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Cornelius Nepos · Eumenes §10.1-10.4

Betrayal of Troops and the Capture of Eumenes

Passage 10 of 13 · Latin

Summary

Although Eumenes successfully delayed Antigonus by his stratagem, he was betrayed by his jealous generals and Macedonian veterans and handed over to the enemy. Antigonus wished to spare Eumenes due to his outstanding military talents, but was forced to abandon the idea because of the strong opposition from his followers.

§10.1Sic Eumenes callidum imperatorem vicit consilio celeritatemque impedivit eius, neque tamen multum profecit.
Thus Eumenes defeated the cunning general by his stratagem and hindered his speed, and yet he did not profit much.
§10.2nam invidia ducum, cum quibus erat, perfidiaque Macedonum veteranorum, cum superior proelio discessisset, Antigono est deditus, cum exercitus ei ter ante separatis temporibus iurasset se eum defensurum neque umquam deserturum.
For by the envy of the generals with whom he was, and by the treachery of the Macedonian veterans, although he had come off superior in the battle, he was surrendered to Antigonus, even though the army had previously sworn to him on three separate occasions that they would defend him and never desert him.
sed tanta fuit nonnullorum virtutis obtrectatio, ut fidem amittere mallent quam eum non perdere.
But so great was the jealousy of some towards his merit, that they preferred to lose their honor rather than not to destroy him.
§10.3atque hunc Antigonus, cum ei fuisset infestissimus, conservasset, si per suos esset licitum, quod ab nullo se plus adiuvari posse intellegebat in eis rebus, quas impendere iam apparebat omnibus.
And Antigonus would have preserved him, although Eumenes had been most hostile to him, if it had been permitted by his own men, because he understood that he could be helped more by no one in those matters which it was already clear to everyone were impending.
imminebant enim Seleucus, Lysimachus, Ptolemaeus, opibus iam valentes, cum quibus ei de summis rebus erat dimicandum.
For Seleucus, Lysimachus, and Ptolemy, already powerful in resources, were looming, with whom he had to fight for the supreme power.
§10.4sed non passi sunt ii qui circa erant, quod videbant Eumene recepto omnes prae illo parvi futuros.
But those who were around him did not allow it, because they saw that if Eumenes were received, they would all be of little account compared to him.
ipse autem Antigonus adeo. erat incensus, ut nisi magna spe maximarum rerum leniri non posset.
Moreover, Antigonus himself was so incensed that he could not be appeased except by a great hope of the greatest advantages.

Notes

  1. 10.2cum superior proelio discessisset — A concessive cum clause. 'superior' is a predicate nominative referring to 'Eumenes' being victorious, and 'discessisset' means 'had departed/withdrawn from the battle'. Thus, 'although he had come off victorious in the battle.'
  2. 10.2ut fidem amittere mallent quam eum non perdere — A consecutive ut clause containing a comparative construction 'malle... quam...' combined with a double negation. 'eum non perdere' means 'not to destroy him' (i.e., to let him live), which is compared to 'amittere fidem' (to lose their faith/fidelity). The whole phrase means 'they preferred to lose their honor/faith rather than not destroy him' (i.e., they would rather break their oath than let him survive).
  3. 10.3conservasset — Pluperfect subjunctive in the apodosis of a past contrary-to-fact condition, paired with the protasis 'si... esset licitum' ('if it had been permitted...'). It expresses that Antigonus would have spared Eumenes, though in reality he did not.
  4. 10.4Eumene recepto — Ablative absolute functioning conditionally, meaning 'if Eumenes were received (back/into favor).'

Cite this passage

Cornelius Nepos, Eumenes §10.1-10.4. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi0588.abo018.humanitext-lat2:10.1-10.4

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