Humanitext Reader

Diodorus Siculus · Bibliotheca Historica §13.73.1-13.73.6

Agis' Withdrawal and Alcibiades' Attack on Cyme

Passage 252 of 723 · Greek

Summary

The Spartan army under Agis abandons the siege of Athens and withdraws, while Alcibiades unjustly attacks Cyme and suffers a defeat, leading to serious accusations against him back in Athens.

§13.73.1Ἆγις δὲ τότε μὲν οὐ κρίνας πολιορκεῖν ἐν Ἀκαδημίᾳ κατεστρατοπέδευσε, τῇ δʼ ὑστεραίᾳ τῶν Ἀθηναίων στησάντων τρόπαιον ἐξέταξε τὴν δύναμιν καὶ προεκαλεῖτο τοὺς ἐν τῇ πόλει περὶ τοῦ τροπαίου διαγωνίσασθαι.
Now Agis, deciding at that time not to conduct a siege, encamped in the Academy; but on the following day, after the Athenians had set up a trophy, he drew up his army and challenged those in the city to fight for the trophy.
§13.73.2τῶν δʼ Ἀθηναίων ἐξαγαγόντων τοὺς στρατιώτας καὶ παρὰ τὸ τεῖχος παραταττομένων, τὸ μὲν πρῶτον οἱ Λακεδαιμόνιοι πρὸς μάχην ὥρμησαν, ἀπὸ δὲ τῶν τειχῶν πολλοῦ πλήθους βελῶν ἐπʼ αὐτοὺς ῥιφέντος ἀπήγαγον τὴν δύναμιν ἀπὸ τῆς πόλεως·
And when the Athenians had led out their soldiers and drawn them up along the wall, at first the Lacedaemonians rushed to battle, but since a great multitude of missiles was thrown at them from the walls, they led their army away from the city.
μετὰ δὲ ταῦτα τὸ λοιπὸν τῆς Ἀττικῆς δῃώσαντες εἰς Πελοπόννησον ἀπηλλάγησαν.
After this, having ravaged the rest of Attica, they departed for the Peloponnese.
§13.73.3Ἀλκιβιάδης δὲ ἐκ Σάμου μετὰ πασῶν τῶν νεῶν πλεύσας εἰς Κύμην ψευδεῖς αἰτίας ἐπέρριψε τοῖς Κυμαίοις, βουλόμενος αὐτῶν μετὰ προφάσεως διαρπάσαι τὴν χώραν.
Meanwhile, Alcibiades, having sailed from Samos with all the ships to Cyme, cast false accusations upon the Cymaeans, wishing with a pretext to plunder their territory.
καὶ τὸ μὲν πρῶτον πολλῶν αἰχμαλώτων σωμάτων κυριεύσας ἀπῆγεν ἐπὶ τὰς ναῦς·
And at first, having captured many prisoners, he led them away to the ships.
§13.73.4ἐκβοηθησάντων δὲ τῶν ἐκ τῆς πόλεως πανδημεὶ καὶ προσπεσόντων ἀπροσδοκήτως, χρόνον μέν τινα διεκαρτέρουν οἱ περὶ τὸν Ἀλκιβιάδην, μετὰ δὲ ταῦτα τοῖς Κυμαίοις προσγενομένων πολλῶν τῶν ἐκ τῆς πόλεως καὶ τῆς χώρας ἠναγκάσθησαν καταλιπόντες τοὺς αἰχμαλώτους καταφυγεῖν ἐπὶ τὰς ναῦς.
But when those from the city came out to help in full force and fell upon them unexpectedly, those around Alcibiades held out for some time; but after this, since many from the city and the countryside had joined the Cymaeans, they were forced to leave the prisoners behind and flee to the ships.
§13.73.5ὁ δʼ Ἀλκιβιάδης ἐπὶ τοῖς ἐλαττώμασι περιαλγὴς γενόμενος ἐκ Μιτυλήνης μετεπέμψατο τοὺς ὁπλίτας, καὶ πρὸ τῆς πόλεως ἐκτάξας τὴν δύναμιν προεκαλεῖτο τοὺς Κυμαίους εἰς μάχην·
Alcibiades, being deeply grieved at the setbacks, summoned the hoplites from Mytilene, and drawing up his army before the city, challenged the Cymaeans to battle.
οὐδενὸς δʼ ἐξιόντος δῃώσας τὴν χώραν ἀπέπλευσεν ἐπὶ Μιτυλήνην.
But when no one came out, having ravaged the territory, he sailed away to Mytilene.
§13.73.6Κυμαίων δὲ πεμψάντων εἰς Ἀθήνας πρεσβείαν καὶ κατηγορούντων Ἀλκιβιάδου, διότι σύμμαχον πόλιν οὐδὲν ἀδικήσασαν ἐπόρθησεν·
And when the Cymaeans sent an embassy to Athens and accused Alcibiades because he had plundered an allied city that had done no wrong, many other slanders also arose against him.
ἐγίνοντο δὲ καὶ ἄλλαι πολλαὶ διαβολαὶ κατʼ αὐτοῦ· τῶν γὰρ ἐν Σάμῳ τινὲς στρατιωτῶν ἀλλοτρίως τὰ πρὸς αὐτὸν ἔχοντες ἔπλευσαν εἰς Ἀθήνας, καὶ κατηγόρησαν ἐν ἐκκλησίᾳ κατʼ Ἀλκιβιάδου, ὅτι τὰ Λακεδαιμονίων φρονεῖ καὶ πρὸς Φαρνάβαζον ἔχει φιλίαν, διʼ ἧς ἐλπίζει καταλυθέντος τοῦ πολέμου καταδυναστεύσειν τῶν πολιτῶν.
For some of the soldiers in Samos who were hostilely disposed toward him sailed to Athens and accused Alcibiades in the assembly, saying that he favored the cause of the Lacedaemonians and had a friendship with Pharnabazus, through which he hoped, when the war was brought to an end, to establish a tyranny over the citizens.

Notes

  1. 13.73.1οὐ κρίνας πολιορκεῖν — The verb κρίνω with an infinitive means 'to decide or choose to do something', and the negative particle οὐ negates the participle κρίνας, meaning 'deciding (at that time) not to conduct a siege'.
  2. 13.73.4τοῖς Κυμαίοις προσγενομένων πολλῶν — A genitive absolute construction, where the verb προσγίγνομαι (to join, side with) governs the dative τοῖς Κυμαίοις. It means 'since many joined the Cymaeans'.
  3. 13.73.6καταλυθέντος τοῦ πολέμου — A genitive absolute construction subordinate to ἐλπίζει within the clause, expressing time ('when/after the war is brought to an end').

Cite this passage

Diodorus Siculus, Bibliotheca Historica §13.73.1-13.73.6. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0060.tlg001.humanitext-grc4:13.73.1-13.73.6

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.