Titus Livius (Livy), Ab urbe condita, Benjamin Oliver Foster, Ph.D. (Editor), Frank Gardener Moore (Editor), Evan T. Sage, Ph.D. (Editor), Alfred C. Schlesinger, Ph.D. (Editor), 38.3

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[1] Amynander, having recovered his kingdom, sent ambassadors both to the senate in Rome and to the Scipios in Asia, since they were tarrying in Ephesus after the decisive battle with Antiochus.

[2] He asked for peace and defended himself for having recovered his ancestral kingdom through the aid of the Aetolians;¹ he laid the blame on Philip.²

[3] From Athamania the Aetolians moved against³ the Amphilochians, and with the consent of the majority brought the whole tribe under their authority and control.

[4] Amphilochia having been recovered⁴ —for it had once belonged to the Aetolians —they proceeded with the same hope to Aperantia; this state also surrendered, in large measure without resistance. The Dolopians⁵ had never been subjects of the Aetolians, but belonged to Philip.

[5] At first they rushed to arms, but after they learned that the Amphilochians were with the Aetolians, that Philip had been driven from Athamania and his garrison destroyed, they too went over from Philip to the Aetolians.

[6] Having set up these buffer-states and believing that they were now safe from the Macedonians on all sides, the Aetolians received the news that Antiochus had been defeated in Asia by the Romans; and not long afterwards their envoys returned from Rome with no promise of peace,⁶ and brought word that the consul Fulvius with the army had already crossed.⁷

[7] Terrified by this information, first summoning embassies from Rhodes and Athens,⁸ that through the influence of these states their own prayers, though previously rejected, might obtain easier access to the senate, they sent the leading men of the people to Rome to try the last hope of peace, having given no thought to the avoidance of war until the enemy was almost in sight.

[8] Marcus Fulvius had by now transported his army to Apollonia and was consulting with the chiefs of the Epirotes as to where to begin the campaign.⁹

[9] ¹⁰ The advice of the Epirotes was to attack Ambracia, which had at this time joined the Aetolians:¹¹ if, on the one hand, the Aetolians should come to defend it, there were open plains on which to

[10] fight; if, on the other hand, they declined an engagement, the siege would not be

[11] difficult; for there was both abundance of material close at hand for building mounds and raising other siege-works, and a navigable river, the Aretho, suitable for the transportation of the necessary supplies, flowed past the very walls, and, moreover, summer was at hand, a season adapted to active operations. By such arguments they induced him to lead the army through Epirus.

Ab urbe condita. Titus Livius (Livy). Benjamin Oliver Foster, Ph.D. (Editor), Frank Gardener Moore (Editor), Evan T. Sage, Ph.D. (Editor), Alfred C. Schlesinger, Ph.D. (Editor). Medford, MA. .

Sponsored by Perseus Project, Tufts University.

Funding provided by The National Endowment for the Humanities.

Current edition Perseus

History of Rome (English) (Foster, Benjamin Oliver; Moore, Frank Gardener; Sage, Evan T.; Schlesinger, Alfred C., translators. Cambridge, Mass.; London: Harvard University Press; William Heinemann, Ltd., 1919-1959. (Loeb Classical Library))

Editions (3)

Ab urbe condita Perseus (Pars I-IV, Libri I-XL. Editio Stereotypica. Weissenborn, Wilhelm; Mueller, Moritz, editors. Leipzig: Teubner, 1884-1911.) — 38.3 focus

[1] Amynander recuperate recuperato regno legatos et Romam ad senatum et ad Scipiones in Asiam, Ephesi post magnum cum Antiocho proelium morantes, misit.

[2] pacem petebat excusabatque sese, quod per Aetolos recuperasset paternum regnum; Philippum incusabat.

[3] Aetoli ex Athamania in Amphilochos profecti sunt et maioris partis voluntate in ius dicionemque totam redegerunt gentem.

[4] Amphilochia recepta — nam fuerat quondam Aetolorum — eadem spe in Aperantiam transcenderunt; ea quoque magna ex parte sine certamine in deditionem venit. Dolopes numquam Aetolorum fuerant, Philippi erant.

[5] hi primo ad arma concurrerunt; ceterum postquam Amphilochos cum Aetolis esse fugamque ex Athamania Philippi et caedem praesidii eius accepere, et ipsi a Philippo ad Aetolos deficiunt.

[6] quibus circumiectis gentibus iam undique se a Macedonibus tutos credentibus esse Aetolis fama adfertur Antiochum in Asia victum ab Romanis; nec ita multo post legati ab Roma rediere sine spe pacis Fulviumque consulem nuntiantes cum exercitu iam traiecisse.

[7] his territi, prius ab Rhodo et Athenis legationibus excitis, ut per auctoritatem earum civitatium suae preces nuper repudiatae faciliorem aditum ad senatum haberent, principes gentis ad temptandam spem ultimam Romam miserunt,

[8] nihil, ne bellum haberent, priusquam paene in conspectu hostis erat, praemeditati.

[9] iam M. Fulvius Apolloniam exercitu traiecto cum Epirotarum principibus consultabat, unde bellum inciperet. Epirotis Ambraciam placebat adgredi, quae tum contribuerat se Aetolis:

[10] sive ad tuendam ear eam venirent Aetoli, apertos circa campos ad dimicandum esse; sive detractarent certamen, oppugnationem fore haud difficilem;

[11] nam et copiam in propinquo materiae ad aggeres excitandos et cetera opera esse, et Arethontem, navigabilem amnem, opportunum ad comportanda, quae usui sint, praeter ipsa moenia fluere, et aestatem aptam rei gerendae adesse. his persuaserunt, ut per Epirum duceret.

Ab urbe condita Perseus (Livy in Fourteen Volumes. Foster, Benjamin Oliver; Moore, Frank Gardener; Schlesinger, Alfred C., editors. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press; London: William Heinemann, Ltd., 1919-1959 (printing).) — 43.3 focus

[1]

et alia novi generis hominum ex Hispania legatio venit.

[2] ex militibus Romanis et ex Hispanis mulieribus, cum quibus conubium non esset, natos se memorantes, supra quattuor milia hominum, orabant ¹ ut sibi oppidum in quo habitarent daretur.

[3] senatus decrevit, uti nomina sua apud L. Canuleium profiterentur eorumque, si quos manumisissent, ² eos Carteiam ad Oceanum deduci placere;

[4] qui Carteiensium ³ domi manere vellent, potestatem fieri, uti numero colonorum essent, agro adsignato. latinam eam earn coloniam esse ⁴ libertinorumque appellari.

[5] eodem tempore ex Africa et Gulussa regulus, Masinissae filius, ⁵ legatus patris, et Carthaginienses venerunt.

[6] Gulussa prior in senatum introductus et quae missa erant ad bellum Macedonicum a patre suo exposuit; et si qua praeterea vellent imperare ⁶ praestaturum merito populi Romani est pollicitus, et monuit patres conscriptos ut a fraude Carthaginiensium caverent:

[7] classis eos magnae parandae consilium cepisse, ⁷ specie pro Romanis et adversus Macedonas; ubi ea ⁸ parata instructaque esset, ipsorum fore potestatis, quem hostem hosted aut socium habeant. hanc iniec . . . ⁹

Ab urbe condita libri, erklärt von M. Weissenborn Perseus (Weissenborn, W.; Müller, H. J., editors. Berlin: Weidmannsche Buchhandlung, 1873-1883.) — 38.3 focus

[1]

Amynander recuperato regno legatos et Romam ad senatum et ad Scipiones in Asiam, Ephesi post magnum cum Antiocho proelium morantes, misit.

[2] pacem petebat ¹ excusabatque sese, quod per Aetolos recuperasset paternum regnum; Philippum incusabat.

[3] Aetoli ex Athamania in Amphilochos profecti sunt et maioris partis voluntate in ius dicionemque totam redegerunt gentem.

[5] hi primo ad arma concurrerunt; ceterum postquam Amphilochos cum Aetolis esse fugamque ex Athamania Philippi et caedem praesidii eius accepere, et ipsi a Philippo ad Aetolos deficiunt.

[8] nihil, ne bellum haberent, priusquam paene in conspectu hostis erat, praemeditati.

[9] iam M. Fulvius Apolloniam exercitu traiecto cum Epirotarum principibus consultabat, unde bellum inciperet. Epirotis Ambraciam placebat adgredi, quae tum contribuerat se Aetolis:

[10] sive ad tuendam eam venirent Aetoli, apertos circa campos ad dimicandum esse; sive detractarent certamen, oppugnationem fore haud difficilem:

Translations (2)

History of Rome Perseus (Spillan, D.; Edmonds, Cyrus; McDevitte, William A., translators. London: Henry G. Bohn, 1849-1868. (Bohn's Classical Library)) — 38.3 focus

[1]

Amynander, on recovering possession of his kingdom, sent ambassadors, both to the senate at Rome and to the Scipios in Asia, who, since the grand battle with Antiochus, stayed at Ephesus.

[2] He requested a treaty of amity, and apologized for having had recourse to the Aetolians, for the recovery of his hereditary dominions.

[3] He made many charges against Philip. The Aetolians from Athamania proceeded into Amphilochia, and, with the consent of the greater part of the inhabitants, reduced that nation under their power and dominion.

[4] After the recovery of Amphilochia, for it had formerly belonged to the Aetolians, they passed on, with hopes of equal success, into Aperantia. That also, for the most part, surrendered to the Aetolians without a contest.

[5] The Dolopians had never been subject to the Aetolians, but they were to Philip. These, at first, ran to arms; but when they were informed of the Amphilochians taking part with the Aetolians, of Philip's flight from Athamania, and the destruction of his detachment, they also revolted from Philip to the Aetolians.

[6] Whilst the Aetolians believed that they were now secured against the Macedonians on all sides, by these nations surrounding them, the report is brought to them that Antiochus was conquered in Asia by the Romans. Not very long after, their ambassadors came home from Rome, without the prospect of peace, announcing that the consul Fulvius, with his army, had already crossed the sea.

[7] Dismayed at these accounts, they send the chief men of the state to Rome to try the last hope, having previously solicited embassies from Rhodes and Athens, that, through the influence of those states, their petitions, lately rejected, might meet with a more favourable reception from the senate:

[8] they took no kind of precaution to avert the war, before it was almost within sight. Marcus Fulvius, having brought over his army to Apollonia, was, at this time, consulting with the Epirot chiefs where he should commence his operations.

[9] It was the opinion of the Epirots that he should attack Ambracia, which had lately united itself to Aetolia;

[10] alleging, that,

in case the Aetolians should come to its relief, there were open plains around it, to fight in; or that if they should avoid a battle, there would be no great difficulty in

[11]

the siege, for there were at hand abundant materials for raising mounds and other works, while the Arachthus, a navigable river, well adapted to convey every thing requisite, flowed by the walls; besides, the summer was just approaching, the fittest season for the enterprise.

By these arguments they persuaded him to march on through Epirus.

History of Rome Perseus (Volumes 1-2. Roberts, Canon, Rev, translator. London, New York: J. M. Dent and Sons; E. P. Dutton and Co., 1912.) — 38.3 focus

[1]

His crown recovered, Amynander sent a delegation to the senate and another to the Scipios, who were staying at Ephesus after the battle with Antiochus.

[2] He asked to be allowed to remain on a peaceful footing with Rome, and in excusing himself for having sought the aid of the Aetolians in winning back his ancestral throne, threw the whole responsibility for the war on Philip.

[3] From Athamania the Aetolians marched into Amphilochia, and the voluntary surrender of the majority of the population made them masters of the whole country.

[4] After recovering Amphilochia which had formerly belonged to them, they invaded Aperantia, hoping for equal success, and this State also to a large extent surrendered without offering any resistance. The Dolopians had never been under Aetolia; they had formed part of Philip's dominions.

[5] At first they flew to arms, but when they learnt that the Amphilochians had joined the Aetolians, that Philip had fled from Athamania and his force had been cut up, they too revolted from him and joined the Aetolians.

[6] With these States all round them, the Aetolians considered themselves secure on every side from the Macedonians. But in the midst of their security they received intelligence of the defeat of Antiochus at the hands of the Romans in Asia, and not long after, their envoys returned from Rome bringing no hope of peace and announcing that the consul Fulvius had already landed in Greece with an army.

[7] Appalled at these tidings they begged Rhodes and Athens to send delegates to Rome so that with the support of these friendly nations their own petitions which had been lately rejected might find readier access to the ear of the senate.

[8] They then sent their leaders to Rome as their last hope, having taken no precautions to avoid war until the enemy was almost in sight. M. Fulvius had now brought his army up to Apollonia and was consulting the Epirot leaders as to where he should open the campaign.

[9] They thought the best course would be to begin with an attack on Ambracia, which had by that time joined the Aetolian League.

[10] They pointed out that if the Aetolians came to its relief, the open and level country afforded a favourable field of battle;

[11] if they avoided an engagement, the siege would be by no means a difficult one as there was abundance of timber in the neighbourhood for constructing the raised galleries and all the other siege works; the Aretho, a navigable river and well adapted for transporting all necessary materials, flowed past the very walls; and in the last place, summer, the season for active operations, was approaching.

Notes on the current edition

Ab Urbe Condita With An English Translation, books 1-10, 21-45, with periochae 11-20

1. Amynander recognizes the necessity of placating Rome even if he does not admit her virtual protectorate over Greece. His own diplomatic status was somewhat uncertain: he had allied himself with the Aetolians and Antiochus (XXXV. xlvii. 8), and for that reason the Romans had consented to Philip's conquest (XXXVI. xiv. 9). It may be assumed that the return of Amynander would automatically restore Athamania to the status of an Aetolian ally, and that Amynander is trying to escape the dangers of such a position.

2. These charges must have been based on the character of Philip's government after his conquest (i. 2 above), as no other plausible cause for finding fault with him is apparent.

3. B.C. 189

4. Cf. XXXII. xxxiv. 4.

5. For Philip's recent acquisition of Aperantia and Dolopia, cf. XXXVI. xxxiii. 7. In the latter case it was a re-conquest, since Dolopia had been freed from Macedonian control in 196 B.C. (XXXIII. xxxiv. 6).

6. The embassy had been expelled from Italy: cf. XXXVII. xlix. 5-7.

7. The appointment of Fulvius to Aetolia was reported at XXXVII. i. 8.

8. These two states were frequently appealed to as peacemakers; for Rhodes, cf. XXVII. xxx. 4; for Athens, cf. XXXVII. vi. 4, where her intervention for Aetolia the preceding year is recorded.

9. Livy here seems to think that there were no other Roman forces in Greece at this time, and in this he apparently has the support of Polybius (XXII. ix). However, in XXXVII. ii. 7-8 the propraetor Cornelius was instructed to conduct an army to Aetolia, and in XXXVII. i. 4 the presence of an army there was assumed. Livy has, as often, changed sources without warning. The account of the siege of Ambracia follows Polybius closely.

10. B.C. 189

11. Ambracia had been the capital of Pyrrhus (cf. v. 2 and ix. 13 below), and had later become a member of the Aetolian League.

Titus Livius (Livy) Ab urbe condita 38.3

Benjamin Oliver Foster, Ph.D. (Editor), Frank Gardener Moore (Editor), Evan T. Sage, Ph.D. (Editor), Alfred C. Schlesinger, Ph.D. (Editor)

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