- Source
- Polybius. Vols. 1-4. Büttner-Wobst, Theodor, editor. Leipzig: Teubner, 1893.
- 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:tlg0543.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:10.22.1-10.22.10
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-06
The noble origin, education, and simple private life of Philopoemen are described, showing how he, upon being appointed cavalry commander of the Achaeans, reformed the ruined cavalry through rigorous training, in contrast to the failures and corruption of other typical commanders.
Φιλοποίμην τοίνυν πρῶτον μὲν ἔφυ1 καλῶς· ἦν γὰρ ἐξ ἀνδρῶν τῶν ἐπιφανεστάτων κατʼ Ἀρκαδίαν, τραφεὶς δὲ καὶ παιδευθεὶς ὑπὸ Κλέανδρον τὸν Μαντινέα, πατρικὸν μὲν αὐτῷ ξένον ὑπάρχοντα, φυγαδεύοντα δὲ κατʼ ἐκείνους τοὺς καιρούς, ὄντα δὲ Μαντινέων ἐπιφανέστατον.
Philopoemen, then, in the first place was of a noble stock; for he was descended from one of the most illustrious families in Arcadia, and was reared and educated by Cleander of Mantinea, who was a hereditary guest-friend of his father, and happened to be an exile at that time, but was the most eminent of the Mantineans.
μετὰ δὲ ταῦτα παραγενόμενος εἰς ἡλικίαν ἐγένετο ζηλωτὴς Ἐκδήμου καὶ Δημοφάνους, οἳ τὸ μὲν γένος ἦσαν ἐκ Μεγάλης πόλεως, φεύγοντες δὲ τοὺς τυράννους καὶ συμβιώσαντες Ἀρκεσίλᾳ τῷ φιλοσόφῳ κατὰ τὴν φυγὴν ἠλευθέρωσαν μὲν τὴν αὑτῶν πατρίδα, συστησάμενοι κατʼ Ἀριστοδήμου τοῦ τυράννου πρᾶξιν, συνεπελάβοντο δὲ καὶ τῆς καταλύσεως τοῦ Σικυωνίων τυράννου Νικοκλέους, κοινωνήσαντες Ἀράτῳ τῆς ἐπιβολῆς· ἔτι δὲ Κυρηναίων αὐτοὺς μεταπεμψαμένων ἐπιφανῶς προύστησαν καὶ διεφύλαξαν αὐτοῖς τὴν ἐλευθερίαν, οἷς κατὰ τὴν πρώτην ἡλικίαν ἐπὶ πολὺ συμβιώσας διέφερε μὲν εὐθέως τῶν καθʼ αὑτὸν περί τε τὰς ἐν τοῖς κυνηγίοις κακοπαθείας καὶ τόλμας περί τε τὰς ἐν τοῖς πολεμικοῖς, ἦν δὲ καὶ περὶ τὸν βίον ἐπιμελὴς καὶ λιτὸς κατὰ τὴν περικοπήν, παρειληφὼς παρὰ τῶν προειρημένων ἀνδρῶν τοιαύτας τινὰς δόξας ὡς οὐχ οἷόν τε τῶν κοινῶν προστατεῖν καλῶς τὸν ὀλιγωροῦντα τῶν κατὰ τὸν ἴδιον βίον, οὔτε μὴν ἀποσχέσθαι2 τῶν τῆς πατρίδος, ὅστις πολυτελέστερον ζῇ τῆς κατὰ τὴν ἰδίαν ὕπαρξιν χορηγίας.
After this, on reaching manhood, he became an emulator of Ecdemus and Demophanes. These men were by birth of Megalopolis, and having fled from the tyrants and lived with Arcesilaus the philosopher during their exile, they liberated their own native city by organizing a conspiracy against the tyrant Aristodemus. They also assisted in the overthrow of Nicocles, the tyrant of Sicyon, sharing in the enterprise with Aratus; and furthermore, being summoned by the Cyreneans, they led them with distinction and preserved their liberty for them. Having lived with them for a long time during his early youth, Philopoemen immediately excelled his contemporaries both in endurance and courage in hunting and in military exercises. He was also careful in his life and simple in his attire, having received from the aforementioned men such opinions as that it is impossible for one who neglects his private affairs to direct public ones well, and that it is not possible for one who lives more luxuriously than his private means permit to keep his hands off the property of his country.
πλὴν κατασταθεὶς ὑπὸ τῶν Ἀχαιῶν ἱππάρχης ἐν τοῖς προειρημένοις καιροῖς, καὶ παραλαβὼν τὰ συντάγματα τῶν ἱππέων παντὶ τρόπῳ κατεφθαρμένα καὶ τὰς ψυχὰς τῶν ἀνδρῶν ἡττημένας, οὐ μόνον αὐτοὺς ἑαυτῶν βελτίους, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν ὑπεναντίων κρείττους ἐν ὀλίγῳ χρόνῳ κατεσκεύασε, πάντας εἰς ἀληθινὴν ἄσκησιν καὶ ζῆλον ἐπιτευκτικὸν ἐμβιβάσας.
However, having been appointed cavalry commander by the Achaeans at the aforementioned times, and having taken over the squadrons of cavalry ruined in every way and the spirits of the men thoroughly broken, he made them in a short time not only better than their former selves but also superior to their adversaries, by leading them all to genuine training and successful emulation.
τῶν μὲν γὰρ ἄλλων οἱ πλεῖστοι τῶν καθισταμένων ἐπὶ τὴν προειρημένην ἀρχήν, οἱ μὲν διὰ τὴν ἰδίαν ἀδυναμίαν ἐν τοῖς ἱππικοῖς οὐδὲ τοῖς πλησίον τολμῶσιν οὐδὲν ὧν καθήκει προστάττειν, οἱ δὲ τῆς στρατηγίας ὀρεγόμενοι διὰ ταύτης τῆς ἀρχῆς ἐξεριθεύονται τοὺς νέους καὶ παρασκευάζουσιν εὔνους συναγωνιστὰς εἰς τὸ μέλλον, οὐκ ἐπιτιμῶντες τῷ δεομένῳ, διʼ οὗ τρόπου σῴζεται τὰ κοινά, ἀλλὰ συμπεριστέλλοντες τὰς ἁμαρτίας καὶ μικρᾷ χάριτι μεγάλα βλάπτοντες τοὺς πιστεύοντας.
For most of the others who were appointed to the aforementioned office, some through their own incompetence in cavalry matters do not dare to order those under them to do any of their duties, while others, aiming at the generalship, court the young men through this office and make them favorable supporters for the future, not censuring those who need it, which is the way public affairs are saved, but rather concealing their errors and doing great harm to those who trust them for the sake of a small favor.
εἰ δέ ποτε γένοιντο τῶν ἀρχόντων τινὲς τῇ τε κατὰ σῶμα χρείᾳ δυνατοὶ πρός τε τὸ τῶν κοινῶν ἀπέχεσθαι πρόθυμοι, πλείω κατὰ τῶν ὀλιγωρούντων διὰ τὴν κακοζηλωσίαν ἀπεργάζονται τοὺς πεζούς,3 ἔτι δὲ μᾶλλον τοὺς ἱππεῖς.
And if ever there are some leaders who are capable of physical service and eager to keep their hands off public funds, they, by their perverse zeal, do more harm to the infantry, and still more to the cavalry, in dealing with those who are negligent.
- 10.22.1ἔφυ
Used intransitively in the second aorist to mean 'was born' or 'was by nature'. Here it introduces his noble natural disposition and lineage.
- 10.22.5ὡς οὐχ οἷόν τε... οὔτε μὴν ἀποσχέσθαι...
The structure within the ὡς clause explaining the contents of the opinions (δόξας) received. The phrase οὐχ οἷόν τε ('it is impossible') governs the infinitive προστατεῖν ('to direct'), and is coordinated by οὔτε μὴν with the subsequent infinitive ἀποσχέσθαι ('to abstain'). The subject of the latter infinitive is implied in the conditional relative clause ὅστις... ζῇ ('whoever lives...').
- 10.22.10πλείω κατὰ τῶν ὀλιγωρούντων διὰ τὴν κακοζηλωσίαν ἀπεργάζονται τοὺς πεζούς
The term κακοζηλωσία here refers to 'misdirected zeal' or 'perverse emulation', taking the form of excessive severity towards negligent subordinates. The verb ἀπεργάζονται, combined with the adverbial/nominal accusative πλείω ('more harm'), governs the accusative objects τοὺς πεζούς and τοὺς ἱππεῖς, with κατὰ τῶν ὀλιγωρούντων indicating 'against/in the case of the negligent', meaning they make the infantry and cavalry even worse off through their misplaced rigor.