- 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-grc2:4.18.1-4.18.12
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-10
Describes how the Aetolians entered Cynaetha through the betrayal of the newly appointed polemarchs among the returned exiles, massacring and plundering the inhabitants (including the traitors), and subsequently threatened the temple of Artemis at Lusi but were appeased.
ψασαν ἄρδην ἀπολέσαι.1 τὴν δὲ πρᾶξιν τοιᾷδέ τινι τόλμῃ καὶ τοιούτῳ τρόπῳ συνεστήσαντο.
[country] to ruin completely. They organized their plot with the following audacity and in the following manner.
πολέμαρχοι τῶν κατεληλυθότων τινὲς ἐγεγόνεισαν· ταύτην δὲ συμβαίνει τὴν ἀρχὴν κλείειν2 τὰς πύλας καὶ τὸν μεταξὺ χρόνον κυριεύειν τῶν κλειδῶν, ποιεῖσθαι δὲ καὶ τὸ καθʼ ἡμέραν τὴν δίαιταν ἐπὶ τῶν πυλώνων.
Some of those who had returned had become polemarchs; it is the function of this office to shut the gates and to keep control of the keys during the interval, and also to take their daily meals by the gatehouses.
οἱ μὲν οὖν Αἰτωλοὶ διεσκευασμένοι καὶ τὰς κλίμακας ἑτοίμας ἔχοντες ἐπετήρουν τὸν καιρόν·
The Aetolians, therefore, fully equipped and having their ladders ready, were waiting for the opportune moment.
οἱ δὲ πολεμαρχοῦντες τῶν φυγάδων κατασφάξαντες τοὺς συνάρχοντας ἐπὶ τοῦ πυλῶνος ἀνέῳξαν τὴν πύλην.
And those of the exiles who were acting as polemarchs, having slaughtered their colleagues at the gatehouse, opened the gate.
οὗ συμβάντος τινὲς μὲν τῶν Αἰτωλῶν διὰ ταύτης εἰσέπιπτον, τινὲς δὲ τὰς κλίμακας προσερείσαντες ἐβιάσαντο διὰ τούτων καὶ κατελάμβανον τὸ τεῖχος. οἱ δʼ ἐν τῇ πόλει πάντες, ἐκπλαγεῖς ὄντες ἐπὶ τοῖς συντελουμένοις, ἀπόρως καὶ δυσχρήστως εἶχον πρὸς τὸ συμβαῖνον· οὔτε γὰρ πρὸς τοὺς διὰ τῆς πύλης εἰσπίπτοντας οἷοί τʼ ἦσαν βοηθεῖν ἀπερισπάστως διὰ τοὺς πρὸς τὰ τείχη προσβάλλοντας, οὐδὲ μὴν τοῖς τείχεσιν ἐπαμύνειν3 διὰ τοὺς τῇ πύλῃ βιαζομένους.
When this happened, some of the Aetolians rushed in through this gate, while others, having applied their ladders, forced their way up and captured the wall. All those in the city, being astounded at what was taking place, were helpless and at a loss to deal with the situation; for they were unable to bring aid against those rushing through the gate without distraction because of those attacking the walls, nor indeed could they defend the walls because of those forcing their way at the gate.
οἱ δʼ Αἰτωλοὶ διὰ ταύτας τὰς αἰτίας ταχέως ἐγκρατεῖς γενόμενοι τῆς πόλεως, τῶν ἀδίκων ἔργων ἓν τοῦτʼ ἔπραξαν δικαιότατον· πρώτους γὰρ τοὺς εἰσαγαγόντας καὶ προδόντας αὐτοῖς τὴν πόλιν κατασφάξαντες διήρπασαν τοὺς τούτων βίους.
The Aetolians, having quickly become masters of the city for these reasons, performed this one act which, among all their unjust deeds, was most just: for having slaughtered first of all those who had let them in and betrayed the city to them, they plundered their property.
ὁμοίως δὲ καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις ἐχρήσαντο πᾶσι· τὸ δὲ τελευταῖον ἐπισκηνώσαντες ἐπὶ τὰς οἰκίας ἐξετοιχωρύχησαν μὲν τοὺς βίους, ἐστρέβλωσαν δὲ πολλοὺς τῶν Κυναιθέων, οἷς ἠπίστησαν ἔχειν κεκρυμμένα4 διάφορον ἢ κατασκευάσματʼ ἤπερ ἄλλο τι τῶν πλείονος ἀξίων.
They treated all the others in like manner; and finally, quartering themselves in the houses, they ransacked their property, and tortured many of the Cynaethians whom they suspected of having concealed money, furniture, or any other things of greater value.
τοῦτον δὲ τὸν τρόπον λωβησάμενοι τοὺς Κυναιθεῖς ἀνεστρατοπέδευσαν, ἀπολιπόντες φυλακὴν τῶν τειχῶν, καὶ προῆγον ὡς ἐπὶ Λούσων·
Having maltreated the Cynaethians in this manner, they broke camp, leaving a guard on the walls, and advanced as if towards Lusi.
καὶ παραγενόμενοι πρὸς τὸ τῆς Ἀρτέμιδος ἱερόν, ὃ κεῖται μὲν μεταξὺ Κλείτορος καὶ Κυναίθης, ἄσυλον δὲ νενόμισται παρὰ τοῖς Ἕλλησιν, ἀνετείνοντο διαρπάσειν τὰ θρέμματα τῆς θεοῦ καὶ τἄλλα τὰ περὶ τὸν ναόν.
And arriving at the temple of Artemis, which lies between Cleitor and Cynaetha, and is regarded as inviolable among the Greeks, they threatened to plunder the cattle of the goddess and the other things around the temple.
οἱ δὲ Λουσιᾶται νουνεχῶς δόντες τινὰ τῶν κατασκευασμάτων τῆς θεοῦ, παρῃτήσαντο τὴν τῶν Αἰτωλῶν ἀσέβειαν τοῦ μηδὲν παθεῖν ἀνήκεστον.
The people of Lusi, however, wisely giving them some of the vessels of the goddess, averted the impiety of the Aetolians so as to suffer no fatal harm.
οἱ δὲ δεξάμενοι παραχρῆμʼ ἀναζεύξαντες προσεστρατοπέδευσαν τῇ τῶν Κλειτορίων πόλει.
The Aetolians, having accepted these, immediately marched away and encamped near the city of the Cleitorians.
- 4.18.1ψασαν ἄρδην ἀπολέσαι
Combined with the incomplete word 'θρέ' at the end of the preceding chunk to form 'θρέψασαν' (aorist active participle, feminine singular accusative of 'τρέφω' 'to nurture'). Along with the article 'τὴν' in §4.17.12, it refers to the 'homeland' which nurtured them.
- 4.18.2ταύτην δὲ συμβαίνει τὴν ἀρχὴν κλείειν
An accusative with infinitive construction dependent on the impersonal verb 'συμβαίνει' ('it happens that', 'it is appointed that'), where the accusative 'ταύτην τὴν ἀρχήν' ('this office') serves as the subject of the three infinitives 'κλείειν', 'κυριεύειν', and 'ποιεῖσθαι'.
- 4.18.6οὐδὲ μὴν τοῖς τείχεσιν ἐπαμύνειν
The phrase 'οἷοί τʼ ἦσαν' (they were able), indicating capability and appearing in the preceding clause 'οὔτε ... οἷοί τʼ ἦσαν', is elided here but should be supplied as the predicate governing the infinitive 'ἐπαμύνειν'.
- 4.18.8οἷς ἠπίστησαν ἔχειν κεκρυμμένα
The verb 'ἠπίστησαν' (aorist of 'ἀπιστέω', 'to distrust, suspect') takes the dative relative pronoun 'οἷς' (referring to an omitted antecedent 'τούτων') and governs the infinitive 'ἔχειν κεκρυμμένα' to mean 'whom they suspected of having concealed...'. The relative pronoun has undergone case attraction to the case required by the governing verb.