Κλεομένης ὁ Λεωνίδου τοῦ Κλεωνύμου παραλαβὼν τὴν βασιλείαν ἐν Σπάρτῃ Παυσανίαν ἐμιμεῖτο τυραννίδος τε ἐπιθυμῶν καὶ νόμοις τοῖς καθεστηκόσιν οὐκ ἀρεσκόμενος. ἅτε δὲ ὄντι αὐτῷ Παυσανίου θερμοτέρῳ καὶ οὐ φιλοψύχῳ ταχὺ τὰ πάντα ὑπὸ φρονήματος καὶ τόλμης κατείργαστο, καὶ βασιλέα τε οἰκίας τῆς ἑτέρας Εὐρυδαμίδαν παῖδα ἔτι ἀνελὼν φαρμάκῳ διὰ τῶν ἐφορευόντων ἐς Ἐπικλείδαν τὸν ἀδελφὸν μετέστησε τὴν ἀρχὴν καὶ τὸ κράτος τῆς γερουσίας καταλύσας πατρονόμους τῷ λόγῳ κατέστησεν ἀντʼ αὐτῶν. ἐπιθυμῶν δὲ πραγμάτων μειζόνων καὶ ἀρχῆς τῶν Ἑλλήνων, ἐπέθετο Ἀχαιοῖς πρώτοις, συμμάχους ἐλπίζων ἕξειν ἢν κρατήσῃ καὶ μάλιστα ἐμποδὼν οὐκ ἐθέλων εἶναί οἱ τοῖς δρωμένοις.
συμβαλὼν δὲ περὶ Δύμην τὴν ὑπὲρ Πατρῶν, Ἀράτου καὶ τότε ἡγουμένου τῶν Ἀχαιῶν, νικᾷ τῇ μάχῃ. τοῦτο Ἄρατον ἠνάγκασεν ὑπέρ τε Ἀχαιῶν καὶ αὐτῆς Σικυῶνος δείσαντα Ἀντίγονον ἐπάγεσθαι. Κλεομένους δὲ παραβάντος ἣν πρὸς Ἀντίγονον συνέθετο εἰρήνην καὶ παράσπονδα ἐκ τοῦ φανεροῦ καὶ ἄλλα δράσαντος καὶ Μεγαλοπολίτας ποιήσαντος ἀναστάτους, οὕτω διαβάντος ἐς Πελοπόννησον Ἀντιγόνου συμβάλλουσιν Ἀχαιοὶ Κλεομένει περὶ Σελλασίαν. νικησάντων δὲ τῶν Ἀχαιῶν Σελλασία τε ἠνδραποδίσθη καὶ αὐτὴ Λακεδαίμων ἑάλω. Λακεδαιμονίοις μὲν οὖν ἀπέδωκεν Ἀντίγονος καὶ Ἀχαιοὶ πολιτείαν τὴν πάτριον·
τῶν δὲ Λεωνίδου παίδων Ἐπικλείδας μὲν ἀπέθανεν ἐν τῇ μάχῃ, Κλεομένην δὲ φεύγοντα ἐς Αἴγυπτον καὶ τιμῆς παρὰ Πτολεμαίῳ πρῶτα ἔχοντα συνέβη δεθῆναι, καταγνωσθέντα Αἰγυπτίων ἄνδρας ἐπὶ τὸν βασιλέα συνιστάναι. καὶ ἀπέδρα μὲν ἐκ τοῦ δεσμωτηρίου καὶ τοῖς Ἀλεξανδρεῦσιν ἀρχὴν θορύβου παρέσχε· τέλος δέ, ὡς ἡλίσκετο, ἀπέσφαξεν αὑτόν. Λακεδαιμόνιοι δὲ ἄσμενοι Κλεομένους ἀπαλλαγέντες βασιλεύεσθαι μὲν οὐκέτι ἠξίωσαν, τὰ δὲ λοιπὰ καὶ ἐς τόδε διαμένει σφίσιν ἐκείνης τῆς πολιτείας. Ἀράτῳ δὲ Ἀντίγονος ἅτε ἀνδρὶ εὐεργέτῃ καὶ συγκατειργασμένῳ λαμπρὰ οὕτω διέμεινεν εὔνους.
Φίλιππος δὲ ὡς παρέλαβε τὴν ἀρχήν —οὐ γὰρ αὐτὸν Ἄρατος θυμῷ πολλὰ ἐς τοὺς ἀρχομένους χρώμενον ἐπῄνει, τὰ δὲ καὶ ὡρμημένον ἐπεῖχε μὴ ποιεῖν—, τούτων ἕνεκεν ἀπέκτεινεν Ἄρατον, οὐδὲν προϊδομένῳ δούς οἱ φάρμακον. καὶ τὸν μὲν ἐξ Αἰγίου —ταύτῃ γὰρ τὸ χρεὼν ἐπέλαβεν αὐτὸν—ἐς Σικυῶνα κομίσαντες θάπτουσι, καὶ τὸ ἡρῷον Ἀράτειον ἔτι ὀνομάζεται· Φιλίππῳ δὲ καὶ ἐς Εὐρυκλείδην καὶ Μίκωνα Ἀθηναίους ὅμοια εἰργάσθη· καὶ γὰρ τούσδε ὄντας ῥήτορας καὶ οὐκ ἀπιθάνους τῷ δήμῳ φαρμάκοις ἔκτεινεν.
ἔμελλε δὲ ἄρα καὶ αὐτῷ Φιλίππῳ τὸ ἀνδροφόνον φάρμακον ἔσεσθαι συμφορά· τὸν γάρ οἱ παῖδα Δημήτριον ὁ νεώτερος τῶν Φιλίππου παίδων Περσεὺς φαρμάκῳ διέφθειρε καὶ διʼ αὐτὸ καὶ τῷ πατρὶ ἀθυμήσαντι παρέσχεν αἰτίαν ἀποθανεῖν. παρεδήλωσα δὲ τάδε ἀπιδὼν ἐς τὸ Ἡσιόδου σὺν θεῷ πεποιημένον, τὸν ἐπʼ ἄλλῳ βουλεύοντα ἄδικα ἐς αὑτὸν πρῶτον τρέπειν.
μετὰ δὲ τὸ Ἀράτου ἡρῷον ἔστι μὲν Ποσειδῶνι Ἰσθμίῳ βωμός, ἔστι δὲ Ζεὺς Μειλίχιος καὶ Ἄρτεμις ὀνομαζομένη Πατρῴα, σὺν τέχνῃ πεποιημένα οὐδεμιᾷ· πυραμίδι δὲ ὁ Μειλίχιος, ἡ δὲ κίονί ἐστιν εἰκασμένη. ἐνταῦθα καὶ βουλευτήριόν σφισι πεποίηται καὶ στοὰ καλουμένη Κλεισθένειος ἀπὸ τοῦ οἰκοδομήσαντος· ᾠκοδόμησε δὲ ἀπὸ λαφύρων ὁ Κλεισθένης αὐτὴν τὸν πρὸς Κίρρᾳ πόλεμον συμπολεμήσας Ἀμφικτύοσι. τῆς δὲ ἀγορᾶς ἐστιν ἐν τῷ ὑπαίθρῳ Ζεὺς χαλκοῦς, τέχνη Λυσίππου, παρὰ δὲ αὐτὸν Ἄρτεμις ἐπίχρυσος.
πλησίον δὲ Ἀπόλλωνός ἐστιν ἱερὸν Λυκίου, κατερρυηκός τε ἤδη καὶ ἥκιστα θέας ἄξιον. φοιτώντων γὰρ λύκων σφίσιν ἐπὶ τὰς ποίμνας ὡς μηδένα εἶναι καρπὸν ἔτι ἀπʼ αὐτῶν, ὁ θεὸς τόπον τινὰ εἰπὼν ἔνθα ἔκειτο αὖον ξύλον, τούτου φλοιὸν ἔχρησε τοῦ ξύλου καὶ κρέας ὁμοῦ προθεῖναι τοῖς θηρίοις· καὶ τοὺς μὲν αὐτίκα ὡς ἐγεύσαντο διέφθειρεν ὁ φλοιός, τὸ ξύλον δὲ ἐκεῖνο ἔκειτο μὲν ἐν τῷ ἱερῷ τοῦ Λυκίου, ὅ τι δὲ ἦν δένδρον οὐδὲ οἱ τῶν Σικυωνίων ἐξηγηταὶ συνίεσαν.
τούτου δέ εἰσιν εἰκόνες ἐφεξῆς χαλκαῖ· τὰς Προίτου θυγατέρας λέγουσιν εἶναι σφᾶς, τὸ δὲ ἐπίγραμμα ἐς γυναῖκας ἄλλας εἶχεν. ἐνταῦθα Ἡρακλῆς χαλκοῦς ἐστι· Λύσιππος ἐποίησεν αὐτὸν Σικυώνιος, καὶ πλησίον Ἑρμῆς ἕστηκεν Ἀγοραῖος.
Cleomenes, son of Leonidas, son of Cleonymus, having succeeded to the kingdom in Sparta, imitated Pausanias in his thirst for absolute power, and his discontent with the existing constitution ; and being a man of a more fiery temperament than Pausanias, and no craven, he soon, by his daring spirit, carried all before him. Eurydamidas, the king of the other branch, was a boy, Cleomenes poisoned him; and, through the agency of the ephors, transferred the sovereignty to his own brother, Epiclidas. Further, he broke the power of the Senate, substituting for it a merely nominal Council of Elders. And now, his ambition taking a higher flight, he aimed at the sovereignty of Greece. The first upon whom he fell were the Achaeans. He hoped that a victory would win them to his side: at all events, he was determined that they should not thwart him in the prosecution of his schemes. Near Dyme, beyond Patrae, he engaged and defeated an Achaean force commanded by Aratus.
Thus Aratus, alarmed for the safety of the Achaeans and Sicyon itself, was obliged to invoke the aid of Antigonus. Cleomenes meanwhile violated the treaty which he had made with Antigonus. Amongst other acts, by which he openly set the treaty at defiance, he expelled the population of Megalopolis. So Antigonus crossed into Peloponnese, and the Achaeans encountered Cleomenes near Sellasia. Victory rested with the Achaeans: Sellasia was enslaved ; and Lacedaemon itself was taken. Accordingly Antigonus and the Achaeans restored to the Lacedaemonians their hereditary constitution.
But, of the sons of Leonidas, Epiclidas fell in the battle, and Cleomenes fled to Egypt, where he received from Ptolemy the highest marks of honour. However, having been found guilty of conspiring against the king, he was cast into prison, but escaped and stirred up a riot in Alexandria. At last, being taken, he fell by his own hand. In their joy at being rid of Cleomenes the Lacedaemonians resolved to be ruled by kings no longer, but the rest of their old constitution remains in force till this day. Antigonus, grateful to Aratus for his services and his co-operation in achieving so brilliant a success, remained his steady friend.
But when Philip came to the throne, Aratus could not approve of the new king’s cruelty to his subjects, and even endeavoured partially to restrain it; so Philip murdered him by administering poison to his unsuspecting victim. From Aegium, where he died, they carried Aratus to Sicyon, and buried him there, and the shrine is still named the shrine of Aratus. Two Athenians, Euryclides and Micon, met with the like treatment at the hand of Philip. They were orators of some influence with the people, and Philip poisoned them. 5. After all, the fatal cup was destined to prove disastrous to Philip himself. For his younger son, Perseus, poisoned his brother Demetrius, and this broke his father’s heart, and he died. In this digression I have had in view the inspired saying of Hesiod, that the mischief which a man plots against another recoils first upon himself.
Beyond the shrine of Aratus is an altar to Isthmian Poseidon, an image of Gracious Zeus, and an image of Artemis named Paternal. The images are rude: that of Zeus resembles a pyramid, and that of Artemis a column. Here also is their Council House, and a colonnade called the Colonnade of Clisthenes, after the man who built it. Clisthenes built it from the spoils of the war against Cirrha, in which he fought on the side of the Amphictyons. In the open part of the market-place is a bronze Zeus, a work of Lysippus, and beside it is a gilded Artemis.
Near them is a sanctuary of Wolfish (Lykeios) Apollo, but it is in ruins and not at all worth seeing. When the flocks of the Sicyonians were so infested by wolves that they got no return from them, the god told them of a place where lay a dry trunk of a tree, and bade them take the bark of this tree, mix it with flesh, and set it out for the wolves. As soon as the wolves tasted it they were poisoned by the bark. This trunk lay in the sanctuary of the Wolfish God, but even the Sicyonian guides did not know what kind of tree it was. Next to this sanctuary are bronze images: they say they are the daughters of Proetus, but the inscription refers to different women. Here is a bronze Hercules, made by Lysippus, the Sicyonian. Near it stands an image of Hermes of the Market.
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