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Cornelius Nepos · Epaminondas §10.1-10.4

Celibacy and Thebes' Decline Following His Death

Passage 10 of 10 · Latin

Summary

This passage recounts Epaminondas' reasons for remaining unmarried and his retort to Pelopidas, his restraint during the liberation of Thebes, and how his death marked the end of Theban supremacy, demonstrating the singular value of one man to his state.

§10.1Hic uxorem numquam duxit.
He never married.
in quo cum reprehenderetur a Pelopida, qui filium habebat infamem, maleque eum in eo patriae consulere diceret, quod liberos non relinqueret, 'vide' inquit 'ne tu peius consulas, qui talem ex te natum relicturus sis. §10.2neque vero stirps potest mihi deesse: namque ex me natam relinquo pugnam Leuctricam, quae non modo mihi superstes, sed etiam immortalis sit necesse est. ' §10.3quo tempore duce Pelopida exules Thebas occuparunt et praesidium Lacedaemoniorum ex arce expulerunt, Epaminondas, quamdiu facta est caedes civium, domo se tenuit, quod neque defendere malos volebat neque impugnare, ne manus suorum sanguine cruentaret: namque omnem civilem victoriam funestam putabat.
When he was blamed for this by Pelopidas, who had a son of ill repute, and who said that in this respect Epaminondas consulted poorly for the interest of his country because he left no children, Epaminondas said: "Take care lest you consult worse, you who are going to leave such a son born of you." "Indeed, offspring cannot fail me; for I leave as my daughter, born of me, the battle of Leuctra, which of necessity must not only survive me, but even be immortal." At which time, under the leadership of Pelopidas, the exiles seized Thebes and expelled the Lacedaemonian garrison from the citadel, Epaminondas, as long as the slaughter of citizens was taking place, kept himself at home, because he wished neither to defend the wicked nor to fight them, lest he should stain his hands with the blood of his countrymen; for he thought that every victory in a civil war was disastrous.
idem, postquam apud Cadmeam cum Lacedaemoniis pugnari coeptum est, in primis stetit.
But this same man, after the fighting against the Lacedaemonians began at the Cadmea, stood in the front ranks.
§10.4Huius de virtutibus vitaque satis erit dictum, si hoc unum adiunxero, quod nemo ibit infitias, Thebas et ante Epaminondam natum et post eiusdem interitum perpetuo alieno paruisse imperio, contra ea, quamdiu ille praefuerit rei publicae, caput fuisse totius Graeciae.
Of his virtues and life enough will have been said, if I add this one thing, which no one will deny: that both before the birth of Epaminondas and after his death, Thebes was constantly subject to foreign rule, whereas, as long as he was at the head of the state, she was the leader of all Greece.
ex quo intellegi potest unum hominem pluris quam civitatem fuisse.
From this it can be understood that one man was of more value than the state.

Notes

  1. 10.1patriae consulere — When the verb consulere governs the dative case (here, patriae), it means "to consult for the interest of" or "look after". This must be distinguished from its transitive use with the accusative, which means "to consult" or "ask advice of".
  2. 10.1qui talem ex te natum relicturus sis — The relative clause led by qui contains a subjunctive (the active future participle relicturus + sis, the subjunctive present of esse), expressing a causal or characteristic quality modifying the subject tu ("you who are going to leave...").
  3. 10.3pugnari coeptum est — An impersonal passive construction using the passive infinitive of the intransitive verb pugnare along with the impersonal passive auxiliary coeptum est, meaning "fighting began" or "a battle was started."
  4. 10.4ante Epaminondam natum — A construction where the preposition ante governs the noun Epaminondam modified by the perfect participle natum to mean "before the birth of Epaminondas" (the so-called ab urbe condita construction, where a noun-participle combination represents an action).
  5. 10.4pluris — The neuter genitive singular of the comparative adjective (*pluris*), functioning here as a genitive of value. Combined with the infinitive fuisse, it means "was of more value" or "was of greater importance."

Cite this passage

Cornelius Nepos, Epaminondas §10.1-10.4. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi0588.abo015.humanitext-lat2:10.1-10.4

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