Humanitext Reader

Plutarch · Life of Cimon §11.1-11.3

Remission of Allies' Military Service and Athenian Hegemony

Passage 11 of 19 · Greek

Summary

In contrast to other generals who used force against allies reluctant to serve in the military, Cimon accepted money and empty ships instead, granting them leisure. As a result, the allies became idle and fell into subjugation, while the well-trained Athenians naturally assumed mastery over them.

§11.1ἐπεὶ δʼ οἱ σύμμαχοι τοὺς φόρους μὲν ἐτέλουν, ἄνδρας δὲ καὶ ναῦς ὡς ἐτάχθησαν οὐ παρεῖχον, ἀλλʼ ἀπαγορεύοντες ἤδη πρὸς τὰς στρατείας, καὶ πολέμου μὲν οὐδὲν δεόμενοι, γεωργεῖν δὲ καὶ ζῆν καθʼ ἡσυχίαν ἐπιθυμοῦντες, ἀπηλλαγμένων τῶν βαρβάρων καὶ μὴ διοχλούντων, οὔτε τὰς ναῦς ἐπλήρουν οὔτʼ ἄνδρας ἀπέστελλον, οἱ μὲν ἄλλοι στρατηγοὶ τῶν Ἀθηναίων προσηνάγκαζον αὐτοὺς ταῦτα ποιεῖν καὶ τοὺς ἐλλείποντας ὑπάγοντες δίκαις καὶ κολάζοντες ἐπαχθῆ τὴν ἀρχὴν καὶ λυπηρὰν ἐποίουν,
But when the allies, though they paid their tributes, did not provide men and ships as had been ordained, but were already reluctant to go on campaigns, and having no need of war, but desiring to till the land and live in quietness, since the barbarians had departed and were no longer troublesome, they neither manned their ships nor sent men; the other generals of the Athenians tried to compel them to do these things, and by bringing those who were deficient to trial and punishing them, made their rule offensive and painful.
§11.2Κίμων δὲ τὴν ἐναντίαν ὁδὸν ἐν τῇ στρατηγίᾳ πορευόμενος βίαν μὲν οὐδενὶ τῶν Ἑλλήνων προσῆγε, χρήματα δὲ λαμβάνων παρὰ τῶν οὐ βουλομένων στρατεύεσθαι καὶ ναῦς κενάς, ἐκείνους εἴα δελεαζομένους τῇ σχολῇ περὶ τὰ οἰκεῖα διατρίβειν, γεωργοὺς καὶ χρηματιστὰς ἀπολέμους ἐκ πολεμικῶν ὑπὸ τρυφῆς καὶ ἀνοίας γινομένους, τῶν δʼ Ἀθηναίων ἀνὰ μέρος πολλοὺς ἐμβιβάζων καὶ διαπονῶν ταῖς στρατείαις ἐν ὀλίγῳ χρόνῳ τοῖς παρὰ τῶν συμμάχων μισθοῖς καὶ χρήμασι δεσπότας αὐτῶν τῶν διδόντων ἐποίησε.
But Cimon, taking the opposite course in his command, applied no violence to any of the Greeks, but accepting money and empty ships from those who did not wish to serve, allowed them, lured by leisure, to busy themselves with their own private affairs, becoming under the influence of luxury and folly peaceable husbandmen and merchants instead of warlike men; on the other hand, by putting many of the Athenians on board by turns and training them thoroughly through campaigns, in a short time, by means of the pay and money from the allies, he made them masters of those very people who paid them.
§11.3πλέοντας γὰρ αὐτοὺς συνεχῶς καὶ διὰ χειρὸς ἔχοντας ἀεὶ τὰ ὅπλα καὶ τρεφομένους καὶ ἀσκοῦντας ἐκ τῆς αὐτῶν ἀστρατείαςἐθισθέντες φοβεῖσθαι καὶ κολακεύειν, ἔλαθον ἀντὶ συμμάχων ὑποτελεῖς καὶ δοῦλοι γεγονότες.
For as the Athenians sailed continually, always holding their weapons in hand, and being maintained and trained through the others' avoidance of service, the allies became accustomed to fear and flatter them, and so, before they knew it, instead of allies, they had become tributaries and slaves.

Notes

  1. 11.1ἀπηλλαγμένων τῶν βαρβάρων καὶ μὴ διοχλούντων — Genitive absolute construction. It explains the objective situation that the enemies (barbarians) had departed, which serves as the cause or background for the allies' reluctance to serve.
  2. 11.2γεωργοὺς καὶ χρηματιστὰς ἀπολέμους ἐκ πολεμικῶν ὑπὸ τρυφῆς καὶ ἀνοίας γινομένους — A participle phrase functioning as the object complement of the verb `εἴα` (allowed). It describes the process by which `ἐκείνους` (them, the allies) were changing from "warlike men" (`ἐκ πολεμικῶν`) into "unwarlike husbandmen and merchants" under the influence of luxury and folly.
  3. 11.3ἔλαθον ἀντὶ συμμάχων ὑποτελεῖς καὶ δοῦλοι γεγονότες — An idiomatic construction combining the verb `λανθάνω` (`ἔλαθον`) and a nominative participle (`γεγονότες`), meaning "without realizing it" or "unbeknownst to themselves, they became...". It emphasizes that the transition of the allies into tributaries and slaves happened without their own conscious awareness.

Cite this passage

Plutarch, Life of Cimon §11.1-11.3. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0007.tlg035.humanitext-grc2:11.1-11.3

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