Thucydides History of the Peloponnesian War 2.80.2

ed. Henry Stuart Jones

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History of the Peloponnesian War. Thucydides. ed. Henry Stuart Jones. Oxford. 1910.

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Ἱστορίαι (Greek) (Thucydides. Historiae, Vol 1-2. Jones, Henry Stuart, editor. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1910. (1942 printing).)

Translations (11)
The History of the Grecian War Perseus (Thucydides. The English works of Thomas Hobbes of Malmesbury. Hobbes, Thomas. translator. London: John Bohn, 1843.) — 2.80.2 focus
History of the Peloponnesian War Perseus (Thucydides. History of the Peloponnesian War. Crawley, Richard, translator. London and Toronto: J. M. Dent and Sons Ltd.; New York: E. P. Dutton and Co., 1914.) — 2.80.2 focus
Geschichte des Peloponnesischen Kriegs First1KGreek (Thucydides. Geschichte des Peloponnesischen Kriegs. Wahrmund, Adolf, translator. Stuttgart: Krais and Hoffmann, 1864.) — 2.80 focus
Geschichte des Peloponnesischen Kriegs First1KGreek (Thucydides. Geschichte des Peloponnesischen Kriegs. Braun, Theodor, translator. Leipzig: Insel-Verlag, 1917.) — 2.80 focus
Histoire de la Guerre du Péloponèse First1KGreek (Thucydides. Histoire de la Guerre du Péloponnése, Vol. 1-2. Zévort, Marie Charles, translator. Paris: Charpentier, 1852.) — 2.80 focus
Histoire de la Guerre du Péloponnése First1KGreek (Thucydides. Histoire de la Guerre du Péloponnése. Bétant, Élie-Ami, translator. Paris: Librairie de L. Hachette, 1863.) — 2.80 focus
History of the Peloponnesian War First1KGreek (Thucydides, Vol. 1-4. Smith, Charles Foster, translator. London and Cambridge, MA: Heinemann and Harvard University Press, 1919-1923.) — 2.80.2 focus
History of the Peloponnesian War First1KGreek (Thucydides. The history of the Peloponnesian War, Volume 1-2. Dale, Henry, translator. London: Heinemann and Henry G. Bohn, 1851-1852.) — 2.80.2 focus
Historia Belli Peloponnesiaci First1KGreek (Historia Belli Peloponnesiaci. Haase, Friedrich, translator. Paris: Firmin Didot, 1869.) — 2.80.2 focus
Vier Staatsreden aus Thucydides First1KGreek (Thucydides. Vier Staatsreden aus Thucydides. Gürsching, Heinrich, translator. Augsburg: Wirth, 1856.) — 2.64.1 focus
La storia di Tucidide First1KGreek (Thucydides. Della storia di Tucidide volgarizzata libri otto. Anonymous translator. Florence: Tipografia Galileiana, 1835.) — 2.80 focus

Commentary

Commentary on Thucydides Book 2 (Thucydides, Book II. Marchant, Edgar C., editor. London: Macmillan and Company, 1891.) focus

Ἀμπρακιῶται —they had made an attack on Argos in concert with the Chaones and other tribes of barbarians in the autumn of 430 B.C. c. 68, 9. The Chaones were possibly a remnant of the Pelasgi. Hence they are sometimes treated as Greeks, though Thuc. always calls them barbarians. Grote, II. p. 234, Curtius, Hist. G. I. 104 ‘In later times they were regarded as barbarians ... but, according to their origin, they could claim perfect equality with the other branches of the Greek people.’ (Cf. Matthew Arnold, Lit. and Dogma, init.)

πᾶσαν —this elaborate undertaking is in marked contrast, with the issue, c. 82; and it is quite in Thuc.'s manner to make the opening imposing under such circumstances. Cf. c. 7, 2.

Ἀθηναίων — the Ambraciots were actuated by the tribe hatred existing in that quarter, and they had an old grudge against Phormio (c. 68 ). Now that Athens was in difficulties, they took the chance of revenge, and were at pains to demonstrate to Sparta that they were very important friends to her.

ἀδυνάτων — through being occupied with the fleet, and in protecting their coasts. τῶν ἀπὸ θ. Ἀ.—ἀπὸ is for ἐπὶ by attraction to ξυμβοηθεῖν, ‘the Acarnanians on the sea-coast would be unable to aid’ the inland tribes.

κρατήσουσι ἔσοιτο —the indic. and opt. in the same sentence in Or. Obl. M. T 670.

ὁμοίως —‘would not find it so easy to.’

ἐλπίδα ... λαβεῖν — ἐλπίς ἐστι regularly has aor. infin., like εἰκός ἐστι c. 11, 8.

Ναύπακτον —this appealed equally to the Spartans, Corinthians, and Ambraciots; as the position of the conquered Messenians was a chronic insult to Sparta, Phormio interfered with the western trade of Corinth, and the Ambraciots too had their grudge against him.

Ἔτι —c. 66, 2. Cnemus' year of office had not yet quite expired. For ἔτι of a period nearly complete, cf. c. 59, 3.

ἐπὶ ναυσὶν —the dat. only here and IV. 10, 3. The gen. is regular, as c. 57, 1. So Demosth. 45, 30 says τὰ ἐπὶ τραπέζης ὄντα, 27, 11 μνᾶς ἐπὶ τῇ τραπέζη?; Aristoph. Eq. 754 ἐπὶ ταυτησὶ καθῆται τῆς πέτρας, ib. 783 ἐπὶ ταῖσι πέτραις καθήμενον. There is no difference of sense, but the dat. is rare except with names of places. (Rutherford, Babrius, p. 7, wrongly denies the existence of this dat. in comedy.)

ναυτικῷ —abstract for concrete.

Λευκάδα —an ally of Sparta, c. 9, 2, and a convenient point from which to attack Acarnania.

Ἦσαν ... ξυμ —c. 12, 2.

ἐν παρασκευῇ —c. 17, 5.

ἐκ Λευκάδος ... ἀφικόμενον ἐν Λευκάδι —a convement inaccuracy, as in c. 70, 3. For ἐκ Λ., αὐτόθεν would have been more accurate.

Λαθόντες — i.e. he passed the mouth of the Gulf of Corinth on his way to Leucas without being detected.

εἴκοσι —c. 69 .

Ἀρχικοῦ —the presidency was in the hands of a particular family. The Chaones, then a powerful tribe, subsequently lost their importance, and were little more than a name in the time of Augustus. Verg. G. I. 8; II. 67. They, with the Molossi and Thesproti were the chief Epirot tribes.

Μολοσσοὺς —became under Pyrrhus the rulers of Epirus.

Ἀτιντᾶνας —bordered on the Parauaei near the river Aous.

Ὀροίδῳ —both with ξυνεστρατεύοντο and ἐπιτρέψαντος .

Κρύφα —he was supposed to be an ally of Athens, c. 29, 6.

ὕστερον —c. 5, 3.

Ἐπορεύετο —he started from Ambracia.

Λιμναίαν —between Argos and Anactorium, now Kravassara, and the natural point of departure from the Gulf of Ambracia to the Gulf of Corinth. The first object of the expedition was to obtain control of this route.

Στράτον —on the Achelous, now Sourovigli. In 168 B.C. Livy says it was urbs validissima: now it is a poor village.