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Thucydides · History of the Peloponnesian War §1.106.1-1.106.2

Surround and Destruction of the Trapped Corinthians

Passage 106 of 917 · Greek

Summary

Describing the tragic event in which a portion of the retreating Corinthian force was trapped in a dead-end private estate and annihilated by the Athenians, while their main body retreated home.

§1.106.1οἱ δὲ νικώμενοι ὑπεχώρουν, καί τι αὐτῶν μέρος οὐκ ὀλίγον προσβιασθὲν καὶ διαμαρτὸν τῆς ὁδοῦ ἐσέπεσεν ἔς του χωρίον ἰδιώτου, ᾧ ἔτυχεν ὄρυγμα μέγα περιεῖργον καὶ οὐκ ἦν ἔξοδος.
And the defeated retreated, and a not inconsiderable part of them, being hard pressed and losing their way, fell into the private estate of a certain person, which a great ditch happened to surround, and there was no exit.
§1.106.2οἱ δὲ Ἀθηναῖοι γνόντες κατὰ πρόσωπόν τε εἶργον τοῖς ὁπλίταις καὶ περιστήσαντες κύκλῳ τοὺς ψιλοὺς κατέλευσαν πάντας τοὺς ἐσελθόντας, καὶ πάθος μέγα τοῦτο Κορινθίοις ἐγένετο.
The Athenians, perceiving this, shut them in in front with their hoplites, and having posted their light-armed troops all around, stoned to death all those who had entered; and this was a great disaster for the Corinthians.
τὸ δὲ πλῆθος ἀπεχώρησεν αὐτοῖς τῆς στρατιᾶς ἐπ’ οἴκου.
But the main body of their army retreated homewards.

Notes

  1. 1.106.1ᾧ ἔτυχεν ὄρυγμα μέγα περιεῖργον — The verb ἔτυχεν (third-person singular aorist of τυγχάνω) is accompanied by the neuter singular nominative present participle περιεῖργον (from περιείργω, "to surround") as a supplementary participle, meaning "it happened to surround." The subject is the neuter noun ὄρυγμα μέγα ("a great ditch"). The relative pronoun ᾧ (dative) refers to the preceding χωρίον ("estate") and functions as the dative object governed by the participle.
  2. 1.106.2αὐτοῖς — The dative pronoun αὐτοῖς refers to the Corinthians. It functions as a dative of interest (or a dative akin to possession), modifying "the main body of the army" (τὸ πλῆθος... τῆς στρατιᾶς), translating roughly as "for them, the main body of the army." This highlights the contrast with the small part (τι μέρος) that was annihilated.

Cite this passage

Thucydides, History of the Peloponnesian War §1.106.1-1.106.2. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0003.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:1.106.1-1.106.2

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