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Thucydides · History of the Peloponnesian War §1.19.1

Allied Policies and Military Growth of Sparta and Athens

Passage 19 of 917 · Greek

Summary

Describes the differing methods of hegemony exercised by Sparta and Athens over their allies, and notes that the individual military preparations of both states had surpassed those of their former united alliance at its peak.

§1.19.1καὶ οἱ μὲν Λακεδαιμόνιοι οὐχ ὑποτελεῖς ἔχοντες φόρου τοὺς ξυμμάχους ἡγοῦντο, κατ᾽ ὀλιγαρχίαν δὲ σφίσιν αὐτοῖς μόνον ἐπιτηδείως ὅπως πολιτεύσουσι θεραπεύοντες, Ἀθηναῖοι δὲ ναῦς τε τῶν πόλεων τῷ χρόνῳ παραλαβόντες πλὴν Χίων καὶ Λεσβίων, καὶ χρήματα τοῖς πᾶσι τάξαντες φέρειν.
And on the one hand, the Lacedaemonians held their leadership without having their allies as tributaries, but caring only to ensure that they should govern themselves by oligarchy in a manner suitable to Lacedaemonian interests; the Athenians, on the other hand, in course of time took over the ships of the cities, except for those of the Chians and Lesbians, and assessed money payments for all of them to bring in.
καὶ ἐγένετο αὐτοῖς ἐς τόνδε τὸν πόλεμον ἡ ἰδία παρασκευὴ μείζων ἢ ὡς τὰ κράτιστά ποτε μετὰ ἀκραιφνοῦς τῆς ξυμμαχίας ἤνθησαν.
And for both of them, their own individual preparation for this war became greater than when they had formerly flourished at their very best with the alliance unimpaired.

Notes

  1. §1.19.1φόρου — A genitive of association or reference limiting the adjective ὑποτελεῖς, together meaning "tributary" or "subject to paying tribute".
  2. §1.19.1ὅπως πολιτεύσουσι — An object clause of effort or purpose after the participle θεραπεύοντες (caring, taking care), taking the future indicative πολιτεύσουσι.
  3. §1.19.1Ἀθηναῖοι δὲ ναῦς τε τῶν πόλεων... — This clause lacks a finite verb, and the actions of the Athenians are expressed solely by the participles παραλαβόντες and τάξαντες, which stand in contrast to the Lacedaemonian method under the implied governing idea of 'exercising leadership' (ἡγοῦντο) from the previous sentence.
  4. §1.19.1μείζων ἢ ὡς — A comparative construction where the comparative adjective μείζων is followed by ἢ ὡς (than as / than when), introducing a comparative clause representing a former state.

Cite this passage

Thucydides, History of the Peloponnesian War §1.19.1. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0003.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:1.19.1

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