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Thucydides · History of the Peloponnesian War §4.120.1-4.120.3

Revolt of Scione and Brasidas' Arrival

Passage 485 of 917 · Greek

Summary

Describes the revolt of Scione from Athens to Brasidas, and Brasidas' perilous night voyage to Scione, where he praises their courageous voluntary alliance and promises them future honors.

§4.120.1περὶ δὲ τὰς ἡμέρας ταύτας αἷς ἐπήρχοντο Σκιώνη ἐν τῇ Παλλήνῃ πόλις ἀπέστη ἀπ’ Ἀθηναίων πρὸς Βρασίδαν.
About the same days in which they were making these negotiations, Scione, a city in Pallene, revolted from the Athenians to Brasidas.
φασὶ δὲ οἱ Σκιωναῖοι Πελληνῆς μὲν εἶναι ἐκ Πελοποννήσου, πλέοντας δ’ ἀπὸ Τροίας σφῶν τοὺς πρώτους κατενεχθῆναι ἐς τὸ χωρίον τοῦτο τῷ χειμῶνι ᾧ ἐχρήσαντο Ἀχαιοί, καὶ αὐτοῦ οἰκῆσαι.
Now the Scionaeans say that they are Pelleniens from the Peloponnese, and that their first ancestors, sailing from Troy, were driven to this place by the storm which the Achaeans experienced, and settled there.
§4.120.2ἀποστᾶσι δ’ αὐτοῖς ὁ Βρασίδας διέπλευσε νυκτὸς ἐς τὴν Σκιώνην, τριήρει μὲν φιλίᾳ προπλεούσῃ, αὐτὸς δὲ ἐν κελητίῳ ἄπωθεν ἐφεπόμενος, ὅπως, εἰ μέν τινι τοῦ κέλητος μείζονι πλοίῳ περιτυγχάνοι, ἡ τριήρης ἀμύνοι αὐτῷ, ἀντιπάλου δὲ ἄλλης τριήρους ἐπιγενομένης οὐ πρὸς τὸ ἔλασσον νομίζων τρέψεσθαι, ἀλλ’ ἐπὶ τὴν ναῦν, καὶ ἐν τούτῳ αὑτὸν διασώσειν.
Upon their revolt, Brasidas sailed over by night to Scione, with a friendly trireme sailing ahead, while he himself followed at a distance in a small boat, so that, if he should fall in with any vessel larger than his small boat, the trireme might defend him, and if another hostile trireme should appear, thinking they would turn not upon the smaller vessel but upon the trireme, and that in the meantime he would save himself.
§4.120.3περαιωθεὶς δὲ καὶ ξύλλογον ποιήσας τῶν Σκιωναίων ἔλεγεν ἅ τε ἐν τῇ Ἀκάνθῳ καὶ Τορώνῃ, καὶ προσέτι φάσκων ἀξιωτάτους αὐτοὺς εἶναι ἐπαίνου, οἵτινες τῆς Παλλήνης ἐν τῷ ἰσθμῷ ἀπειλημμένης ὑπὸ Ἀθηναίων Ποτείδαιαν ἐχόντων καὶ ὄντες οὐδὲν ἄλλο ἢ νησιῶται αὐτεπάγγελτοι ἐχώρησαν πρὸς τὴν ἐλευθερίαν καὶ οὐκ ἀνέμειναν ἀτολμίᾳ ἀνάγκην σφίσι προσγενέσθαι περὶ τοῦ φανερῶς οἰκείου ἀγαθοῦ· σημεῖόν τ’ εἶναι τοῦ καὶ ἄλλο τι ἂν αὐτοὺς τῶν μεγίστων ἀνδρείως ὑπομεῖναι· εἴ τε θήσεται κατὰ νοῦν τὰ πράγματα, πιστοτάτους τε τῇ ἀληθείᾳ ἡγήσεσθαι αὐτοὺς Λακεδαιμονίων φίλους καὶ τἆλλα τιμήσειν.
Having crossed over and called an assembly of the Scionaeans, he spoke to the same effect as at Acanthus and Torone, and furthermore said that they were most worthy of praise, since, though Pallene was cut off at the isthmus by the Athenians who held Potidaea, and they themselves were nothing other than islanders, they had of their own free will gone over to freedom, and had not waited in cowardice for necessity to be brought upon them concerning what was manifestly their own interest; and that this was a sign that they would also courageously endure any other of the greatest dangers; and if things should turn out according to his mind, he would consider them in truth the most faithful friends of the Lacedaemonians and would honor them in all other respects.

Notes

  1. 4.120.1αἷς ἐπήρχοντο — Imperfect of ἐπέρχομαι, here meaning "were negotiating" or "were concluding the treaty," emphasizing the ongoing process of the truce.
  2. 4.120.2ἀποστᾶσι δ’ αὐτοῖς — Dative of interest or reference with the main verb διέπλευσε, indicating "upon their revolt" or "for them having revolted."
  3. 4.120.2νομίζων... διασώσειν — The participle νομίζων, inside the ὅπως clause, agrees with the subject of the main clause (Brasidas). It governs two future infinitives, τρέψεσθαι (that the enemy would turn) and διασώσειν (that he would save himself), linked by οὐ... ἀλλά.
  4. 4.120.3τοῦ καὶ ἄλλο τι ἂν αὐτοὺς τῶν μεγίστων ἀνδρείως ὑπομεῖναι — The articular infinitive ἂν ὑπομεῖναι with the genitive article τοῦ functions as an explanation or apposition to σημεῖον. The addition of ἄν to the infinitive represents a potential optative (ἂν ὑπομείνειαν) or past indicative (ἂν ὑπέμειναν), meaning "that they would courageously endure."

Cite this passage

Thucydides, History of the Peloponnesian War §4.120.1-4.120.3. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0003.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:4.120.1-4.120.3

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