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Diodorus Siculus · Bibliotheca Historica §12.46.1-12.46.7

Death of Pericles and the Surrender of Potidaea

Passage 140 of 723 · Greek

Summary

The death of Pericles in Athens is reported, followed by the siege of Potidaea under General Hagnon. After relentless assaults, plague, and starvation, Potidaea surrenders by treaty and is resettled by Athenian colonists.

§12.46.1ἐπʼ ἄρχοντος δʼ Ἀθήνησιν Ἐπαμείνονος Ῥωμαῖοι κατέστησαν ὑπάτους Λεύκιον Παπίριον καὶ Αὖλον Κορνήλιον Μακερῖνον.
When Epameinon was archon in Athens, the Romans established Lucius Papirius and Aulus Cornelius Macerinus as consuls.
ἐπὶ δὲ τούτων ἐν μὲν ταῖς Ἀθήναις Περικλῆς ὁ στρατηγὸς ἐτελεύτησεν, ἀνὴρ γένει καὶ πλούτῳ, πρὸς δὲ τούτοις δεινότητι λόγου καὶ στρατηγίᾳ πολὺ προέχων τῶν πολιτῶν.
During their term of office, Pericles the general died in Athens, a man who far surpassed his fellow citizens in birth and wealth, and in addition to these, in eloquence and generalship.
§12.46.2ὁ δὲ δῆμος φιλοτιμούμενος κατὰ κράτος ἑλεῖν τὴν Ποτίδαιαν, ἐξαπέστειλεν Ἅγνωνα στρατηγὸν ἔχοντα τὴν δύναμιν ἣν πρότερον εἶχε Περικλῆς.
The people, eagerly desiring to take Potidaea by storm, sent out Hagnon as general, holding the force which Pericles had formerly commanded.
οὗτος δὲ μετὰ παντὸς τοῦ στόλου καταπλεύσας εἰς τὴν Ποτίδαιαν παρεσκευάσατο τὰ πρὸς τὴν πολιορκίαν· μηχανάς τε γὰρ παντοδαπὰς παρεσκεύασε πολιορκητικὰς καὶ ὅπλων καὶ βελῶν πλῆθος, ἔτι δὲ σίτου δαψίλειαν ἱκανὴν πάσῃ τῇ δυνάμει.
He, having sailed into Potidaea with the entire fleet, made preparations for the siege; for he prepared all kinds of siege engines, a great quantity of arms and missiles, and moreover an abundant supply of food sufficient for the whole force.
προσβολὰς δὲ ποιούμενος συνεχεῖς καθʼ ἑκάστην ἡμέραν διέτριβε πολὺν χρόνον, οὐ δυνάμενος ἑλεῖν τὴν πόλιν.
Making continuous assaults every day, he spent a long time there, but was unable to take the city.
§12.46.3οἱ μὲν γὰρ πολιορκούμενοι διὰ τὸν ἐκ τῆς ἁλώσεως φόβον ἐρρωμένως ἠμύνοντο καὶ ταῖς ὑπεροχαῖς τῶν τειχῶν πεποιθότες ἐπλεονέκτουν τοὺς ἐκ τοῦ λιμένος·
For those who were besieged, out of fear of capture, defended themselves vigorously, and relying on the height of the walls, they had the advantage over those attacking from the harbor.
ἡ δὲ νόσος τοὺς πολιορκοῦντας συνέχουσα πολλοὺς ἀνῄρει, καὶ τὸ στρατόπεδον ἀθυμία κατεῖχεν.
But the disease, gripping the besiegers, destroyed many of them, and despondency held the camp.
§12.46.4ὁ δʼ Ἅγνων εἰδὼς τοὺς Ἀθηναίους δεδαπανηκότας εἰς τὴν πολιορκίαν πλείω τῶν χιλίων ταλάντων καὶ χαλεπῶς διακειμένους πρὸς τοὺς Ποτιδαιάτας διὰ τὸ πρώτους ἀποστῆναι πρὸς τοὺς Λακεδαιμονίους, ἐφοβεῖτο λῦσαι τὴν πολιορκίαν· διόπερ ἠναγκάζετο διακαρτερεῖν καὶ τοὺς στρατιώτας ἀναγκάζειν παρὰ δύναμιν βίαν προσάγειν τῇ πόλει.
Hagnon, knowing that the Athenians had spent more than a thousand talents on the siege and were harshly disposed toward the Potidaeans because they had been the first to revolt to the Lacedaemonians, was afraid to raise the siege; therefore he was forced to persevere and to compel his soldiers to bring force against the city beyond their strength.
§12.46.5ἐπεὶ δὲ τῶν πολιτῶν πολλοὶ διεφθείροντο κατὰ τὰς προσβολὰς καὶ κατὰ τὴν ἐκ τοῦ λοιμοῦ νόσον, ἀπολιπὼν μέρος τῆς δυνάμεως ἐπὶ τῆς πολιορκίας ἀπέπλευσεν εἰς τὰς Ἀθήνας, ἀποβεβληκὼς τῶν στρατιωτῶν πλείους τῶν χιλίων.
But when many of the citizens were being destroyed in the assaults and by the disease from the plague, leaving a part of his force for the siege, he sailed back to Athens, having lost more than a thousand of his soldiers.
§12.46.6ἀπελθόντων δὲ τούτων οἱ Ποτιδαιᾶται, τοῦ τε σίτου παντελῶς ἐκλιπόντος καὶ τῶν κατὰ τὴν πόλιν ἀθυμούντων, ἐπεκηρυκεύσαντο πρὸς τοὺς πολιορκοῦντας περὶ διαλύσεως.
After these had departed, the Potidaeans, since their food had entirely failed and those in the city were despondent, made proposals for a treaty to the besiegers concerning terms of peace.
ἀσμένως δὲ κἀκείνων προσδεξαμένων διαλύσεις ἐποιήσαντο τοιαύτας, ἀπελθεῖν ἐκ τῆς πόλεως ἅπαντας τοὺς Ποτιδαιάτας, ἄλλο μὲν μηθὲν λαβόντας, ἔχοντας δὲ τοὺς μὲν ἄνδρας ἱμάτιον ἕν, τὰς δὲ γυναῖκας δύο.
Since the latter also gladly accepted, they made a treaty on the following terms: that all the Potidaeans should depart from the city, taking nothing else with them except, for the men, one garment, and for the women, two.
§12.46.7γενομένων δὲ τούτων τῶν σπονδῶν οἱ μὲν Ποτιδαιᾶται πάντες μετὰ γυναικῶν καὶ τέκνων ἐξέλιπον τὴν πατρίδα κατὰ τὰς συνθήκας, καὶ παρελθόντες εἰς τοὺς ἐπὶ Θρᾴκης Χαλκιδεῖς παρʼ αὐτοῖς κατῴκησαν·
When this treaty had been made, all the Potidaeans left their homeland with their wives and children according to the agreement, and going to the Chalcidians in Thrace, they settled among them.
οἱ δʼ Ἀθηναῖοι τῶν πολιτῶν εἰς χιλίους οἰκήτορας ἐξέπεμψαν εἰς τὴν Ποτίδαιαν, καὶ τήν τε πόλιν καὶ τὴν χώραν κατεκληρούχησαν.
The Athenians sent out about a thousand settlers from their citizens to Potidaea, and distributed both the city and the land by lot.

Notes

  1. 12.46.1ἀνὴρ γένει καὶ πλούτῳ, πρὸς δὲ τούτοις δεινότητι λόγου καὶ στρατηγίᾳ πολὺ προέχων τῶν πολιτῶν — A noun phrase in apposition to the subject Περικλῆς. It can be understood as an elliptical clause characterizing Pericles' outstanding qualities to provide supplementary description.
  2. 12.46.3τοὺς ἐκ τοῦ λιμένος — Meaning 'those from the harbor.' The preposition ἐκ indicates that the Athenian besiegers (Hagnon's fleet) were stationed in the harbor and launched their attacks from there.
  3. 12.46.4εἰδὼς τοὺς Ἀθηναίους δεδαπανηκότας ... καὶ ... διακειμένους — The perfect participle δεδαπανηκότας and present participle διακειμένους serve as supplementary participles (indirect discourse) for the participle εἰδώς ('knowing'). Accompanied by the accusative subject τοὺς Ἀθηναίους, they form the clause 'knowing that the Athenians had spent... and were disposed...'.
  4. 12.46.6ἀπελθεῖν ἐκ τῆς πόλεως ... λαβόντας ... ἔχοντας ... — An accusative with infinitive clause explaining the concrete content of the preceding διαλύσεις τοιαύτας ('treaty on the following terms'). The participles λαβόντας and ἔχοντας are in the accusative masculine plural to agree with the implied subject of the infinitive, τοὺς Ποτιδαιάτας.

Cite this passage

Diodorus Siculus, Bibliotheca Historica §12.46.1-12.46.7. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0060.tlg001.humanitext-grc4:12.46.1-12.46.7

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