- 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-grc2:10.40.1-10.40.12
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-05
Publius disposes of the Carthaginian captives and is hailed as "king" by the Iberians, but he rejects the title and orders them to call him "general," showing his extraordinary magnanimity, which the author highly praises.
εἰς δὲ τὴν ἐπαύριον συναθροίσας τὸ τῶν αἰχμαλώτων πλῆθος, ὧν ἦσαν πεζοὶ μὲν εἰς μυρίους, ἱππεῖς δὲ πλείους δισχιλίων, ἐγίνετο περὶ τὴν τούτων οἰκονομίαν.
On the following day, having gathered the multitude of prisoners, of whom there were about ten thousand infantry and more than two thousand cavalry, he occupied himself with their disposal.
τῶν δʼ Ἰβήρων ὅσοι κατὰ τοὺς προειρημένους τόπους Καρχηδονίοις τότε συνεμάχουν, ἧκον ἐγχειρίζοντες σφᾶς αὐτοὺς εἰς τὴν Ῥωμαίων πίστιν, κατὰ δὲ τὰς ἐντεύξεις βασιλέα προσεφώνουν τὸν Πόπλιον.
All those of the Iberians who in the aforementioned regions had been allied with the Carthaginians came to entrust themselves to the good faith of the Romans, and in their interviews they addressed Publius as “king.”
πρῶτον μὲν οὖν ἐποίησε τοῦτο καὶ προσεκύνησε πρῶτος Ἐδεκών, μετὰ δὲ τοῦτον οἱ περὶ τὸν Ἀνδοβάλην. τότε μὲν οὖν ἀνεπιστάτως αὐτὸν παρέδραμε τὸ ῥηθέν·
First of all, Edeco did this and was the first to do obeisance, and after him Andobales and his followers. At that time, this form of address passed him by without attracting his attention;
μετὰ δὲ τὴν μάχην ἁπάντων βασιλέα προσφωνούντων, εἰς ἐπίστασιν ἤγαγε τὸν Πόπλιον τὸ γινόμενον.
but when, after the battle, everyone addressed him as “king,” what was happening brought Publius to pay attention to it.
διὸ καὶ συναθροίσας τοὺς Ἴβηρας βασιλικὸς1 μὲν ἔφη βούλεσθαι καὶ λέγεσθαι παρὰ πᾶσι καὶ ταῖς ἀληθείαις ὑπάρχειν, βασιλεύς γε μὴν οὔτʼ εἶναι θέλειν οὔτε λέγεσθαι παρʼ οὐδενί. ταῦτα δʼ εἰπὼν παρήγγειλε στρατηγὸν αὑτὸν προσφωνεῖν.
Therefore, having assembled the Iberians, he said that he wished to possess a royal mind and to be called so by all and to be so in truth, but that he did not wish to be a king or to be called so by anyone. Having said this, he ordered them to address him as “general.”
ἴσως μὲν οὖν καὶ τότε δικαίως ἄν τις ἐπεσημήνατο2 τὴν μεγαλοψυχίαν τἀνδρός, ᾗ κομιδῇ νέος ὢν καὶ τῆς τύχης αὐτῷ συνεκδραμούσης ἐπὶ τοσοῦτον ὥστε πάντας τοὺς ὑποταττομένους ἐξ αὑτῶν ἐπί τε ταύτην κατενεχθῆναι τὴν διάληψιν καὶ τὴν ὀνομασίαν, ὅμως ἐν ἑαυτῷ διέμεινε καὶ παρῃτεῖτο τὴν τοιαύτην ὁρμὴν καὶ φαντασίαν.
Perhaps even then, one might justly have noted the magnanimity of the man, in that, though he was extremely young and fortune had so far run along with him that all his subjects were of their own accord brought to this conception and form of address, he nevertheless remained true to himself and rejected such an impulse and illusion.
πολὺ δὲ μᾶλλον ἄν τις θαυμάσειε τὴν ὑπερβολὴν τῆς περὶ τὸν ἄνδρα μεγαλοψυχίας, βλέψας εἰς τοὺς ἐσχάτους τοῦ βίου καιρούς, ἡνίκα πρὸς τοῖς κατὰ τὴν Ἰβηρίαν ἔργοις κατεστρέψατο μὲν Καρχηδονίους, καὶ τὰ πλεῖστα καὶ κάλλιστα μέρη τῆς Λιβύης ἀπὸ τῶν Φιλαίνου βωμῶν ἕως Ἡρακλείων στηλῶν ὑπὸ τὴν τῆς πατρίδος ἐξουσίαν ἤγαγε, κατεστρέψατο δὲ τὴν Ἀσίαν καὶ τοὺς τῆς Συρίας βασιλεῖς, καὶ τὸ κάλλιστον καὶ μέγιστον μέρος τῆς οἰκουμένης ὑπήκοον ἐποίησε Ῥωμαίοις, ἔλαβε δὲ καιροὺς εἰς τὸ περιποιήσασθαι δυναστείαν βασιλικὴν ἐν οἷς ἐπιβάλοιτο καὶ βουληθείη τόποις3 τῆς οἰκουμένης.
But one would admire much more the excess of the man’s magnanimity by looking at the final periods of his life, when, in addition to his achievements in Iberia, he conquered the Carthaginians and brought the greatest and finest parts of Libya, from the Altars of Philaeni to the Pillars of Hercules, under the authority of his country, and conquered Asia and the kings of Syria, making the finest and largest part of the inhabited world subject to the Romans, and had opportunities to acquire a royal power in whatever parts of the inhabited world he might attempt and desire.
ταῦτα γὰρ οὐ μόνον ἀνθρωπίνην φύσιν, ἀλλὰ καὶ θειοτέραν, εἰ θέμις εἰπεῖν, ὑπερφρονεῖν ἂν ἐποίησεν.
For these things would have made not only human nature, but even a more divine one, if it is permitted to say so, look down upon others with pride.
Πόπλιος δὲ τοσοῦτον ὑπερέθετο μεγαλοψυχίᾳ τοὺς ἄλλους ἀνθρώπους ὡς οὗ μεῖζον ἀγαθὸν εὔξασθαί τις τοῖς θεοῖς οὐ τολμήσειε,4 λέγω δὲ βασιλείας, τοῦτʼ ἐκεῖνος πολλάκις ὑπὸ τῆς τύχης αὐτῷ δεδομένον ἀπηξίωσε, καὶ περὶ πλείονος ἐποιήσατο τὴν πατρίδα καὶ τὴν ταύτης πίστιν τῆς περιβλέπτου καὶ μακαριστῆς βασιλείας.
But Publius so far surpassed other men in magnanimity that, whereas no one would dare to pray to the gods for a greater good—I mean kingship—he repeatedly disdained this when it was offered to him by fortune, and valued more highly his country and his loyalty to it than that admired and envied kingship.
πλὴν τότε γε διαλέξας ἐκ τῶν αἰχμαλώτων τοὺς Ἴβηρας, τούτους μὲν ἀπέλυσε χωρὶς λύτρων πάντας εἰς τὰς ἑαυτῶν πατρίδας, τῶν δʼ ἵππων τριακοσίους κελεύσας ἐκλέξαι τοῖς περὶ τὸν Ἀνδοβάλην τοὺς λοιποὺς διέδωκε τοῖς ἀνίπποις.
At that time, however, having selected the Iberians from among the prisoners, he released them all without ransom to their own countries; and ordering Andobales and his followers to choose three hundred of the horses, he distributed the rest among those who had no horses.
καὶ τὸ λοιπὸν ἤδη μεταλαβὼν τὴν τῶν Καρχηδονίων στρατοπεδείαν διὰ τὴν τῶν τόπων εὐφυΐαν, αὐτὸς μὲν ἔμενε καραδοκῶν τοὺς καταλειπομένους τῶν Καρχηδονίων στρατηγούς, ἐπὶ δὲ τὰς ὑπερβολὰς τῶν Πυρηναίων ὀρέων ἐξαπέστειλε τοὺς τηρήσοντας τὸν Ἀσδρούβαν.
And for the rest, having already occupied the camp of the Carthaginians on account of the excellence of the position, he himself remained there watching for the remaining Carthaginian generals, but sent out to the passes of the Pyrenees those who were to keep watch on Hasdrubal.
μετὰ δὲ ταῦτα, τῆς ὥρας ἤδη συναπτούσης, ἀνεχώρησε μετὰ τῆς δυνάμεως εἰς Ταρράκωνʼ, ἐν τούτοις τοῖς τόποις ποιεῖσθαι τὴν παραχειμασίαν.
After this, as the season was already drawing to a close, he withdrew with his forces to Tarraco, to make his winter quarters in those parts.
- 10.40.5βασιλικός
The contrast between the adjective βασιλικός ("royal, fit for a king") and the noun βασιλεύς ("king"). Publius desires to possess a royal mind, but strictly rejects the actual title and position of a king, reflecting the traditional Roman aversion to kingship.
- 10.40.6ἐπεσημήνατο
The past indicative ἐπεσημήνατο with the particle ἄν expresses past potentiality or conjecture ("one might justly have noted"). The relative pronoun in the dative ᾗ functions causally ("in that", "seeing that") to introduce the reason for such praise.
- 10.40.7ἐν οἷς ἐπιβάλοιτο καὶ βουληθείη τόποις
A grammatical construction where the antecedent τόποις is incorporated into the relative clause (attraction/incorporation), meaning "in whatever parts of the inhabited world he might attempt and desire."
- 10.40.9ὡς οὗ μεῖζον ἀγαθὸν εὔξασθαί τις τοῖς θεοῖς οὐ τολμήσειε
The conjunction ὡς with the optative (τολμήσειε) expresses degree or hypothetical result ("so that no one would dare"). The relative pronoun οὗ is a genitive of comparison modifying the comparative adjective μεῖζον ("greater than which").