- 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-grc2:3.85.1-3.85.10
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-11
Following the battle of Lake Trasimene, Hannibal imprisoned the Roman captives but released the Italian allies, reiterating his aim of liberating Italy. In Rome, the news of the catastrophic defeat caused widespread panic among the populace upon its official announcement, but the Senate remained calm and began planning future actions.
τοῦτον ἐπετελέσθη τὸν τρόπον. Ἀννίβας δέ, πρὸς αὐτὸν ἐπαναχθέντων τῶν ὑποσπόνδων, ὁμοίως δὲ καὶ τῶν ἄλλων αἰχμαλώτων,1 συναγαγὼν πάντας, ὄντας πλείους τῶν μυρίων καὶ πεντακισχιλίων, πρῶτον μὲν διεσάφησεν ὅτι Μαάρβας οὐκ εἴη κύριος ἄνευ τῆς αὑτοῦ γνώμης διδοὺς τὴν ἀσφάλειαν2 τοῖς ὑποσπόνδοις, μετὰ δὲ ταῦτα κατηγορίαν ἐποιήσατο Ῥωμαίων.
In this manner was the conflict completed. Hannibal, when those who had surrendered under treaty, as well as the other prisoners, were brought back to him, collected them all, numbering more than fifteen thousand, and first declared that Maharbal had no authority to grant security to those who surrendered under treaty without his own consent, and after this he made an accusation against the Romans.
λήξας δὲ τούτων, ὅσοι μὲν ἦσαν Ῥωμαῖοι τῶν ἑαλωκότων, διέδωκεν εἰς φυλακὴν ἐπὶ τὰ τάγματα, τοὺς δὲ συμμάχους ἀπέλυσε χωρὶς λύτρων ἅπαντας εἰς τὴν οἰκείαν, ἐπιφθεγξάμενος τὸν αὐτὸν ὃν καὶ πρόσθεν λόγον ὅτι πάρεστι πολεμήσων οὐκ Ἰταλιώταις, ἀλλὰ Ῥωμαίοις ὑπὲρ τῆς Ἰταλιωτῶν ἐλευθερίας.
Having finished these remarks, he distributed those of the captives who were Romans among his divisions to be kept under guard, but released all the allies without ransom to their own homes, adding the same declaration that he had made before, namely, that he had come to fight not against the Italians, but against the Romans on behalf of the freedom of the Italians.
τὴν δʼ ἑαυτοῦ δύναμιν ἀνελάμβανε καὶ τῶν νεκρῶν τῶν ἐκ τῆς σφετέρας δυνάμεως τοὺς ἐπιφανεστάτους ἔθαψεν, ὄντας εἰς τριάκοντα τὸν ἀριθμόν· οἱ μὲν γὰρ πάντες εἰς χιλίους καὶ πεντακοσίους ἔπεσον, ὧν ἦσαν οἱ πλείους Κελτοί.
He then refreshed his army and buried the most distinguished among the dead of his own force, numbering about thirty; for the total slain amounted to about fifteen hundred, of whom the majority were Celts.
ταῦτα δὲ πράξας διενοεῖτο μετὰ τἀδελφοῦ καὶ τῶν φίλων ποῦ καὶ πῶς δεῖ ποιεῖσθαι τὴν ὁρμήν, εὐθαρσὴς ὢν ἤδη περὶ τῶν ὅλων.
After doing this, being now highly confident about the whole state of affairs, he consulted with his brother and his friends as to where and how they ought to direct their march.
εἰς δὲ τὴν Ῥώμην προσπεσόντος ἤδη τοῦ γεγονότος ἀτυχήματος, στέλλεσθαι μὲν ἢ ταπεινοῦν τὸ συμβεβηκὸς οἱ προεστῶτες τοῦ πολιτεύματος ἠδυνάτουν διὰ τὸ μέγεθος τῆς συμφορᾶς, λέγειν δὲ τοῖς πολλοῖς ἠναγκάζοντο τὰ γεγονότα, συναθροίσαντες τὸν δῆμον εἰς ἐκκλησίαν.
Meanwhile, when the news of the disaster which had occurred reached Rome, the leaders of the state, owing to the magnitude of the calamity, were unable to conceal or minimize what had happened, but were forced to report the facts to the multitude, having assembled the people in an assembly.
διόπερ ἅμα τῷ τὸν στρατηγὸν εἰπεῖν τοῖς ὄχλοις ἀπὸ τῶν ἐμβόλων ὅτι ‘Λειπόμεθα μάχῃ μεγάλῃ’, τηλικαύτην συνέβη γενέσθαι διατροπὴν ὥστε3 τοῖς παραγενομένοις ἐφʼ ἑκατέρων τῶν καιρῶν πολλῷ μεῖζον τότε φανῆναι τὸ γεγονὸς ἢ παρʼ αὐτὸν τὸν τῆς μάχης καιρόν.
Consequently, as soon as the praetor announced to the crowd from the rostra, “We have been defeated in a great battle,” such a great panic ensued that to those who were present on both occasions, the disaster seemed far greater at that moment than at the actual time of the battle itself.
καὶ τοῦτʼ εἰκότως συνέβη. πολλῶν γὰρ χρόνων ἄπειροι καὶ τοῦ ῥήματος καὶ τοῦ πράγματος ὑπάρχοντες4 τῆς ὁμολογουμένης ἥττης οὐ μετρίως οὐδὲ κατὰ σχῆμα τὴν περιπέτειαν ἔφερον.
And this happened naturally. For as they had been unaccustomed for many years both to the word and to the fact of an acknowledged defeat, they could not bear this sudden reverse with moderation or with proper dignity.
οὐ μὴν ἥ γε σύγκλητος, ἀλλʼ ἐπὶ τοῦ καθήκοντος ἔμενε λογισμοῦ καὶ διενοεῖτο περὶ τοῦ μέλλοντος πῶς καὶ τί πρακτέον ἑκάστοις εἴη.
The senate, however, did not lose its presence of mind, but remained in the exercise of proper judgment, and deliberated concerning the future, as to how and what should be done by each.
- 3.85.1πρὸς αὐτὸν ἐπαναχθέντων τῶν ὑποσπόνδων, ὁμοίως δὲ καὶ τῶν ἄλλων αἰχμαλώτων
A genitive absolute construction with the nouns ὑποσπόνδων and αἰχμαλώτων acting as the subjects of the passive participle ἐπαναχθέντων. The term ὑπόσπονδοι refers back to those who surrendered under treaty (ὑποσπόνδους) to Maharbal in §3.84.14 on condition of their safety.
- 3.85.2Μαάρβας οὐκ εἴη κύριος ἄνευ τῆς αὑτοῦ γνώμης διδοὺς τὴν ἀσφάλειαν
The optative εἴη is an optative of indirect discourse in the ὅτι clause, triggered by the past-tense main verb διεσάφησεν. The participle διδοὺς acts adverbially (conditional or temporal), limiting the adjective κύριος (having authority). The indirect reflexive pronoun αὑτοῦ (contracted from ἑαυτοῦ) refers back to the main subject, Hannibal, rather than the subject of the dependent clause (Maharbal).
- 3.85.8ἅμα τῷ τὸν στρατηγὸν εἰπεῖν... τηλικαύτην συνέβη γενέσθαι διατροπὴν ὥστε...
The construction ἅμα τῷ followed by the infinitive clause (τὸν στρατηγὸν εἰπεῖν) expresses simultaneity ("as soon as the praetor spoke"), with τὸν στρατηγὸν as the accusative subject of the infinitive. The subsequent ὥστε introduces a result clause containing an accusative and infinitive construction (τοῖς παραγενομένοις... φανῆναι τὸ γεγονὸς...) meaning "such that the event seemed..."
- 3.85.9πολλῶν γὰρ χρόνων ἄπειροι καὶ τοῦ ῥήματος καὶ τοῦ πράγματος ὑπάρχοντες
The phrase πολλῶν χρόνων is a genitive of time ("for many years" or "unpracticed over a long time"). The adjective ἄπειροι (unaccustomed to) governs the genitive objects τοῦ ῥήματος (the word) and τοῦ πράγματος (the fact). The circumstantial participle ὑπάρχοντες functions causally ("since they were").