- 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-grc2:3.93.1-3.93.10
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-11
Fabius plans to use the advantageous terrain to entrap the Carthaginians and end the war, while Hannibal, anticipating the Roman designs, devises a cunning stratagem to drive oxen with lighted torches on their horns towards the ridges at night to breach the blockade.
νῶν κατεστρατοπέδευσε. παραγενομένων δὲ τῶν Καρχηδονίων καὶ ποιησαμένων τὴν παρεμβολὴν ἐν τοῖς ἐπιπέδοις ὑπʼ αὐτὴν τὴν παρώρειαν, τὴν μὲν λείαν αὐτῶν ἤλπισεν ἀδηρίτως περισυρεῖν, ὡς δὲ τὸ πολὺ καὶ τοῖς ὅλοις1 πέρας ἐπιθήσειν διὰ τὴν τῶν τόπων εὐκαιρίαν.
encamped. When the Carthaginians arrived and pitched their camp on the level ground right under the foot of the hills, he hoped to carry off their booty without a struggle, and for the most part, even to put a final end to the whole war owing to the suitability of the ground.
καὶ δὴ περὶ ταῦτα καὶ πρὸς τούτοις ἐγίνετο τοῖς διαβουλίοις, διανοούμενος πῇ καὶ πῶς χρήσεται τοῖς τόποις καὶ τίνες καὶ πόθεν πρῶτον ἐγχειρήσουσι τοῖς ὑπεναντίοις.
Indeed, he was occupied with these and such considerations, reflecting on where and how he should use the terrain, and who and from where would first attack the enemy.
Ἀννίβας δέ, ταῦτα πρὸς τὴν ἐπιοῦσαν ἡμέραν παρασκευαζομένων τῶν πολεμίων, συλλογιζόμενος ἐκ τῶν εἰκότων οὐκ ἔδωκε χρόνον οὐδʼ ἀναστροφὴν ταῖς ἐπιβολαῖς αὐτῶν, ἀνακαλεσάμενος δὲ τὸν ἐπὶ τῶν λειτουργιῶν τεταγμένον Ἀσδρούβαν παρήγγειλε λαμπάδας δεσμεύειν ἐκ τῆς ξηρᾶς καὶ παντοδαπῆς ὕλης κατὰ τάχος ὡς πλείστας καὶ τῶν ἐργατῶν βοῶν ἐκλέξαντʼ ἐκ πάσης τῆς λείας τοὺς εὐρωστοτάτους εἰς δισχιλίους ἁθροῖσαι πρὸ τῆς παρεμβολῆς.
Hannibal, however, while the enemy were preparing these things for the following day, calculating from the probabilities of the case, gave neither time nor room for their designs; and summoning Hasdrubal, who was in charge of the camp services, he ordered him to bind as many torches as possible of dry wood of all kinds with all speed, and having selected the strongest of the draft oxen from all the booty, to assemble about two thousand of them in front of the camp.
γενομένου δὲ τούτου συναγαγὼν ὑπέδειξε τοῖς λειτουργοῖς ὑπερβολήν τινα μεταξὺ κειμένην τῆς αὑτοῦ στρατοπεδείας καὶ τῶν στενῶν, διʼ ὧν ἔμελλε ποιεῖσθαι τὴν πορείαν, πρὸς ἣν ἐκέλευε προσελαύνειν τοὺς βοῦς ἐνεργῶς καὶ μετὰ βίας, ὅταν δοθῇ τὸ παράγγελμα, μέχρι συνάψωσι τοῖς ἄκροις.
When this was done, he gathered the camp-servants and pointed out to them a certain ridge lying between his own camp and the pass through which he intended to make his march, towards which he ordered them to drive the oxen actively and with force, when the signal was given, until they should reach the heights.
μετὰ δὲ τοῦτο δειπνοποιησαμένοις ἀναπαύεσθαι καθʼ ὥραν παρήγγειλε πᾶσιν.
After this, he ordered all to take their supper and rest in due time.
ἅμα δὲ τῷ κλῖναι2 τὸ τρίτον μέρος τῆς νυκτὸς εὐθέως ἐξῆγε τοὺς λειτουργοὺς καὶ προσδεῖν ἐκέλευσε πρὸς τὰ κέρατα τοῖς βουσὶ τὰς λαμπάδας.
And as soon as the third part of the night was declining, he immediately led out the camp-servants and ordered them to tie the torches to the horns of the oxen.
ταχὺ δὲ τούτου γενομένου διὰ τὸ πλῆθος, ἀνάψαι παρήγγειλε πάσας καὶ τοὺς μὲν βοῦς ἐλαύνειν καὶ προσβάλλειν πρὸς τὰς ἀκρωρείας ἐπέταξε, τοὺς δὲ λογχοφόρους κατόπιν ἐπιστήσας τούτοις ἕως μέν τινος συνεργεῖν παρεκελεύετο τοῖς ἐλαύνουσιν, ὅταν δὲ τὴν πρώτην ἅπαξ ὁρμὴν λάβῃ τὰ ζῷα, παρατρέχοντας παρὰ τὰ πλάγια καὶ συγκρούοντας3 ἅμα τῶν ὑπερδεξίων ἀντέχεσθαι τόπων καὶ προκαταλαμβάνειν τὰς ἀκρωρείας, ἵνα παραβοηθῶσι καὶ συμπλέκωνται τοῖς πολεμίοις, ἐάν που συναντῶσι πρὸς τὰς ὑπερβολάς.
This being quickly done because of the number of hands, he ordered them to light them all, and commanded them to drive the oxen and push up towards the ridges. Having stationed the spearmen behind them, he exhorted them to assist the drivers up to a certain point, but once the animals had made their first rush, to run along the flanks and drive them together, and at the same time to hold on to the commanding positions and occupy the ridges beforehand, so that they might support and engage the enemy if they should meet them anywhere near the passes.
κατὰ δὲ τὸν καιρὸν τοῦτον αὐτὸς ἀναλαβὼν πρῶτα μὲν τὰ βαρέα τῶν ὅπλων, ἐπὶ δὲ τούτοις τοὺς ἱππεῖς, ἑξῆς δὲ τὴν λείαν, ἐπὶ δὲ πᾶσι τοὺς Ἴβηρας καὶ Κελτοὺς
At this time, he himself, taking first the heavy infantry, and after them the cavalry, next the booty, and at the rear the Iberians and Celts...
- 3.93.1τοῖς ὅλοις
The dative neuter plural of the substantivized τὰ ὅλα (the whole, in this context meaning the entire war or the main issue), functioning as the dative complement to πέρας ἐπιθήσειν (to put an end to). It means "to put a decisive end to the whole war."
- 3.93.7ἅμα δὲ τῷ κλῖναι
The construction ἅμα τῷ followed by the infinitive κλῖναι means "as soon as...". The intransitive use of κλῖναι (to decline) describes the passing or drawing to a close of "the third part of the night" (representing the third watch).
- 3.93.9παρατρέχοντας ... καὶ συγκρούοντας
These accusative participles modify the accusative subject (τοὺς λογχοφόρους) in the accusative-and-infinitive construction governed by the principal command. συγκρούοντας can be understood intransitively or causatively as "driving the cattle together" or "clashing [their weapons] together to make a din," both describing actions intended to panic the oxen.