§8.5.4φησὶ δʼ Ἔφορος τοὺς κατασχόντας τὴν Λακωνικὴν Ἡρακλείδας Εὐρυσθένη τε καὶ Προκλῆ διελεῖν εἰς ἓξ μέρη καὶ πολίσαι τὴν χώραν·
Ephorus says that the Heracleidae, Eurysthenes and Procles, who took possession of Laconica, divided the land into six parts and founded cities in it.
μίαν μὲν οὖν τῶν μερίδων, τὰς Ἀμύκλας, ἐξαίρετον δοῦναι τῷ προδόντι αὐτοῖς τὴν Λακωνικὴν καὶ πείσαντι τὸν κατέχοντα αὐτὴν ἀπελθεῖν ὑπόσπονδον μετὰ τῶν Ἀχαιῶν εἰς τὴν Ἰωνίαν·
Now they gave one of the portions, Amyclae, as a special gift to the man who betrayed Laconica to them and persuaded its ruler to depart under a treaty with the Achaeans to Ionia.
τὴν δὲ Σπάρτην βασίλειον ἀποφῆναι σφίσιν αὐτοῖς· εἰς δὲ τὰς ἄλλας πέμψαι βασιλέας, ἐπιτρέψαντας δέχεσθαι συνοίκους τοὺς βουλομένους τῶν ξένων διὰ τὴν λιπανδρίαν·
But they declared Sparta as their own royal residence, and sent kings to the other cities, allowing them to receive any foreigners who wished to dwell with them because of the scarcity of men.
χρῆσθαι δὲ Λαῒ μὲν ναλίμενον, Αἴγυι δὲ πρὸς τοὺς πολέ γὰρ ὁμορεῖν τοῖς κύκλῳ, Φάριδι δ ἀπὸ τῶν ἐντὸς ἀσφάλειαν ἐχούσῃ, τ ὑπακούοντας δʼ ἅπαντας τοὺς περιοίκους Σπαρτιατῶν ὅμως ἰσονόμους εἶναι, μετέχοντας καὶ πολιτείας καὶ ἀρχείων·
They used Las as a harbor, Aegyus for war (for it bordered on the surrounding peoples), Pharis because of its safety from within, and [...]. Although all the perioeci were subject to the Spartans, they nevertheless had equal rights, participating in both the citizenship and the offices.
Ἆγιν δὲ τὸν Εὐρυσθένους ἀφελέσθαι τὴν ἰσοτιμίαν καὶ συντελεῖν προστάξαι τῇ Σπάρτῃ.
But Agis, the son of Eurysthenes, took away their equal status and ordered them to pay tribute to Sparta.
τοὺς μὲν οὖν ἄλλους ὑπακοῦσαι, τοὺς δʼ Ἑλείους τοὺς ἔχοντας τὸ Ἕλος (καλεῖσθαι δὲ Εἵλωτας) ποιησαμένους ἀπόστασιν κατὰ κράτος ἁλῶναι πολέμῳ καὶ κριθῆναι δούλους ἐπὶ τακτοῖς τισιν, ὥστε τὸν ἔχοντα μήτʼ ἐλευθεροῦν ἐξεῖναι μήτε πωλεῖν ἔξω τῶν ὅρων τούτους·
The others, indeed, submitted, but the Heleians who held Helos (who were called Helots) made a revolt and were conquered by force in a war, and were condemned to be slaves under certain conditions, so that it was not permitted for their owner either to set them free or to sell them outside the borders.
τοῦτον δὲ λεχθῆναι τὸν πρὸς τοὺς Εἵλωτας πόλεμον.
And this was called the war against the Helots.
σχεδὸν δέ τι καὶ τὴν εἱλωτείαν τὴν ὕστερον συμμείνασαν μέχρι τῆς Ῥωμαίων ἐπικρατείας οἱ περὶ Ἆγιν εἰσὶν οἱ καταδείξαντες· τρόπον γάρ τινα δημοσίους δούλους εἶχον οἱ Λακεδαιμόνιοι τούτους, κατοικίας τινὰς αὐτοῖς ἀποδείξαντες καὶ λειτουργίας ἰδίας.
It was virtually Agis and his followers who introduced the Helot system, which later continued until the Roman supremacy; for the Lacedaemonians held them in a way as public slaves, assigning to them certain habitations and special services.
§8.5.5περὶ δὲ τῆς Λακώνων πολιτείας καὶ τῶν γενομένων παρʼ αὐτοῖς μεταβολῶν τὰ μὲν πολλὰ παρείη τις ἂν διὰ τὸ γνώριμον, τινῶν δʼ ἄξιον ἴσως μνησθῆναι.
Concerning the constitution of the Laconians and the changes that took place among them, one might omit most of it because it is well known, but some points are perhaps worthy of mention.
Ἀχαιοὺς γὰρ τοὺς Φθιώτας φασὶ συγκατελθόντας Πέλοπι εἰς τὴν Πελοπόννησον οἰκῆσαι τὴν Λακωνικήν, τοσοῦτον δʼ ἀρετῇ διενεγκεῖν ὥστε τὴν Πελοπόννησον, ἐκ πολλῶν ἤδη χρόνων Ἄργος λεγομένην, τότε Ἀχαϊκὸν Ἄργος λεχθῆναι, καὶ οὐ μόνον γε τὴν Πελοπόννησον ἀλλὰ καὶ ἰδίως τὴν Λακωνικὴν οὕτω προσαγορευθῆναι·
For they say that the Achaeans of Phthiotis, who came down with Pelops into the Peloponnesus, inhabited Laconica, and excelled so much in valor that the Peloponnesus, which had already for many years been called Argos, was then called Achaean Argos, and not only the Peloponnesus but also specifically Laconica was so addressed.
τὸ γοῦν τοῦ ποιητοῦ
"
ποῦ Μενέλαος ἔην;
At any rate, the poet's words, "Where was Menelaus?
"
"
ἢ οὐκ Ἄργεος ἦεν Ἀχαιικοῦ; "
δέχονταί τινες οὕτως
ἢ οὐκ ἦν ἐν τῇ Λακωνικῇ; κατὰ δὲ τὴν τῶν Ἡρακλειδῶν κάθοδον Φιλονόμου προδόντος τὴν χώραν τοῖς Δωριεῦσι μετανέστησαν ἐκ τῆς Λακωνικῆς εἰς τὴν τῶν Ἰώνων τὴν καὶ νῦν Ἀχαΐαν καλουμένην· ἐροῦμεν δὲ περὶ αὐτῶν ἐν τοῖς Ἀχαϊκοῖς.
Or was he not in Achaean Argos?" some interpret in this way: "Or was he not in Laconica?" But at the return of the Heracleidae, when Philonomus betrayed the country to the Dorians, they migrated from Laconica to the land of the Ionians, which is even now called Achaea; and we shall speak of them in our account of Achaea.
οἱ δὲ κατασχόντες τὴν Λακωνικὴν κατʼ ἀρχὰς μὲν ἐσωφρόνουν, ἐπεὶ δʼ οὖν Λυκούργῳ τὴν πολιτείαν ἐπέτρεψαν, τοσοῦτον ὑπερεβάλοντο τοὺς ἄλλους ὥστε μόνοι τῶν Ἑλλήνων καὶ γῆς καὶ θαλάττης ἐπῆρξαν, διετέλεσάν τε ἄρχοντες τῶν Ἑλλήνων ἕως ἀφείλοντο αὐτοὺς τὴν ἡγεμονίαν Θηβαῖοι καὶ μετʼ ἐκείνους εὐθὺς Μακεδόνες.
Those who took possession of Laconica were moderate at first, but when they entrusted the constitution to Lycurgus, they so far surpassed the others that they alone of the Greeks ruled over both land and sea, and continued to lead the Greeks until the Thebans, and immediately after them the Macedonians, took the hegemony away from them.
οὐ μὴν τελέως γε οὐδὲ τούτοις εἶξαν, ἀλλὰ φυλάττοντες τὴν αὐτονομίαν ἔριν εἶχον περὶ πρωτείων ἀεὶ πρός τε τοὺς ἄλλους Ἕλληνας καὶ πρὸς τοὺς τῶν Μακεδόνων βασιλέας·
Nevertheless, they did not yield completely even to these, but, guarding their autonomy, they were always in a rivalry for the first place both against the other Greeks and against the kings of the Macedonians.
καταλυθέντων δὲ τούτων ὑπὸ Ῥωμαίων, μικρὰ μέν τινα προσέκρουσαν τοῖς πεμπομένοις ὑπὸ Ῥωμαίων στρατηγοῖς τυραννούμενοι τότε καὶ πολιτευόμενοι μοχθηρῶς· ἀναλαβόντες δὲ σφᾶς ἐτιμήθησαν διαφερόντως καὶ ἔμειναν ἐλεύθεροι, πλὴν τῶν φιλικῶν λειτουργιῶν ἄλλο συντελοῦντες οὐδέν.
When these were overthrown by the Romans, they clashed slightly with the generals sent by the Romans, being ruled by tyrants at that time and having a wretched government; but having recovered themselves, they were honored exceptionally and remained free, paying nothing else except the friendly services.
νεωστὶ δʼ Εὐρυκλῆς αὐτοὺς ἐτάραξε δόξας ἀποχρήσασθαι τῇ Καίσαρος φιλίᾳ πέρα τοῦ μετρίου πρὸς τὴν ἐπιστασίαν αὐτῶν, ἐπαύσατο δʼ ἡ ἀρχὴ ταχέως, ἐκείνου μὲν παραχωρήσαντος εἰς τὸ χρεών, τοῦ δʼ υἱοῦ τὴν φιλίαν ἀπεστραμμένου τὴν τοιαύτην πᾶσαν·
Recently, Eurycles disturbed them, being thought to have abused the friendship of Caesar beyond measure for his oversight of them, but his rule ended quickly, as he departed to his destiny, and his son turned away from all such friendship.
συνέβη δὲ καὶ τοὺς Ἐλευθερολάκωνας λαβεῖν τινα τάξιν πολιτείας, ἐπειδὴ Ῥωμαίοις προσέθεντο πρῶτοι οἱ περίοικοι τυραννουμένης τῆς Σπάρτης, οἵ τε ἄλλοι καὶ οἱ Εἵλωτες.
It also happened that the Free Laconians received a certain constitutional status, since the perioeci were the first to side with the Romans when Sparta was ruled by tyrants, both the others and the Helots.
Ἑλλάνικος μὲν οὖν Εὐρυσθένη καὶ Προκλέα φησὶ διατάξαι τὴν πολιτείαν, Ἔφορος δʼ ἐπιτιμᾷ φήσας Λυκούργου μὲν αὐτὸν μηδαμοῦ μεμνῆσθαι, τὰ δʼ ἐκείνου ἔργα τοῖς μὴ προσήκουσιν ἀνατιθέναι· μόνῳ γοῦν Λυκούργῳ ἱερὸν ἱδρῦσθαι καὶ θύεσθαι κατʼ ἔτος, ἐκείνοις δὲ καίπερ οἰκισταῖς γενομένοις μηδὲ τοῦτο δεδόσθαι ὥστε τοὺς ἀπʼ αὐτῶν τοὺς μὲν Εὐρυσθενίδας τοὺς δὲ Προκλείδας καλεῖσθαι, ἀ Ἀγίδας ἀπὸ Ἄγιδος τοῦ Εὐρυσθένους τοὺς δʼ πὸ Εὐρυπῶντος τοῦ Προκλέους·
Now Hellanicus says that Eurysthenes and Procles regulated the constitution, but Ephorus censures him, saying that he nowhere mentions Lycurgus, and attributes his works to those to whom they do not belong; at any rate, a temple has been built and sacrifices are offered yearly to Lycurgus alone, whereas to those, although they were founders, not even this has been granted, so that their descendants are called not Eurysthenidae and Procleidae, but Agiads from Agis the son of Eurysthenes, and Eurypontids from Eurypon the son of Procles.
τοὺς μὲν σαι δικαίως, τοὺς δὲ δεξαμένους ἐππους, διʼ ἐκείνων δυναστεῦσαι· ὅθε νομισθῆναι ὅπερ πᾶσιν ἀποδέδοτασανίαν τε τῶν Εὐρυπωντιδῶν ἐκπεσόν οἰκείας ἐν τῇ φυγῇ συντάξαι λόγγου, νόμων ὄντος τῆς ἐκβαλούση τοὺς χρησμοὺς λέγειν τοὺς δοθέντα πλείστων.
That is, the former ruled justly, but the latter, having admitted strangers, ruled through them; whence they were not thought [worthy of the honor given to all...], and Pausanias, having been banished, composed in exile a discourse on his own constitution, since it was a law of the city that banished him to declare the oracles that had been given, of which there were very many.