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Polybius · The Histories §6.32.1-6.32.8

Camp Dimensions and Adjustments for Extra Allies or Joint Consuls

Passage 509 of 1311 · Greek

Summary

Explains that the overall area and perimeter of the Roman camp can be easily calculated since all dimensions are fixed, and describes how the layout is adjusted for an excess of allies, how it expands when two consuls camp together, and how it is arranged when they camp separately.

§6.32.1δεδομένου δὲ τοῦ πλήθους καὶ τῶν πεζῶν καὶ τῶν ἱππέων καθʼ ἑκατέραν τὴν πρόθεσιν, ἄν τε τετρακισχιλίους ἄν τε πεντακισχιλίους εἰς ἕκαστον στρατόπεδον ποιῶσι, παραπλησίως δὲ καὶ τῶν σημαιῶν τοῦ τε βάθους καὶ τοῦ μήκους καὶ τοῦ πλήθους δεδομένου, πρὸς δὲ τούτοις τῶν κατὰ τὰς διόδους καὶ πλατείας διαστημάτων, ὁμοίως δὲ καὶ τῶν ἄλλων ἁπάντων δεδομένων, §6.32.2συμβαίνει τοῖς βουλομένοις συνεφιστάνειν νοεῖν καὶ τοῦ χωρίου τὸ μέγεθος καὶ τὴν ὅλην περίμετρον τῆς παρεμβολῆς.
Now, since the number both of infantry and cavalry is given for either establishment—whether they make it four thousand or five thousand men for each legion—and likewise since the depth, length, and number of the maniples are given, and in addition to these the intervals of the passages and streets, and similarly since all other things are given, it is easy for those who wish to pay attention to understand both the size of the space and the entire perimeter of the camp.
ἐὰν δέ ποτε πλεονάζῃ τὸ τῶν συμμάχων πλῆθος, §6.32.3ἢ τῶν ἐξ ἀρχῆς συστρατευομένων ἢ τῶν ἐκ τοῦ καιροῦ προσγινομένων, §6.32.4τοῖς μὲν ἐκ τοῦ καιροῦ πρὸς τοῖς προειρημένοις καὶ τοὺς παρὰ τὸ στρατήγιον ἀναπληροῦσι τόπους, τὴν ἀγορὰν καὶ τὸ ταμιεῖον συναγαγόντες εἰς αὐτὸν τὸν κατεπείγοντα πρὸς τὴν χρείαν τόπον· §6.32.5τοῖς δʼ ἐξ ἀρχῆς συνεκπορευομένοις, ἐὰν ᾖ πλῆθος ἱκανώτερον, ῥύμην μίαν ἐξ ἑκατέρου τοῦ μέρους τῶν Ῥωμαϊκῶν στρατοπέδων πρὸς ταῖς ὑπαρχούσαις παρὰ τὰς ἐκ τῶν πλαγίων ἐπιφανείας παρατιθέασι.
But if at any time the number of the allies is exceptionally large, whether of those serving together from the beginning or of those joining as occasion demands, for those who join as occasion demands, besides the aforementioned places, they also fill up the spaces beside the praetorium, contracting the forum and the quaestorium to the space absolutely urgent for their use; while for those marching out together from the beginning, if the number is larger than usual, they add one street on each side of the Roman legions, next to the existing ones, along the side faces of the rampart.
§6.32.6πάντων δὲ τῶν τεττάρων στρατοπέδων καὶ τῶν ὑπάτων ἀμφοτέρων εἰς ἕνα χάρακα συναθροισθέντων, οὐδὲν ἕτερον δεῖ νοεῖν πλὴν δύο στρατιὰς κατὰ τὸν ἄρτι λόγον παρεμβεβληκυίας ἀντεστραμμένας αὑταῖς συνηρμόσθαι, συναπτούσας κατὰ τὰς τῶν ἐπιλέκτων ἑκατέρου τοῦ στρατοπέδου παρεμβολάς, οὓς ἐποιοῦμεν εἰς τὴν ὀπίσω βλέποντας ἐπιφάνειαν τῆς ὅλης παρεμβολῆς, §6.32.7ὅτε δὴ συμβαίνει γίνεσθαι τὸ μὲν σχῆμα παράμηκες, τὸ δὲ χωρίον διπλάσιον τοῦ πρόσθεν, τὴν δὲ περίμετρον ἡμιόλιον.
And when all four legions and both consuls are gathered into one camp, one must conceive nothing other than that two armies, encamped according to the system just described, are joined together facing back to back, connecting at the quarters of the extraordinary troops of each army—whom we placed facing the rear face of the whole camp— where indeed the shape becomes oblong, the area double that of before, and the perimeter one and a half times as large.
§6.32.8ὅταν μὲν οὖν συμβαίνῃ τοὺς ὑπάτους ἀμφοτέρους ὁμοῦ στρατοπεδεύειν, οὕτως ἀεὶ χρῶνται ταῖς στρατοπεδείαις· ὅταν δὲ χωρίς, τἄλλα μὲν ὡσαύτως, τὴν δʼ ἀγορὰν καὶ τὸ ταμιεῖον καὶ τὸ στρατήγιον μέσον τιθέασι τῶν δυεῖν στρατοπέδων.
Now, when it happens that both consuls encamp together, they always use the camps in this way; but when they encamp separately, they arrange other things in the same way, but place the forum, the quaestorium, and the praetorium in the middle between the two legions.

Notes

  1. 6.32.1δεδομένου — A series of genitive absolute constructions with the perfect passive participle δεδομένου (τοῦ πλήθους ... δεδομένου, τῶν σημαιῶν ... δεδομένου, τῶν διαστημάτων ... [δεδομένων], τῶν ἄλλων ... δεδομένων) run in parallel, all expressing the cause ("since ... is given/fixed") for the main clause (συμβαίνει... in §6.32.2).
  2. 6.32.2συμβαίνει — The impersonal verb συμβαίνει ("it happens", "the result is that") takes the infinitive νοεῖν ("to understand") with a dative subject. The dative phrase τοῖς βουλομένοις ("for those who wish") is used substantively and itself governs the infinitive συνεφιστάνειν ("to pay attention").
  3. 6.32.4τοῖς μὲν ἐκ τοῦ καιροῦ — This dative phrase is placed at the beginning of the sentence for emphasis. The overall subject of the sentence is the omitted "they" (the camp planners), and the main verb ἀναπληροῦσι means "they fill up / allocate." The dative τοῖς μὲν... functions as a dative of interest ("for those..."). The participle συναγαγόντες ("contracting") is in the nominative plural masculine, agreeing with the omitted subject.
  4. 6.32.6δεῖ νοεῖν πλὴν δύο στρατιὰς ... συνηρμόσθαι — The phrase οὐδὲν ἕτερον ... πλὴν means "nothing other than" or "only." The infinitive νοεῖν ("one must conceive"), governed by the impersonal verb δεῖ, takes an accusative with infinitive construction as its object: the accusative subject δύο στρατιὰς and the perfect passive infinitive συνηρμόσθαι ("that two armies have been joined together").

Cite this passage

Polybius, The Histories §6.32.1-6.32.8. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0543.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:6.32.1-6.32.8

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