Humanitext Reader

Polybius · The Histories §5.15.1-5.15.9

Megaleas's Attack on Aratus and His Imprisonment

Passage 379 of 1311 · Greek

Summary

At the banquet, Megaleas and his party expose their hostility, attacking Aratus on his way back and causing a disturbance. Upon learning of the incident, the king becomes furious and orders them imprisoned.

§5.15.1ἦσαν μὲν οὖν εὐθέως ἐν ὑπονοίᾳ τῷ τε βασιλεῖ καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις οὐχ ὁμοίως τοῖς λοιποῖς χαίροντες ἐπὶ τοῖς γεγονόσι·
Accordingly, they immediately fell under the suspicion of the king and the others, as they did not rejoice at what had happened in the same way as the rest.
§5.15.2προβαίνοντος δὲ τοῦ πότου, κἄπειτα γενομένης ἀκαιρίας καὶ πολυποσίας, ἀναγκασθέντες συμπεριφέρεσθαι, ταχέως ἐξεθεάτρισαν αὑτούς.
But as the drinking went on, and then, with untimely behavior and heavy drinking ensuing, being forced to conform to the company, they soon exposed themselves.
§5.15.3λυθείσης γὰρ τῆς συνουσίας ὑπό τε τῆς μέθης καὶ τῆς ἀλογιστίας ἐλαυνόμενοι, περιῄεσαν ζητοῦντες τὸν Ἄρατον.
For when the gathering broke up, driven as they were by drunkenness and folly, they went around looking for Aratus.
§5.15.4συμμίξαντες δὲ κατὰ τὴν ἐπάνοδον αὐτῷ, τὸ μὲν πρῶτον ἐλοιδόρουν, μετὰ δὲ βάλλειν ἐνεχείρησαν τοῖς λίθοις.
And meeting him on his way back, at first they abused him, and afterwards attempted to pelt him with stones.
§5.15.5προσβοηθούντων δὲ πλειόνων ἀμφοτέροις θόρυβος ἦν καὶ κίνημα κατὰ τὴν παρεμβολήν. ὁ δὲ βασιλεὺς ἀκούων τῆς κραυγῆς, ἐξαπέστειλε τοὺς ἐπιγνωσομένους καὶ διαλύσοντας τὴν ταραχήν.
As more people came to the assistance of both sides, there was an uproar and a disturbance in the camp; and the king, hearing the shouting, sent out some of his men to find out what had happened and to disperse the crowd.
§5.15.6ὁ μὲν οὖν Ἄρατος, παραγενομένων τούτων, εἰπὼν τὰ γεγονότα καὶ μάρτυρας παρασχόμενος τοὺς συμπαρόντας, ἀπηλλάττετο ταύτης τῆς ἀδι §5.15.7κίας ἐπὶ τὴν αὑτοῦ σκηνήν, ὁ δὲ Λεόντιος ἀλόγως πως κατὰ τὸν θόρυβον ἀπέρρευσε.
Aratus, then, upon their arrival, having stated what had occurred and produced those present as witnesses, retired from this out rage to his own tent; but Leontius somehow slipped away unnoticed during the confusion.
τὸν δὲ Μεγαλέαν καὶ Κρίνωνα μεταπεμψάμενος ὁ βασιλεύς, ἐπεὶ συνῆκε τὸ γεγονός, ἐπετίμα πικρῶς.
The king, having sent for Megaleas and Crinon, when he understood what had happened, rebuked them severely.
§5.15.8οἱ δʼ οὐχ οἷον ὑπέμειναν, ἀλλʼ ἐπεμέτρησαν, φάσκοντες οὐδὲ λήξειν τῆς προθέσεως, ἕως ἂν τὸν μισθὸν ἐπιθῶσι τοῖς περὶ τὸν Ἄρατον.
But they, so far from submitting, went even further, declaring that they would not desist from their purpose until they had given Aratus and his party their deserts.
§5.15.9ὁ δὲ βασιλεύς, ὀργισθεὶς ἐπὶ τῷ ῥηθέντι, παραχρῆμα πρὸς εἴκοσι τάλαντα κατεγγυήσας ἐκέλευσεν αὐτοὺς εἰς φυλακὴν ἀπαγα
The king, enraged at these words, immediately bound them under a bail of twenty talents and ordered them to be led away to pri

Notes

  1. §5.15.1ἐν ὑπονοίᾳ τῷ τε βασιλεῖ — "They were in a state of suspicion to the king", meaning "they were suspected by the king". The dative τῷ τε βασιλεῖ functions as a dative of relation or agent depending on the phrase ἐν ὑπονοίᾳ.
  2. §5.15.2προβαίνοντος δὲ τοῦ πότου — Both προβαίνοντος δὲ τοῦ πότου and the subsequent γενομένης ἀκαιρίας καὶ πολυποσίας are genitives absolute, describing the shifting background and circumstances of the scene.
  3. §5.15.8οὐχ οἷον ὑπέμειναν — The idiom οὐχ οἷον ("so far from [doing something]", "not only did they not...") negates the expected action of submitting to the rebuke, and strongly emphasizes the subsequent contrastive action ἀλλʼ ἐπεμέτρησαν ("but they went even further / exceeded limits").

Cite this passage

Polybius, The Histories §5.15.1-5.15.9. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0543.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:5.15.1-5.15.9

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