Achaean War with Lacedaemon and the Senate's Decree — Livy, History of Rome Book 38 (38.32.1–38.32.10), Latin & English

§38.32.1

id ubi legati ad Achaeos rettulerunt, omnium civitatium, quae eius concilii erant, consensu bellum Lacedaemoniis indictum est. ne extemplo gereretur,¹ hiems impediit; incursionibus tamen parvis, latrocinii magis quam belli modo, non terra tantum sed etiam navibus a mari fines eorum vastati.

When the ambassadors reported this to the Achaeans, war was declared against the Lacedaemonians with the consensus of all the states that belonged to that council. Lest it should be carried on immediately, the winter prevented it; nevertheless, by small incursions, more in the manner of robbery than of war, their territory was laid waste not only by land but also by ships from the sea.

§38.32.3

hic tumultus consulem Peloponnesum adduxit, iussuque eius Elin concilio indicto Lacedaemonii ad disceptandum acciti.

This disturbance brought the consul to the Peloponnesus, and by his order an assembly was summoned to Elis, and the Lacedaemonians were called to discuss the matter.

§38.32.4

magna ibi non disceptatio modo sed altercatio fuit, cui consul, cum alia satis ambitiose partem utramque fovendo incerta respondisset, una denuntiatione, ut bello abstinerent, donec Romam ad senatum legatos misissent, finem imposuit.²

There was not only great discussion there but also a violent altercation, to which the consul, although he had given vague answers to other matters, quite ambitiously favoring both sides, put an end by a single injunction: that they should abstain from war until they had sent ambassadors to the senate at Rome.

§38.32.5

utrimque legatio missa Romam est. exules quoque Lacedaemoniorum suam causam legationemque Achaeis iniunxerunt.

An embassy was sent to Rome from both sides. The exiles of the Lacedaemonians also entrusted their cause and embassy to the Achaeans.

§38.32.6

Diophanes et Lycortas, Megalopolitani ambo, principes legationis Achaeorum fuerunt, qui, dissidentes in re publica, tum quoque minime inter se convenientis orationes habuerunt.

Diophanes and Lycortas, both of Megalopolis, were the leaders of the Achaean embassy, who, disagreeing on public affairs, then also delivered speeches that were by no means consistent with each other.

§38.32.7

Diophanes senatui disceptationem omnium rerum permittebat: eos optime controversias inter Achaeos ac Lacedaemonios finituros esse;

Diophanes submitted the decision of all matters to the senate, asserting that they would best put an end to the disputes between the Achaeans and the Lacedaemonians;

§38.32.8

Lycortas ex praeceptis Philopoemenis postulabat, ut Achaeis ex foedere ac legibus suis, quae decressent, agere liceret, libertatemque sibi illibatam, cuius ipsi auctores.

Lycortas, in accordance with the instructions of Philopoemen, demanded that the Achaeans be permitted to act according to the treaty and their own laws regarding what they had decreed, and that they should preserve their freedom unimpaired, of which they themselves had been the authors.

§38.32.9

essent,³ praestarent. magnae auctoritatis apud Romanos tum gens Achaeorum erat; novari tamen nihil de Lacedaemoniis placebat. ceterum responsum ita perplexum fuit, ut et Achaei sibi de Lacedaemone permissum⁴ acciperent, et Lacedaemonii non omnia concessa iis interpretarentur. hac potestate immodice Achaei ac superbe usi sunt. Philopoemeni continuatur magistratus.

At that time, the Achaean nation was of great authority among the Romans; nevertheless, it was pleased that nothing should be changed concerning the Lacedaemonians. But the response was so perplexed that both the Achaeans took it as if full power over Lacedaemon had been granted to them, and the Lacedaemonians did not interpret that everything had been conceded to them. The Achaeans used this power immoderately and arrogantly. The magistracy of Philopoemen was continued.

Syntax notes4 items

38.32.1ne extemplo gereretur,
The negative final clause (ne... gereretur) is placed at the end of the sentence and depends on the main verb 'hiems impediit' of the following sentence. This is an inverted and tight structural connection across the sentence boundary, indicating that the winter prevented the immediate execution of the war.
38.32.4cui consul, cum alia satis ambitiose partem utramque fovendo incerta respondisset, una denuntiatione, ut bello abstinerent, donec Romam ad senatum legatos misissent, finem imposuit.
The backbone of the main clause is 'cui [altercationi] consul... finem imposuit' (to this altercation the consul put an end). 'cui' is a relative pronoun of connection referring to the preceding 'altercatio'. It is a complex sentence in which a concessive 'cum' clause (cum... respondisset), an ablative of instrument 'una denuntiatione', and an appositive 'ut' clause (ut... abstinerent) explaining the content of the command are nested in between.
38.32.8cuius ipsi auctores essent
The antecedent of the relative 'cuius' is 'libertatem'. The subjunctive 'essent' is used because it is in a subordinate clause in indirect discourse (dependent on 'postulabat'), or to characterize the freedom 'of which they themselves had been the authors'. 'ipsi' refers to the Romans from the perspective of the speaker (Lycortas).
38.32.9sibi de Lacedaemone permissum
This is an accusative with infinitive construction functioning as the object of 'acciperent'. The infinitive 'esse' is omitted from the impersonal passive perfect infinitive 'permissum [esse]'. 'sibi' is a dative referring to the subject of 'acciperent' (the Achaeans), meaning 'that full power over Lacedaemon had been permitted to them'.

Translated by Gemini 3.5 Flash (published 2026-05-25) · Revision history (1, latest 2026-09-22)

2026-09-22 AI review — source 1

urn:cts:latinLit:phi0914.phi001.humanitext-lat2:38.32.1-38.32.10