Charles D. Morris, Commentary on Thucydides Book 1

οἱ γὰρ Ἀθηναῖοι κτἑ.: these words introduce the events between the retirement of the Persians and the transfer of the hegemony to the Athenians, B.C. 476, c. 89-96.

ἦλθον ἐπὶ τὰ πράγματα: i.e. not of set purpose but by the course of events they found themselves in such circumstances that they had to take the hegemony. Cf. ii.36.15; 56. 12; iii.49.3. Antiphon, VI. 20. To the history of this αὐξάνεσθαι Thuc. passes in c. 97. 3 with the words τοσάδε ἐπῆλθον, which introduce the subsequent political and military enterprises deliberately carried out by the Athenians to the beginning of the war. See on ii.36.16, and Herbst, Philol. 24, p. 725 ff.—ἐπειδὴ Μῆδοι κτἑ.: following τοιῷδε without conj. Cf. c. 128. 7; ii.34.3; 75. 24; iii.20.13; 21. 2; 52. 4; 92. 3; 97. 2; 104. 5; iv.46.16; 67. 11; 90. 6; 100. 8; v.45.6; 71. 2; vi.46.12; 64. 14; 88. 2; viii.50.5; 69. 5; 104. 1. With γάρ only in ii.20.3; v.68.9; viii.73.3; 84. 2. τρόπῳ τοιῷδε is resumed in c. 96. 1 with τούτῳτῷ τρόπῳ.

καὶ ναυσὶ καὶ πεζῷ: i.e. at Salamis and Plataea.— 5. διεφθάρησαν: see Hdt. ix. 100-105.

τῶν ἐν Μυκάλῃ: cf. ii.34.14; iii.113.10.

ἀπεχώρησαν: see Hdt. ix.114.6.

καὶ οἱ...ξύμμαχοι : these were the Greeks of the Asiatic coast, who, on the appearance of the Hellenic fleet, had declared themselves independent and had become de facto allies of the Athenians. “Considering the reserved attitude of the Lacedaemonian, and the relatively private character of the Athenian, undertaking, we cannot think here of any formal reception into the Hellenic alliance.” Kirchhoff, Der delische Bund. Hermes, 11, p. 9. See App.— 9. ἤδη ἀφεστηκότες: at and after the battle of Mycale. Hdt. ix. 103 ff. The attrib. partic. placed after its subst., as c. 11. 19.

ὑπομείναντες: opp. to ἀπεχώρησαν, 7, keeping their ground. Cf. c. 76. 3.—ἐπολιόρκουν: impf.; cf. c. 26. 23; 87. 1. See Hdt. ix. 114-118.—Μήδων ἐχόντων: the standing expression. Cf. c. 94. 6; 98. 1; 103. 10.

ἐπιχειμάσαντες: so the capture of the town took place in the spring of 478. See Ullrich, Die hellen. Kriege, p. 41.—αὐτήν: τὴν Σηστόν. Schol., Σηστὸς ἡ πόλις λέγεται καὶ ἀρσενικῶς καὶ θηλυκῶς. Masc., Xen. Hell. iv.8.5, 6; Dem. XXIII. 158.

ὡς ἕκαστοι: see on c. 3. 19.

Ἀθηναίων δὲ κτἑ.: the rebuilding of the city and walls now mentioned took place in the winter months of 479-8, during the siege of Sestos. See on c. 90. 22.—τὸ κοινόν: the whole community without designation of any particular magistracy, and without distinction of βουλή and δῆμος. So c. 90. 29; 92. 3; iii.11.22. For the pl. verb following, see on c. 24. 9; 34. 5.—αὐτοῖς: ethical dat., used in good as well as in bad sense. Cf. c. 101. 6; 106. 8; v.3.21.

ἐκ τῆς χώρας: i.e. out of Attica, opp. to ἐκ τῆς Εὐρώπης, 3. See Ullrich, Hell. Kr. p. 41.—ὅθεν: = ἐντεῦθεν οἷ: a rare attraction, transferred from the pron. use to the adv. Cf. Soph. Tr. 701, ἐκ δὲ γῆς, ὅθεν προύκειτ᾽ , ἀναζέουσι θρομβώδεις ἀφροί. Hor. Od. i.38.3, rosa quo locorum sera more tur. The reference is to the neighbouring islands and the Argolic Acte. —ὑπεξέθεντο: had carried for safety; ὑπεκκεῖσθαι is the pf. pass., c. 137. 19; viii.31.15. The same verbs are used of the same fact by Hdt. viii.41.7; 60. 24; and by Plut. Them. 10. 4. Cf. also Soph. El. 297.

παῖδας καὶ γυναῖκας: without art. Kühn. 462 e; Kr. Spr. 50, 3, 8.—κατασκευήν: household goods in general. See on c. 2. 12. Cf. ii.5.13; 14. 3.

περιβόλου...οἰκίαι : in chiastic order to πόλιν . . . τείχη.

βραχέα : small portions. See on c. 14. 11.—οἰκίαι: placed before its limitations. See on c. 1. 6. Cf. iii.13.18. Cobet reads αἱ οἰκίαι.

πεπτώκεσαν : St., v. H., B. read ἐπεπτώκεσαν. G. 101, 4, N.; H. 358 c. Kühn., 199, 11, would write ᾿πεπτώκεσαν.— 20. ἐσκήνησαν : the mid. in same sense, c. 133. 5; ii.52.9.

90, 91. In spite of the resistance of the Lacedaemonians, the rebuilding of the walls of Athens is completed through the address of Themistocles.

ἦλθον πρεσβείᾳ: = ἐπρεσβεύσαντο. The dat. like ναυσὶ καὶ πεζῷ, but with no exact parallel. Cf. αὐτομολίᾳ χωρεῖν, viii.40.11.—τὰ μὲν...τὸ δὲ πλέον : the pl. more comprehensive, the sing. more emphatic. Cf. viii.47.9, 15. In c. 18. 30, with τὰ μέν . . . τὰ δέ, equal weight is laid on both —καὶ αὐτοὶ...ἔχοντα : the partic. ὁρῶντες and the following gen. abs. are causal, representing clauses with ὅτι, e.g. ὅτι ἥδιον ἂν ἑώρων εἰ μήτ᾽ ἐκείνους μήτ̓ ἄλλον μηδένα τεῖχος ἔχοντα ἑώρων, or perhaps μή may be due to the feeling that ἥδιον ἂν ὁρῶντες really expresses a wish, = μᾶλλον ἂν βουλόμενοι.

ἐξοτρυνόντων : this partic., expressing the effect, is placed co-ord. before φοβουμένων, the cause, as in c. 1. 3.

γενομένην: on the position, see on c. 11. 19.

τε: cf. c. 67. 3; 77. 14; 87. 11.— 8. ὅσοις εἰστήκει: the best Mss. have ξυνειστήκει, which is hard to explain, but may have arisen by dittography from the following word. It is retained by Sh. and Kr., with Arnold's explanation, ‘stand or hold together,’ the περίβολος being continuous, in contrast with c. 89. 18. The subj. is τείχη, from τειχίζειν. Cf. c. 91. 3.— 9. τὸ βουλόμενον καὶ ὕποπτον: see on c. 36. 3; τὸ βουλόμενον, like τὸ δεδιός, τὸ θαρσοῦν, properly ‘that which wills’ in us, and so ‘the will’ in concrete sense. Cf. Eur. I. A. 1270, οὐδ̓ ἐπὶ τὸ κείνου βουλόμενον ἐλήλυθα; 386, τὸ λελογισμένον παρείς.

δηλοῦντες : letting be seen. Cf. c. 82. 4; 102. 14; iv.68.29; v.30.14.—ἐς τοὺς Ἀθηναίους: Cl. compares c. 72. 13, ἐς τὸ πλῆθος εἰπεῖν. But it is better, with Kr., Sh., to connect this with ὕποπτον. Kr. compares vi.60.3; 61. 18; 103. 21.—ὡς δὲ τοῦ βαρβάρου...ἔχοντος : i.e. λέγοντες δὲ ὡς, εἰ μὴ τειχίζοιεν ἀλλὰ καὶ ξυγκαθέλοιεν τοὺς περιβόλους, ὁ βάρβαρος οὐκ ἂν ἔχοι κτἑ. Kühn. 398, 4; Kr. Spr. 69, 63, 3; 54, 6, 6.

ἐχυροῦ ποθεν: from some stronghold, ποθεν being = the gen. of τις. Cf. Plat. Phaedr. 268 c, ἐκ βιβλίου ποθὲν ἀκούσας; Rep. 544 d, ἢ οἴει ἐκ δρυός ποθεν ἢ ἐκ πέτρας τὰς πολιτείας γίγνεσθαι.

νῦν : in the sense of νῦν δή or νυνδή (Cobet, V. L. p. 233) = ὀλίγον ἔμπροσθεν, ἀρτίως, modo. So Dem. XIX. 65, ὅτε γὰρ νῦν ἐπορευόμεθα εἰς Δελφούς. Eur. I. T. 327.— τήν τε: τε is postscript. See on c. 33. 2.

ἀναχώρησιν κτἑ.: to be taken locally, place of retreat as well as of advance.

γνώμῃ: by the advice. Cf. c. 93. 16; iii.50.3; vi.50.2.

τοὺς μὲν Λακεδαιμονίους κτἑ.: it would be more natural that in 17 we should find αὐτὸν δ᾽ ἀπέστειλαν; but by the variation it is suggested that it was not till the departure of the Lacedaemonians that the second part of the advice was given.

ἀπήλλαξαν: gotrid of; the word implies that their presence was a burden. Cf. viii.46.26.

μέχρι τοσούτου ἕως: cf. Dem. XVIII. 48, μέχρι τούτου φίλος ὠνομάζετο, ἕως προύδωκεν. Plat. Rep. 471 b, μέχρι τούτου ποιήσονται τὴν διαφοράν, μέχρι οὗ ἂν κτἑ.

ἱκανόν : pred., containing the effect of the verb. Cf. c. 37. 21; 71. 27; ii.75.22; vi.92.26.—ἄρωσιν: for αἴρωσιν of the Mss. The two forms could hardly be distinguished when the aor. was written with ι subscript. An end to be reached, and not, as in c. 58. 16, an enduring process, is spoken of. See App.

ἀπομάχεσθαι: = μάχεσθαι ἀπ᾽ αὐτοῦ, as Plat. Phaedr. 260 b, ἀποπολεμεῖν τε χρήσιμον. Xen. Cyr. iii.1.1. Cf. ii.20.9, ὁ χῶρος ἐπιτήδειος ἐφαίνετο ἐνστρατοπεδεῦσαι.

ἐκ τοῦ ἀναγκαιοτάτου ὕψους : from the height indispensable for defence. The sense might have been expressed by ἕως ἂν τὸ τεῖχος ἐς τὸ πρὸς τὸ ἀπομάχεσθαι ἀναγκαιότατον ὕψος ἄρωσι.

τοὺς ἐν τῇ πόλει : opp. to those before Sestos, c. 89. 10. Ullrich, Hell. Kr. p. 43 ff.— 24. ὅθεν...ἔσται : fut. indic. in dependent sentence with potential sense. Cf. c. 107. 19. Kr. Spr. 53, 7, 8; Kühn. 387, 4 d.

καὶ ὁ μέν: answers to οἱ δέ in c. 91. 1, and both together describe the execution of the preceding resolution.—ὑπειπών: see on c. 35. 18.— 26. τἆλλα: (placed for emphasis before the conj.; see on c. 77. 4) as for the rest, loosely connected with what follows, τἀκεῖ alone being obj. πράξοι. Cf. ii.100.6; with ἐς, vi.15.5. —πράξοι: fut. opt. in indir. disc. Cf. ii.2.18; 80. 10; iv.83.15; viii.61.5. GMT. 70, 2; H. 932, 2.

προσῄει πρός: would not go near, of physical approach. So Aeschin. 1. 165; usually with dat. of the interview merely. Cf. c. 72. 13; iv.36.2; v.59.23; vii.72.8.—τὰς ἀρχάς: cf. v.84.20.

διῆγε: abs., let time pass on, as vii.39.5.— 29. ὅ τι: the question would be τί οὐκ ἐπέρχει; and in indir. disc., ὅ τι.

ἐπέρχεται : see on c. 72. 15.—ἐπὶ τὸ κοινόν: before the community, i.e. in the public assembly. Cf. ii.12.5; iv.84.8; 97. 9; v.37.4.

θαυμάζειν ὡς: Cobet and v. H. read πῶς, as in Xen. Cyr. ii.4.9. Usually const. with εἰ = ὅτι. But with ὅπως in Dem. XVIII. 159; “Isocr. III. 3; Xen. Apol. 25. ὡς is perhaps exclamatory.” B. L. G.