- 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-grc2:7.18.1-7.18.10
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-08
Lagoras and his men break through the gate and two thousand soldiers occupy the theatre, followed by the king's forces rushing into the city. The defenders flee to the citadel, and Sardis is subjected to complete destruction and pillaging, falling into Antiochus' hands.
κατὰ δὲ τὸν καιρὸν τοῦτον οἱ περὶ τὸν Λαγόραν καὶ Θεόδοτον καὶ Διονύσιον ὑπερβάντες τοὺς κρημνοὺς ἧκον ἐπὶ τὴν ὑποκειμένην πύλην.
At this time, Lagoras, Theodotus, Dionysius, and their men, having climbed over the cliffs, reached the gate situated below.
καὶ τινὲς μὲν αὐτῶν διεμάχοντο πρὸς τοὺς ἀπαντῶντας, οἱ δὲ διέκοπτον τοὺς μοχλούς. ἅμα δὲ τούτοις1 προσπεσόντες ἔξωθεν οἱ τεταγμένοι πρὸς τοῦτο τὸ μέρος τὸ παραπλήσιον ἐποίουν.
And some of them fought against those who came to meet them, while others cut through the bars. At the same time, those stationed outside against this part rushed upon it and did the same.
ταχὺ δὲ τῶν πυλῶν ἀνοιχθεισῶν, εἰσελθόντες οἱ δισχίλιοι κατελάβοντο τὴν τοῦ θεάτρου στεφάνην.
The gates being quickly opened, the two thousand men entered and occupied the upper tier of the theatre.
οὗ γινομένου πάντες ὥρμησαν ἀπὸ τῶν τειχῶν καὶ τῆς Περσίδος προσαγορευομένης πύλης, ἐφʼ ἣν πρότερον ἐβοήθησαν οἱ περὶ τὸν Ἀρίβαζον, σπεύδοντες παρεγγυᾶν ἐπὶ τοὺς εἰσπεπτωκότας.2
When this occurred, all rushed from the walls and from the gate called the Persian gate, to which Aribazus and his men had previously hastened to help, hurrying to rally against those who had broken in.
τούτου δὲ συμβαίνοντος, κατὰ τὴν ἀποχώρησιν ἀνεῳγμένης τῆς πύλης, συνεισέπεσόν τινες τῶν παρὰ τοῦ βασιλέως, ἑπόμενοι τοῖς ὑποχωροῦσιν.
While this was happening, since the gate was open during the retreat, some of the king’s men rushed in along with them, following those who were retreating.
ὧν κρατησάντων τῆς πύλης, ἤδη τούτοις κατὰ τὸ συνεχὲς οἱ μὲν εἰσέπιπτον, οἱ δὲ τὰς παρακειμένας διέκοπτον πύλας.
When these had secured the gate, now in continuous succession some rushed in through it, while others cut down the adjacent gates.
οἱ δὲ περὶ τὸν Ἀρίβαζον καὶ πάντες οἱ κατὰ τὴν πόλιν ἐπὶ βραχὺ διαγωνισάμενοι πρὸς τοὺς εἰσεληλυθότας ὥρμησαν φεύγειν πρὸς τὴν ἄκραν.
Aribazus and his men, and all those in the city, after fighting for a short time against those who had entered, rushed to flee to the citadel.
οὗ συμβάντος οἱ μὲν περὶ τὸν Θεόδοτον καὶ Λαγόραν ἔμενον ἐπὶ τῶν κατὰ τὸ θέατρον τόπων, νουνεχῶς καὶ πραγματικῶς ἐφεδρεύοντες τοῖς ὅλοις,3 ἡ δὲ λοιπὴ δύναμις εἰσπεσοῦσα πανταχόθεν ἅμα κατειλήφει τὴν πόλιν. καὶ τὸ λοιπὸν ἤδη, τῶν μὲν φονευόντων τοὺς ἐντυγχάνοντας, τῶν δὲ τὰς οἰκήσεις ἐμπιπρώντων, ἄλλων δὲ πρὸς τὰς ἁρπαγὰς καὶ τὰς ὠφελείας ὡρμηκότων, ἐγίνετο παντελὴς ἡ τῆς πόλεως καταφθορὰ καὶ διαρπαγή.
When this happened, Theodotus, Lagoras, and their men remained in the places around the theatre, wisely and practically acting as a reserve for the whole enterprise, while the rest of the force, rushing in from all sides at once, captured the city. And thenceforth indeed, with some slaughtering those they met, others setting fire to the houses, and others rushing to pillage and plunder, there ensued the utter destruction and sacking of the city.
καὶ Σάρδεων μὲν τοῦτον τὸν τρόπον ἐγένετο κύριος Ἀντίοχος.
In this manner Antiochus became master of Sardis.
- 7.18.2ἅμα δὲ τούτοις
The pronoun τούτοις can refer either to the men cutting the bars (οἱ δὲ διέκοπτον τοὺς μοχλούς) or to their action of cutting. In either case, the context indicates that the forces stationed outside began their attack in coordination or simultaneously with the party inside.
- 7.18.4σπεύδοντες παρεγγυᾶν ἐπὶ τοὺς εἰσπεπτωκότας
The verb παρεγγυάω means 'to pass along orders/encouragement' or 'to rally'. Combined with the prepositional phrase ἐπὶ τοὺς εἰσπεπτωκότας (against those who had broken in), it denotes their rushing to rally one another to face the intruders.
- 7.18.8νουνεχῶς καὶ πραγματικῶς ἐφεδρεύοντες τοῖς ὅλοις
The verb ἐφεδρεύω means 'to act as a reserve' or 'to watch over', and the dative τοῖς ὅλοις refers to the general situation or the whole enterprise. It describes how Theodotus and his men did not rush to plunder, but wisely (νουνεχῶς) and practically (πραγματικῶς) acted as a tactical reserve to maintain control over the overall operation.
Translated by Gemini 3.5 Flash (published 2026-05-25) · Revision history (1, latest 2026-10-09)
- 2026-10-09 Collated with the printed edition — source 1