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Thucydides · History of the Peloponnesian War §5.109.1

Athenian Sea Power and Spartan Inability to Cross

Passage 609 of 917 · Greek

Summary

The Athenians argue that security in an alliance depends on active power rather than goodwill, pointing out that the Lacedaemonians' distrust of their own forces makes them rely heavily on allies, making it highly unlikely they would cross over to an island while Athens commands the sea.

§5.109.1ΑΘ. τὸ δ’ ἐχυρόν γε τοῖς ξυναγωνιουμένοις οὐ τὸ εὔνουν τῶν ἐπικαλεσαμένων φαίνεται, ἀλλ’ ἢν τῶν ἔργων τις δυνάμει πολὺ προύχῃ·
ATH. But the security for those who are to fight as allies is shown to lie not in the goodwill of those who call them in, but in whether one is far superior in active power.
ὃ Λακεδαιμόνιοι καὶ πλέον τι τῶν ἄλλων σκοποῦσιν (τῆς γοῦν οἰκείας παρασκευῆς ἀπιστίᾳ καὶ μετὰ ξυμμάχων πολλῶν τοῖς πέλας ἐπέρχονται), ὥστε οὐκ εἰκὸς ἐς νῆσόν γε αὐτοὺς ἡμῶν ναυκρατόρων ὄντων περαιωθῆναι.
This is what the Lacedaemonians look to even more than others (at any rate, out of distrust of their own resources, they attack their neighbors only with many allies), so that it is not likely that they will cross over to an island while we are masters of the sea.

Notes

  1. 5.109.1τὸ δ’ ἐχυρόν — A neuter adjective used as a noun, meaning 'security' or 'guarantee of reliability.' It is modified by the dative `τοῖς ξυναγωνιουμένοις` ('for those who are to fight as allies'). The conditional clause `ἢν... προύχῃ` ('if one is superior...') is contrasted with `οὐ τὸ εὔνουν...` ('not the goodwill...') and functions practically as a predicate nominative indicating what constitutes the security.
  2. 5.109.1τῆς γοῦν οἰκείας παρασκευῆς ἀπιστίᾳ — `ἀπιστίᾳ` ('distrust', 'lack of confidence') is a dative of cause. The genitive `τῆς ... παρασκευῆς` functions as an objective genitive dependent on `ἀπιστίᾳ`, meaning 'distrust of their own military preparation'.
  3. 5.109.1ἡμῶν ναυκρατόρων ὄντων — A genitive absolute construction. To show that the Athenian mastery of the sea (`ναυκρατόρων`) constitutes a barrier to the Lacedaemonian crossing (`περαιωθῆναι`), it is interpreted with a concessive ('although we are masters of the sea') or circumstantial ('while we are...') force.

Cite this passage

Thucydides, History of the Peloponnesian War §5.109.1. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0003.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:5.109.1

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