History of the Peloponnesian War Books Vii and Viii
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THE LOEB CLASSICAL LIBRARY FOUNDED BY" JAMES LOEB, LL.D. EDITED BY fT. E. PAGE, C.H., LiTT.D. tE. CAPPS, PH.D., LL.D. tW. H. D. ROUSE, litt.d. L. A. POST, M.A. E. H. WARMINGTON, m.a., f.r.hist.soc. THUCYDIDES IV ALCIBIADES MUSeO CHIARAMONTI ROME THUCYDIDES WITH AN ENGLISH TRANSLATION BY CHARLES FORSTER SMITH OF THB UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN IN FOUR VOLUMES IV HISTORY OF THE PELOPONNESIAN WAR BOOKS VII AND VIII CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS HARVARD UNIVERSITY PRESS LONDON WILLIAM HEINEMANN LTD MCMLVIU First printed 1923 Reprinted 1935, 1953, 1958 ->^ iLigRARv); Printed in Great Britain CONTENTS PAOE Frontispiece: Alcibiades .... Facing Title BOOK VII 1 BOOK VIII 133 INDEX 395 MAPS : Retreat of the Athenians : At end Siege of Sjracuse „ Aegean Sea „ Peiraeus „ Battle of Cynossema , THUCYDIDES BOOK VII . 7709 teal € - , eVel ? <;, €<? •^]. •€- /^ ecaiv, ' en re ? ? €> eaeXOeiv, etV ev he^ia , , etV iv e? / € - , &9 , yP]V . 2 eSo^ev evl ', € '^'^/, , . , - '' /^; , .^ 3 ,8 - THUCYDIDES BOOK VII I. Gylippus and Pythen, after refitting their ships, sailed from Tarentuin along the coast to Epizephy- rian Locri ; and receiving more positive informa- tion that Syracuse Avas not yet completely invested, but that it was still possible to come with an army and enter it by way of Epipolae, they deliberated whether they should risk sailing into the harbour, keeping Sicily on the right, or, keeping it on the left, should first sail to Himera and then, after having added to their forces the Himeraeans themselves and such others as they might persuade, should proceed overland. They decided to sail to Himera, especially since the four Athenian ships —which Nicias did after all ^ despatch when he learned that the enemy's shij)s were at Locri — had not yet arrived at Rhegium. They succeeded in crossing the strait before the arrival of this watch-squadron, and after touching at Rhegium and Messene, arrived at Himera. While there they persuaded the Hime- raeans to help them in the war, not only by going on the expedition themselves, but also by furnishing ' Nicias had paid little attention to the first reports of the approach of Gylippus, thinking tliat he was on a privateering mission rather than on one of war (vi. civ. 3). 3 THUCYDIDES vavrac^ el^^ov (? vaii<i iv ), ^^€\<; '•^€<; cKeXevov - 4 e? '^. -^ ' , - € € ^€\ , '] 9 ? , € 5 '<; €. 6 € ^ re ,€<;'€<;'^8e <{ €/? ,<, € € <; , ,? ' II. € ^ . € Toyy6Xo<;, el? ^, 2 ^, oXiyov ' aXXay - , Xyv € 3 '^. ' € - yap )? ' BOOK VII. I. 3-11. 3 arms for such of the crews of their ships as had none (for their ships they had beached at Himera), and also sent a request to the Selinuntians to meet them at a certain place with all their forces. A small body of troops was also promised them by the Geloans and some of the Sicels, who were now ready to join them with far greater alacrity, both because of the recent death of Archonidas, who, being king of certain Sicel tribes of that region and a man of influence, had been a friend of the Athenians, and also because Gylippus liad apparently come from Lacedaemon full of zeal. So Gylippus, taking of his own seamen and of the marines those that were equipped with arms, about seven hundred, of Hime- raean hoplites and light-armed troops together one thousand and one hundred cavalry, of the Selinun- tians some light-armed troops and cavalry, a few Geloans, and of the Sicels about one thousand in all, advanced against Syracuse. II. Meanwhile the Corinthians had put to sea from Leucas with the rest of their ships and were bring- ing aid as fast as they could ; indeed, Gongylus, one of the Corinthian commanders, though he had set out last with a single ship, was the first to arrive at Syracuse, being a little ahead of Gylippus. Finding the Syracusans on the point of holding an assembly to discuss the abandonment of the war, he prevented the meeting and encouraged them, saying that not only were still other ships about to arrive, but also Gylippus son of Cleandridas, who had been sent by the Lacedaemonians to assume the command. The Syracusans were encouraged, and at once went out with their whole army to meet Gylippus ; for they were informed that he was already near. He, after THUCYDIDES , ^ ^ €^<; ev ^ .€\ is i €<; ^?' € rjirep , -^, ivl ^ ', ^ Be ev 8 - p^yav SlttXouv , 5 ' ' ^. '^ .., III.,' - , . -/-/ XeyovTa, 2 ^, . 3 , 6 ' .^- ' ,',.' // ^ '6, Goeller's correction from Steph. Byz. of uncertain MS, readings. BOOK VII. II. 3-III. 3 taking on his way the Sicel fort of letae and marshalling his men in readiness for battle, reached Epipolae ; and ascending it by way of Euryelus, where the Athenians also had made their ascent at first,^ he formed a junction \vith the Syracusans and advanced against the wall of the Athenians. And he ha])pened to have come at the critical moment when the double wall ^ of seven or eight stadia in extent had already been completed by the Athenians down to the Great Harbour, except for a short stretch next to the sea, where they were still building. As for the rest of the encircling line, stones had already been dumped along the greater part of the stretch which ran to Trogilus and the outer sea, and it was left so, some parts half finished, other parts quite finished. So close had Syracuse come to destruction. III. The Athenians were at first thrown into a tumult by the sudden attack of Gylippus and the Syracusans, but drew up to meet them. But Gylip- pus halted near them under arms and sent forward a herald to say that if they were Avilling to quit Sicily within five days, taking what belonged to them, he was ready to make a truce. They, how- ever, treated the messenger with contempt and sent him back vithout any answer. After this they prepared for battle against one another. But Gylip- pus, seeing that the Syracusans Avere in a state of confusion and could not readily get into line, led his troops back into the more open ground. And Nicias did not lead the Athenians against him, but kept ^ c/. VI. xcvii. 2. * c/. VI. ciii. 1, THUCYDIDES kavrov €«. €'^ - <;, ^ eVi ' 4 .<;} '^ ^€ - ^, aWoae, alpei, iv - eKTeivev' €7€ 5 ^. \€. , IV. 8 eyKUpaiov ,€ \\, el 8 2 , € . '^ ^ - { 'yap , ). ' 3 '( yap ,'^.)- , 8 - . ^ 4 'Nt/cta , ^ Hude writes >vith C. ; BOOK VII. III. 3-iv. 4 quiet near his own wall. When Gylippus saw that they were not coming up, he led his army offthe field to the height called Temenites, and they bivouacked there. But on the next day he led out the main body of his army and stationed it opposite the 38 of the Athenians, in order to prevent their sending reinforcements to any other point ; then, sending a detachment against the fort at Labdalum, he cap- tured it and put to death all whom he took in it for the place (it should be explained) was not within sight of the Athenians. On the same day, too, an Athenian trireme that was keeping watch at the mouth of tlie Great Harbour was captured by the Syracusans. IV. After this the Syracusans and their allies proceeded to build a single wall running upwards from the city across Epipolae at an angle with the Athenian wall, in order that the Athenians, if they could not prevent its completion, might no longer be able to wall them off. By this time the Athenians had finished their wall next to the sea and had come up to the high ground ; and Gylippus, since a certain part of the Athenian wall vas weak, took his army by night and advanced against this. But the Athe- nians, who happened to be bivouacking outside the walls, perceived this movement and advanced against him ; and he, on observing this, quickly led his men back again. The Athenians accordingly built this part of the wall higher and kept guard there them- selves ; but their allies they now disposed along the rest of the wall, at the points where they were each to keep guard. Nicias determined also to fortify the place called Plemmyrium, a headland opposite the city, which THUCYDIDES rjTTep /; €'€€ TTOiei, el €^€, ' ^ yap ,^ \- € ' - , .?irpoaeiy^e re € ' , , , 5 . ' ev 8 € ^ 6 . tow ^ eyeveTO' yap - iyyodev, €7 pyavov e^eXOoiev , y yap - . 8 ev YiXyjp- , " aopyove e^ioiev, eVt tjj ev 7 -] ^. he - ' Trepirei € , irepi Yiiyiov. ^\. he ^, ^ 8 ' , he e^yv aiel )( BOOK VII. IV. 4-v. I juts out in front of the Great Harbour and makes its entrance narrow. If this were fortified^ it seemed to him that the bringing in of suppHes would be an easier matter ; for the Athenians could keep watch upon the harbour of the Syracusans at nearer range, and would not, as now, be obliged to j)ut out against the enemy from the inner bay of the Great Harbour, should they show any activity with their fleet. And in general from now on he gave his attention more to naval warfare, seeing that matters on land were less hopeful for themselves, now that Gylippus had come. Accordingly, taking over his ships and some troops he built three forts, in which most of the stores were deposited ; and the large boats and the ships of war were now moored there. And it was especially in consequence of this that the condition of the crews then first began to decline. For their water supply was scanty and not near at hand, and at the same time, whenever the sailors went out to fetch firewood they suffered heavily at the hands of the Syracusan horsemen, who overran the country. For the Syracusans had posted a third part of their cavalry at the hamlet near the Olympieum on account of the troops at Plemmyrium, that these might not go out and commit depredations.