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Livy · History of Rome §42.44.1-42.44.8

Dissolution of the Boeotian League and Return of Envoys

Passage 1634 of 1770 · Latin

Summary

The Roman commissioners dissolved the Boeotian league by making individual treaties with various cities, including Thebes, secured a garrison from the Achaeans, and returned to Rome after completing their mission.

§42.44.1Chalcidem ut ventum est, aliarum civitatium principes, id quod maxume gratum erat Romanis, suo quique proprie decreto regiam societatem aspernati Romanis se adiungebant; Ismenias gentem Boeotorum in fidem Romanorum permitti aecum censebat.
When they arrived at Chalcis, the leading men of the other states, a thing which was extremely pleasing to the Romans, rejecting the alliance with the king each by their own particular decree, joined themselves to the Romans; Ismenias thought it fair that the Boeotian nation should be surrendered to the protection of the Romans.
§42.44.2inde certamine orto, nisi in tribunal legatorum perfugisset, haud multum afuit, quin ab exulibus fautoribusque eorum interficeretur.
When a dispute arose therefrom, if he had not fled to the tribunal of the commissioners, he was within a little of being killed by the exiles and their supporters.
§42.44.3Thebae quoque ipsae, quod Boeotiae caput est, in magno motu erant, aliis ad regem trahentibus civitatem, aliis ad Romanos; §42.44.4et turba Coronaeorum Haliartiorumque convenerat ad defendendum decretum regiae societatis.
Thebes itself also, which is the capital of Boeotia, was in great agitation, some drawing the state to the king, others to the Romans; and a crowd of Coroneans and Haliartians had assembled to defend the decree of the alliance with the king.
sed constantia principum docentium cladibus Philippi Antiochique, quanta esset vis et fortuna imperii Romani, victa tandem multitudo et, ut tolleretur regia societas, decrevit, et eos, qui auctores paciscendae amicitiae fuerant, ad satisfaciendum legatis Chalcidem misit fideique legatorum commendari civitatem iussit.
But through the firmness of the leading men, who pointed out by the disasters of Philip and Antiochus how great was the power and fortune of the Roman empire, the multitude was at length overcome, and decreed that the alliance with the king should be abolished, and sent to Chalcis those who had been the authors of making the friendship, to give satisfaction to the commissioners, and ordered that the state should be recommended to the good faith of the commissioners.
§42.44.5Thebanos Marcius et Atilius laeti audierunt auctoresque et his et separatim singulis fuerunt ad renovandam amicitiam mittendi Romam legatos.
Marcius and Atilius heard the Thebans with pleasure, and advised both them and each of the states individually to send ambassadors to Rome to renew the friendship.
§42.44.6ante omnia exules restitui iusserunt et auctores regiae societatis decreto suo damnarunt.
First of all, they ordered the exiles to be restored, and by their own decree condemned the authors of the alliance with the king.
ita, quod maxume volebant, discusso Boeotico concilio in Peloponnesum proficiscuntur Ser. Cornelio Chalcidem accersito.
Thus, having broken up the Boeotian council, which was what they most desired, they set out for the Peloponnese, after summoning Servius Cornelius to Chalcis.
§42.44.7Argis praebitum est iis concilium; ubi res aliud a gente Achaeorum petierunt, quam ut mille milites darent.
At Argos an assembly was granted to them; there they asked nothing else from the Achaean nation than that they should give a thousand soldiers.
§42.44.8id praesidium ad Chalcidem tuendam, dum Romanus exercitus in Graeciam traiceretur, missum est.
This garrison was sent to protect Chalcis, until the Roman army should be crossed over into Greece.
Marcius et Atilius peractis, quae agenda in Graecia erant, principio hiemis Romam redierunt.
Marcius and Atilius, having finished what was to be done in Greece, returned to Rome at the beginning of winter.

Notes

  1. 42.44.1suo quique proprie decreto — quique is either an archaic ablative form of quisque agreeing with suo... decreto, or a nominative plural in apposition with principes. In either case, it functions like suo quisque decreto ('each by their own decree').
  2. 42.44.2haud multum afuit, quin — The impersonal construction haud multum afuit, quin... (followed by the subjunctive) means 'it was not far from occurring that...' or 'he was within a hair's breadth of being...'.
  3. 42.44.3quod Boeotiae caput est — The relative pronoun quod (neuter singular) agrees in gender and number not with its antecedent Thebae (feminine plural), but with the predicate noun caput (neuter singular) inside the relative clause (attraction to the predicate).
  4. 42.44.5auctores ... mittendi Romam legatos — The genitive gerund phrase mittendi Romam legatos ('of sending ambassadors to Rome') depends directly on auctores fuerunt ('they were the authors/advisors'). ad renovandam amicitiam expresses the purpose of sending them.
  5. 42.44.7ubi res aliud — The phrase ubi res aliud... contains a suspected textual corruption; it is commonly emended or interpreted as representing nihil aliud... quam ut or nec aliud, meaning 'they asked nothing else... than that...'.

Cite this passage

Livy, History of Rome §42.44.1-42.44.8. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi0914.phi001.humanitext-lat2:42.44.1-42.44.8

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