Humanitext Reader

Polybius · The Histories §29.23.1-29.23.11

Achaean Debate on Aiding the Ptolemaic Kings

Passage 1138 of 1311 · Greek

Summary

In the Achaean League, when an embassy from the joint Ptolemaic kings requested military aid, Callicrates opposed it in favor of serving Rome, while Lycortas and Polybius advocated sending aid in accordance with their alliance.

§29.23.1ὅτι κατὰ τὴν Πελοπόννησον ἔτι κατὰ χειμῶνα πρεσβείας παραγενομένης παρὰ τῶν βασιλέων ἀμφοτέρων [Πτολεμαίου καὶ Πτολεμαίου] περὶ βοηθείας, ἐγενήθη διαβούλια καὶ πλείω, πολλὴν ἔχοντα φιλοτιμίαν. §29.23.2τοῖς μὲν γὰρ περὶ τὸν Καλλικράτην καὶ Διοφάνην καὶ σὺν τούτοις Ὑπέρβατον οὐκ ἤρεσκε διδόναι βοήθειαν, §29.23.3τοῖς δὲ περὶ τὸν Ἄρχωνα καὶ Λυκόρταν καὶ Πολύβιον ἤρεσκε τὸ διδόναι τοῖς βασιλεῦσι κατὰ τὴν ὑπάρχουσαν συμμαχίαν. §29.23.4ἤδη γὰρ συνέβαινε τότε τὸν νεώτερον Πτολεμαῖον ὑπὸ τῶν ὄχλων ἀναδεδεῖχθαι βασιλέα διὰ τὴν περίστασιν, τὸν δὲ πρεσβύτερον ἐκ τῆς Μέμφεως καταπεπορεῦσθαι καὶ συμβασιλεύειν τἀδελφῷ. §29.23.5καὶ δεόμενοι παντοδαπῆς ἐπικουρίας ἐξαπέστειλαν πρεσβευτὰς Εὐμένη καὶ Διονυσόδωρον πρὸς τοὺς Ἀχαιούς, αἰτοῦντες πεζοὺς μὲν χιλίους ἱππεῖς δὲ διακοσίους, ἡγεμόνα δὲ τῆς ὅλης συμμαχίας Λυκόρταν, τῶν δʼ ἱππέων Πολύβιον. §29.23.6πρὸς δὲ Θεοδωρίδαν τὸν Σικυώνιον διεπέμψαντο, παρακαλοῦντες αὐτὸν συστήσασθαι ξενολόγιον χιλίων ἀνδρῶν. §29.23.7συνέβαινε δὲ τοὺς μὲν βασιλεῖς τὴν ἐπὶ πλεῖον σύστασιν ἔχειν πρὸς τοὺς εἰρημένους ἄνδρας ἐκ τῶν πράξεων ὧν εἰρήκαμεν. §29.23.8τῶν δὲ πρεσβευτῶν παραγενομένων, τῆς συνόδου τῶν Ἀχαιῶν οὔσης ἐν Κορίνθῳ, καὶ τά τε φιλάνθρωπα πρὸς τὴν βασιλείαν ἀνανεωσαμένων ὄντα μεγάλα καὶ τὴν περίστασιν τῶν βασιλέων ὑπὸ τὴν ὄψιν ἀγόντων καὶ δεομένων σφίσι βοηθεῖν, τὸ μὲν πλῆθος τῶν Ἀχαιῶν ἕτοιμον ἦν οὐ μέρει τινί, §29.23.9πανδημεὶ δὲ συγκινδυνεύειν, εἰ δέοι, τοῖς βασιλεῦσιν· ἀμφότεροι γὰρ εἶχον τό τε διάδημα καὶ τὴν ἐξουσίαν.
In the Peloponnese, while it was still winter, when an embassy arrived from both kings [Ptolemy and Ptolemy] concerning aid, several deliberations took place, which involved much rivalry. For to Callicrates, Diophanes, and with them Hyperbatus, it did not seem good to grant aid, whereas to Archon, Lycortas, and Polybius, it seemed good to grant it to the kings in accordance with the existing alliance. For it had already happened at that time that the younger Ptolemy had been declared king by the multitudes because of the critical situation, and the elder had come down from Memphis and was reigning together with his brother. And being in need of all kinds of assistance, they dispatched Eumenes and Dionysodorus as ambassadors to the Achaians, requesting a thousand infantry and two hundred cavalry, and asking for Lycortas as commander of the whole allied force, and Polybius of the cavalry. They also sent to Theodoridas of Sicyon, urging him to recruit a mercenary force of a thousand men. And it happened that the kings had a closer connection with the aforementioned men owing to the actions we have already spoken of. When the ambassadors arrived, the assembly of the Achaians being held in Corinth, and when they renewed the great acts of benevolence towards the kingdom and brought the critical situation of the kings before their eyes and begged them to help, the multitude of the Achaians was ready not merely with a certain part of their forces, but to share the danger with all their forces, if necessary, for the kings; for both of them held the diadem and the power.
οἱ δὲ περὶ τὸν Καλλικράτην ἀντέλεγον, §29.23.10φάσκοντες δεῖν καθόλου μὲν μὴ πραγματοκοπεῖν, ἐν δὲ τοῖς παροῦσι καιροῖς μηδʼ ὅλως, ἀλλʼ ἀπερισπάστους ὑπάρχοντας Ῥωμαίοις παρέχεσθαι χρείας· §29.23.11μάλιστα γὰρ ἦν τότε προσδόκιμος ὁ περὶ τῶν ὅλων κίνδυνος, ἅτε τοῦ Κοΐντου τοῦ Φιλίππου τὴν παραχειμασίαν ἐν τῇ
But Callicrates and his party spoke against it, asserting that they ought not to meddle at all, and least of all in the present circumstances, but should keep themselves free from distractions so as to render services to the Romans; for the danger concerning the whole situation was then most expected, inasmuch as Quintus Philippus was making his winter quarters in Thessaly...

Notes

  1. §29.23.1ὅτι — The introductory ὅτι is due to the text surviving as a fragment in the Byzantine Excerpta. It does not introduce a subordinate clause in this context but acts as a conventional marker indicating the start of an excerpt.
  2. §29.23.2τοῖς μὲν γὰρ περὶ τὸν Καλλικράτην — The idiom 'οἱ περί + accusative' refers to 'Callicrates and his party' or 'Callicrates and his associates.' The dative case is used here as the logical subject of the impersonal verb phrase 'οὐκ ἤρεσκε'.
  3. §29.23.8τῶν δὲ πρεσβευτῶν παραγενομένων — A long sentence extending to τοῖς βασιλεῦσιν in §29.23.9. It features two genitive absolutes in parathesis, `τῶν δὲ πρεσβευτῶν παραγενομένων` (the ambassadors having arrived) and `τῆς συνόδου ... οὔσης` (the assembly being held), followed by active and middle participles `ἀνανεωσαμένων` (renewing), `ἀγόντων` (bringing), and `δεομένων` (begging), all agreeing with the ambassadors.
  4. §29.23.10ἀπερισπάστους ὑπάρχοντας Ῥωμαίοις παρέχεσθαι χρείας — The adjective `ἀπερισπάστους` (undistracted) with the participle `ὑπάρχοντας` (being) agrees with the omitted accusative subject of the infinitive `παρέχεσθαι` (to render), referring to the Achaians. It denotes that they should remain free from other concerns to be ready to serve the Romans.

Cite this passage

Polybius, The Histories §29.23.1-29.23.11. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0543.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:29.23.1-29.23.11

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.