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Thucydides · History of the Peloponnesian War §5.78.1

Peace and Alliance between Argos and Lacedaemon

Passage 578 of 917 · Greek

Summary

The Argives accept the Lacedaemonian proposal, renounce their previous alliances, and conclude a new treaty of peace and alliance with Lacedaemon.

§5.78.1τοῦτον μὲν τὸν λόγον προσεδέξαντο πρῶτον οἱ Ἀργεῖοι, καὶ τῶν Λακεδαιμονίων τὸ στράτευμα ἀνεχώρησεν ἐκ τῆς Τεγέας ἐπ’ οἴκου·
The Argives first accepted this proposal, and the army of the Lacedaemonians withdrew from Tegea to go home.
μετὰ δὲ τοῦτο ἐπιμειξίας οὔσης ἤδη παρ’ ἀλλήλους, οὐ πολλῷ ὕστερον ἔπραξαν αὖθις οἱ αὐτοὶ ἄνδρες ὥστε τὴν Μαντινέων καὶ τὴν Ἀθηναίων καὶ Ἠλείων ξυμμαχίαν ἀφέντας Ἀργείους σπονδὰς καὶ ξυμμαχίαν ποιήσασθαι πρὸς Λακεδαιμονίους.
After this, when there was already free intercourse between them, not long afterwards the same men managed again to bring it about that the Argives, renouncing their alliance with the Mantineans, Athenians, and Eleans, made a treaty and alliance with the Lacedaemonians.
καὶ ἐγένοντο αἵδε.
And they were as follows:

Notes

  1. 5.78.1ἐπιμειξίας οὔσης — A genitive absolute construction consisting of the noun ἐπιμειξία (intercourse, communication) and the present participle οὔσης (from εἰμί), describing the attendant circumstance that free communication between the parties had already begun before the formal treaty was concluded.
  2. 5.78.1ὥστε τὴν Μαντινέων καὶ τὴν Ἀθηναίων καὶ Ἠλείων ξυμμαχίαν ἀφέντας Ἀργείους σπονδὰς καὶ ξυμμαχίαν ποιήσασθαι — The subject of the infinitive ποιήσασθαι is the accusative Ἀργείους, with which the aorist participle ἀφέντας (from ἀφίημι) agrees. Since the subject of the infinitive clause is different from the main subject (οἱ αὐτοὶ ἄνδρες), the accusative is used. The verb ἔπραξαν combined with ὥστε introduces the result or objective: 'they managed/schemed so that the Argives...'.

Cite this passage

Thucydides, History of the Peloponnesian War §5.78.1. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0003.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:5.78.1

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