Humanitext Reader

Dionysius of Halicarnassus · Roman Antiquities §8.22.1-8.22.5

Marcius's Advance on Rome and the Consular Embassy

Passage 600 of 962 · Greek

Summary

Marcius marches swiftly toward Rome and encamps nearby, causing a panic among the citizens, who demand his recall. In response, the patricians vote to send a delegation of five consulars to negotiate peace and friendship.

§8.22.1ἀκούσας δὲ ταῦτα παρʼ αὐτομόλων τινῶν ὁ Μάρκιος, ὡς εἶχεν ὀργῆς, εὐθὺς ἀναστήσας τὴν δύναμιν ἦγεν ἐπὶ τὴν Ῥώμην, φυλακὴν τοῦ Λαουινίου τὴν ἀρκοῦσαν καταλιπών· καὶ αὐτίκα τῆς πόλεως σταδίους τετταράκοντα ἀποσχὼν κατεστρατοπέδευσε περὶ τὰς καλουμένας Κλοιλίας τάφρους.
When Marcius heard these things from some deserters, in his anger, he immediately moved his army and led them against Rome, leaving a sufficient garrison in Lavinium; and immediately encamping forty stadia from the city, near the so-called Cluilian trenches.
§8.22.2μαθοῦσι δὲ τὴν παρουσίαν αὐτοῦ τοῖς κατὰ τὴν πόλιν τοσοῦτος ἐνέπεσε θόρυβος ὡς αὐτίκα τοῖς τείχεσι τοῦ πολέμου προσάξοντος, ὥσθʼ οἱ μὲν ἐπὶ τὰ τείχη τὰ ὅπλα λαβόντες ἔθεον ἄνευ παραγγέλματος, οἱ δʼ ἐπὶ τὰς πύλας κατὰ πλῆθος ἐφέροντο χωρὶς ἡγεμόνος, οἱ δὲ τοὺς δούλους καθοπλίσαντες ἐπὶ τοῖς τέγεσι τῶν οἰκιῶν ἵστασαν, οἱ δὲ τήν τʼ ἄκραν καὶ τὸ Καπιτώλιον καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους ἐρυμνοὺς τόπους τῆς πόλεως κατελαμβάνοντο, γυναῖκές τε λελυμέναι τὰς κόμας ἐπὶ τὰ τεμένη καὶ τοὺς νεὼς ἔθεον ὀλοφυρόμεναί τε καὶ δεόμεναι τῶν θεῶν ἀποστρέψαι τῆς πόλεως τὸν ἐπιόντα φόβον.
And upon those in the city, when they learned of his presence, there fell so great a tumult as if he would immediately bring the war to the walls, so that some ran to the walls with their arms without any orders, others rushed in crowds to the gates without a leader, others, having armed their slaves, placed them upon the roofs of the houses, and others occupied the citadel, the Capitol, and the other strong places of the city; while women, with their hair disheveled, ran to the sacred precincts and temples, wailing and entreating the gods to avert the approaching dread from the city.
§8.22.3ὡς δʼ ἥ τε νὺξ παρῆλθε καὶ τῆς ἐπιούσης ἡμέρας τὸ πλεῖστον, καὶ οὐδὲν ὧν ἐδεδοίκεσαν ἐγίνετο, ἀλλʼ ἔμενεν ὁ Μάρκιος ἐφʼ ἡσυχίας, συνέδραμον ἅπαντες εἰς τὴν ἀγορὰν οἱ δημοτικοὶ καὶ τοὺς πατρικίους ἐκάλουν εἰς τὸ βουλευτήριον, καὶ εἰ μὴ προβουλεύσουσι τῷ ἀνδρὶ τὴν κάθοδον, αὐτοὶ βουλεύσεσθαι περὶ σφῶν αὐτῶν ἔφασαν ὡς προδιδόμενοι.
And when the night had passed and the greater part of the following day, and none of the things they had feared happened, but Marcius remained quiet, all the plebeians ran together into the forum and called the patricians to the senate house, and said that if they would not pass a preliminary decree for the return of the man, they themselves would take counsel for their own affairs on the ground that they were being betrayed.
§8.22.4τότε δὴ συνελθόντες εἰς τὴν βουλὴν οἱ πατρίκιοι ψηφίζονται πρεσβευτὰς πρὸς τὸν Μάρκιον ἀποστεῖλαι πέντε ἄνδρας ἐκ τῶν πρεσβυτάτων, οὓς μάλιστʼ ἐκεῖνος ἠσπάζετο, περὶ διαλύσεώς τε καὶ φιλίας διαλεξομένους.
Then indeed the patricians, having assembled in the senate, voted to send five of the eldest men as ambassadors to Marcius, those whom he held in the highest esteem, to treat for reconciliation and friendship.
ἦσαν δʼ οἱ προχειρισθέντες ἀπʼ αὐτῶν ἄνδρες οἵδε, Μάρκος Μηνύκιος καὶ Πόστουμος Κομίνιος καὶ Σπόριος Λάρκιος καὶ Πόπλιος Πινάριος καὶ §8.22.5Κόιντος Σολπίκιος, ἅπαντες ὑπατικοί.
And the men chosen from among them were these: Marcus Minucius, Postumus Cominius, Spurius Lartius, Publius Pinarius, and Quintus Sulpicius, all of them consulars.
ὡς δʼ ἀφίκοντο ἐπὶ τὸ στρατόπεδον, καὶ ἔγνω τὴν παρουσίαν αὐτῶν ὁ Μάρκιος, καθεζόμενος ἅμα τοῖς ἐπιφανεστάτοις Οὐολούσκων τε καὶ τῶν ἄλλων συμμάχων, ἔνθα πλεῖστοι ἔμελλον ἀκούσεσθαι τῶν λεγομένων, ἐκέλευσε καλεῖν τοὺς ἄνδρας.
When they arrived at the camp, and Marcius learned of their presence, sitting together with the most prominent of the Volscians and the other allies, where the greatest number were likely to hear what was said, he ordered the men to be called in.
εἰσελθόντων δʼ αὐτῶν ἤρξατο τοῦ λόγου Μηνύκιος, ὁ πλεῖστα κατὰ τὸν τῆς ὑπατείας χρόνον σπουδάσας ὑπὲρ αὐτοῦ, καὶ μάλιστα τοῖς δημοτικοῖς ἐναντιωθείς, καὶ ἔλεξε τοιάδε.
When they entered, Minucius, who during the time of his consulship had been most zealous on his behalf and had most opposed the plebeians, began the speech and spoke as follows.

Notes

  1. 8.22.1ὡς εἶχεν ὀργῆς — An idiomatic construction combining the adverb ὡς with the intransitive use of ἔχω ('to be in a certain state') and a genitive of reference or respect. It literally means 'in his state of anger', i.e., 'in a great rage' or 'furiously'.
  2. 8.22.2μαθοῦσι δὲ τὴν παρουσίαν αὐτοῦ τοῖς κατὰ τὴν πόλιν — The dative plural aorist participle `μαθοῦσι` agrees with the following dative noun phrase `τοῖς κατὰ τὴν πόλιν`. It functions as a dative of reference or interest with the main verb `ἐνέπεσε`, meaning 'upon those in the city, when they learned of his presence, there fell...'.
  3. 8.22.2ὡς αὐτίκα τοῖς τείχεσι τοῦ πολέμου προσάξοντος — A genitive absolute construction introduced by `ὡς`, expressing subjective expectation or cause. The subject of the participle `προσάξοντος` (future active) is omitted but understood contextually as Marcius himself ('as if he would immediately bring'), though some take `ὁ πόλεμος` as the subject ('as if the war would immediately approach').
  4. 8.22.3εἰ μὴ προβουλεύσουσι ... αὐτοὶ βουλεύσεσθαι — A conditional sentence in indirect discourse. The protasis `εἰ μὴ προβουλεύσουσι` retains the future indicative of the direct discourse, which conveys a strong warning or threat ('if they do not pass a preliminary decree'). The apodosis `αὐτοὶ βουλεύσεσθαι` is an infinitive depending on `ἔφασαν`.

Cite this passage

Dionysius of Halicarnassus, Roman Antiquities §8.22.1-8.22.5. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0081.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:8.22.1-8.22.5

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.