- 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-grc2:4.50.1-4.50.10
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-10
Prusias captures Byzantine territories including Hieron and Mysia, while the Rhodians blockade the sea near Sestos. In response, the Byzantines seek aid from Achaeus and attempt to summon Tiboites from Macedonia to challenge Prusias.
διὰ ταῦτα καὶ τοιαύτην ἔλαβε τὴν ἀρχήν. οἱ δὲ Βυζάντιοι τὸ μὲν πρῶτον ἐρρωμένως ἐπολέμουν, πεπεισμένοι τὸν μὲν Ἀχαιὸν σφίσι βοηθεῖν, αὐτοὶ δὲ τὸν Τιβοίτην ἐκ τῆς Μακεδονίας ἐπαγαγόντες ἀντιπεριστήσειν1 τῷ Προυσίᾳ φόβους καὶ κινδύνους, ὃς κατὰ τὴν προειρημένην ὁρμὴν πολεμῶν παρείλετο μὲν αὐτῶν τὸ καλούμενον ἐπὶ τοῦ στόματος Ἱερόν, ὃ Βυζάντιοι μικροῖς ἀνώτερον χρόνοις μεγάλων ὠνησάμενοι χρημάτων ἐσφετερίσαντο διὰ τὴν εὐκαιρίαν τοῦ τόπου, βουλόμενοι μηδεμίαν ἀφορμὴν μηδενὶ καταλιπεῖν2 μήτε κατὰ τῶν εἰς τὸν Πόντον πλεόντων ἐμπόρων μήτε περὶ τοὺς δούλους καὶ τὰς ἐξ αὐτῆς τῆς θαλάττης ἐργασίας, παρείλετο δὲ καὶ τὴν ἐπὶ τῆς Ἀσίας χώραν, ἣν κατεῖχον Βυζάντιοι τῆς Μυσίας πολλοὺς ἤδη χρόνους.
For these reasons and in this manner did the war take its beginning. The Byzantines at first waged war vigorously, being convinced that Achaeus would help them, and that they themselves, by bringing Tiboites from Macedonia, would present counteracting fears and dangers to Prusias. Carrying on the war with the aforementioned impulse, he deprived them of the place called the Hieron, situated at the mouth of the strait, which the Byzantines had acquired a short time before at great expense and made their own because of the convenience of the site, wishing to leave no base of operations to anyone against either the merchants sailing into the Pontus, or regarding the slaves and the industries derived from the sea itself, and he also deprived them of their territory on the Asian side, in Mysia, which the Byzantines had already held for many years.
οἱ δὲ Ῥόδιοι πληρώσαντες ναῦς ἕξ, ἅμα δὲ ταύταις παρὰ τῶν συμμάχων προσλαβόντες τέτταρας, καὶ ναύαρχον προχειρισάμενοι Ξενόφαντον, ἔπλεον ἐφʼ Ἑλλησπόντου δέκα ναυσί.
Meanwhile, the Rhodians, having manned six ships and received four more from their allies, and having appointed Xenophantus as admiral, sailed for the Hellespont with ten ships.
καὶ ταῖς μὲν λοιπαῖς ὁρμοῦντες περὶ Σηστὸν ἐκώλυον τοὺς πλέοντας εἰς τὸν Πόντον, μιᾷ δʼ ἐκπλεύσας ὁ ναύαρχος κατεπείραζε τῶν Βυζαντίων, εἴ πως ἤδη μεταμελοῖντο καταπεπληγμένοι τὸν πόλεμον.3
Anchoring with the remaining ships near Sestos, they prevented those who were sailing to the Pontus, while the admiral, putting to sea with one ship, tested the disposition of the Byzantines, to see if they were perhaps already regretful, having been struck with terror by the war.
τῶν δʼ οὐ προσεχόντων ἀπέπλευσε καὶ παραλαβὼν τὰς λοιπὰς ναῦς ἀπῆρε πάσαις εἰς τὴν Ῥόδον.
When they paid no attention, he sailed away, and taking the remaining ships with him, set sail with the whole fleet for Rhodes.
οἱ δὲ Βυζάντιοι πρός τε τὸν Ἀχαιὸν ἔπεμπον, ἀξιοῦντες βοηθεῖν, ἐπί τε τὸν Τιβοίτην ἐξαπέστελλον τοὺς ἄξοντας αὐτὸν ἐκ τῆς Μακεδονίας·
The Byzantines, on their part, sent to Achaeus, requesting his aid, and dispatched messengers to Tiboites to bring him from Macedonia;
ἐδόκει γὰρ οὐχ ἧττον ἡ Βιθυνῶν ἀρχὴ Τιβοίτῃ καθήκειν ἢ Προυσίᾳ διὰ τὸ πατρὸς ἀδελφὸν αὐτὸν ὑπάρχειν τῷ Προυσίᾳ4 οἱ δὲ Ῥόδιοι θεωροῦντες τὴν τῶν Βυζαντίων ὑπόστασιν, πραγματικῶς διενοήθησαν πρὸς τὸ καθικέσθαι τῆς προθέ
for it seemed that the sovereignty of Bithynia belonged no less to Tiboites than to Prusias, because he was his father’s brother, to Prusias. The Rhodians, however, observing the resolution of the Byzantines, devised a practical scheme to achieve their purp...
- 4.50.1αὐτοὶ δὲ τὸν Τιβοίτην ἐκ τῆς Μακεδονίας ἐπαγαγόντες ἀντιπεριστήσειν
The infinitive ἀντιπεριστήσειν depends on πεπεισμένοι. Since its subject is the same as that of the main verb (οἱ δὲ Βυζάντιοι), both the intensive pronoun αὐτοί and the participle ἐπαγαγόντες are in the nominative case.
- 4.50.3βουλόμενοι μηδεμίαν ἀφορμὴν μηδενὶ καταλιπεῖν
The nominative plural participle βουλόμενοι agrees with Βυζάντιοι, the subject within the relative clause ὃ Βυζάντιοι ... ἐσφετερίσαντο, explaining their motive. The double negative (μηδεμίαν ... μηδενί) strengthens the negation.
- 4.50.6εἴ πως ἤδη μεταμελοῖντο καταπεπληγμένοι τὸν πόλεμον
The optative μεταμελοῖντο in the clause introduced by εἴ πως is an oblique optative after the historical main verb κατεπείραζε. The accusative τὸν πόλεμον following the perfect participle καταπεπληγμένοι is either an accusative of respect or a direct object of the middle meaning ('terrified of the war').
- 4.50.9διὰ τὸ πατρὸς ἀδελφὸν αὐτὸν ὑπάρχειν τῷ Προυσίᾳ
The structure of the articular infinitive clause τὸ ... ὑπάρχειν introduced by the preposition διά. The accusative αὐτόν (referring to Tiboites) is the subject accusative of the infinitive, and πατρὸς ἀδελφόν (father's brother) is its predicate accusative. The dative τῷ Προυσίᾳ depends on ὑπάρχειν ('to be/belong to Prusias').