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Diodorus Siculus · Bibliotheca Historica §14.10.1-14.10.4

Spartan Support and Dionysius' Disarming of Syracusans

Passage 304 of 723 · Greek

Summary

Having established their hegemony after the Peloponnesian War, the Spartans send Ariston to Syracuse, who secretly supports Dionysius' tyranny under the guise of restoring freedom. Dionysius exploits this to disarm the citizens and secure his rule.

§14.10.1κατὰ δὲ τὴν Ἑλλάδα Λακεδαιμόνιοι καταλελυκότες τὸν Πελοποννησιακὸν πόλεμον ὁμολογουμένην ἔσχον τὴν ἡγεμονίαν καὶ τὴν κατὰ γῆν καὶ τὴν κατὰ θάλατταν.
But in Greece, the Lacedaemonians, having brought the Peloponnesian War to an end, held undisputed hegemony both by land and by sea.
καταστήσαντες δὲ ναύαρχον Λύσανδρον, τούτῳ προσέταξαν ἐπιπορεύεσθαι τὰς πόλεις, ἐν ἑκάστῃ τοὺς παρʼ αὐτοῖς καλουμένους ἁρμοστὰς ἐγκαθιστάντα· ταῖς γὰρ δημοκρατίαις προσκόπτοντες οἱ Λακεδαιμόνιοι διʼ ὀλιγαρχίας ἐβούλοντο τὰς πόλεις διοικεῖσθαι.
Having appointed Lysander as admiral, they commanded him to visit the cities and establish in each of them the governors called harmosts among them; for the Lacedaemonians, being hostile to democracies, wished the cities to be governed by oligarchies.
§14.10.2ἔταξαν δὲ καὶ φόρους τοῖς καταπολεμηθεῖσι, καὶ τὸν πρὸ τοῦ χρόνον οὐ χρώμενοι νομίσματι, τότε συνήθροιζον ἐκ τοῦ φόρου κατʼ ἐνιαυτὸν πλείω τῶν χιλίων ταλάντων.
They also imposed tributes on those who had been subdued in war, and though in former times they had not used coined money, they then collected from the tribute more than a thousand talents annually.
ἐπεὶ δὲ τὰ κατὰ τὴν Ἑλλάδα πράγματα κατὰ τὴν ἰδίαν ἀξίαν διῴκησαν, ἀπέστειλαν Ἄριστον ἄνδρα τῶν ἐπιφανῶν εἰς Συρακούσας, τῷ μὲν λόγῳ προσποιούμενοι καταλύειν τὴν δυναστείαν, τῇ δʼ ἀληθείᾳ σπεύδοντες αὐξῆσαι τὴν τυραννίδα· ἤλπιζον γὰρ συγκατασκευάζοντες τὴν ἀρχὴν ὑπήκοον ἕξειν τὸν Διονύσιον διὰ τὰς εὐεργεσίας.
And when they had settled the affairs of Greece according to their own prestige, they dispatched Ariston, one of their prominent men, to Syracuse, pretending in speech that they were going to overthrow the tyranny, but in truth being eager to increase the power of the tyrant; for they hoped that, by helping to establish his rule, they would have Dionysius submissive to them because of their favors.
§14.10.3ὁ δʼ Ἄριστος καταπλεύσας εἰς Συρακούσας καὶ τῷ τυράννῳ λάθρᾳ περὶ τούτων διαλεχθείς, τούς τε Συρακοσίους ἀνασείων καὶ τὴν ἐλευθερίαν ἀποκαταστήσειν ἐπαγγειλάμενος, Νικοτέλην μὲν τὸν Κορίνθιον ἀνεῖλεν ἀφηγούμενον τῶν Συρακοσίων, τοὺς δὲ πιστεύσαντας προδοὺς τὸν μὲν τύραννον ἰσχυρὸν κατέστησε, διὰ δὲ τῆς πράξεως ταύτης ἀσχημονεῖν ἐποίησεν αὑτὸν ἅμα καὶ τὴν πατρίδα.
Ariston, having sailed to Syracuse and privately conferred with the tyrant on these matters, while inciting the Syracusans and promising to restore their freedom, slew Nicoteles the Corinthian, who was leading the Syracusans, and by betraying those who had trusted him, he made the tyrant strong, and through this deed brought shame upon both himself and his native land.
§14.10.4Διονύσιος δὲ τοὺς Συρακοσίους ἐπὶ τὸν θερισμὸν ἀποστείλας ἐπῆλθε τὰς οἰκίας, καὶ τὰ μὲν ὅπλα πάντων ἀφείλετο, μετὰ δὲ ταῦθʼ ἕτερον τεῖχος ᾠκοδόμει περὶ τὴν ἀκρόπολιν, καὶ ναῦς τε κατεσκευάζετο, συνῆγε δὲ καὶ μισθοφόρων πλῆθος, καὶ τὰ λοιπὰ παρεσκευάζετο πρὸς τὴν ἀσφάλειαν τῆς τυραννίδος, ὡς ἂν ἔργοις ἤδη πεῖραν εἰληφὼς ὅτι πᾶν ὑπομένουσιν οἱ Συρακόσιοι χάριν τοῦ μὴ δουλεύειν.
Dionysius, having sent the Syracusans out for the harvest, went through their houses and took away the weapons of them all; after this he built another wall around the acropolis, constructed ships, assembled a multitude of mercenaries, and made all other preparations for the security of his tyranny, inasmuch as he had already learned by experience that the Syracusans would submit to anything for the sake of avoiding slavery.

Notes

  1. 14.10.1ἐγκαθιστάντα — The participle is in the accusative case, agreeing with the implied subject of the infinitive `ἐπιπορεύεσθαι`, which refers back to the dative pronoun `τούτῳ` (Lysander). This construction shifts to the accusative, which is the standard case for the subject of an infinitive.
  2. 14.10.2κατὰ τὴν ἰδίαν ἀξίαν — Meaning literally 'according to their own worth.' In the context of Spartan hegemony over Greece, it means settling affairs 'in accordance with their own interests' or 'in a manner suitable to their own prominent position.'
  3. 14.10.4ὡς ἂν ἔργοις ἤδη πεῖραν εἰληφὼς — The conjunction `ὡς` and the particle `ἄν` are combined here with the perfect participle `εἰληφὼς`. This construction of `ὡς ἄν` with a participle expresses a subjective reason or assumption with a potential or conditional nuance ('as one who might have already learned from experience').

Cite this passage

Diodorus Siculus, Bibliotheca Historica §14.10.1-14.10.4. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0060.tlg001.humanitext-grc4:14.10.1-14.10.4

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