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18. 22. Ἀθηναίων—the overthrow of Hippias, 510 B.C.

23. οἱ ἐκ τῆς—the prep. by attraction to κατελύθησαν.

ἐπὶ πολὺ κτλ.—lit. which over a large area had been under tyrants even before Athens. The earliest instance was at Sicyon, where Orthagoras became tyrant circ. 670 B.C.

24. οἱ πλεῖστοι ... Σικελίᾳ—limiting apposition to οἱ τύραννοι, καὶ ... Σικελίᾳ explaining πλεῖστοι, most of them, the last in fact except those in Sicily. In Syracuse the tyrants lasted till 466 B.C., when Thrasybulus was expelled.

25. ὑπὸ Αακεδαιμονίων—the Spartans were called μισοτύραννοι. Cf. Aristotle, Pol. v. 10 Αακ. πλείστας κατέλυσαν τυραννίδας. But their traditional policy of tyrant-breaking was dropped in the fourth cent., when αὐτονομία became their watehword. Thus in 371 B.C. an orator is represented by Xen. as taunting the Spartans with preferring tyranny to free institutions. Alcibiades in his speech at Sparta (6.89—winter of 415-4 B.C.) makes a point out of this tradition.

27. τὴν κτίσιν—strictly speaking the Dorians did not found Sparta: it existed before the invasion; but there is no difficulty in speaking of the second founders thus.

1. ὧν ἴσμεν=ἐκείνων οὓς ἴσμεν. The στάσις lasted longer at Sparta than elsewhere: cf. Herod. i 65, the Spartans before Lycurgus κακονομώτατοι ἦσαν σχεδὸν πάντων Ἑλλήνων κατά τε σφέας αὐτοὺς καὶ ξείνοισι ἀπρόσμικτοι. In spite of this, they were the earliest to obtain good laws—μετέβαλον ἐς εὐνομίην (Herod. l.c.)=ηὐνομήθη.

4. τετρακόσια—this gives a later date than 884 B.C. which other authorities assign to Lycurgus.

7. δυνάμενοι=δυνατοὶ ὄντες, see L. & S.

8. μετὰ δέ—the main sentence is resumed after the parenthesis. Cf. the use of δέδ᾽ οὖν) in c. 11. 1; οὖν in 7.42. 3; δέ is frequent. So autem, sed, igitur.

τὴν κατάλυσιν ἐκ τῆς Ἑλλάδος—the art. is not repeated with a verbal substantive. The words necessary to complete its sense generally follow, but sometimes precede it, as in 2.18. 3 κατὰ τὴν ἄλλην πορείαν σχολαιότης. In the latter case, the prepositional phrase is connected with the verb of the sentence (cf. 2.7. 2; 38. 1) as well as with the verbal substantive.

10. καὶ ἐν Μαραθῶνι μάχη—i.e. now begins the modern period, τὰ Μηδικά.

12. τῷ μ. στόλῳthe great armada.

[2] 14. ἐπικρεμασθέντοςimpending, as ii. 53. 4; 3.40. 7.

16. τῶν ξυμπολεμησάντων—this and ἡγήσαντο are ingressive; ‘assumed the leadership of those who entered on the war as allies.’ προύχοντες—causal.

19. καὶ ἀνασκευασάμενοι ... ἐσβάντες ... ἐγένοντο=ἁναλαβόντες τὰ σκεύη ἐσέβησαν καὶ ἐγένοντο. Observe the historical importance of ναυτικοὶ ἐγένοντο, which is emphasised hy its connexion with ἡγήσαντο τῶν Ἑλλήνων.

20. ἀπωσάμενοι ... διεκρίθησαν—the subject modified in the course of the sentence from ‘the confederates’ to the confederates exclusive of Athens and Sparta, and those Asiatic cities and islands that revolted from Persia after Salamis.

24. ταῦτα—Athens and Sparta. διεφάνηit had become clear that, denoting the singling out of these two from among the rest. The aor. in sense of plup. appears in (1) sentences introduced by ‘when,’ ‘since,’ ‘until’ regularly; (2) in rel. and other subord. sentences often, (3) in principal sentences oceasionally.

[3] 26. ὁμαιχμία—used hy Herod. and late writers; the adj. ὅμαιχμος in iii. 58. 4.

27. διενεχθέντες—open war in 457 B.C., dispute in 461 B.C. See c. 102. ἐπολέμησαν—till the thirty years' truce 445 B.C. See c. 107.

4. ἤδη ἐχώρουνnow regularly joined these states—i e. entered the alliance of Athens or Sparta. Contrast the earlier state of affairs, c. 15. 2 οὐ γὰρ ξυνειστήκεσαν κτλ,

5. τὰ μὲν σπενδόμενοι—this should mean now making truces; but we certainly expect ‘being now at peace.’ In the previous sentences Thuc. has described the state of affairs (a) from the battle of Salamis to 457 B.C., (b) from 457 onwards. Now during period (a) Athens and Sparta were at peace; but from 466 disputes began between Athens and her allies. During period (b) Athens and Sparta might be said to be ‘making truces’ (450, 445 B C.) or making war. The ὥστε therefore seems to refer to what happened from 466 onwards; but ἀπὸ τῶν Μηδικῶν—the war with Xerxes to the battle of Plataea (or Mycale) does not agree with this. There is a want of precision in the passage.

7. εὖ παρεσκευάσαντο τὰ πολέμια—ef. Arist. Ath. Pol. 23 of the Athenians, συνέβη τὰ εὶς τὸν πόλεμον ἀσκῆσαι. τὰ πολέμια in the sense of τὰ πολεμικά is found in Herod. and Hippocrates; Xen. Anab. 1.6.1; Arist. Ath. Pol. c. 3 and 23.

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hide References (15 total)
  • Commentary references from this page (15):
    • Thucydides, Histories, 1.102
    • Thucydides, Histories, 1.107
    • Thucydides, Histories, 1.11.1
    • Thucydides, Histories, 1.15.2
    • Thucydides, Histories, 1.23
    • Thucydides, Histories, 1.3
    • Thucydides, Histories, 1.53.4
    • Thucydides, Histories, 2.18.3
    • Thucydides, Histories, 2.38.1
    • Thucydides, Histories, 2.7.2
    • Thucydides, Histories, 3.40.7
    • Thucydides, Histories, 6.89
    • Thucydides, Histories, 7.42.3
    • Xenophon, Anabasis, 1.6.1
    • Thucydides, Histories, 1.58.4
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