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Polybius · The Histories §2.11.1-2.11.17

The Roman Expedition and the Defeat of the Illyrians

Passage 99 of 1311 · Greek

Summary

The Roman consular forces raised the sieges of Corcyra, Epidamnus, and Issa, defeating the Illyrians and bringing several peoples under Roman protection with the assistance of Demetrius, while Teuta fled to Rizon.

§2.11.1κατὰ δὲ τοὺς αὐτοὺς καιροὺς τῶν τὰς ὑπάτους ἀρχὰς ἐχόντων Γνάιος μὲν Φόλουιος ἐξέπλει ναυσὶ διακοσίαις ἐκ τῆς Ῥώμης, Αὖλος δὲ Ποστόμιος τὰς πεζικὰς ἔχων δυνάμεις ἐξώρμα.
About the same time, while those holding the consulship were in office, Gnaeus Fulvius sailed out from Rome with two hundred ships, and Aulus Postumius set forth with the land forces.
§2.11.2τὴν μὲν οὖν πρώτην ἐπιβολὴν ἔσχε πλεῖν ὁ Γνάιος ἐπὶ τῆς Κερκύρας, ὑπολαμβάνων ἔτι καταλήψεσθαι τὴν πολιορκίαν ἄκριτον· §2.11.3ὑστερήσας δὲ τῶν καιρῶν ὅμως ἐπὶ τὴν νῆσον ἔπλει, βουλόμενος ἅμα μὲν ἐπιγνῶναι σαφῶς τὰ γεγονότα περὶ τὴν πόλιν, ἅμα δὲ πεῖραν λαβεῖν τῶν παρὰ τοῦ Δημητρίου προσαγγελλομένων.
Now Gnaeus had his first intention to sail to Corcyra, supposing that he would still find the siege undecided; though he had missed the opportunity, he nevertheless sailed to the island, wishing at once to ascertain clearly what had happened about the city, and at the same time to test the truth of the messages sent by Demetrius.
§2.11.4ὁ γὰρ Δημήτριος ἐν διαβολαῖς ὢν καὶ φοβούμενος τὴν Τεύταν διεπέμπετο πρὸς τοὺς Ῥωμαίους, ἐπαγγελλόμενος τήν τε πόλιν ἐγχειριεῖν καὶ τὰ λοιπὰ πράγματα παραδώσειν, ὧν ἦν αὐτὸς κύριος.
For Demetrius, being under suspicion and fearing Teuta, was sending messages to the Romans, promising to deliver the city into their hands and to surrender all the other affairs over which he had control.
§2.11.5οἱ δὲ Κερκυραῖοι τὴν παρουσίαν τῶν Ῥωμαίων ἀσμένως ἰδόντες, τήν τε φρουρὰν παρέδοσαν τῶν Ἰλλυριῶν μετὰ τῆς τοῦ Δημητρίου γνώμης, αὐτοί τε σφᾶς ὁμοθυμαδὸν ἔδωκαν παρακληθέντες εἰς τὴν τῶν Ῥωμαίων πίστιν, μίαν ταύτην ὑπολαβόντες ἀσφάλειαν αὑτοῖς ὑπάρχειν εἰς τὸν μέλλοντα χρόνον πρὸς τὴν Ἰλλυριῶν παρανομίαν.
And the Corcyreans, gladly seeing the arrival of the Romans, delivered the garrison of the Illyrians with the consent of Demetrius, and they themselves by common consent surrendered themselves, when invited, to the faith of the Romans, conceiving this to be their only safety for the future against the lawlessness of the Illyrians.
§2.11.6Ῥωμαῖοι δὲ προσδεξάμενοι τοὺς Κερκυραίους εἰς τὴν φιλίαν ἔπλεον ἐπὶ τῆς Ἀπολλωνίας, ἔχοντες εἰς τὰ κατάλοιπα τῶν πραγμάτων ἡγεμόνα τὸν Δημήτριον.
The Romans, having received the Corcyreans into friendship, sailed to Apollonia, having Demetrius as their guide for the remainder of their operations.
§2.11.7κατὰ δὲ τὸν αὐτὸν καιρὸν καὶ Ποστόμιος τὰς πεζικὰς διεβίβαζε δυνάμεις ἐκ τοῦ Βρεντεσίου, πεζοὺς μὲν εἰς δισμυρίους, ἱππεῖς δὲ περὶ δισχιλίους.
At the same time Postumius also was transporting the land forces from Brundisium, consisting of about twenty thousand infantry and about two thousand cavalry.
§2.11.8ἅμα δὲ τῷ προσέχειν ἑκατέρας ὁμοῦ τὰς δυνάμεις πρὸς τὴν Ἀπολλωνίαν ὁμοίως καὶ τούτων ἀποδεξαμένων καὶ δόντων ἑαυτοὺς εἰς τὴν ἐπιτροπὴν παραχρῆμα πάλιν ἀνήχθησαν, ἀκούοντες πολιορκεῖσθαι τὴν Ἐπίδαμνον.
As soon as both forces arrived together at Apollonia, since these inhabitants also likewise received them and surrendered themselves to their protection, they immediately put to sea again, hearing that Epidamnus was being besieged.
§2.11.9οἱ δʼ Ἰλλυριοὶ συνέντες τὴν ἔφοδον τῶν Ῥωμαίων, οὐδενὶ κόσμῳ λύσαντες τὴν πολιορκίαν ἔφυγον.
But the Illyrians, having perceived the approach of the Romans, raised the siege in utter disorder and fled.
§2.11.10Ῥωμαῖοι δὲ καὶ τοὺς Ἐπιδαμνίους παραλαβόντες εἰς τὴν πίστιν προῆγον εἰς τοὺς εἴσω τόπους τῆς Ἰλλυρίδος, ἅμα καταστρεφόμενοι τοὺς Ἀρδιαίους.
The Romans, having also received the Epidamnians into their faith, advanced into the interior parts of Illyria, at the same time subduing the Ardiaei.
§2.11.11συμμιξάντων δὲ πρεσβευτῶν αὐτοῖς καὶ πλειόνων, ὧν οἱ παρὰ τῶν Παρθίνων ἧκον ἐπιτρέποντες τὰ καθʼ αὑτούς, δεξάμενοι τούτους εἰς τὴν φιλίαν, παραπλησίως δὲ καὶ τοὺς παρὰ τῶν Ἀτιντάνων προσεληλυθότας προῆγον ὡς ἐπὶ τὴν Ἴσσαν διὰ τὸ καὶ ταύτην ὑπὸ τῶν Ἰλλυριῶν πολιορκεῖσθαι τὴν πόλιν.
And when many embassies met them, among whom those from the Parthini came surrendering their affairs to them, they received these into friendship, and likewise those who came from the Atintanes, and they advanced towards Issa because this city also was being besieged by the Illyrians.
§2.11.12ἀφικόμενοι δὲ καὶ λύσαντες τὴν πολιορκίαν προσεδέξαντο καὶ τοὺς Ἰσσαίους εἰς τὴν ἑαυτῶν πίστιν.
And having arrived and raised the siege, they received the Issaeans also into their own faith.
§2.11.13εἷλον δὲ καὶ πόλεις τινὰς Ἰλλυρίδας ἐν τῷ παράπλῳ κατὰ κράτος· ἐν αἷς περὶ Νουτρίαν οὐ μόνον τῶν στρατιωτῶν ἀπέβαλον πολλούς, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν χιλιάρχων τινὰς καὶ τὸν ταμίαν.
They also took some Illyrian cities by storm during their coastal voyage; among which, near Nutria, they lost not only many of their soldiers, but also some of their military tribunes and their quaestor.
§2.11.14ἐκυρίευσαν δὲ καὶ λέμβων εἴκοσι τῶν ἀποκομιζόντων τὴν ἐκ τῆς χώρας ὠφέλειαν.
They also captured twenty light boats that were carrying away the plunder from the country.
§2.11.15τῶν δὲ πολιορκούντων τὴν Ἴσσαν οἱ μὲν ἐν τῇ Φάρῳ διὰ τὸν Δημήτριον ἀβλαβεῖς ἔμειναν, οἱ δʼ ἄλλοι πάντες ἔφυγον εἰς τὸν Ἄρβωνα σκεδασθέντες.
Of those who were besieging Issa, those in Pharos remained unhurt because of Demetrius, but all the others fled, scattering to Arbon.
§2.11.16ἡ δὲ Τεύτα πάνυ μετʼ ὀλίγων εἰς τὸν Ῥίζονα διεσώθη, πολισμάτιον εὖ πρὸς ὀχυρότητα κατεσκευασμένον, ἀνακεχωρηκὸς μὲν ἀπὸ τῆς θαλάττης, ἐπʼ αὐτῷ δὲ κείμενον τῷ Ῥίζονι ποταμῷ.
Teuta escaped with very few followers to Rizon, a small town well fortified, retreated from the sea, but situated on the river Rizon itself.
§2.11.17ταῦτα δὲ πράξαντες καὶ τῷ Δημητρίῳ τοὺς πλείστους ὑποτάξαντες τῶν Ἰλλυριῶν καὶ μεγάλην αὐτῷ περιθέντες δυναστείαν ἀνεχώρησαν εἰς τὴν Ἐπίδαμνον ἅμα τῷ στόλῳ καὶ τῇ πεζικῇ δυνάμει.
Having accomplished these things and having subjected most of the Illyrians to Demetrius, and having invested him with great power, they returned to Epidamnus together with the fleet and the land force.

Notes

  1. §2.11.1τῶν τὰς ὑπάτους ἀρχὰς ἐχόντων — A genitive absolute construction setting the temporal background ("while those holding the consulship were in office"), grammatically independent from the main subjects Gnaeus and Aulus introduced in the main clause.
  2. §2.11.2τὴν μὲν οὖν πρώτην ἐπιβολὴν ἔσχε πλεῖν — The infinitive `πλεῖν` acts as an appositive to the noun `ἐπιβολήν` ("intention"), defining its specific content, or functions as an adverbial of purpose/result. The phrase literally means "he had his first intention to sail."
  3. §2.11.8ἅμα δὲ τῷ προσέχειν ἑκατέρας ὁμοῦ τὰς δυνάμεις — The preposition `ἅμα` with the dative articular infinitive `τῷ προσέχειν` expresses temporal simultaneity ("at the same time as arriving" or "as soon as they arrived"). The accusative phrase `ἑκατέρας ὁμοῦ τὰς δυνάμεις` serves as the subject of this infinitive.

Cite this passage

Polybius, The Histories §2.11.1-2.11.17. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0543.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:2.11.1-2.11.17

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