Herodotus · Histories Ἱστορίαι

Herodotus, Histories 1.149–153: The Aeolian cities and the Spartan warning to Cyrus

The Aiolian cities are listed, and the account tells how Smyrna was lost to Colophonian exiles. Pythermos the Phocaian asked the Spartans for help, but they refused. They sent a herald to Cyrus at Sardis forbidding him to harm any city of the Hellas, and Cyrus scorned them for their market-places before leaving Sardis in the charge of Tabalos.

Sections 1.149–153 · 742 words · click a number to copy its link

αὗται μὲν αἱ Ἰάδες πόλιες εἰσί, αἵδε δὲ αἱ Αἰολίδες, Κύμη ἡ Φρικωνὶς καλεομένη, Λήρισαι, Νέον τεῖχος, Τῆμνος, Κίλλα, Νότιον, Αἰγιρόεσσα, Πιτάνη, Αἰγαῖαι, Μύρινα, Γρύνεια. αὗται ἕνδεκα Αἰολέων πόλιες αἱ ἀρχαῖαι· μία γὰρ σφέων παρελύθη Σμύρνη ὑπὸ Ἰώνων· ἦσαν γὰρ καὶ αὗται δυώδεκα αἱ ἐν τῆ ἠπείρῳ.

οὗτοι δὲ οἱ Αἰολέες χώρην μὲν ἔτυχον κτίσαντες ἀμείνω Ἰώνων, ὡρέων δὲ ἥκουσαν οὐκ ὁμοίως.

and those of Aiolia are as follows:—Kyme, which is called Phriconis, Larisai, Neon-teichos, Temnos, Killa, Notion, Aigiroëssa, Pitane, Aigaiai, Myrina, Gryneia; these are the ancient cities of the Aiolians, eleven in number, since one, Smyrna, was severed from them by the Ionians; for these cities, that is those on the mainland, used also formerly to be twelve in number. And these Aiolians had the fortune to settle in a land which is more fertile than that of the Ionians but in respect of climate less favoured.

σμύρνην δὲ ὧδε ἀπέβαλον Αἰολέες. Κολοφωνίους ἄνδρας στάσι ἑσσωθέντας καὶ ἐκπεσόντας ἐκ τῆς πατρίδος ὑπεδέξαντο. μετὰ δὲ οἱ φυγάδες τῶν Κολοφωνίων φυλάξαντες τοὺς Σμυρναίους ὁρτὴν ἔξω τείχεος ποιευμένους Διονύσῳ, τὰς πύλας ἀποκληίσαντες ἔσχον τὴν πόλιν.

βοηθησάντων δὲ πάντων Αἰολέων, ὁμολογίῃ ἐχρήσαντο τὰ ἔπιπλα ἀποδόντων τῶν Ἰώνων ἐκλιπεῖν Σμύρνην Αἰολέας. ποιησάντων δὲ ταῦτα Σμυρναίων ἐπιδιείλοντο σφέας αἱ ἕνδεκα πόλιες καὶ ἐποιήσαντο σφέων αὐτέων πολιήτας.

Now the Aiolians lost Smyrna in the following manner:—certain men of Colophon, who had been worsted in party strife and had been driven from their native city, were received there for refuge: and after this the Colophonian exiles watched for a time when the men of Smyrna were celebrating a festival to Dionysos outside the walls, and then they closed the gates against them and got possession of the city. After this, when the whole body of Aiolians came to the rescue, they made an agreement that the Ionians should give up the movable goods, and that on this condition the Aiolians should abandon Smyrna. When the men of Smyrna had done this, the remaining eleven cities divided them amongst themselves and made them their own citizens.

αὗται μέν νυν αἱ ἠπειρώτιδες Αἰολίδες πόλιες, ἔξω τῶν ἐν τῇ Ἴδῃ οἰκημενέων· κεχωρίδαται γὰρ αὗται.

αἱ δὲ τὰς νήσους ἔχουσαι πέντε μὲν πόλιες τὴν Λέσβον νέμονται (τὴν γὰρ ἕκτην ἐν τῇ Λέσβῳ οἰκημένην Ἀρίσβαν ἠνδραπόδισαν Μηθυμναῖοι ἐόντας ὁμαίμους), ἐν Τενέδῳ δὲ μία οἴκηται πόλις, καὶ ἐν τῇσι Ἑκατὸν νήσοισι καλεομένῃσι ἄλλη μία.

Λεσβίοισι μέν νῦν καὶ Τενεδίοισι, κατά περ Ἰώνων τοῖσι τὰς νήσους ἔχουσι, ἦν δεινὸν οὐδέν· τῇσι δὲ λοιπῇσι πόλισι ἕαδε κοινῇ Ἴωσι ἕπεσθαι τῇ ἂν οὗτοι ἐξηγέωνται.

These then are the Aiolian cities upon the mainland, with the exception of those situated on Mount Ida, for these are separate from the rest. And of those which are in the islands, there are five in Lesbos, for the sixth which was situated in Lesbos, namely Arisba, was enslaved by the men of Methymna, though its citizens were of the same race as they; and in Tenedos there is one city, and another in what are called the “Hundred Isles.” Now the Lesbians and the men of Tenedos, like those Ionians who dwelt in the islands, had no cause for fear; but the remaining cities came to a common agreement to follow the Ionians whithersoever they should lead.

ὡς δὲ ἀπίκοντο ἐς τὴν Σπάρτην τῶν Ἰώνων καὶ Αἰολέων οἱ ἄγγελοι (κατὰ γὰρ δὴ τάχος ἦν ταῦτα πρησσόμενα), εἵλοντο πρὸ πάντων λέγειν τὸν Φωκαέα, τῷ οὔνομα ἦν Πύθερμος. ὁ δὲ πορφύρεόν τε εἷμα περιβαλόμενος, ὡς ἂν πυνθανόμενοι πλεῖστοι συνέλθοιεν Σπαρτιητέων, καὶ καταστὰς ἔλεγε πολλὰ τιμωρέειν ἑωυτοῖσι χρηίζων.

Λακεδαιμόνιοι δὲ οὔ κως ἐσήκουον, ἀλλʼ ἀπέδοξέ σφι μὴ τιμωρέειν Ἴωσι. οἳ μὲν δὴ ἀπαλλάσσοντο, Λακεδαιμόνιοι δὲ ἀπωσάμενοι τῶν Ἰώνων τοὺς ἀγγέλους ὅμως ἀπέστειλαν πεντηκοντέρῳ ἄνδρας, ὡς μὲν ἐμοὶ δοκέει, κατασκόπους τῶν τε Κύρου πρηγμάτων καὶ Ἰωνίης.

ἀπικόμενοι δὲ οὗτοι ἐς Φώκαιαν ἔπεμπον ἐς Σάρδις σφέων αὐτῶν τὸν δοκιμώτατον, τῷ οὔνομα ἦν Λακρίνης, ἀπερέοντα Κύρῳ Λακεδαιμονίων ῥῆσιν, γῆς τῆς Ἑλλάδος μηδεμίαν πόλιν σιναμωρέειν, ὡς αὐτῶν οὐ περιοψομένων.

Now when the messengers from the Ionians and Aiolians came to Sparta (for this business was carried out with speed), they chose before all others to speak for them the Phocaian, whose name was Pythermos. He then put upon him a purple cloak, in order that as many as possible of the Spartans might hear of it and come together, and having been introduced before the assembly he spoke at length, asking the Spartans to help them. The Lacedemonians however would not listen to him, but resolved on the contrary not to help the Ionians. So they departed, and the Lacedemonians, having dismissed the messengers of the Ionians, sent men notwithstanding in a ship of fifty oars, to find out, as I imagine, about the affairs of Cyrus and about Ionia. These when they came to Phocaia sent to Sardis the man of most repute among them, whose name was Lacrines, to report to Cyrus the saying of the Lacedemonians, bidding him do hurt to no city of the Hellas, since they would not permit it.

ταῦτα εἰπόντος τοῦ κήρυκος, λέγεται Κῦρον ἐπειρέσθαι τοὺς παρεόντας οἱ Ἑλλήνων τίνες ἐόντες ἄνθρωποι Λακεδαιμόνιοι καὶ κόσοι πλῆθος ταῦτα ἑωυτῷ προαγορεύουσι· πυνθανόμενον δέ μιν εἰπεῖν πρὸς τὸν κήρυκα τὸν Σπαρτιήτην· οὐκ ἔδεισά κω ἄνδρας τοιούτους, τοῖσι ἐστι χῶρος ἐν μέσῃ ἑωυτῷ προαγορεύουσι· τῇ πόλι ἀποδεδεγμένος ἐς τὸν συλλεγόμενοι ἀλλήλους ὀμνύντες ἐξαπατῶσι· τοῖσι, ἢν ἐγὼ ὑγιαίνω, οὐ τὰ Ἰώνων πάθεα ἔσται ἔλλεσχα ἀλλὰ τὰ οἰκήια.

ταῦτα ἐς τοὺς πάντας Ἕλληνας ἀπέρριψε ὁ Κῦρος τὰ ἔπεα, ὅτι ἀγορὰς στησάμενοι ὠνῇ τε καὶ πρήσι χρέωνται· αὐτοὶ γὰρ οἱ Πέρσαι ἀγορῇσι οὐδὲν ἐώθασι χρᾶσθαι, οὐδέ σφι ἐστὶ τὸ παράπαν ἀγορή.

μετὰ ταῦτα ἐπιτρέψας τὰς μὲν Σάρδις Ταβάλῳ ἀνδρὶ Πέρσῃ, τὸν δὲ χρυσὸν τόν τε Κροίσου καὶ τὸν τῶν ἄλλων Λυδῶν Πακτύῃ ἀνδρὶ Λυδῷ κομίζειν, ἀπήλαυνε αὐτὸς ἐς Ἀγβάτανα, Κροῖσόν τε ἅμα ἀγόμενος καὶ τοὺς Ἴωνας ἐν οὐδενὶ λόγῳ ποιησάμενος τὴν πρώτην εἶναι.

ἡ τε γὰρ Βαβυλών οἱ ἦν ἐμπόδιος καὶ τὸ Βάκτριον ἔθνος καὶ Σάκαι τε καὶ Αἰγύπτιοι, ἐπʼ οὓς ἐπεῖχέ τε στρατηλατέειν αὐτός, ἐπὶ δὲ Ἴωνας ἄλλον πέμπειν στρατηγόν.

When the herald had spoken thus, Cyrus is said to have asked those of the Hellenes whom he had with him, what men the Lacedemonians were and how many in number, that they made this proclamation to him; and hearing their answer he said to the Spartan herald: “Never yet did I fear men such as these, who have a place appointed in the midst of their city where they gather together and deceive one another by false oaths: and if I continue in good health, not the misfortunes of the Ionians will be for them a subject of talk, but rather their own.” These words Cyrus threw out scornfully with reference to the Hellenes in general, because they have got for themselves markets and practise buying and selling there; for the Persians themselves are not wont to use markets nor have they any market-place at all. After this he entrusted Sardis to Tabalos a Persian, and the gold both of Croesus and of the other Lydians he gave to Pactyas a Lydian to take charge of, and himself marched away to Agbatana, taking with him Croesus and making for the present no account of the Ionians. For Babylon stood in his way still, as also the Bactrian nation and the Sacans and the Egyptians; and against these he meant to make expeditions himself, while sending some other commander about the Ionians.

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English translation by G. C. Macaulay (1890). Original text: A. D. Godley (ed.), Herodotus, Loeb Classical Library, 4 vols, London: Heinemann; Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1920-1925 (Greek text as digitised by Perseus).

Greek text and translation from the Perseus Digital Library, Tufts University, CC BY-SA 4.0 (Perseus Digital Library, Greek text); translation public domain. Introductions, summaries and notes © GreekMythology.com.