- 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-grc2:18.41.1-18.41.10
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-09
Upon the death of Attalus I, Polybius reflects on his life, praising how he used his wealth properly for acquiring kingship, established his position by defeating the Galatians, remained faithful to his family and allies, and left a stable kingdom without internal strife to his successors.
ὅτι1 φησὶν ὁ Πολύβιος ἐν τῷ ιη# λόγῳ. ὅτι Ἄτταλος ἐτελεύτησε τὸν βίον· ὑπὲρ οὗ δίκαιόν ἐστι, καθάπερ περὶ τῶν ἄλλων εἰθίσμεθα ποιεῖν, καὶ περὶ τούτου νῦν ἐπιφθέγξασθαι τὸν ἁρμόζοντα λόγον.
Polybius says in the eighteenth book that Attalus ended his life; concerning whom it is just, as we are accustomed to do in the case of others, to utter the fitting tribute now. —
ἐκείνῳ γὰρ ἐξ ἀρχῆς ἄλλο μὲν οὐδὲν ἐφόδιον ὑπῆρξε πρὸς βασιλείαν τῶν ἐκτός, πλοῦτος δὲ μόνον, ὃς μετὰ νοῦ μὲν καὶ τόλμης χειριζόμενος2 ὡς ἀληθῶς μεγάλην παρέχεται χρείαν πρὸς πᾶσαν ἐπιβολήν, ἄνευ δὲ τῶν προειρημένων τοῖς πλείστοις κακῶν παραίτιος πέφυκε γίνεσθαι καὶ συλλήβδην ἀπωλείας.
For to him, from the beginning, no other external resource for kingship was available, but only wealth, — which, if administered with intellect and courage, indeed provides great utility for every enterprise, but without the aforementioned qualities is naturally the cause of evils to most men, and in short, of destruction. —
καὶ γὰρ φθόνους γεννᾷ καὶ ἐπιβουλὰς καὶ πρὸς διαφθορὰν σώματος καὶ ψυχῆς μεγίστας ἔχει ῥοπάς. ὀλίγαι δέ τινές εἰσι ψυχαὶ παντάπασιν αἱ ταῦτα δυνάμεναι διωθεῖσθαι τῇ τοῦ πλούτου δυνάμει.
For it generates envy and plots, and has the greatest tendency towards the corruption of body and soul. Indeed, there are altogether very few souls that are able to repel these things by the power of wealth. —
διὸ καὶ τοῦ προειρημένου ἄξιον ἀγασθῆναι τὴν μεγαλοψυχίαν,3 ὅτι πρὸς οὐδὲν τῶν ἄλλων ἐπεβάλετο χρήσασθαι τοῖς χορηγίοις ἀλλὰ πρὸς βασιλείας κατάκτησιν, οὗ μεῖζον ἢ κάλλιον οὐδὲν οἷόν τʼ ἐστὶν οὐδʼ εἰπεῖν·
Therefore, it is worthy to admire the magnanimity of the aforementioned man, because he did not undertake to use his resources for any other thing but for the acquisition of kingship, than which it is not possible to speak of anything greater or nobler. —
ὃς τὴν ἀρχὴν ἐνεστήσατο τῆς προειρημένης ἐπιβολῆς οὐ μόνον διὰ τῆς εἰς τοὺς φίλους εὐεργεσίας καὶ χάριτος, ἀλλὰ καὶ διὰ τῶν κατὰ πόλεμον ἔργων.
He laid the beginning of the aforementioned enterprise not only through beneficence and goodwill towards his friends, but also through his achievements in war. —
νικήσας γὰρ μάχῃ Γαλάτας, ὃ βαρύτατον καὶ μαχιμώτατον ἔθνος ἦν4 τότε κατὰ τὴν Ἀσίαν, ταύτην ἀρχὴν ἐποιήσατο καὶ τότε πρῶτον αὑτὸν ἔδειξε βασιλέα.
For having defeated in battle the Galatians, who were at that time the most formidable and warlike nation in Asia, he made this the foundation of his power, and then for the first time showed himself to be a king. —
τυχὼν δὲ τῆς τιμῆς ταύτης καὶ βιώσας ἔτη δύο πρὸς τοῖς ἑβδομήκοντα, τούτων δὲ βασιλεύσας τετταράκοντα καὶ τέτταρα, σωφρονέστατα μὲν ἐβίωσε καὶ σεμνότατα πρὸς γυναῖκα καὶ τέκνα, διεφύλαξε δὲ τὴν πρὸς πάντας τοὺς συμμάχους καὶ φίλους πίστιν, ἐναπέθανε δʼ ἐν αὐτοῖς τοῖς καλλίστοις ἔργοις, ἀγωνιζόμενος ὑπὲρ τῆς τῶν Ἑλλήνων ἐλευθερίας.
And having obtained this honor, and having lived seventy-two years, of which he reigned forty-four, he lived most temperately and worthily towards his wife and children; — he preserved his good faith towards all his allies and friends, and died in the midst of his noblest deeds, fighting for the liberty of the Greeks. —
τὸ δὲ μέγιστον, τέτταρας υἱοὺς ἐν ἡλικίᾳ καταλιπὼν οὕτως ἡρμόσατο τὰ κατὰ τὴν ἀρχὴν ὥστε παισὶ παίδων ἀστασίαστον παραδοθῆναι τὴν βασιλείαν.
And what is greatest, having left four sons of full age, he so regulated the affairs of his kingdom that the kingship was handed down to children’s children without discord.
- 18.41.1ὅτι φησὶν... ὅτι
A double ὅti. The first ὅti is a scribal/conventional marker characteristic of Byzantine excerpts (Excerpta) to indicate the beginning of a quotation, while the second ὅti introduces the actual content clause functioning as the object of the main verb φησίν ('says').
- 18.41.3χειριζόμενος
A masculine singular nominative present participle agreeing with the relative pronoun ὃς (referring to πλοῦτος 'wealth' in §18.41.2). It functions as a circumstantial participle expressing condition with a passive meaning ('if it is administered').
- 18.41.5τοῦ προειρημένου ἄξιον ἀγασθῆναι τὴν μεγαλοψυχίαν
The neuter adjective ἄξιον ('worthy') is used here with the aorist infinitive ἀγασθῆναι ('to admire') to form an impersonal construction. The genitive τοῦ προειρημένου ('of the aforementioned man') is governed by the infinitive of the verb ἄγαμαι, which regularly takes a genitive of the person admired.
- 18.41.7ὃ βαρύτατον καὶ μαχιμώτατον ἔθνος ἦν
The relative pronoun ὃ is in the neuter singular. Although its antecedent is the preceding Γαλάτας ('Galatians', masculine plural), it has been attracted/assimilated in gender and number to the predicate noun ἔθνος ('nation', neuter singular) within its own clause.