspecting that Demaratus was attempting flight, pursued him.
καί κως ἔφθη ἐς Ζάκυνθον διαβὰς2 ὁ Δημάρητος ἐκ τῆς Ἤλιδος· ἐπιδιαβάντες δὲ οἱ Λακεδαιμόνιοι αὐτοῦ τε ἅπτοντο καὶ τοὺς θεράποντας αὐτοῦ ἀπαιρέονται. μετὰ δέ, οὐ γὰρ ἐξεδίδοσαν αὐτὸν οἱ Ζακύνθιοι, ἐνθεῦτεν διαβαίνει ἐς τὴν Ἀσίην παρὰ βασιλέα Δαρεῖον. ὁ δὲ ὑπεδέξατό τε αὐτὸν μεγαλωστὶ καὶ γῆν τε καὶ πόλιας ἔδωκε.
And somehow Demaratus anticipated them by crossing over to Zacynthus from Elis. But the Lacedaemonians, having crossed over after him, tried to lay hands on him and took away his attendants. But afterwards, since the Zacynthians would not surrender him, he crossed over from there to Asia to King Darius. And he welcomed him magnificently and gave him both land and cities.
οὕτω ἀπίκετο ἐς τὴν Ἀσίην Δημάρητος καὶ τοιαύτῃ χρησάμενος τύχῃ, ἄλλα τε Λακεδαιμονίοισι συχνὰ ἔργοισί τε καὶ γνώμῃσι ἀπολαμπρυνθείς, ἐν δὲ δὴ καὶ Ὀλυμπιάδα σφι ἀνελόμενος τεθρίππῳ προσέβαλε,3 μοῦνος τοῦτο πάντων δὴ τῶν γενομένων βασιλέων ἐν Σπάρτῃ ποιήσας.
Thus Demaratus arrived in Asia, having experienced such a fortune, having distinguished himself in many other ways for the Lacedaemonians both by deeds and by counsels, and in particular, having won an Olympic victory for them with a four-horse chariot, he bestowed this glory upon them, being the only one of all the kings who had ever been in Sparta to have done this.
- 6.70.1τῷ λόγῳ
τῷ λόγῳ means "in word" or "on pretext," contrasted with actual fact (τῷ ἔργῳ). It is used here with the participle φὰς ("saying") to indicate that Demaratus's journey to Delphi was a mere pretext for his flight.
- 6.70.2ἔφθη ἐς Ζάκυνθον διαβὰς
A construction where the verb φθάνω ("to anticipate," "to do first") is followed by a nominative participle (διαβὰς), expressing that Demaratus "was beforehand in crossing" or "succeeded in crossing to Zacynthus before his pursuers could catch him."
- 6.70.3σφι ἀνελόμενος ... προσέβαλε
A combination of the indirect middle participle ἀνελόμενος ("having won [for oneself/others]"), the Ionic third-person plural dative σφι ("for them," referring to the Lacedaemonians), and the verb προσέβαλε ("bestowed upon" or "added to"), indicating that Demaratus brought or attributed the glory of the Olympic victory to his fellow Spartans.