Humanitext Reader

Thucydides · History of the Peloponnesian War §7.11.1-7.11.4

Nicias's Letter Reporting the Perilous Situation in Sicily

Passage 732 of 917 · Greek

Summary

Nicias sends a letter to the Athenians, reporting that although the expeditionary force was initially successful, the tide has turned after the arrival of Gylippus of Sparta, leaving the Athenians themselves besieged.

§7.11.1‘τὰ μὲν πρότερον πραχθέντα, ὦ Ἀθηναῖοι, ἐν ἄλλαις πολλαῖς ἐπιστολαῖς ἴστε· νῦν δὲ καιρὸς οὐχ ἧσσον μαθόντας ὑμᾶς ἐν ᾧ ἐσμὲν βουλεύσασθαι.
‘Indeed, Athenians, you know what was done previously from many other letters; but now is the time for you, having learned the situation in which we are, to deliberate no less.
§7.11.2κρατησάντων γὰρ ἡμῶν μάχαις ταῖς πλέοσι Συρακοσίους ἐφ’ οὓς ἐπέμφθημεν καὶ τὰ τείχη οἰκοδομησαμένων ἐν οἷσπερ νῦν ἐσμέν, ἦλθε Γύλιππος Λακεδαιμόνιος στρατιὰν ἔχων ἔκ τε Πελοποννήσου καὶ ἀπὸ τῶν ἐν Σικελίᾳ πόλεων ἔστιν ὧν.
For after we had defeated in most of the battles the Syracusans against whom we were sent, and had built the walls in which we are now, Gylippus the Lacedaemonian arrived, bringing an army both from the Peloponnese and from some of the cities in Sicily.
καὶ μάχῃ τῇ μὲν πρώτῃ νικᾶται ὑφ᾽ ἡμῶν, τῇ δ’ ὑστεραίᾳ ἱππεῦσί τε πολλοῖς καὶ ἀκοντισταῖς βιασθέντες ἀνεχωρήσαμεν ἐς τὰ τείχη.
And although in the first battle he was defeated by us, on the following day, forced back by many cavalry and javelin-throwers, we retreated within our walls.
§7.11.3νῦν οὖν ἡμεῖς μὲν παυσάμενοι τοῦ περιτειχισμοῦ διὰ τὸ πλῆθος τῶν ἐναντίων ἡσυχάζομεν (οὐδὲ γὰρ ξυμπάσῃ τῇ στρατιᾷ δυναίμεθ’ ἂν χρήσασθαι ἀπανηλωκυίας τῆς φυλακῆς τῶν τειχῶν μέρος τι τοῦ ὁπλιτικοῦ)· οἱ δὲ παρῳκοδομήκασιν ἡμῖν τεῖχος ἁπλοῦν, ὥστε μὴ εἶναι ἔτι περιτειχίσαι αὐτούς, ἢν μή τις τὸ παρατείχισμα τοῦτο πολλῇ στρατιᾷ ἐπελθὼν ἕλῃ.
Now, therefore, having ceased the circumvallation because of the multitude of our opponents, we are remaining inactive (for we could not even use our whole army, since the guarding of the walls has consumed some part of our hoplites); while they have built a single cross-wall along ours, so that it is no longer possible to wall them in, unless someone should attack and capture this counter-wall with a large army.
§7.11.4ξυμβέβηκέ τε πολιορκεῖν δοκοῦντας ἡμᾶς ἄλλους αὐτοὺς μᾶλλον, ὅσα γε κατὰ γῆν, τοῦτο πάσχειν· οὐδὲ γὰρ τῆς χώρας ἐπὶ πολὺ διὰ τοὺς ἱππέας ἐξερχόμεθα.
And it has so turned out that we, who seem to be besieging others, are rather undergoing this very thing ourselves, at least as far as concerns the land; for we cannot even go far out into the country because of their cavalry.

Notes

  1. §7.11.1μαθόντας ὑμᾶς ... βουλεύσασθαι — The accusative ὑμᾶς functions as the subject of the infinitive βουλεύσασθαι, with which the accusative participle μαθόντας agrees, adding a temporal or conditional sense ('after having learned', 'having understood').
  2. §7.11.2κρατησάντων γὰρ ἡμῶν ... καὶ ... οἰκοδομησαμένων — A genitive absolute construction consisting of two coordinated aorist participles (κρατησάντων and οἰκοδομησαμένων) with ἡμῶν as their logical subject, expressing the temporal or causal background for the main verb ἦλθε.
  3. §7.11.2ἔστιν ὧν — An idiomatic phrase equivalent to ὧντινων (derived from ἔστιν οἵ, 'there are those who'), modifying τῶν ... πόλεων, meaning 'from some of the cities'.
  4. §7.11.3ἀπανηλωκυίας τῆς φυλακῆς τῶν τειχῶν μέρος τι τοῦ ὁπλιτικοῦ — A genitive absolute construction. The perfect active participle ἀπανηλωκυίας (from ἀπαναλίσκω 'to consume, spend') is in the genitive feminine singular, agreeing with its logical subject τῆς φυλακῆς. μέρος τι functions as the direct object (accusative) of the participle.
  5. §7.11.3ὥστε μὴ εἶναι ἔτι περιτειχίσαι αὐτούς — The infinitive εἶναι is used impersonally in the sense of ἐξεῖναι ('it is possible'), with the subsequent infinitive περιτειχίσαι acting as its subject. αὐτούς is the direct object of περιτειχίσαι ('to wall them in').
  6. §7.11.4ξυμβέβηκέ τε πολιορκεῖν δοκοῦντας ἡμᾶς ἄλλους αὐτοὺς μᾶλλον ... τοῦτο πάσχειν — The impersonal verb ξυμβέβηκε ('it has turned out that') takes an accusative and infinitive construction. ἡμᾶς is the logical subject for both the participle phrase πολιορκεῖν δοκοῦντας ἄλλους ('we who seem to be besieging others') and the main infinitive αὐτοὺς μᾶλλον ... τοῦτο πάσχειν ('that we ourselves rather suffer this very thing [i.e., being besieged]').

Cite this passage

Thucydides, History of the Peloponnesian War §7.11.1-7.11.4. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0003.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:7.11.1-7.11.4

Please note the AI-draft status of the translation and the date accessed.

Translation, notes and summary are AI-generated drafts, revised through reader feedback.