Humanitext Reader

Diodorus Siculus · Bibliotheca Historica §13.11.1-13.11.6

Arrival of Demosthenes and Failed Night Attack on Epipolae

Passage 190 of 723 · Greek

Summary

Demosthenes and Eurymedon arrive at Syracuse with a large Athenian reinforcement, causing the Syracusans to despair. Demosthenes launches a night attack on Epipolae, but the Athenians are routed by a Syracusan counter-attack.

§13.11.1τῶν δὲ Συρακοσίων ἐπηρμένων ταῖς ἐλπίσι διὰ τὸ καὶ κατὰ γῆν καὶ κατὰ θάλατταν τοὺς πολεμίους νενικηκέναι, παρῆν Εὐρυμέδων καὶ Δημοσθένης, καταπεπλευκότες μὲν ἐξ Ἀθηνῶν μετὰ δυνάμεως πολλῆς, ἐν δὲ τῷ παράπλῳ παρὰ Θουρίων καὶ Μεσσαπίων προσειληφότες συμμαχίαν.
While the Syracusans were elated in their hopes because they had conquered the enemy both by land and by sea, Eurymedon and Demosthenes arrived, having sailed down from Athens with a large force, and having additionally acquired an alliance from the Thurians and Messapians during their voyage.
§13.11.2ἦγον δὲ τριήρεις πλείους τῶν ὀγδοήκοντα, στρατιωτῶν δὲ χωρὶς τῶν ἐν τοῖς πληρώμασι πεντακισχιλίους· ὅπλα δὲ καὶ χρήματα, πρὸς δὲ τούτοις τὰ πρὸς πολιορκίαν ὄργανα καὶ τὴν ἄλλην παρασκευὴν ἐν στρογγύλοις πλοίοις ἐκόμιζον.
They brought more than eighty triremes, and five thousand soldiers besides those in the crews; and they transported arms and money, and in addition to these, the engines for the siege and the other equipment in round ships.
διʼ ἣν αἰτίαν οἱ Συρακόσιοι πάλιν ἐταπεινοῦντο ταῖς ἐλπίσι, νομίζοντες μηκέτι ῥᾳδίως ἐξισωθῆναι τοῖς πολεμίοις δυνήσεσθαι.
For this reason, the Syracusans were again cast down in their hopes, thinking that they would no longer easily be able to match the enemy.
§13.11.3Δημοσθένης δὲ πείσας τοὺς συνάρχοντας ἐπιθέσθαι ταῖς Ἐπιπολαῖς—ἄλλως γὰρ οὐ δυνατὸν ἦν ἀποτειχίσαι τὴν πόλιν—, ἀναλαβὼν μυρίους μὲν ὁπλίτας, ἄλλους δὲ τοσούτους ψιλούς, νυκτὸς ἐπέθετο τοῖς Συρακοσίοις.
Demosthenes, having persuaded his fellow-commanders to attack Epipolae—for otherwise it was not possible to wall off the city—took ten thousand hoplites and as many other light-armed troops, and attacked the Syracusans by night.
ἀπροσδοκήτου δὲ γενομένης τῆς ἐφόδου φρουρίων τέ τινων ἐκράτησαν καὶ παρεισπεσόντες ἐντὸς τοῦ τειχίσματος τῆς Ἐπιπολῆς μέρος τι τοῦ τείχους κατέβαλον.
Since the assault was unexpected, they captured some of the outposts, and having broken inside the fortification of Epipolae, they threw down a certain part of the wall.
§13.11.4τῶν δὲ Συρακοσίων πανταχόθεν συνδραμόντων ἐπὶ τὸν τόπον, ἔτι δὲ Ἑρμοκράτους μετὰ τῶν ἐπιλέκτων ἐπιβοηθήσαντος, ἐξεώσθησαν οἱ Ἀθηναῖοι καὶ νυκτὸς οὔσης διὰ τὴν ἀπειρίαν τῶν τόπων ἄλλοι κατʼ ἄλλους τόπους ἐσκεδάσθησαν.
But when the Syracusans ran together to the place from every side, and furthermore Hermocrates came to help with his select troops, the Athenians were pushed back; and since it was night, because of their ignorance of the localities, they were scattered, some in one place and some in another.
§13.11.5οἱ δὲ Συρακόσιοι μετὰ τῶν συμμάχων καταδιώξαντες, δισχιλίους μὲν καὶ πεντακοσίους τῶν πολεμίων ἀποκτείναντες, οὐκ ὀλίγους δὲ τραυματίας ποιήσαντες, πολλῶν ὅπλων ἐκυρίευσαν.
The Syracusans, pursuing them with their allies, killed two thousand five hundred of the enemy, and having wounded not a few, made themselves masters of many arms.
§13.11.6μετὰ δὲ τὴν μάχην Συρακόσιοι μὲν Σικανὸν ἕνα τῶν στρατηγῶν μετὰ δώδεκα τριήρων ἀπέστειλαν εἰς τὰς ἄλλας πόλεις, τήν τε νίκην ἀπαγγελοῦντα τοῖς συμμάχοις καὶ βοηθεῖν ἀξιοῦντα.
After the battle, the Syracusans dispatched Sicanus, one of their generals, with twelve triremes to the other cities, to report the victory to the allies and to demand help.

Notes

  1. 13.11.1τῶν δὲ Συρακοσίων ἐπηρμένων ταῖς ἐλπίσι — Genitive absolute construction. The perfect passive participle ἐπηρμένων indicates a continuous state of elation. It provides the background situation of the Syracusans in contrast to the arrival of the Athenian commanders.
  2. 13.11.2νομίζοντες μηκέτι ῥᾳδίως ἐξισωθῆναι τοῖς πολεμίοις δυνήσεσθαι — Complement of the participle νομίζοντες (expressing cause). The future infinitive δυνήσεσθαι represents indirect discourse, which in turn takes the aorist passive infinitive ἐξισωθῆναι (used in a middle sense, 'to make themselves equal to') as its complementary infinitive.
  3. 13.11.3ἄλλους δὲ τοσούτους — Meaning 'as many others,' referring back to μυρίους (ten thousand). It indicates that the number of light-armed troops (ψιλούς) was also ten thousand. ἄλλους serves to distinguish this troop type from the preceding hoplites (ὁπλίτας).
  4. 13.11.5δισχιλίους μὲν καὶ πεντακισχιλίους — Literally 'two thousand and five thousand,' which is logically problematic. Based on the historical context (such as Thucydides' account), the text πεντακισχιλίους (five thousand) is widely understood to be a scribal error for πεντακοσίους (five hundred). Hence, the translations consistently adopt the meaning 'two thousand five hundred.'
  5. 13.11.6ἀπαγγελοῦντα ... καὶ βοηθεῖν ἀξιοῦντα — Coordination of participles expressing purpose. While ἀπαγγελοῦντα is a future participle (ἀπαγγέλλω) clearly indicating purpose, it is coupled with ἀξιοῦντα, which is a present participle (ἀξιόω). Despite being in the present tense, it functions alongside the future participle to denote the objective of the embassy.

Cite this passage

Diodorus Siculus, Bibliotheca Historica §13.11.1-13.11.6. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0060.tlg001.humanitext-grc4:13.11.1-13.11.6

Please note the AI-draft status of the translation and the date accessed.

Translation, notes and summary are AI-generated drafts, revised through reader feedback.