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Herodotus · Histories §6.59.1

Remission of Debts and Tributes by Spartan and Persian Kings

Passage 961 of 1577 · Greek

Summary

Explains that when a new Lacedaemonian king accedes to the throne, he remits debts owed by Spartans to the king or the state, a custom similar to the Persian king's remission of outstanding tributes to cities upon his accession.

§6.59.1συμφέρονται δὲ ἄλλο οὗτοι τόδε τοῖσι Πέρσῃσι· ἐπεὰν ἀποθανόντος τοῦ βασιλέος ἄλλος ἐνίστηται βασιλεύς, οὗτος ὁ ἐσιὼν ἐλευθεροῖ ὅστις τι Σπαρτιητέων τῷ βασιλέι ἢ τῷ δημοσίῳ ὤφειλε· ἐν δʼ αὖ Πέρσῃσι ὁ κατιστάμενος βασιλεὺς τὸν προοφειλόμενον φόρον μετιεῖ τῇσι πόλισι πάσῃσι.
And these agree also in this other thing with the Persians: when, upon the death of the king, another king is established, this one who enters office releases whoever of the Spartans owed anything to the king or to the public treasury; and among the Persians, on the other hand, the king who is established remits the previously owed tribute to all the cities.

Notes

  1. §6.59.1συμφέρονται δὲ ἄλλο οὗτοι τόδε τοῖσι Πέρσῃσι — The pronoun οὗτοι refers to the Lacedaemonians (Spartans) in the context. ἄλλο ... τόδε is an accusative of respect (or adverbial accusative) meaning "in this other thing," anticipating the content of the following ἐπεὰν clause.
  2. §6.59.1ἐλευθεροῖ ὅστις τι Σπαρτιητέων τῷ βασιλέι ἢ τῷ δημοσίῳ ὤφειλε — The verb ἐλευθεροῖ ("releases, frees") takes as its direct object the noun clause introduced by the relative pronoun ὅστις ("whoever"), which contains its own antecedent. It means "releases whoever owes," meaning in this context "releases from debt." Σπαρτιητέων is a partitive genitive depending on ὅστις.

Cite this passage

Herodotus, Histories §6.59.1. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0016.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:6.59.1

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