- 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-grc2:2.41.1-2.41.15
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-12
Polybius explains the historical background of the Achaean League's reunification (124th Olympiad), tracing its transition from ancient monarchy to democracy and its subsequent dissolution under Macedonian rule. He then describes how cities like Patrae, Dyme, Aegium, and Cerynea expelled their garrisons or tyrants to reconstruct and expand the league.
Ὀλυμπιὰς μὲν ἦν εἰκοστὴ καὶ τετάρτη πρὸς ταῖς ἑκατόν, ὅτε Πατρεῖς ἤρξαντο συμφρονεῖν καὶ Δυμαῖοι, καιροὶ δὲ καθʼ οὓς Πτολεμαῖος ὁ Λάγου καὶ Λυσίμαχος, ἔτι δὲ Σέλευκος καὶ Πτολεμαῖος ὁ Κεραυνὸς μετήλλαξαν τὸν βίον. πάντες γὰρ οὗτοι περὶ τὴν προειρημένην ὀλυμπιάδα τὸ ζῆν ἐξέλιπον.
It was the hundred and twenty-fourth Olympiad when the Patreans and Dymaeans began to cooperate. This was also the period in which Ptolemy the son of Lagus and Lysimachus, and moreover Seleucus and Ptolemy Keraunos, departed this life; for all of these died around the aforementioned Olympiad.
τοὺς μὲν οὖν ἀνώτερον τούτων χρόνους τοιαύτη τις ἦν ἡ περὶ τὸ προειρημένον ἔθνος διάθεσις.
In the times prior to this, the condition of the aforementioned nation was as follows.
ἀπὸ γὰρ Τισαμενοῦ βασιλευθέντες, ὃς ἦν Ὀρέστου μὲν υἱός, κατὰ δὲ τὴν τῶν Ἡρακλειδῶν κάθοδον ἐκπεσὼν τῆς Σπάρτης κατέσχε τοὺς περὶ Ἀχαΐαν τόπους, ἀπὸ τούτου κατὰ τὸ συνεχὲς καὶ κατὰ τὸ γένος ἕως Ὠγύγου βασιλευθέντες,1 μετὰ ταῦτα δυσαρεστήσαντες τοῖς τοῦ προειρημένου παισὶν ἐπὶ τῷ μὴ νομίμως ἀλλὰ δεσποτικῶς αὐτῶν ἄρχειν, μετέστησαν εἰς δημοκρατίαν τὴν πολιτείαν.
For having been ruled by kings starting from Tisamenus, who was the son of Orestes and, having been expelled from Sparta at the return of the Heracleidae, occupied the regions around Achaea, being ruled by kings continuously and by descent from him down to Ogygus, they subsequently became dissatisfied with the sons of the aforementioned king because they ruled them not constitutionally but despotically, and so they changed their constitution to a democracy.
λοιπὸν ἤδη τοὺς ἑξῆς χρόνους μέχρι τῆς Ἀλεξάνδρου καὶ Φιλίππου δυναστείας ἄλλοτε μὲν ἄλλως ἐχώρει τὰ πράγματʼ αὐτοῖς κατὰ τὰς περιστάσεις, τό γε μὴν κοινὸν πολίτευμα, καθάπερ εἰρήκαμεν, ἐν δημοκρατίᾳ συνέχειν ἐπειρῶντο.
Thereafter, during the succeeding period down to the hegemony of Alexander and Philip, their affairs went sometimes one way and sometimes another according to circumstances, but they nevertheless endeavored to maintain their common constitution in a democracy, as we have said.
τοῦτο δʼ ἦν ἐκ δώδεκα πόλεων, ἃς ἔτι καὶ νῦν συμβαίνει διαμένειν, πλὴν Ὠλένου καὶ Ἑλίκης τῆς πρὸ τῶν Λευκτρικῶν ὑπὸ τῆς θαλάττης καταποθείσης·2
This league consisted of twelve cities, which still exist today, with the exception of Olenus, and of Helice which was swallowed up by the sea before the battle of Leuctra.
αὗται δʼ εἰσὶν Πάτραι, Δύμη, Φαραί, Τριταία, Λεόντιον, Αἴγιον, Αἴγειρα, Πελλήνη, Βοῦρα, Καρύνεια.
These are Patrae, Dyme, Pharae, Tritaea, Leontium, Aegium, Aegeira, Pellene, Bura, and Cerynea.
κατὰ δὲ τοὺς ὑστέρους μὲν τῶν κατʼ Ἀλέξανδρον καιρῶν, προτέρους δὲ τῆς ἄρτι ῥηθείσης ὀλυμπιάδος, εἰς τοιαύτην διαφορὰν καὶ καχεξίαν ἐνέπεσον, καὶ μάλιστα διὰ τῶν ἐκ Μακεδονίας βασιλέων, ἐν ᾗ συνέβη πάσας τὰς πόλεις χωρισθείσας ἀφʼ αὑτῶν ἐναντίως τὸ συμφέρον ἄγειν ἀλλήλαις.3
But in the period subsequent to Alexander, but prior to the Olympiad just mentioned, they fell into such a state of division and discord, chiefly through the agency of the kings of Macedonia, that all the cities became separated from one another and acted in opposition to each other’s interests.
ἐξ οὗ συνέπεσε τὰς μὲν ἐμφρούρους αὐτῶν γενέσθαι διά τε Δημητρίου καὶ Κασσάνδρου καὶ μετὰ ταῦτα διʼ Ἀντιγόνου τοῦ Γονατᾶ, τὰς δὲ καὶ τυραννεῖσθαι· πλείστους γὰρ δὴ μονάρχους οὗτος ἐμφυτεῦσαι δοκεῖ τοῖς Ἕλλησι.
As a consequence of which, some of them came to be garrisoned through Demetrius and Cassander, and later through Antigonus Gonatas, while others were ruled by tyrants; for this ruler indeed seems to have planted more monarchs among the Greeks than any other.
περὶ δὲ τὴν εἰκοστὴν καὶ τετάρτην ὀλυμπιάδα πρὸς ταῖς ἑκατόν, καθάπερ ἐπάνω προεῖπον, αὖθις ἤρξαντο μετανοήσαντες συμφρονεῖν. ταῦτα δʼ ἦν κατὰ τὴν Πύρρου διάβασιν εἰς Ἰταλίαν.
But about the hundred and twenty-fourth Olympiad, as I said above, they repented and began to cooperate once more. This was at the time of Pyrrhus’s crossing into Italy.
καὶ πρῶτοι μὲν συνέστησαν Δυμαῖοι, Πατρεῖς, Τριταιεῖς, Φαραιεῖς· διόπερ οὐδὲ στήλην ὑπάρχειν συμβαίνει τῶν πόλεων τούτων περὶ τῆς συμπολιτείας.
And first Dyme, Patrae, Tritaea, and Pharae united; wherefore there is not even a tablet existing of these cities concerning their union.
μετὰ δὲ ταῦτα μάλιστά πως ἔτει πέμπτῳ τὴν φρουρὰν ἐκβαλόντες Αἰγιεῖς μετέσχον τῆς συμπολιτείας· ἑξῆς δὲ τούτοις Βούριοι, τὸν τύραννον ἀποκτείναντες.
After this, about the fifth year, the Aegians, having expelled their garrison, joined the union; and next to them the Burians, having killed their tyrant.
ἅμα δὲ τούτοις Καρυνεῖς ἀποκατέστησαν. συνιδὼν γὰρ Ἰσέας ὁ τῆς Καρυνείας τότε τυραννεύων ἐκπεπτωκυῖαν μὲν ἐξ Αἰγίου τὴν φρουράν, ἀπολωλότα δὲ τὸν ἐν τῇ Βούρᾳ μόναρχον διὰ Μάργου καὶ τῶν Ἀχαιῶν, ἑαυτὸν δὲ πανταχόθεν ὁρῶν ὅσον οὐκ ἤδη πολεμηθησόμενον,4 ἀποθέμενος τὴν ἀρχὴν καὶ λαβὼν τὰ πιστὰ παρὰ τῶν Ἀχαιῶν ὑπὲρ τῆς ἀσφαλείας προσέθηκε τὴν πόλιν πρὸς τὸ τῶν Ἀχαιῶν σύστημα.
And at the same time the Ceryneans restored themselves. For Iseas, who was then tyrant of Cerynea, seeing that the garrison had been expelled from Aegium, and that the monarch of Bura had been destroyed by Margus and the Achaeans, and seeing himself about to be attacked from all sides, laid down his rule, and having received guarantees of safety from the Achaeans, added his city to the Achaean league.
- 2.41.5βασιλευθέντες
It is a participle depending on the main verb μετέστησαν. Although the same participle βασιλευθέντες already appears at the beginning of §2.41.4, the sentence becomes so long due to the insertion of the relative clause ὃς ἦν... κατέσχε... that the participle is repeated at the beginning of §2.41.5 with ἀπὸ τούτου ... ἕως Ὠγύγου to restore the syntactical connection.
- 2.41.7πλὴν Ὠλένου καὶ Ἑλίκης τῆς πρὸ τῶν Λευκτρικῶν ὑπὸ τῆς θαλάττης καταποθείσης
The modifying phrase τῆς ... καταποθείσης ('swallowed up by the sea') agrees in gender, number, and case (feminine genitive singular) only with Ἑλίκης (Helice), and does not modify Ὠλένου (Olenus). Historically, Helice was submerged by an earthquake and tsunami in 373 BC, whereas Olenus was abandoned by its inhabitants.
- 2.41.9ἐν ᾗ συνέβη πάσας τὰς πόλεις χωρισθείσας ἀφʼ αὑτῶν ἐναντίως τὸ συμφέρον ἄγειν ἀλλήλαις
In this relative clause, the accusative with infinitive construction (πάσας τὰς πόλεις ... ἄγειν) serves as the subject of the impersonal verb συνέβη ('it happened that...'). The participle χωρισθείσας modifies the accusative subject, and the adverb ἐναντίως along with the dative ἀλλήλαις depends on the infinitive ἄγειν.
- 2.41.14ὅσον οὐκ ἤδη πολεμηθησόμενον
The phrase ὅσον οὐκ ἤδη is an idiomatic expression meaning 'all but now' or 'on the very point of.' The future passive participle πολεμηθησόμενον functions as an object complement to ἑαυτόν, which is the object of the verb of perception ὁρῶν ('seeing himself about to be attacked').