- 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-grc2:9.26.1-9.26.11
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-07
The passage explains the unrest among Italian cities after the fall of Capua and Hannibal's strategic dilemma, which forced him to take harsh and treacherous measures that complicated the evaluation of his true character and led to his conflicting reputation.
πλὴν ὅτι γε καὶ τὴν Ἀννίβου φύσιν οὐ μόνον ἡ τῶν φίλων παράθεσις, ἔτι δὲ μᾶλλον ἡ τῶν πραγμάτων περίστασις ἐβιάζετο καὶ μετετίθετο πολλάκις, ἔκ τε τῶν προειρημένων καὶ τῶν λέγεσθαι μελλόντων ἐστὶ φανερόν.1
However, that both the influence of his friends, and still more the circumstances of his situation, forced and frequently altered the character of Hannibal, is clear from what has been said and from what is about to be told.
ἅμα γὰρ τῷ γενέσθαι τὴν Καπύην τοῖς Ῥωμαίοις ὑποχείριον2 εὐθέως ἦσαν, ὅπερ εἰκός, αἱ πόλεις μετέωροι, καὶ περιέβλεπον ἀφορμὰς καὶ προφάσεις τῆς πρὸς Ῥωμαίους μεταβολῆς·
For as soon as Capua fell into the hands of the Romans, the other cities immediately, as was natural, became unsettled, and began to look around for opportunities and pretexts for changing to the side of the Romans.
ὅτε δὴ καὶ δοκεῖ μάλιστα δυσχρηστηθεὶς Ἀννίβας εἰς ἀπορίαν ἐμπεσεῖν ὑπὲρ τῶν ἐνεστώτων.
At this very juncture, Hannibal seems to have been in the greatest difficulty and to have fallen into embarrassment concerning the situation before him.
οὔτε γὰρ τηρεῖν τὰς πόλεις πάσας πολὺ διεστώσας ἀλλήλων δυνατὸς ἦν, καθίσας εἰς ἕνα τόπον, τῶν πολεμίων καὶ πλείοσι στρατοπέδοις ἀντιπαραγόντων, οὔτε διαιρεῖν εἰς πολλὰ μέρη τὴν αὑτοῦ δύναμιν οἷός τʼ ἦν.
For he was neither able, by remaining in one place, to guard all the cities which lay at a great distance from each other while the enemy were opposing him with several armies, nor was he capable of dividing his own force into many parts.
εὐχείρωτος γὰρ ἔμελλε τοῖς ἐχθροῖς ὑπάρξειν καὶ διὰ τὸ λείπεσθαι τῷ πλήθει καὶ διὰ τὸ μὴ δύνασθαι πᾶσιν αὐτὸς συμπαρεῖναι.
For he was bound to become an easy prey to his enemies, both because he was inferior in numbers and because he could not be present everywhere himself.
διόπερ ἠναγκάζετο τὰς μὲν προδήλως ἐγκαταλείπειν τῶν πόλεων, ἐξ ὧν δὲ τὰς φρουρὰς ἐξάγειν, ἀγωνιῶν μὴ κατὰ τὰς μεταβολὰς τῶν πραγμάτων συγκαταφθείρῃ3 τοὺς ἰδίους στρατιώτας.
Therefore he was forced to abandon some of the cities openly, and from others to withdraw his guards, being anxious lest, in the changing turn of affairs, he might lose his own soldiers along with them.
ἐνίας δὲ καὶ παρασπονδῆσʼ ὑπέμεινε, μετανιστὰς εἰς ἄλλας πόλεις καὶ ποιῶν ἀναρπάστους αὐτῶν τοὺς βίους.
Some cities he even submitted to treat with treachery, removing their populations to other towns and giving up their property to plunder.
ἐξ ὧν προσκόπτοντες οἱ μὲν ἀσέβειαν, οἱ δʼ ὠμότητα κατεγίνωσκον.
In consequence of this, people took offense and accused him, some of impiety, others of cruelty.
καὶ γὰρ ἁρπαγαὶ χρημάτων ἅμα τοῖς προειρημένοις καὶ φόνοι καὶ βίαιοι προφάσεις ἐγίνοντο διά τε τῶν ἐξιόντων καὶ διὰ τῶν εἰσιόντων στρατιωτῶν εἰς τὰς πόλεις, ἑκάστων ὑπειληφότων ὅσον οὐκ ἤδη4 τοὺς ὑπολειπομένους μεταβαλεῖσθαι πρὸς τοὺς ὑπεναντίους.
For indeed, in addition to the aforementioned events, robberies of property, murders, and violent pretexts occurred at the hands of the soldiers who were either evacuating or entering the cities, as everyone assumed that those left behind were on the very point of going over to the enemy.
ἐξ ὧν καὶ λίαν δυσχερὲς ἀποφήνασθαι περὶ τῆς Ἀννίβου φύσεως, διά τε τὴν τῶν φίλων παράθεσιν καὶ τὴν τῶν πραγμάτων περίστασιν.
For these reasons, it is extremely difficult to pronounce a judgment on the natural character of Hannibal, owing to both the influence of his friends and the force of circumstances.
κρατεῖ γε μὴν ἡ φήμη παρὰ μὲν Καρχηδοίοις ὡς φιλαργύρου, παρὰ δὲ Ῥωμαίοις ὡς ὠμοῦ γενομένου [αὐτοῦ].
At any rate, the prevailing opinion is that among the Carthaginians he was greedy, and among the Romans he was cruel.
- 9.26.1πλὴν ὅτι γε... ἐστὶ φανερόν
The entire ὅτι clause (ὅτι γε καὶ τὴν Ἀννίβου φύσιν... μετετίθετο πολλάκις) functions as the subject noun clause of the main predicate ἐστὶ φανερόν ('it is clear'). The structure οὐ μόνον... ἔτι δὲ μᾶλλον... is a variation of the standard οὐ μόνον... ἀλλὰ καί... ('not only... but also...'), where ἔτι δὲ μᾶλλον ('still more') is used to place greater emphasis on the second element (the circumstances).
- 9.26.2ἅμα τῷ γενέσθαι τὴν Καπύην τοῖς Ῥωμαίοις ὑποχείριον
The preposition of simultaneity ἅμα followed by the articular dative infinitive τῷ γενέσθαι expresses a temporal relation ('as soon as' / 'at the same time as'). τὴν Καπύην is the accusative subject of the infinitive, and τοῖς Ῥωμαίοις is the dative governed by ὑποχείριον ('under the hand of').
- 9.26.6ἀγωνιῶν μὴ... συγκαταφθείρῃ
The participle ἀγωνιῶν ('being anxious/fearing') introduces a clause of fearing consisting of the negative particle μή and the subjunctive συγκαταφθείρῃ (third-person singular), meaning 'anxious lest he should destroy...'.
- 9.26.9ὅσον οὐκ ἤδη
An idiomatic adverbial phrase meaning 'all but now' or 'on the very point of'. It modifies the following future infinitive μεταβαλεῖσθαι ('to go over/change sides'), emphasizing the extreme imminence of the action.