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Polybius · The Histories §3.3.1-3.3.9

Outline of Wars in the East and Roman Supremacy

Passage 162 of 1311 · Greek

Summary

The author outlines his upcoming narrative, transferring the stage to Greece and describing the wars against Macedon and Syria, as well as the affairs of Asia Minor and Greek states, which led to Rome's conquest of the entire inhabited world.

§3.3.1μετὰ δὲ ταῦτα συγκεφαλαιωσάμενοι τὰς ἐν Ἰβηρίᾳ καὶ Λιβύῃ καὶ Σικελίᾳ πράξεις Ῥωμαίων καὶ Καρχηδονίων μεταβιβάσομεν τὴν διήγησιν ὁλοσχερῶς εἰς τοὺς κατὰ τὴν Ἑλλάδα τόπους ἅμα ταῖς τῶν πραγμάτων μεταβολαῖς. §3.3.2ἐξηγησάμενοι δὲ τὰς Ἀττάλου καὶ Ῥοδίων ναυμαχίας πρὸς Φίλιππον, ἔτι δὲ τὸν Ῥωμαίων καὶ Φιλίππου πόλεμον, ὡς ἐπράχθη καὶ διὰ τίνων καὶ τί τὸ τέλος ἔσχεν, §3.3.3τούτῳ συνάπτοντες τὸ συνεχὲς μνησθησόμεθα τῆς Αἰτωλῶν ὀργῆς, καθʼ ἣν Ἀντίοχον ἐπισπασάμενοι τὸν ἀπὸ τῆς Ἀσίας Ἀχαιοῖς καὶ Ῥωμαίοις ἐξέκαυσαν πόλεμον. §3.3.4οὗ δηλώσαντες τὰς αἰτίας καὶ τὴν Ἀντιόχου διάβασιν εἰς τὴν Εὐρώπην διασαφήσομεν πρῶτον μὲν τίνα τρόπον ἐκ τῆς Ἑλλάδος ἔφυγεν, δεύτερον δὲ πῶς ἡττηθεὶς τῆς ἐπὶ τάδε τοῦ Ταύρου πάσης ἐξεχώρησε, §3.3.5τὸ δὲ τρίτον τίνα τρόπον Ῥωμαῖοι καταλύσαντες τὴν Γαλατῶν ὕβριν ἀδήριτον μὲν σφίσι παρεσκεύασαν τὴν τῆς Ἀσίας ἀρχήν, ἀπέλυσαν δὲ τοὺς ἐπὶ τάδε τοῦ Ταύρου κατοικοῦντας βαρβαρικῶν φόβων καὶ τῆς Γαλατῶν παρανομίας. §3.3.6μετὰ δὲ ταῦτα θέντες ὑπὸ τὴν ὄψιν τὰς Αἰτωλῶν καὶ Κεφαλλήνων ἀτυχίας ἐπιβαλοῦμεν τοὺς Εὐμένει συστάντας πρός τε Προυσίαν καὶ Γαλάτας πολέμους, ὁμοίως δὲ καὶ τὸν μετʼ Ἀριαράθου πρὸς Φαρνάκην. §3.3.7οἷς ἑξῆς ἐπιμνησθέντες τῆς παρὰ Πελοποννησίων ὁμονοίας καὶ καταστάσεως, ἔτι δὲ τῆς αὐξήσεως τοῦ Ῥοδίων πολιτεύματος, συγκεφαλαιωσόμεθα τὴν ὅλην διήγησιν ἅμα καὶ τὰς πράξεις, §3.3.8ἐπὶ πᾶσιν ἐξηγησάμενοι τὴν Ἀντιόχου στρατείαν εἰς Αἴγυπτον τοῦ κληθέντος Ἐπιφανοῦς καὶ τὸν Περσικὸν πόλεμον καὶ τὴν κατάλυσιν τῆς ἐν Μακεδονίᾳ βασιλείας. §3.3.9διʼ ὧν ἅμα θεωρηθήσεται πῶς ἕκαστα χειρίσαντες Ῥωμαῖοι πᾶσαν ἐποιήσαντο τὴν οἰκουμένην ὑπήκοον αὑτοῖς.
After this, having summarized the achievements of the Romans and Carthaginians in Iberia, Libya, and Sicily, we shall transfer our narrative entirely to the regions of Greece, along with the shifts in affairs. And having narrated the naval battles of Attalus and the Rhodians against Philip, and further the war of the Romans and Philip, how it was conducted, through whom, and what end it had, we shall, subjoining the continuous sequence to this, make mention of the anger of the Aetolians, driven by which they drew Antiochus from Asia and kindled war against the Achaeans and Romans. Having declared the causes of this war and the crossing of Antiochus into Europe, we shall clarify first in what manner he fled from Greece, and secondly how, having been defeated, he withdrew from all the territory on this side of Taurus, and thirdly in what manner the Romans, having put down the insolence of the Galatians, secured the undisputed dominion of Asia for themselves, and delivered those dwelling on this side of Taurus from barbarian fears and the lawlessness of the Galatians. After this, having set before the eyes the misfortunes of the Aetolians and Cephallenians, we shall proceed to the wars that arose for Eumenes against Prusias and the Galatians, and likewise also to the war with Ariarathes against Pharnaces. Following these, having made mention of the concord and settlement among the Peloponnesians, and further the growth of the state of the Rhodians, we shall summarize the entire narrative together with the actions, having narrated over all the campaign into Egypt of Antiochus who was called Epiphanes, and the Persian war, and the downfall of the kingdom in Macedonia. Through which things it will at the same time be observed how the Romans, having managed each of these affairs, made the entire inhabited world subject to themselves.

Notes

  1. 3.3.3καθʼ ἣν — The antecedent of the relative pronoun ἣν is ὀργῆς (which is in the genitive case in the main clause but becomes accusative as the object of the preposition κατά in the relative clause). The preposition κατά expresses cause or motive, meaning 'driven by which [anger]'.
  2. 3.3.5ἀδήριτον μὲν σφίσι ... τὴν τῆς Ἀσίας ἀρχήν — The adjective ἀδήριτον (undisputed) functions as a predicative adjunct to the direct object τὴν τῆς Ἀσίας ἀρχήν (the dominion of Asia) with the verb παρεσκεύασαν, meaning 'they secured the dominion of Asia as undisputed for themselves'.
  3. 3.3.8τοῦ κληθέντος Ἐπιφανοῦς — The genitive phrase τοῦ κληθέντος Ἐπιφανοῦς (called Epiphanes) modifies Ἀντιόχου (of Antiochus) at the beginning of the clause, separated by the prepositional phrase εἰς Αἴγυπτον (hyperbaton). This refers to Antiochus IV Epiphanes.
  4. 3.3.8τὸν Περσικὸν πόλεμον — The adjective Περσικός (Persian) here refers not to Persia, but to the war against King Perseus of Macedon (the Third Macedonian War), derived from the king's name Perseus.

Cite this passage

Polybius, The Histories §3.3.1-3.3.9. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0543.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:3.3.1-3.3.9

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