§1.1Iphicrates Atheniensis non tam magnitudine rerum gestarum quam disciplina militari nobilitatus est.
Iphicrates the Athenian was renowned not so much for the greatness of his deeds as for his military discipline.
fuit enim talis dux, ut non solum aetatis suae cum primis compararetur, sed ne de maioribus natu quidem quisquam anteponeretur.
Indeed, he was such a leader that he was not only compared with the foremost men of his own age, but not even anyone among those of older generations was preferred to him.
§1.2multum vero in bello est versatus, saepe exercitibus praefuit, nusquam culpa male rem gessit, semper consilio vicit tantumque eo valuit, ut multa in re militari partim nova attulerit, partim meliora fecerit.
He was indeed highly active in war, frequently commanded armies, never met with failure through his own fault, and always conquered by his strategic planning; and he was so capable in this regard that he introduced many innovations in military affairs, and partly made improvements.
§1.3namque ille pedestria arma mutavit.
For he changed the arms of the infantry.
cum ante illum imperatorem maximis clipeis, §1.4brevibus hastis, minutis gladiis uterentur, ille e contrario peltam pro parma fecit (a quo postea peltastae pedites appellati sunt, qui antea hoplitae appellabantur), ut ad motus concursusque essent leviores, hastae modum duplicavit, gladios longiores fecit.
Whereas before he became general, they used very large shields, short spears, and tiny swords, he on the contrary adopted the pelta instead of the parma (from which the infantry, previously called hoplites, were afterwards called peltasts), so that they might be more agile in movements and charges; he doubled the length of the spears and made the swords longer.
idem genus loricarum novum instituit et pro sertis atque aeneis linteas dedit.
He also introduced a new kind of breastplates, and in place of those made of chain-mail and bronze, he gave them linen ones.
quo facto expeditiores milites reddidit: nam pondere detracto, quod aeque corpus tegeret et leve esset, curavit.
By doing this, he rendered the soldiers more active; for, by removing the weight, he saw to it that there should be something that would protect the body equally well and yet be light.