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Thucydides · History of the Peloponnesian War §6.50.1-6.50.5

Athenian Reconnaissance of Syracuse and Moves to Catana

Passage 666 of 917 · Greek

Summary

Lamachus accedes to Alcibiades' plan, and the Athenian fleet sails along the eastern coast of Sicily from Naxos to Catana, reconnoitering Syracuse and making a proclamation to the Leontines before returning to Catana.

§6.50.1Λάμαχος μὲν ταῦτα εἰπὼν ὅμως προσέθετο καὶ αὐτὸς τῇ Ἀλκιβιάδου γνώμῃ.
Although Lamachus said this, he nevertheless also acceded to the opinion of Alcibiades.
μετὰ δὲ τοῦτο Ἀλκιβιάδης τῇ αὑτοῦ νηὶ διαπλεύσας ἐς Μεσσήνην καὶ λόγους ποιησάμενος περὶ ξυμμαχίας πρὸς αὐτούς, ὡς οὐκ ἔπειθεν, ἀλλ’ ἀπεκρίναντο πόλει μὲν ἂν οὐ δέξασθαι, ἀγορὰν δ’ ἔξω παρέξειν, ἀπέπλει ἐς τὸ Ῥήγιον.
After this, Alcibiades sailed over to Messene with his own ship, and after holding negotiations with them about an alliance, since he could not persuade them, but they replied that they would not receive them into the city, though they would provide a market outside, he sailed back to Rhegium.
§6.50.2καὶ εὐθὺς ξυμπληρώσαντες ἑξήκοντα ναῦς ἐκ πασῶν οἱ στρατηγοὶ καὶ τὰ ἐπιτήδεια λαβόντες παρέπλεον ἐς Νάξον, τὴν ἄλλην στρατιὰν ἐν Ῥηγίῳ καταλιπόντες καὶ ἕνα σφῶν αὐτῶν.
And immediately the generals, having manned sixty ships from the whole fleet and taken provisions, sailed along the coast to Naxos, leaving the rest of the army in Rhegium and one of themselves.
§6.50.3Ναξίων δὲ δεξαμένων τῇ πόλει παρέπλεον ἐς Κατάνην.
Since the Naxians received them into their city, they sailed along the coast to Catana.
καὶ ὡς αὐτοὺς οἱ Καταναῖοι οὐκ ἐδέχοντο (ἐνῆσαν γὰρ αὐτόθι ἄνδρες τὰ Συρακοσίων βουλόμενοι), §6.50.4ἐκομίσθησαν ἐπὶ τὸν Τηρίαν ποταμόν, καὶ αὐλισάμενοι τῇ ὑστεραίᾳ ἐπὶ Συρακούσας ἔπλεον ἐπὶ κέρως ἔχοντες τὰς ἄλλας ναῦς· δέκα δὲ τῶν νεῶν προύπεμψαν ἐς τὸν μέγαν λιμένα πλεῦσαί τε καὶ κατασκέψασθαι εἴ τι ναυτικόν ἐστι καθειλκυσμένον, καὶ κηρῦξαι ἀπὸ τῶν νεῶν προσπλεύσαντας ὅτι Ἀθηναῖοι ἥκουσι Λεοντίνους ἐς τὴν ἑαυτῶν κατοικιοῦντες κατὰ ξυμμαχίαν καὶ ξυγγένειαν· τοὺς οὖν ὄντας ἐν Συρακούσαις Λεοντίνων ὡς παρὰ φίλους καὶ εὐεργέτας Ἀθηναίους ἀδεῶς ἀπιέναι.
But as the Catanaeans would not receive them (for there were men in the town who favored the Syracusan interest), they proceeded to the river Terias, and having bivouacked there, on the following day they sailed against Syracuse, keeping the rest of their ships in single file; but they sent ten of their ships ahead to sail into the Great Harbor to reconnoiter whether there was any fleet launched, and to proclaim from the ships as they sailed close that the Athenians had come to restore the Leontines to their own land in accordance with their alliance and kinship, and that therefore any Leontines who were in Syracuse should go over to the Athenians, their friends and benefactors, without fear.
§6.50.5ἐπεὶ δ’ ἐκηρύχθη καὶ κατεσκέψαντο τήν τε πόλιν καὶ τοὺς λιμένας καὶ τὰ περὶ τὴν χώραν ἐξ ἧς αὐτοῖς ὁρμωμένοις πολεμητέα ἦν, ἀπέπλευσαν πάλιν ἐς Κατάνην.
After the proclamation had been made and they had reconnoitered the city, the harbors, and the conditions of the territory from which they would have to carry on the war as their base of operations, they sailed back to Catana.

Notes

  1. 6.50.1πόλει μὲν ἂν οὐ δέξασθαι — The dative πόλει is a locative dative meaning 'into the city'. The infinitive δέξασθαι with ἂν represents the apodosis of a conditional statement (with potential optative or past indicative with ἂν, 'they would not receive them') turned into an infinitive in indirect discourse. In contrast, the subsequent παρέξειν is a future infinitive without ἂν, indicating a positive promise.
  2. 6.50.4ἐπὶ κέρως — A Greek naval term meaning 'in single file' or 'in column' (literally 'on the wing'). It refers to a formation where ships sail in a single line, one behind the other, contrasted with sailing abreast (ἐπὶ μετώπου).
  3. 6.50.5ἐξ ἧς αὐτοῖς ὁρμωμένοις πολεμητέα ἦν — In the relative clause introduced by ἐξ ἧς (referring back to τὴν χώραν), the neuter plural verbal adjective πολεμητέα with ἦν forms an impersonal construction. The dative αὐτοῖς is the dative of agent (logical subject) with which the present participle ὁρμωμένοις ('setting out from') agrees. The clause means 'from which, setting out as their base, they would have to wage war'.

Cite this passage

Thucydides, History of the Peloponnesian War §6.50.1-6.50.5. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0003.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:6.50.1-6.50.5

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