- 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-grc2:2.3.1-2.3.8
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-12
The Illyrians made a night approach and a surprise attack on the Aetolian camp, defeating them both on the heights and in the plain, and achieved a major victory together with the Medionians.
τῶν λαφύρων καὶ τὴν ἐπιγραφὴν τῶν ὅπλων. δεδογμένων δὲ τούτων, καὶ δέον1 τῇ κατὰ πόδας ἡμέρᾳ γενέσθαι τὴν αἵρεσιν καὶ τὴν παράληψιν τῆς ἀρχῆς, καθάπερ ἔθος ἐστὶν Αἰτωλοῖς, προσπλέουσιν τῆς νυκτὸς ἑκατὸν λέμβοι πρὸς τὴν Μεδιωνίαν κατὰ τοὺς ἔγγιστα τόπους τῆς πόλεως, ἐφʼ ὧν ἦσαν Ἰλλυριοὶ πεντακισχίλιοι.
of the booty and the inscription of the arms. These things having been resolved, and it being necessary that on the following day the election and the assumption of office should take place, as is the custom among the Aetolians, during the night a hundred lembi sailed up to Medionia at the points nearest to the city, on board of which were five thousand Illyrians.
καθορμισθέντες δὲ καὶ τῆς ἡμέρας ἐπιγενομένης ἐνεργὸν καὶ λαθραίαν ποιησάμενοι τὴν ἀπόβασιν καὶ χρησάμενοι τῇ παρʼ αὐτοῖς εἰθισμένῃ τάξει προῆγον κατὰ σπείρας ἐπὶ τὴν τῶν Αἰτωλῶν στρατοπεδείαν.
Having come to anchor, and when day broke, they made a rapid and secret landing, and employing their customary formation, advanced in cohorts against the camp of the Aetolians.
οἱ δʼ Αἰτωλοὶ συνέντες τὸ γινόμενον ἐπὶ μὲν τῷ παραδόξῳ καὶ τῇ τόλμῃ τῶν Ἰλλυριῶν ἦσαν ἐκπλαγεῖς· πεφρονηματισμένοι δʼ ἐκ πολλοῦ χρόνου καὶ καταπιστεύσαντες ταῖς ἰδίαις δυνάμεσιν κατὰ ποσὸν εὐθαρσῶς εἶχον.
But the Aetolians, perceiving what was happening, were astonished at the unexpectedness and the audacity of the Illyrians; yet, having long been high-spirited and trusting in their own forces, they remained to some extent confident.
τὸ μὲν οὖν πολὺ μέρος τῶν ὁπλιτῶν καὶ τῶν ἱππέων αὐτοῦ πρὸ τῆς στρατοπεδείας ἐν τοῖς ἐπιπέδοις παρενέβαλλον, μέρει δέ τινι τῆς ἵππου καὶ τοῖς εὐζώνοις τοὺς ὑπερδεξίους καὶ πρὸ τοῦ χάρακος εὐφυῶς κειμένους τόπους προκατελάμβανον.
Therefore, they drew up the greater part of their hoplites and cavalry on the level ground just in front of their camp, while with a certain part of the cavalry and the light-armed troops they pre-occupied the commanding heights that were advantageously situated in front of their rampart.
οἱ δʼ Ἰλλυριοὶ τοὺς μὲν ἐλαφροὺς ἐξ ἐφόδου προσπεσόντες τῷ τε πλήθει καὶ τῷ βάρει τῆς συντάξεως ἐξέωσαν, τοὺς δὲ μετὰ τούτων ἱππεῖς συγκινδυνεύοντας ἠνάγκασαν ἀποχωρῆσαι πρὸς τὰ βαρέα τῶν ὅπλων.2
But the Illyrians, charging the light-armed troops, drove them back by the number and the weight of their formation, and forced the cavalry who were sharing the danger with them to retreat to the heavy-armed troops.
λοιπὸν ἐξ ὑπερδεξίου ποιούμενοι τὴν ἔφοδον ἐπὶ τοὺς ἐν τῷ πεδίῳ τεταγμένους ταχέως ἐτρέψαντο, συνεπιθεμένων τοῖς Αἰτωλοῖς ἅμα καὶ τῶν Μεδιωνίων ἐκ τῆς πόλεως.
Next, making their charge from the heights upon those drawn up in the plain, they quickly routed them, while the Medionians also made a simultaneous sally from the city and attacked the Aetolians.
καὶ πολλοὺς μὲν αὐτῶν ἀπέκτειναν, ἔτι δὲ πλείους αἰχμαλώτους ἔλαβον· τῶν δʼ ὅπλων καὶ τῆς ἀποσκευῆς ἐγένοντο πάσης ἐγκρατεῖς.
And they slew many of them, and took still more prisoners; and they became masters of all their arms and baggage.
οἱ μὲν οὖν Ἰλλυριοὶ πράξαντες τὸ συνταχθὲν ὑπὸ τοῦ βασιλέως καὶ διακομίσαντες τὴν ἀποσκευὴν καὶ τὴν ἄλλην ὠφέλειαν ἐπὶ τοὺς λέμβους εὐθέως ἀνήγοντο, ποιούμενοι τὸν
So the Illyrians, having executed the orders of their king, and having carried the baggage and the rest of the booty to their lembi, immediately put to sea, making their...
- 2.3.1δέον
The neuter singular accusative of the participle of the impersonal verb δεῖ, used here in the accusative absolute construction. It is coordinated by καί with the preceding genitive absolute δεδογμένων δὲ τούτων, expressing the background circumstance ("it being necessary").
- 2.3.5τὰ βαρέα τῶν ὅπλων
Literally "the heavy part of the arms," but used here metonymically to refer to the "heavy-armed infantry (hoplites)" or their line of battle. It stands in contrast with the preceding ἐλαφροί (light-armed) and ἵππος (cavalry), indicating that they retreated behind the main body of hoplites.