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Dionysius of Halicarnassus · Roman Antiquities §11.24.1-11.24.3

Security in Rome and the Purge of Opponents in Camp

Passage 824 of 962 · Greek

Summary

Appius and his associates reinforced security in Rome and secretly ordered their colleagues in the camps to assassinate or execute their opponents, resulting in a double destruction of the soldiers through warfare and purges.

§11.24.1οἱ δὲ περὶ τὸν Ἄππιον τοῖς μὲν ἐπὶ στρατοπέδου συνάρχουσιν ὅπλα τε καὶ χρήματα καὶ σῖτον καὶ τἆλλα ὧν ἐδέοντο ἐπεχορήγουν τά τε δημόσια καὶ ἰδιωτικὰ ἐκ πολλῆς ὑπεροψίας λαμβάνοντες, καὶ ἀντὶ τῶν ἀπολωλότων ἀνδρῶν στρατολογήσαντες ἐξ ἁπάσης φυλῆς τοὺς ὅπλα φέρειν δυναμένους ἀπέστειλαν, ὥστʼ ἐκπληρωθῆναι τοὺς λόχους·
And Appius and his associates, taking both public and private property with great insolence, supplied their colleagues in the camps with arms, money, grain, and the other things they needed; and having enlisted from every tribe those who were able to bear arms in place of the men who had been lost, they sent them off, so that the companies might be filled up.
τῶν τε κατὰ τὴν πόλιν ἐπιμελῆ φυλακὴν ἐποιοῦντο φρουραῖς τοὺς ἐπικαιροτάτους καταλαμβανόμενοι τόπους, μή τι λάθωσι παρακινήσαντες οἱ μετὰ τοῦ Οὐαλερίου συνεστῶτες.
They also kept a careful watch over things in the city, occupying the most opportune places with guards, lest those who had associated with Valerius might start some movement without being noticed.
§11.24.2ἐπέσκηπτόν τε διʼ ἀπορρήτων τοῖς ἐπὶ τῶν στρατοπέδων συνάρχουσι τοὺς ἐναντιουμένους σφίσι διαφθείρειν, τοὺς μὲν ἐπιφανεῖς ἀδήλως, ὧν δʼ ἐλάττων ὁ λόγος ἦν καὶ ἀπὸ τοῦ φανεροῦ, προφάσεις ἀεί τινας ἐπιφέροντας, ἵνα δικαίως δόξωσιν ἀποθανεῖν.
They also gave secret instructions to their colleagues in command of the camps to destroy those who opposed them, the prominent men secretly, and those of less account even openly, always bringing some charges against them, so that they might appear to have died justly.
καὶ ἐγίνετο ταῦτα· οἱ μὲν γὰρ ἐπὶ προνομὰς ἀποστελλόμενοι ὑπʼ αὐτῶν, οἱ δʼ ἀγορὰν παραπέμψαι κομιζομένην, οἱ δʼ ἄλλας τινὰς ἐπιτελέσασθαι πολεμικὰς χρείας, ἔξω γενόμενοι τοῦ χάρακος οὐδαμοῦ ἔτι ὤφθησαν.
And this was done; for some, being sent by them for foraging, others to escort provisions that were being brought, and others to perform some other military duties, once they were outside the camp, were never seen again.
§11.24.3οἱ δὲ ταπεινότατοι φυγῆς ἄρχειν κατηγορηθέντες ἢ τὰ ἀπόρρητα πρὸς τοὺς πολεμίους ἐκφέρειν ἢ τάξιν μὴ φυλάττειν, ἐν τῷ φανερῷ καταπλήξεως ἕνεκα τῶν ἄλλων ἀπώλλυντο.
But the lowest sort, being accused of starting a flight, or of carrying secrets to the enemy, or of not keeping their ranks, were put to death in public for the intimidation of the others.
ἐγίνετο δὲ διχόθεν τῶν στρατιωτῶν ὄλεθρος, τῶν μὲν οἰκείων τῆς ὀλιγαρχίας ἐν ταῖς πρὸς τοὺς πολεμίους συμπλοκαῖς διαφθειρομένων, τῶν δὲ τὴν ἀριστοκρατικὴν ποθούντων κατάστασιν ὑπὸ τῶν στρατηγῶν ἀπολλυμένων.
Thus the destruction of the soldiers came from two sides, while those who were friendly to the oligarchy were destroyed in the encounters with the enemy, and those who longed for the aristocratic constitution were put to death by the generals.

Notes

  1. 11.24.1μή τι λάθωσι παρακινήσαντες — An idiomatic construction of the verb λανθάνω (to escape notice) with the participle παρακινήσαντες (having made a subversive movement). Combined with the negative μή, the subjunctive λάθωσι expresses a preventive clause: 'lest they might make some movement without being noticed.'
  2. 11.24.2προφάσεις ἀεί τινας ἐπιφέροντας — The accusative participle ἐπιφέροντας logically refers to the dative συνάρχουσι in the main clause. This shift to the accusative occurs because the subject of the infinitive διαφθείρειν (the colleagues themselves) is conceptualized in the accusative case (accusative with infinitive construction), causing the modifying participle to agree with it in the accusative.
  3. 11.24.3τῶν μὲν οἰκείων ... διαφθειρομένων — A genitive absolute construction forming a pair with the subsequent τῶν δὲ ... ἀπολλυμένων. It serves to specify and elaborate on the adverb διχόθεν (from two sides) introduced at the beginning of the sentence.

Cite this passage

Dionysius of Halicarnassus, Roman Antiquities §11.24.1-11.24.3. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0081.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:11.24.1-11.24.3

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