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Dionysius of Halicarnassus · Roman Antiquities §9.18.1-9.18.5

Fall of the Cremera Fort and Fall of the Fabii

Passage 687 of 962 · Greek

Summary

After the new consuls assume office and domestic turmoil subsides, military campaigns against the Volscians and Etruscans are decided. However, as Menenius delays, the fortress of Cremera is captured and the Fabii are wiped out.

§9.18.1μετὰ δὲ τούτους παραλαμβάνουσι τὴν ὑπατείαν Γάιος Ὁράτιος καὶ Τῖτος Μενήνιος ἐπὶ τῆς ἑβδομηκοστῆς καὶ ἕκτης ὀλυμπιάδος, ἣν ἐνίκα στάδιον Σκάμανδρος Μιτυληναῖος ἄρχοντος Ἀθήνησι Φαίδωνος.
After these, Gaius Horatius and Titus Menenius took over the consulship in the seventy-sixth Olympiad, in which Scamandros of Mitylene won the foot-race, when Phaidon was archon at Athens.
τούτοις κατʼ ἀρχὰς μὲν ὁ πολιτικὸς θόρυβος ἐμποδὼν ἐγένετο πράττειν τὰ κοινὰ ἠρεθισμένου τοῦ δήμου καὶ οὐδὲν ἐῶντος ἕτερον ἐπιτελεῖσθαι τῶν κοινῶν, ἕως ἂν μερίσηται τὴν δημοσίαν γῆν, χρόνῳ δʼ ὕστερον εἶξε τὰ παρακινοῦντα καὶ ταραττόμενα τῇ ἀνάγκῃ συγχωρήσαντα καὶ ἐπὶ τὰς στρατείας ἑκούσια ἦλθε.
At the beginning, the political tumult was an obstacle to them in performing public duties, since the people were excited and allowed no other of the public matters to be carried out until they should distribute the public land; but some time later, those who were agitated and turbulent yielded, submitting to necessity, and went voluntarily to the military service.
§9.18.2Τυρρηνῶν γὰρ αἱ μὴ μετασχοῦσαι τῆς εἰρήνης ἕνδεκα πόλεις ἀγορὰν ποιησάμεναι κοινὴν κατηγόρουν τοῦ Οὐιεντανῶν ἔθνους, ὅτι τὸν πρὸς Ῥωμαίους πόλεμον οὐ μετὰ κοινῆς γνώμης κατελύσαντο, καὶ δυεῖν θάτερον αὐτοὺς ἠξίουν πράττειν, ἢ λύειν τὰ πρὸς Ῥωμαίους ὁμολογηθέντα
For the eleven cities of the Etruscans that had not shared in the peace, having held a common assembly, accused the nation of the Veientes because they had terminated the war against the Romans without the common consent, and demanded that they do one of two things: either annul what had been agreed upon with the Romans or make war along with them against those people.
§9.18.3ἢ πολεμεῖν σφίσι μετʼ ἐκείνων. οἱ δὲ Οὐιεντανοὶ τῆς μὲν εἰρήνης τὴν ἀνάγκην ᾐτιῶντο, ὅπως δʼ ἂν αὐτὴν καταλύσαιντο εὐπρεπῶς εἰς κοινὸν ἐτίθεσαν σκοπεῖν.
And the Veientes alleged the necessity of the peace, but they submitted to common consideration how they might break it with a good grace.
ἔπειτα ὑποτίθεταί τις αὐτοῖς ἔγκλημα ποιησαμένοις τὸν ἐπιτειχισμὸν τῆς Κρεμέρας καὶ τὸ μὴ ἀπανίστασθαι τοὺς φρουροὺς ἀπʼ αὐτῆς, λόγῳ μὲν πρῶτον ἀξιοῦν αὐτοὺς ἐκλιπεῖν τὸ χωρίον, ἐὰν δὲ μὴ πείθωσι, πολιορκεῖν τὸ φρούριον, καὶ ταύτην ἀρχὴν ποιήσασθαι τοῦ πολέμου.
Then someone suggested to them that, making a grievance of the fortification of Cremera and the refusal of the garrison to withdraw from it, they should first in words demand that they leave the place, and if they could not persuade them, they should besiege the fortress, and make this the beginning of the war.
§9.18.4ταῦτα συνθέμενοι ἀπηλλάττοντο ἐκ τοῦ συλλόγου· καὶ μετʼ οὐ πολὺ Οὐιεντανοὶ μὲν ἀποστείλαντες πρεσβείαν ὡς τοὺς Φαβίους ἀπῄτουν παρʼ αὐτῶν τὸ φρούριον, Τυρρηνία δὲ πᾶσα ἦν ἐν τοῖς ὅπλοις.
Having agreed on these things, they departed from the assembly; and not long after, the Veientes, having sent an embassy, demanded the fortress from the Fabii, while all Etruria was in arms.
ταῦτα Ῥωμαῖοι αἰσθόμενοι Φαβίων αὐτοῖς ἐπιστειλάντων ἔγνωσαν ἀμφοτέρους ἐκπορεύεσθαι τοὺς ὑπάτους ἐπὶ τὸν πόλεμον, τόν τʼ ἀπὸ Τυρρηνίας ἐπαγόμενον σφίσι καὶ τὸν ἔτι πρὸς Οὐολούσκους συνεστῶτα.
The Romans, perceiving this when the Fabii wrote to them, decided that both consuls should march out to the war, both the one brought upon them from Etruria and the one still continuing with the Volscians.
§9.18.5Ὁράτιος μὲν οὖν ἄγων δύο τάγματα καὶ ἀπὸ τῶν ἄλλων συμμάχων τοὺς ἱκανοὺς ἐξήγαγε τὴν δύναμιν ἐπὶ Οὐολούσκους.
Horatius, therefore, leading two legions and a sufficient number of the other allies, led his force out against the Volscians.
Μενήνιος δὲ τοσαύτην στρατιὰν ἑτέραν ἄγων ἐπὶ Τυρρηνοὺς ἔμελλε ποιεῖσθαι τὴν ἔξοδον.
Menenius, leading another army of equal size, was about to make his departure against the Etruscans.
παρασκευαζομένου δʼ αὐτοῦ καὶ τρίβοντος τὸν χρόνον ἔφθη τὸ ἐν Κρεμέρᾳ φρούριον ἐξαιρεθὲν ὑπὸ τῶν πολεμίων, καὶ τὸ Φαβίων γένος ἅπαν ἀπολόμενον.
But while he was preparing and delaying the fortress at Cremera was taken beforehand by the enemy, and the entire family of the Fabii perished.
περὶ δὲ τῆς κατασχούσης τοὺς ἄνδρας συμφορᾶς διττὸς φέρεται λόγος, ὁ μὲν ἧττον πιθανός, ὁ δὲ μᾶλλον τῆς ἀληθείας ἁπτόμενος.
Concerning the disaster that befell the men, a twofold account is reported, one less plausible, and the other coming closer to the truth.
θήσω δʼ αὐτοὺς ἀμφοτέρους, ὡς παρέλαβον.
I shall set down both of them as I received them.

Notes

  1. 9.18.1τούτοις — The dative τούτοις acts as a dative of reference or disadvantage with the verb phrase ἐμποδὼν ἐγένετο ('became an obstacle to them'), or indicates the logical subject of the infinitive πράττειν ('to perform').
  2. 9.18.1εἶξε τὰ παρακινοῦντα καὶ ταραττόμενα — The verb εἶξε (third-person singular aorist of εἴκω, 'to yield, submit') has as its subject the substantivized neuter plural participles τὰ παρακινοῦντα καὶ ταραττόμενα ('the agitated and troubled elements'). This follows the standard Classical Greek syntax where a neuter plural subject takes a singular verb.
  3. 9.18.3ἔπειτα ὑποτίθεταί τις αὐτοῖς ἔγκλημα ποιησαμένοις — The middle-passive verb ὑποτίθεται is used here in the middle sense ('someone suggests/proposes to them'). The dative participle phrase ἔγκλημα ποιησαμένοις ('having made a grievance of...') agrees with the indirect object αὐτοῖς ('to them'). The content of the suggestion is expressed by the subsequent infinitives: ἀξιοῦν, πολιορκεῖν, and ποιήσασθαι.
  4. 9.18.4τόν τʼ ἀπὸ Τυρρηνίας ἐπαγόμενον σφίσι καὶ τὸν ἔτι πρὸς Οὐολούσκους συνεστῶτα — This is an accusative parallel structure modifying the preceding noun τὸν πόλεμον ('the war'). It contrasts the two conflicts: 'the one brought upon them from Etruria' and 'the one still ongoing with the Volscians', defined respectively by prepositional phrases and participles.
  5. 9.18.5ἔφθη τὸ ἐν Κρεμέρᾳ φρούριον ἐξαιρεθὲν ... καὶ τὸ Φαβίων γένος ἅπαν ἀπολόμενον — The verb ἔφθη (third-person singular aorist of φθάνω, 'to anticipate, do something beforehand') is constructed with two supplementary participles, ἐξαιρεθέν and ἀπολόμενον. This idiom indicates that the actions of the participles happened before Menenius finished his preparations ('the fortress was taken first, and the family perished beforehand').

Cite this passage

Dionysius of Halicarnassus, Roman Antiquities §9.18.1-9.18.5. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0081.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:9.18.1-9.18.5

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