Dionysius of Halicarnassus · Roman Antiquities §16.5.1-16.5.3

The Ordeal of Poplilius' Son and the Abolition of Debt Slavery

Passage 921 of 962 · Greek

Summary

The historical event where the son of Poplilius, enslaved for a funeral debt, refused his creditor's sexual advances and was whipped, leading to his public denunciation in the forum, the creditor's execution, and the abolition of debt slavery.

§16.5.1ἔτι δὲ τούτου θαυμασιώτερον ἔπραξαν οὐ πολλοῖς πρότερον χρόνοις, καίτοι περὶ δοῦλον σῶμα γενομένης τῆς ὕβρεως.

But they performed an even more wonderful deed not many years before this, although the outrage was committed upon a slave body.

ἑνὸς γὰρ τῶν παραδόντων Σαυνίταις τὸ στρατόπεδον χιλιάρχων καὶ ὑπὸ ζυγὸν ὑπελθόντων, Ποπλιλίου υἱὸς ὡς ἐν πολλῇ καταλειφθεὶς πενίᾳ δάνειον ἠναγκάσθη λαβεῖν εἰς τὴν ταφὴν τοῦ πατρός, ὡς ἐρανισθησόμενος ὑπὸ τῶν συγγενῶν.

For the son of Poplilius, who was one of the military tribunes that had surrendered the camp to the Samnites and passed under the yoke, having been left in great poverty, was forced to contract a loan for his father's funeral, expecting that the money would be raised by his relatives.

διαψευσθεὶς δὲ τῆς ἐλπίδος ἀπήχθη πρὸς τὸ χρέος τῆς προθεσμίας διελθούσης, κομιδῇ νέος ὢν καὶ τῇ ὄψει ὡραῖος.

But being disappointed in his hope, when the appointed time had passed, he was led away for the debt, being extremely young and beautiful in appearance.

§16.5.2οὗτος τὰ μὲν ἄλλα ὑπηρετῶν, ὅσα δούλους δεσπόταις νόμος ἦν, ἠνείχετο, τὴν δὲ τοῦ σώματος ὥραν χαρίσασθαι κελευόμενος ἠγανάκτει καὶ μέχρι παντὸς ἀπεμάχετο.

He submitted to other services, whatever was customary for slaves to perform for their masters, but when ordered to grant the bloom of his body, he was indignant and resisted to the end.

πολλὰς δὲ διὰ τοῦτο μαστίγων λαβὼν πληγὰς ἐξέδραμεν εἰς τὴν ἀγορὰν καὶ στὰς ἐπὶ μετεώρου τινός, ἔνθα πολλοὺς ἔμελλε τῆς ὕβρεως λήψεσθαι μάρτυρας, τήν τʼ ἀκολασίαν τοῦ δανειστοῦ διηγήσατο καὶ τῶν μαστίγων τοὺς μώλωπας ὑπέδειξεν.

Having received many blows from whips on this account, he ran out into the forum, and standing upon some high place where he was bound to find many witnesses of the outrage, he related the licentiousness of the creditor and showed the welts of the whips.

§16.5.3ἀγανακτήσαντος δὲ τοῦ δήμου καὶ δημοσίας ὀργῆς ἄξιον ἡγησαμένου τὸ πρᾶγμα κατηγορούντων τὴν εἰσαγγελίαν τῶν δημάρχων ὦφλε θανάτου δίκην.

When the people became indignant and deemed the matter worthy of public wrath, and the tribunes brought an accusation, the creditor was condemned to death.

καὶ διʼ ἐκεῖνο τὸ πάθος ἅπαντες οἱ δουλωθέντες πρὸς τὰ χρέα Ῥωμαῖοι νόμῳ κυρωθέντι τὴν ἀρχαίαν ἐλευθερίαν ἐκομίσαντο.

And because of that suffering, all the Romans who had been enslaved for debt recovered their ancient freedom by a law that was passed.

ετ συιδας ς. ϝ. Γάιος Λαιτώριος.

And Suda, under the entry Gaius Laetorius.

Notes

16.5.1οὐ πολλοῖς πρότερον χρόνοις — An adverbial expression with a dative of degree of difference (πολλοῖς), meaning "not much earlier than this."
16.5.1καίτοι περὶ δοῦλον σῶμα γενομένης τῆς ὕβρεως — A genitive absolute construction introduced by the conjunction καίτοι ("although"), expressing concession.
16.5.1ἑνὸς τῶν παραδόντων Σαυνίταις τὸ στρατόπεδον χιλιάρχων — ἑνὸς is in apposition with Ποπλιλίου, indicating that the father was "one of the military tribunes who had surrendered to the Samnites."
16.5.1ὡς ἐρανισθησόμενος — The particle ὡς joined with the future participle ἐρανισθησόμενος expresses the subjective expectation or hope of the subject.
16.5.2ὅσα δούλους δεσπόταις νόμος ἦν — The relative pronoun ὅσα limits the antecedent τὰ μὲν ἄλλα, and the clause can be understood as omitting an infinitive (e.g., υπῃρετεῖν) after the impersonal expression νόμος ἦν ("it was customary").
16.5.3κατηγορούντων τὴν εἰσαγγελίαν τῶν δημάρχων — A genitive absolute construction with τῶν δημάρχων as the logical subject. The participle κατηγορούντων takes τὴν εἰσαγγελίαν as a cognate-like object, meaning "bringing the accusation."

Cite this passage

Dionysius of Halicarnassus, Roman Antiquities §16.5.1-16.5.3. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0081.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:16.5.1-16.5.3

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.