Diodorus Siculus · Bibliotheca Historica §14.84.1-14.84.7
Battle of Coroneia and Conon's Naval Supremacy
Summary
Agesilaus defeats the Boeotian forces at the Battle of Coroneia but is wounded, while Conon and Pharnabazus deprive Sparta of its maritime empire by revolting its allies, capturing Cythera, and forming an alliance with Corinth. Additionally, the death of King Aeropus of Macedonia and the completion of the historian Theopompus' *Hellenica* are recorded.
§14.84.1Ἀγησίλαος δὲ προσλαβόμενος ἐκ Πελοποννήσου στρατιώτας, ἐπειδὴ μετὰ τῆς δυνάμεως ἐπέβαινεν εἰς Βοιωτίαν, εὐθὺς οἱ Βοιωτοὶ μετὰ τῶν συμμάχων ἀπήντησαν εἰς Κορώνειαν.
Agesilaus, having taken on additional soldiers from the Peloponnese, when he entered Boeotia with his army, immediately the Boeotians with their allies met him at Coroneia.
γενομένης δὲ παρατάξεως Θηβαῖοι μὲν τὸ καθʼ αὑτοὺς μέρος τρεψάμενοι μέχρι τῆς παρεμβολῆς κατεδίωξαν, οἱ δʼ ἄλλοι μικρὸν ἀντισχόντες χρόνον ὑπʼ Ἀγησιλάου καὶ τῶν ἄλλων φυγεῖν ἠναγκάσθησαν.
A battle having taken place, the Thebans for their part, having routed the section opposite them, pursued them as far as the camp, but the others, having held out for only a short time, were forced by Agesilaus and the rest to flee.
§14.84.2διὸ καὶ νενικηκέναι τῇ μάχῃ Λακεδαιμόνιοι διαλαβόντες ἔστησαν τρόπαιον καὶ τοὺς νεκροὺς τοῖς πολεμίοις ὑποσπόνδους ἀπέδωκαν.
Therefore, the Lacedaemonians, judging that they had won the battle, set up a trophy and returned the dead to the enemy under a truce.
ἀπέθανον δὲ τῶν Βοιωτῶν καὶ τῶν συμμάχων πλείους τῶν ἑξακοσίων, Λακεδαιμονίων δὲ καὶ τῶν συναγωνισαμένων τριακόσιοι πεντήκοντα· καὶ αὐτὸς Ἀγησίλαος πολλοῖς περιπεπτωκὼς τραύμασιν εἰς Δελφοὺς ἐκομίσθη, κἀκεῖ τὴν ἐπιμέλειαν τοῦ σώματος ἐποιεῖτο.
Of the Boeotians and their allies more than six hundred died, and of the Lacedaemonians and those who fought alongside them, three hundred and fifty; and Agesilaus himself, having sustained many wounds, was carried to Delphi, and there took care of his body.
§14.84.3Φαρνάβαζος δὲ καὶ Κόνων μετὰ τὴν ναυμαχίαν ἀνήχθησαν ἁπάσαις ταῖς ναυσὶν ἐπὶ τοὺς τῶν Λακεδαιμονίων συμμάχους.
Pharnabazus and Conon, after the sea-fight, put to sea with all their ships against the allies of the Lacedaemonians.
καὶ πρῶτον μὲν Κῴους ἀπέστησαν, εἶτα Νισυρίους καὶ Τηίους.
And first they revolted the Coans, then the Nisyrians and Teians.
μετὰ δὲ ταῦτα Χῖοι τὴν φρουρὰν ἐκβαλόντες προσέθεντο τοῖς περὶ Κόνωνα· παραπλησίως δὲ μετέβαλον καὶ Μιτυληναῖοι καὶ Ἐφέσιοι καὶ Ἐρυθραῖοι.
After this, the Chians, having expelled their garrison, joined Conon and his men; and in like manner the Mytilaeneans, Ephesians, and Erythraeans changed sides.
§14.84.4τοιαύτη δὲ τῆς μεταστάσεως σπουδή τις εἰς τὰς πόλεις ἐνέπεσεν, ὧν αἱ μὲν ἐκβάλλουσαι τὰς φρουρὰς τῶν Λακεδαιμονίων τὴν ἐλευθερίαν διεφύλαττον, αἱ δὲ τοῖς περὶ Κόνωνα προσετίθεντο.
Such a zeal for change fell upon the cities, of which some, expelling the garrisons of the Lacedaemonians, preserved their freedom, while others allied themselves with Conon and his men.
καὶ Λακεδαιμόνιοι μὲν ἀπὸ τούτου τοῦ χρόνου τὴν κατὰ θάλατταν ἀρχὴν ἀπέβαλον, οἱ δὲ περὶ Κόνωνα κρίναντες παντὶ τῷ στόλῳ πλεῖν ἐπὶ τὴν Ἀττικὴν ἀνέζευξαν, καὶ τὰς Κυκλάδας νήσους προσαγαγόμενοι κατέπλευσαν ἐπὶ Κύθηρα τὴν νῆσον.
And the Lacedaemonians from this time lost their empire of the sea, while Conon and his men, deciding to sail with the whole fleet to Attica, set out, and having brought over the Cyclades islands, sailed down to the island of Cythera.
§14.84.5εὐθὺ δὲ ταύτης ἐξ ἐφόδου κυριεύσαντες τοὺς μὲν Κυθηρίους ὑποσπόνδους ἐξέπεμψαν εἰς τὴν Λακωνικήν, αὐτοὶ δὲ καταλιπόντες τῆς πόλεως τὴν ἱκανὴν φρουρὰν ἔπλεον ἐπὶ Κορίνθου.
Having immediately captured this island by assault, they sent the Cytherians under a truce to Laconia, and they themselves, having left a sufficient garrison for the city, sailed for Corinth.
ἐκεῖ δὲ καταπλεύσαντες τοῖς συνέδροις διελέχθησαν ὑπὲρ ὧν ἤθελον, καὶ συμμαχίαν ποιησάμενοι τούτοις μὲν χρήματα κατέλιπον, αὐτοὶ δʼ εἰς τὴν Ἀσίαν ἐξέπλευσαν.
Having sailed down there, they conferred with the councilors about what they wished, and having made an alliance, they left money for them, while they themselves sailed out to Asia.
§14.84.6περὶ δὲ τὸν αὐτὸν χρόνον Ἀέροπος ὁ τῶν Μακεδόνων βασιλεὺς ἐτελεύτησε νόσῳ, βασιλεύσας ἔτη ἕξ· τὴν δʼ ἡγεμονίαν διαδεξάμενος Παυσανίας υἱὸς ἦρξεν ἐνιαυτόν.
At about the same time Aeropus, the king of the Macedonians, died of illness, having reigned six years; and Pausanias, his son, having succeeded to the rule, governed for one year.
§14.84.7Θεόπομπος δʼ ὁ Χῖος τὴν τῶν Ἑλληνικῶν σύνταξιν κατέστροφεν εἰς τοῦτον τὸν ἐνιαυτὸν καὶ εἰς τὴν περὶ Κνίδον ναυμαχίαν, γράψας βύβλους δώδεκα.
Theopompus of Chios brought his compilation of Greek history to a close with this year and with the sea-fight near Cnidus, having written twelve books.
ὁ δὲ συγγραφεὺς οὗτος ἦρκται μὲν ἀπὸ τῆς περὶ Κυνὸς σῆμα ναυμαχίας, εἰς ἣν Θουκυδίδης κατέληξε τὴν πραγματείαν, ἔγραψε δὲ χρόνον ἐτῶν δεκαεπτά.
This historian started from the sea-fight near Cynossema, where Thucydides ended his work, and wrote of a period of seventeen years.
Notes
- §14.84.1τὸ καθʼ αὑτοὺς μέρος — The preposition `κατά` with the accusative of the reflexive pronoun (`αὑτούς`) means 'opposite themselves' or 'facing them.' It modifies the neuter noun `μέρος` (part, section), meaning 'the section (of the enemy's battle line) opposite them.'
- §14.84.3τοῖς περὶ Κόνωνα — The construction of the definite article with `περί` and an accusative ('those around Conon') here refers either to Conon himself as the representative leader or to the entire command/faction of the Persian-Athenian coalition led by him.
- §14.84.4ὧν — Genitive plural of the relative pronoun. Its antecedent is `τὰς πόλεις` (the cities) in the preceding clause, functioning as a partive genitive in relation to the subsequent `αἱ μὲν ... αἱ δὲ ...` ('of which some... while others...').
- §14.84.7τὴν τῶν Ἑλληνικῶν σύνταξιν — `τῶν Ἑλληνικῶν` is the genitive neuter plural of the substantivized adjective ('Greek affairs/history'), modifying `σύνταξιν` (compilation, systematic work). Together, the phrase means 'the compilation of Greek history,' referring to a historical work of the same genre as Xenophon's *Hellenica*.
Cite this passage
Diodorus Siculus, Bibliotheca Historica §14.84.1-14.84.7. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0060.tlg001.humanitext-grc4:14.84.1-14.84.7
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