§240ΣΩ. ὁ δὲ ὑὸς Αἰγύπτου τε καὶ Λιβύης ὅσον οἷόν τʼ ἦν ἐπιβαίνειν, τρίτος δὲ Δαρεῖος πεζῇ μὲν μέχρι Σκυθῶν τὴν ἀρχὴν ὡρίσατο, ναυσὶ δὲ τῆς τε θαλάττης ἐκράτει καὶ τῶν νήσων, ὥστε μηδὲ ἀξιοῦν ἀντίπαλον αὐτῷ μηδένα εἶναι· αἱ δὲ γνῶμαι δεδουλωμέναι ἁπάντων ἀνθρώπων ἦσαν· οὕτω πολλὰ καὶ μεγάλα καὶ μάχιμα γένη καταδεδουλωμένη ἦν ἡ Περσῶν ἀρχή.
"And his son ruled as much of Egypt and Libya as it was possible to set foot upon, and thirdly Darius defined his empire on land as far as the Scythians, and with his ships he was master of the sea and the islands, so that no one even thought of being a rival to him; and the minds of all men had been enslaved; so many and great and warlike races had the empire of the Persians enslaved.
αἰτιασάμενος δὲ Δαρεῖος ἡμᾶς τε καὶ Ἐρετριᾶς, Σάρδεσιν ἐπιβουλεῦσαι προφασιζόμενος, πέμψας μυριάδας μὲν πεντήκοντα ἔν τε πλοίοις καὶ ναυσίν, ναῦς δὲ τριακοσίας, Δᾶτιν δὲ ἄρχοντα, εἶπεν ἥκειν ἄγοντα Ἐρετριᾶς καὶ Ἀθηναίους, εἰ βούλοιτο τὴν ἑαυτοῦ κεφαλὴν ἔχειν·
But Darius, having accused us and the Eretrians, on the pretext of plotting against Sardis, having sent fifty myriads in transports and ships, and three hundred ships, with Datis as commander, told him to return bringing the Eretrians and Athenians, if he wished to keep his own head.
ὁ δὲ πλεύσας εἰς Ἐρέτριαν ἐπʼ ἄνδρας οἳ τῶν τότε Ἑλλήνων ἐν τοῖς εὐδοκιμώτατοι ἦσαν τὰ πρὸς τὸν πόλεμον καὶ οὐκ ὀλίγοι, τούτους ἐχειρώσατο μὲν ἐν τρισὶν ἡμέραις, διηρευνήσατο δὲ αὐτῶν πᾶσαν τὴν χώραν, ἵνα μηδεὶς ἀποφύγοι, τοιούτῳ τρόπῳ· ἐπὶ τὰ ὅρια ἐλθόντες τῆς Ἐρετρικῆς οἱ στρατιῶται αὐτοῦ, ἐκ θαλάττης εἰς θάλατταν διαστάντες, συνάψαντες τὰς χεῖρας διῆλθον ἅπασαν τὴν χώραν, ἵνʼ ἔχοιεν τῷ βασιλεῖ εἰπεῖν ὅτι οὐδεὶς σφᾶς ἀποπεφευγὼς εἴη.
And he, having sailed to Eretria against men who among the Greeks of that time were among the most highly esteemed in matters of war and were not few, subdued them within three days, and searched all their land thoroughly, so that no one might escape, in the following manner: having come to the borders of Eretria, his soldiers, standing in a line from sea to sea, and joining their hands, went through the entire country, so that they might have it to say to the king that no one had escaped them.
τῇ δʼ αὐτῇ διανοίᾳ κατηγάγοντο ἐξ Ἐρετρίας εἰς Μαραθῶνα, ὡς ἕτοιμόν σφισιν ὂν καὶ Ἀθηναίους ἐν τῇ αὐτῇ ταύτῃ ἀνάγκῃ ζεύξαντας Ἐρετριεῦσιν ἄγειν.
And with the same intention they landed from Eretria at Marathon, as though it were an easy task for them to lead also the Athenians, having bound them in the same necessity as the Eretrians.
τούτων δὲ τῶν μὲν πραχθέντων, τῶν δʼ ἐπιχειρουμένων οὔτʼ Ἐρετριεῦσιν ἐβοήθησεν Ἑλλήνων οὐδεὶς οὔτε Ἀθηναίοις πλὴν Λακεδαιμονίων—οὗτοι δὲ τῇ ὑστεραίᾳ τῆς μάχης ἀφίκοντο—οἱ δʼ ἄλλοι πάντες ἐκπεπληγμένοι, ἀγαπῶντες τὴν ἐν τῷ παρόντι σωτηρίαν, ἡσυχίαν ἦγον.
While these things had been done, and those were being attempted, none of the Greeks helped either the Eretrians or the Athenians except the Lacedaemonians—and they arrived on the day after the battle—but all the others, being terrified and content with their safety for the present, kept quiet.
ἐν τούτῳ δὴ ἄν τις γενόμενος γνοίη οἷοι ἄρα ἐτύγχανον ὄντες τὴν ἀρετὴν οἱ Μαραθῶνι δεξάμενοι τὴν τῶν βαρβάρων δύναμιν καὶ κολασάμενοι τὴν ὑπερηφανίαν ὅλης τῆς Ἀσίας καὶ πρῶτοι στήσαντες τρόπαια τῶν βαρβάρων, ἡγεμόνες καὶ διδάσκαλοι τοῖς ἄλλοις γενόμενοι ὅτι οὐκ ἄμαχος εἴη ἡ Περσῶν δύναμις, ἀλλὰ πᾶν πλῆθος καὶ πᾶς πλοῦτος ἀρετῇ ὑπείκει.
In this situation indeed, if anyone were to place himself, he would know what kind of men in virtue they actually happened to be, who at Marathon received the power of the barbarians and chastised the pride of all Asia, and first erected trophies over the barbarians, becoming leaders and teachers to the others that the power of the Persians was not invincible, but that all multitude and all wealth yield to virtue.
ἐγὼ μὲν οὖν ἐκείνους τοὺς ἄνδρας φημὶ οὐ μόνον τῶν σωμάτων τῶν ἡμετέρων πατέρας εἶναι, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῆς ἐλευθερίας τῆς τε ἡμετέρας καὶ συμπάντων τῶν ἐν τῇδε τῇ ἠπείρῳ· εἰς ἐκεῖνο γὰρ τὸ ἔργον ἀποβλέψαντες καὶ τὰς ὑστέρας μάχας ἐτόλμησαν διακινδυνεύειν οἱ Ἕλληνες ὑπὲρ τῆς σωτηρίας, μαθηταὶ τῶν Μαραθῶνι γενόμενοι. §241ΣΩ. τὰ μὲν οὖν ἀριστεῖα τῷ λόγῳ ἐκείνοις ἀναθετέον, τὰ δὲ δευτερεῖα τοῖς περὶ Σαλαμῖνα καὶ ἐπʼ Ἀρτεμισίῳ ναυμαχήσασι καὶ νικήσασι.
I indeed therefore say that those men were not only the fathers of our bodies, but also of our freedom and of that of all those on this continent; for looking back to that deed, the Greeks also dared to risk the later battles for their safety, having become pupils of those at Marathon." "The first prizes of valor, then, in our speech must be assigned to them, and the second to those who fought by sea at Salamis and off Artemisium and conquered.
καὶ γὰρ τούτων τῶν ἀνδρῶν πολλὰ μὲν ἄν τις ἔχοι διελθεῖν, καὶ οἷα ἐπιόντα ὑπέμειναν κατά τε γῆν καὶ κατὰ θάλατταν, καὶ ὡς ἠμύναντο ταῦτα· ὃ δέ μοι δοκεῖ καὶ ἐκείνων κάλλιστον εἶναι, τούτου μνησθήσομαι, ὅτι τὸ ἑξῆς ἔργον τοῖς Μαραθῶνι διεπράξαντο.
For of these men too one would have many things to relate, both what kind of attacks they withstood by land and sea, and how they repulsed them; but what seems to me to be the most beautiful of their deeds, of this I will make mention: that they accomplished the task that followed upon those at Marathon.
οἱ μὲν γὰρ Μαραθῶνι τοσοῦτον μόνον ἐπέδειξαν τοῖς Ἕλλησιν, ὅτι κατὰ γῆν οἷόν τε ἀμύνασθαι τοὺς βαρβάρους ὀλίγοις πολλούς, ναυσὶ δὲ ἔτι ἦν ἄδηλον καὶ δόξαν εἶχον Πέρσαι ἄμαχοι εἶναι κατὰ θάλατταν καὶ πλήθει καὶ πλούτῳ καὶ τέχνῃ καὶ ῥώμῃ· τοῦτο δὴ ἄξιον ἐπαινεῖν τῶν ἀνδρῶν τῶν τότε ναυμαχησάντων, ὅτι τὸν ἐχόμενον φόβον διέλυσαν τῶν Ἑλλήνων καὶ ἔπαυσαν φοβουμένους πλῆθος νεῶν τε καὶ ἀνδρῶν.
For those at Marathon showed only so much to the Greeks, that by land it is possible for a few to defend themselves against many barbarians, but with ships it was still unclear, and the Persians had a reputation of being invincible at sea in multitude, wealth, skill, and strength; this indeed is worthy of praise in the men who then fought by sea, that they dissolved the prevailing fear of the Greeks and stopped them from fearing a multitude of ships and men.
ὑπʼ ἀμφοτέρων δὴ συμβαίνει, τῶν τε Μαραθῶνι μαχεσαμένων καὶ τῶν ἐν Σαλαμῖνι ναυμαχησάντων, παιδευθῆναι τοὺς ἄλλους Ἕλληνας, ὑπὸ μὲν τῶν κατὰ γῆν, ὑπὸ δὲ τῶν κατὰ θάλατταν μαθόντας καὶ ἐθισθέντας μὴ φοβεῖσθαι τοὺς βαρβάρους.
By both indeed, it happened that the other Greeks were educated: having learned and been accustomed by those who fought by land, and by those who fought by sea, not to fear the barbarians.
τρίτον δὲ λέγω τὸ ἐν Πλαταιαῖς ἔργον καὶ ἀριθμῷ καὶ ἀρετῇ γενέσθαι τῆς Ἑλληνικῆς σωτηρίας, κοινὸν ἤδη τοῦτο Λακεδαιμονίων τε καὶ Ἀθηναίων.
And thirdly, I say that the deed at Plataea became the cause of Greek salvation both in number and in virtue, this being now a joint effort of both Lacedaemonians and Athenians.
τὸ μὲν οὖν μέγιστον καὶ χαλεπώτατον οὗτοι πάντες ἠμύναντο, καὶ διὰ ταύτην τὴν ἀρετὴν νῦν τε ὑφʼ ἡμῶν ἐγκωμιάζονται καὶ εἰς τὸν ἔπειτα χρόνον ὑπὸ τῶν ὕστερον· μετὰ δὲ τοῦτο πολλαὶ μὲν πόλεις τῶν Ἑλλήνων ἔτι ἦσαν μετὰ τοῦ βαρβάρου, αὐτὸς δὲ ἠγγέλλετο βασιλεὺς διανοεῖσθαι ὡς ἐπιχειρήσων πάλιν ἐπὶ τοὺς Ἕλληνας.
This greatest and hardest thing indeed they all repulsed, and because of this virtue they are praised now by us and in the future time by those who come after; and after this, many cities of the Greeks were still with the barbarian, and the king himself was reported to intend to make an attempt again against the Greeks.
δίκαιον δὴ καὶ τούτων ἡμᾶς ἐπιμνησθῆναι, οἳ τοῖς τῶν προτέρων ἔργοις τέλος τῆς σωτηρίας ἐπέθεσαν ἀνακαθηράμενοι καὶ ἐξελάσαντες πᾶν τὸ βάρβαρον ἐκ τῆς θαλάττης.
It is right indeed for us to mention also those who placed the completion of safety on the deeds of their predecessors, having swept clean and driven out all the barbarian force from the sea.
ἦσαν δὲ οὗτοι οἵ τε ἐπʼ Εὐρυμέδοντι ναυμαχήσαντες καὶ οἱ εἰς Κύπρον στρατεύσαντες καὶ οἱ εἰς Αἴγυπτον πλεύσαντες καὶ ἄλλοσε πολλαχόσε, ὧν χρὴ μεμνῆσθαι καὶ χάριν αὐτοῖς εἰδέναι, ὅτι βασιλέα ἐποίησαν δείσαντα τῇ ἑαυτοῦ σωτηρίᾳ τὸν νοῦν προσέχειν, ἀλλὰ μὴ τῇ τῶν Ἑλλήνων ἐπιβουλεύειν φθορᾷ.
And these were those who fought by sea at Eurymedon and those who campaigned to Cyprus and those who sailed to Egypt and to many other places, whom we ought to remember and be grateful to, because they made the king, in fear, attend to his own safety, rather than plot the destruction of the Greeks."