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Diodorus Siculus · Bibliotheca Historica §16.62.1-16.62.4

Phalaecus's Expedition to Crete and Defeat by Sparta

Passage 570 of 723 · Greek

Summary

Suspecting they were not actually summoned, Phalaecus's soldiers forced a return to the Peloponnese, subsequently allied with Knossian envoys to capture Lyktos, but were ultimately defeated by Lacedaemonian forces aiding the Lyktians.

§16.62.1ἐκπλεύσαντος δʼ αὐτοῦ καὶ πελαγίου γενομένου στρατιῶταί τινες τῶν ἐν τῷ μεγίστῳ πλοίῳ κομιζομένων,ᾧπερ αὐτὸς ὁ Φάλαικος ἐνέπλει, λόγον ἀλλήλοις ἐδίδοσαν ὑπονοοῦντες μηδένα μεταπέμψασθαι σφᾶς· οὔτε γὰρ ἡγεμόνας ἑώρων ἀπὸ τῶν ἐπικαλουμένων συμπλέοντας οὔθʼ ὁ πλοῦς ἦν ὀλίγος, ἀλλὰ πολὺς ὑπέκειτο καὶ χαλεπός.
When he had set sail and reached the open sea, some of the soldiers who were being carried in the largest ship, in which Phalaecus himself was sailing, began to exchange views with one another, suspecting that no one had summoned them; for they saw no commanders sailing with them from those who were said to have summoned them, nor was the voyage a short one, but a long and difficult one lay before them.
§16.62.2διόπερ ἀπιστοῦντες ἅμα τοῖς λεγομένοις καὶ φοβούμενοι τὴν διαπόντιον στρατείαν συνίσταντο καὶ μάλισθʼ οἱ τὰς ἡγεμονίας ἔχοντες τῶν μισθοφόρων.
Therefore, distrusting what was being said and at the same time fearing the overseas expedition, they began to form a conspiracy, especially those of the mercenaries who held commands.
τέλος δὲ σπασάμενοι τὰ ξίφη καὶ καταπληξάμενοι τόν τε Φάλαικον καὶ τὸν κυβερνήτην ἠνάγκασαν εἰς τοὐπίσω πάλιν ἀποπλεῖν.
At last, drawing their swords and intimidating both Phalaecus and the pilot, they forced them to sail back again.
τὸ δʼ αὐτὸ καὶ τῶν ἐν τοῖς ἄλλοις πλοίοις κομιζομένων ποιησάντων κατέπλευσαν εἰς τὴν Πελοπόννησον.
Since those carried in the other ships did the same thing, they sailed back and put in at the Peloponnese.
§16.62.3ἀθροισθέντες δʼ εἰς Μαλέαν ἄκραν τῆς Λακωνικῆς ἐκεῖ κατέλαβον ἐκ Κρήτης καταπεπλευκότας Κνωσσίους πρέσβεις ἐπὶ συναγωγῇ μισθοφόρων·
Having gathered at Cape Malea in Laconia, they met there envoys from Knossos who had sailed from Crete to collect mercenaries.
ὧν διαλεχθέντων τῷ τε Φαλαίκῳ καὶ τοῖς ἡγεμόσι καὶ δόντων ἀξιολόγους τοὺς μισθοὺς μετὰ τούτων ἅπαντες ἐξέπλευσαν.
After these envoys had negotiated with Phalaecus and the commanders and offered considerable pay, they all set sail with them.
κατάραντες δὲ τῆς Κρήτης εἰς Κνωσσὸν εὐθὺς ἐξ ἐφόδου πόλιν κατελάβοντο τὴν καλουμένην Λύκτον.
Having put in at Crete in the territory of Knossos, they immediately attacked and captured the city called Lyktos.
§16.62.4τοῖς δὲ Λυκτίοις ἐκ τῆς πατρίδος ἐκπεπτωκόσι παράδοξος καὶ σύντομος ἐφάνη βοήθεια.
For the Lyktians who had been expelled from their homeland, an unexpected and swift assistance appeared.
περὶ γὰρ τοὺς αὐτοὺς χρόνους Ταραντίνων διαπολεμούντων πρὸς Λευκανοὺς καὶ πρὸς Λακεδαιμονίους, ὄντας προγόνους ἑαυτῶν, πεμψάντων πρέσβεις περὶ βοηθείας οἱ μὲν Σπαρτιᾶται διὰ τὴν συγγένειαν προθύμως ἔχοντες συμμαχῆσαι ταχέως δύναμιν ἤθροιζον πεζικήν τε καὶ ναυτικὴν καὶ ταύτης στρατηγὸν ἀπέδειξαν Ἀρχίδαμον τὸν βασιλέα·
For around the same time, since the Tarentines were waging war against the Lucanians and had sent envoys to the Lacedaemonians, who were their ancestors, asking for assistance, the Spartans, being eager to join the alliance because of their kinship, quickly gathered both a land and a naval force, and appointed King Archidamus as its commander.
μελλόντων δʼ ἀπαίρειν εἰς τὴν Ἰταλίαν, ἠξίωσαν οἱ Λύκτιοι πρῶτον αὐτοῖς βοηθῆσαι·
When they were about to depart for Italy, the Lyktians asked them to assist them first.
οἱ δὲ Λακεδαιμόνιοι πεισθέντες καὶ πλεύσαντες εἰς τὴν Κρήτην τοὺς μισθοφόρους ἐνίκησαν, τοῖς δὲ Λακτίοις ἀνέσωσαν τὴν πατρίδα.
The Lacedaemonians, being persuaded and having sailed to Crete, defeated the mercenaries and restored their homeland to the Lyktians.

Notes

  1. 16.62.1ὑπονοοῦντες μηδένα μεταπέμψασθαι σφᾶς — The subject of the infinitive `μεταπέμψασθαι` (aorist middle) is the accusative `μηδένα`, while its object is the third-person plural reflexive pronoun in the accusative, `σφᾶς`, which refers back to the subject of the main clause (the soldiers) in indirect discourse.
  2. 16.62.1ἀπὸ τῶν ἐπικαλουμένων — The prepositional phrase `ἀπὸ τῶν ἐπικαλουμένων` ("from those who had summoned") attributively modifies the noun `ἡγεμόνας` ("commanders"), indicating "commanders sent from those who were said to have summoned them."
  3. 16.62.2τὸ δʼ αὐτὸ καὶ τῶν ἐν τοῖς ἄλλοις πλοίοις κομιζομένων ποιησάντων — A genitive absolute construction where `ποιησάντων` is the participle and `τῶν ... κομιζομένων` is its subject. This independent construction is used because the subject differs from that of the main verb `κατέπλευσαν`.
  4. 16.62.3ὧν διαλεχθέντων ... καὶ δόντων — A genitive absolute construction where the relative pronoun `ὧν` acts as the subject. The antecedent is the preceding "envoys from Knossos." This relative genitive absolute is used at the beginning of the clause to closely connect it to the preceding sentence.
  5. 16.62.4Ταραντίνων διαπολεμούντων ... πεμψάντων — A complex genitive absolute containing two participles (the present `διαπολεμούντων` and the aorist `πεμψάντων`) with `Ταραντίνων` as their logical subject. The present participle expresses an ongoing war, while the aorist participle denotes a single past action of sending envoys.

Cite this passage

Diodorus Siculus, Bibliotheca Historica §16.62.1-16.62.4. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0060.tlg001.humanitext-grc4:16.62.1-16.62.4

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