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Herodotus · Histories §8.3.1-8.3.2

Athenian Concession and Later Recovery of Naval Command

Passage 1305 of 1577 · Greek

Summary

The passage explains how the Athenians yielded the naval command to Sparta to preserve Greek unity, and notes how they later reclaimed the leadership after driving back the Persians, using Pausanias's insolence as a pretext.

§8.3.1ἐγένετο γὰρ κατʼ ἀρχὰς λόγος, πρὶν ἢ καὶ ἐς Σικελίην πέμπειν ἐπὶ συμμαχίην, ὡς τὸ ναυτικὸν Ἀθηναίοισι χρεὸν εἴη ἐπιτρέπειν.
For in the beginning, even before sending to Sicily for an alliance, a proposal arose that it was proper to entrust the fleet to the Athenians.
ἀντιβάντων δὲ τῶν συμμάχων εἶκον οἱ Ἀθηναῖοι μέγα πεποιημένοι περιεῖναι τὴν Ἑλλάδα καὶ γνόντες, εἰ στασιάσουσι περὶ τῆς ἡγεμονίης, ὡς ἀπολέεται ἡ Ἑλλάς, ὀρθὰ νοεῦντες· στάσις γὰρ ἔμφυλος πολέμου ὁμοφρονέοντος τοσούτῳ κάκιον ἐστὶ ὅσῳ πόλεμος εἰρήνης.
But when the allies opposed this, the Athenians gave way, deeming it of great importance that Greece should survive, and knowing—with correct judgment—that if they quarreled over the leadership, Greece would perish; for internal strife is as much worse than a unified war as war is worse than peace.
§8.3.2ἐπιστάμενοι ὦν αὐτὸ τοῦτο οὐκ ἀντέτεινον ἀλλʼ εἶκον, μέχρι ὅσου κάρτα ἐδέοντο αὐτῶν, ὡς διέδεξαν· ὡς γὰρ δὴ ὠσάμενοι τὸν Πέρσην περὶ τῆς ἐκείνου ἤδη τὸν ἀγῶνα ἐποιεῦντο, πρόφασιν τὴν Παυσανίεω ὕβριν προϊσχόμενοι ἀπείλοντο τὴν ἡγεμονίην τοὺς Λακεδαιμονίους.
Knowing this very fact, then, they did not resist but gave way, up to the point when the allies were in great need of them, as they later demonstrated; for indeed, when they had driven back the Persian and were already waging the struggle about his own territory, they took the leadership away from the Lacedaemonians, putting forward the insolence of Pausanias as a pretext.
ἀλλὰ ταῦτα μὲν ὕστερον ἐγένετο.
But these things happened later.

Notes

  1. 8.3.1ὡς τὸ ναυτικὸν Ἀθηναίοισι χρεὸν εἴη ἐπιτρέπειν — The clause introduced by the conjunction ὡς is a noun clause explaining the content of the preceding noun λόγος. The verb εἴη is an optative of indirect discourse (optativus obliquus) triggered by the past tense of the main clause (ἐγένεतो).
  2. 8.3.1μέγα πεποιημένοι — The perfect middle-passive participle of ποιέω, which, taking the accusative infinitive (περιεῖναι), forms an idiomatic expression meaning 'deeming it of great importance to...' or 'making it a matter of great weight that...'.
  3. 8.3.2μέχρι ὅσου κάρτα ἐδέοντο αὐτῶν — This is not an impersonal construction, but the imperfect of the verb δέομαι (to need) with the allies (οἱ σύμμαχοι) as the implied subject. The genitive pronoun αὐτῶν refers to the Athenians, meaning 'until they (the allies) were in great need of them (the Athenians)'.
  4. 8.3.2ἀπείλοντο τὴν ἡγεμονίην τοὺς Λακεδαιμονίους — The verb ἀφαιρέομαι (to deprive, take away) takes a double accusative (the person deprived and the thing taken). Thus, both 'the leadership' (τὴν ἡγεμονίην, the thing taken) and 'the Lacedaemonians' (τοὺς Λακεδαιμονίους, the persons deprived) are in the accusative case.

Cite this passage

Herodotus, Histories §8.3.1-8.3.2. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0016.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:8.3.1-8.3.2

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