Humanitext Reader

Thucydides · History of the Peloponnesian War §8.57.1-8.57.2

Tissaphernes Renews Aid and Concludes the Third Treaty

Passage 865 of 917 · Greek

Summary

Following the breakdown of negotiations, Tissaphernes recalled the Peloponnesians, supplied them with provisions, and concluded a third treaty, acting on his strategy to keep the Greek forces balanced against one another and avoid a complete break.

§8.57.1Τισσαφέρνης δὲ εὐθὺς μετὰ ταῦτα καὶ ἐν τῷ αὐτῷ χειμῶνι παρέρχεται ἐς τὴν Καῦνον, βουλόμενος τοὺς Πελοποννησίους πάλιν τε κομίσαι ἐς τὴν Μίλητον καὶ ξυνθήκας ἔτι ἄλλας ποιησάμενος, ἃς ἂν δύνηται, τροφήν τε παρέχειν καὶ μὴ παντάπασιν ἐκπεπολεμῶσθαι, δεδιὼς μή, ἢν ἀπορῶσι πολλαῖς ναυσὶ τῆς τροφῆς, ἢ τοῖς Ἀθηναίοις ἀναγκασθέντες ναυμαχεῖν ἡσσηθῶσιν ἢ κενωθεισῶν τῶν νεῶν ἄνευ ἑαυτοῦ γένηται τοῖς Ἀθηναίοις ἃ βούλονται.
Immediately after these events, and in the course of the same winter, Tissaphernes proceeded to Caunus, wishing to bring the Peloponnesians back again to Miletus, and, after making such other terms as he could, to supply them with provisions and not to become completely at war with them. For he was afraid lest, if they should be in want of provisions with so many ships, they might either be forced to fight a sea-battle with the Athenians and be defeated, or, their ships being left empty, the Athenians might achieve their desires without his cooperation.
ἔτι δὲ ἐφοβεῖτο μάλιστα μὴ τῆς τροφῆς ζητήσει πορθήσωσι τὴν ἤπειρον.
Moreover, he feared most of all lest they should ravage the mainland in their search for food.
§8.57.2πάντων οὖν τούτων λογισμῷ καὶ προνοίᾳ, ὥσπερ ἐβούλετο ἐπανισοῦν τοὺς Ἕλληνας πρὸς ἀλλήλους, μεταπεμψάμενος οὖν τοὺς Πελοποννησίους τροφήν τε αὐτοῖς δίδωσι καὶ σπονδὰς τρίτας τάσδε σπένδεται.
Reasoning, therefore, and foreseeing all these things, just as he wished to balance the Greeks against one another, he therefore sent for the Peloponnesians, gave them provisions, and concluded this third treaty with them.

Notes

  1. §8.57.1βουλόμενος τοὺς Πελοποννησίους πάλιν τε κομίσαι ἐς τὴν Μίλητον καὶ ξυνθήκας ἔτι ἄλλας ποιησάμενος, ἃς ἂν δύνηται, τροφήν τε παρέχειν καὶ μὴ παντάπασιν ἐκπεπολεμῶσθαι — The infinitives κομίσαι, παρέχειν, and ἐκπεπολεμῶσθαι all function as objects of the participle βουλόμενος ('wishing'). In contrast, the aorist middle participle ποιησάμενος ('having made') functions circumstantially to denote an action prior to, or serving as a condition for, the action of παρέχειν.
  2. §8.57.1ἢν ἀπορῶσι πολλαῖς ναυσὶ τῆς τροφῆς — The dative πολλαῖς ναυσὶ functions as a dative of cause or circumstance ('with/because of having many ships to maintain'), which accounts for the difficulty of being in want of provisions (τῆς τροφῆς, which is the genitive governed by ἀπορῶσι).
  3. §8.57.2μεταπεμψάμενος οὖν τοὺς Πελοποννησίους — The particle οὖν appears twice in quick succession in this section (after πάντων and after μεταπεμψάμενος). The second οὖν is resumptive, restoring the main thread of the sentence after the parenthetical comparative clause ὥσπερ ἐβούλετο... ('just as he wished...').

Cite this passage

Thucydides, History of the Peloponnesian War §8.57.1-8.57.2. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0003.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:8.57.1-8.57.2

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.