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Polybius · The Histories §3.28.1-3.28.5

Injustice of the Roman Seizure of Sardinia

Passage 187 of 1311 · Greek

Summary

Polybius judges that the Roman seizure of Sardinia and demand for additional indemnity lacked any justifiable reason and were unjust, and asserts that, with these facts established, it remains to examine which side bears the responsibility for the Hannibalic War.

§3.28.1ὥσπερ οὖν τὴν εἰς Σικελίαν διάβασιν Ῥωμαίων οὐ παρὰ τοὺς ὅρκους εὑρίσκομεν γεγενημένην, οὕτως ὑπὲρ τοῦ δευτέρου πολέμου, καθʼ ὃν ἐποιήσαντο τὰς περὶ Σαρδόνος συνθήκας, οὔτε πρόφασιν οὔτʼ αἰτίαν εὕροι τις ἂν εὔλογον,
Just as, therefore, we find that the crossing of the Romans into Sicily was not made in violation of their oaths, so, in regard to the second war, in which they made the treaty concerning Sardinia, no one could find any reasonable pretext or cause.
§3.28.2ἀλλʼ ὁμολογουμένως τοὺς Καρχηδονίους ἠναγκασμένους παρὰ πάντα τὰ δίκαια διὰ τὸν καιρὸν ἐκχωρῆσαι μὲν Σαρδόνος, ἐξενεγκεῖν δὲ τὸ προειρημένον πλῆθος τῶν χρημάτων.
On the contrary, it is universally agreed that the Carthaginians, contrary to all justice, were compelled by the circumstances of the time to evacuate Sardinia and to pay the aforementioned sum of money.
§3.28.3τὸ μὲν γὰρ ὑπὸ Ῥωμαίων περὶ τούτων λεγόμενον ἔγκλημα, διότι τοὺς παρὰ σφῶν πλοϊζομένους ἠδίκουν κατὰ τὸν Λιβυκὸν πόλεμον, ἐλύθη καθʼ οὓς καιροὺς κομισάμενοι παρὰ Καρχηδονίων ἅπαντας τοὺς κατηγμένους ἀντεδωρήσαντο χωρὶς λύτρων ἐν χάριτι τοὺς παρὰ σφίσιν ὑπάρχοντας αἰχμαλώτους.
For the charge alleged by the Romans on this matter, namely that the Carthaginians had wronged those sailing from Rome during the Libyan war, had been resolved at the very time when the Romans, having recovered from the Carthaginians all those who had been detained, in return made a free gift, without ransom, of the captives in their own hands.
§3.28.4ὑπὲρ ὧν ἡμεῖς τὰ κατὰ μέρος ἐν τῇ πρὸ ταύτης βύβλῳ δεδηλώκαμεν.
Regarding these matters, we have explained the details in the book preceding this one.
§3.28.5τούτων δὴ τοιούτων ὑπαρχόντων, λοιπὸν διευκρινῆσαι καὶ σκέψασθαι περὶ τοῦ κατʼ Ἀννίβαν πολέμου ποτέροις αὐτῶν τὴν αἰτίαν ἀναθετέον.
Since these things are indeed so, it remains to clarify and consider, concerning the war of Hannibal, to which of the two parties the blame must be attributed.

Notes

  1. 3.28.1εὑρίσκομεν γεγενημένην — The verb εὑρίσκω ('to find') takes a participle as its complement to mean 'to find that...'. Here, the perfect participle γεγενημένην (feminine singular accusative) agrees with its subject accusative τὴν διάβασιν.
  2. 3.28.1εὕροι τις ἂν — The optative with ἄν (εὕροι is the aorist active optative third-person singular of εὑρίσκω) expresses potentiality ('one might find', 'no one could find'). Combined with the indefinite pronoun τις, it functions as a strong negative potential statement.
  3. 3.28.2ἠναγκασμένους — Perfect passive participle, accusative masculine plural. This participle functions as the accusative complement of the verb εὑρίσκομεν carried over from the previous sentence (§3.28.1), meaning 'we find that the Carthaginians were compelled...'. Alternatively, it can be taken as an accusative subject of an infinitive clause dependent on the adverbial concept of ὁμολογουμένως ('it is confessedly the case that...').
  4. 3.28.3τὸ μὲν γὰρ ... ἔγκλημα ... ἐλύθη — The core grammatical skeleton of this long sentence. The subject is τὸ ἔγκλημα ('the charge') and the main verb is ἐλύθη ('was resolved', aorist passive). The intervening διότι clause explains the content of the charge, and the relative clause beginning with καθʼ οὓς καιροὺς ('at which time') specifies when the resolution occurred.
  5. 3.28.5ἀναθετέον — The neuter singular of the verbal adjective of ἀνατίθημι ('to attribute, impute'). Used impersonally (with ἐστί omitted) to express obligation or necessity ('must be attributed'). The object of the action is the accusative τὴν αἰτίαν, and the party to whom it must be attributed is in the dative case (ποτέροις).

Cite this passage

Polybius, The Histories §3.28.1-3.28.5. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0543.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:3.28.1-3.28.5

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