μετὰ ταῦτα πυνθανόμενος Φλάκκον ἀπὸ τῆς ἐναντίας στάσεως ὕπατον ᾑρημένον διαπερᾶν τὸν Ἰόνιον μετὰ δυνάμεως, λόγῳ μὲν ἐπὶ Μιθριδάτην, ἔργῳ δὲ ἐπʼ ἐκεῖνον αὐτόν, ὥρμησεν ἐπὶ Θετταλίας ὡς ἀπαντήσων. γενομένῳ δὲ αὐτῷ περὶ πόλιν Μελίτειαν ἀφικνοῦντο πολλαχόθεν ἀγγελίαι πορθεῖσθαι τὰ κατόπιν αὖθις οὐκ ἐλάττονι στρατιᾷ βασιλικῇ τῆς πρότερον.
After this, learning that Flaccus, a man of the opposite faction, had been chosen consul and was crossing the Ionian sea with an army, ostensibly against Mithridates, but really against himself, he set out towards Thessaly in order to meet him. But when he was come to the city of Meliteia, tidings reached him from many quarters that the regions behind him were ravaged again by an army of the king which was no smaller than the former.
Δορύλαος γὰρ εἰς Χαλκίδα καταχθεὶς παρασκευῇ νεῶν πολλῇ, ἐν αἷς ἦγεν ὀκτὼ μυριάδας ἠσκημένας καὶ συντεταγμένας ἄριστα δὴ τῆς Μιθριδατικῆς στρατιᾶς, εὐθὺς εἰς Βοιωτίαν ἐνέβαλε καὶ κατεῖχε τὴν χώραν, προθυμούμενος εἰς μάχην ἐπισπάσασθαι τὸν Σύλλαν, οὐ προσέχων Ἀρχελάῳ διακωλύοντι, καὶ λόγον περὶ τῆς προτέρας μάχης διαδιδοὺς ὡς οὐκ ἄνευ προδοσίας μυριάδες τοσαῦται διαφθαρεῖεν.
For Dorylaüs, having put in at Chalcis with a large fleet, on which he brought eighty thousand of the best trained and disciplined men in the army of Mithridates, at once burst into Boeotia and occupied the country. He was eager to entice Sulla to battle, disregarding the protests of Archelaüs, and giving it out that in the previous battle so many myriads had not perished without treachery.
οὐ μὴν ἀλλὰ ὁ Σύλλας ταχέως ὑποστρέψας ἀπέδειξε τῷ Δορυλάῳ τὸν Ἀρχέλαον ἄνδρα φρόνιμον καὶ τῆς Ῥωμαίων ἐμπειρότατον ἀρετῆς, ὥστε μικρὰ αὐτὸν τῷ Σύλλᾳ περὶ τὸ Τιλφώσσιον ἐμπεσόντα πρῶτον εἶναι τῶν οὐκ ἀξιούντων κρίνεσθαι διὰ μάχης, ἀλλὰ δαπάναις καὶ χρόνῳ τρίβειν τὸν πόλεμον. ὅμως δὲ θάρσος τι τῷ Ἀρχελάῳ παρεῖχεν ὁ πρὸς Ὀρχομενῷ τόπος, ἐν ᾧ κατεστρατοπέδευσαν, εὐφυέστατος ὢν ἱπποκρατοῦσιν ἐναγωνίσασθαι.
Sulla, however, turning swiftly back, showed Dorylaüs that Archelaüs was a man of prudence and best acquainted with the Roman valour, so that after a slight skirmish with Sulla near Tilphossium, he was first of those who thought it expedient not to decide the issue by a battle, but rather to wear out the war by dint of time and treasure. Nevertheless, Archelaüs was much encouraged by the nature of the country about Orchomenus, where they were encamped, since it was most favourable as a battle-field for an army superior in cavalry.
τῶν γὰρ Βοιωτίων πεδίων ὅ τί πέρ ἐστι κάλλιστον καὶ μέγιστον, τοῦτο τῆς Ὀρχομενίων ἐξηρτημένον πόλεως ὁμαλὸν ἀναπέπταται καὶ ἄδενδρον ἄχρι τῶν ἑλῶν ἐν οἷς ὁ Μέλας καταναλίσκεται ποταμός, ἀνατέλλων μὲν ὑπὸ τὴν πόλιν τῶν Ὀρχομενίων πολὺς καὶ πλώϊμος ἐν πηγαῖς μόνος τῶν Ἑλληνικῶν ποταμῶν, αὐξόμενος δὲ ὑπὸ τροπὰς θερινάς, ὥσπερ ὁ Νεῖλος, καὶ φέρων ὅμοια τοῖς ἐκεῖ τὰ φυόμενα, πλὴν ἄκαρπα καὶ ἀναυξῆ.
For of all the plains of Boeotia this is the largest and fairest, and beginning from the city of Orchomenus, it spreads out smooth and treeless as far as the marshes in which the river Melas loses itself. This rises close under the city of Orchomenus, and is the only Greek river that is copious and navigable at its sources; moreover, it increases towards the time of the summer solstice, like the Nile, and produces plants like those which grow there, only stunted and without fruit.
πόρρω δὲ οὐ πρόεισιν, ἀλλὰ τὸ μὲν πλεῖστον εὐθὺς εἰς λίμνας τυφλὰς καὶ ἑλώδεις ἀφανίζεται, μέρος δὲ οὐ πολὺ τῷ Κηφισῷ συμμίγνυται, περὶ ὃν μάλιστα τόπον ἡ λίμνη δοκεῖ τὸν αὐλητικὸν ἐκφέρειν κάλαμον.
Its course is short, however, and the greater part of it disappears at once in blind and marshy lakes, while a small portion of it unites with the Cephisus, somewhere near the place in which the stagnant water is reputed to produce the famous reed for flutes.
ἐπεὶ δὲ ἐγγὺς κατεστρατοπέδευσαν, ὁ μὲν Ἀρχέλαος ἡσύχαζεν, ὁ δὲ Σύλλας ὤρυττε τάφρους ἑκατέρωθεν, ὅπως, εἰ δύναιτο, τῶν στερεῶν καὶ ἱππασίμων ἀποτεμόμενος τοὺς πολεμίους ὤσειεν εἰς τὰ ἕλη. τῶν δὲ οὐκ ἀνασχομένων, ἀλλʼ ὡς ἀφείθησαν ὑπὸ τῶν στρατηγῶν, ἐντόνως καὶ ῥύδην ἐλαυνόντων, οὐ μόνον οἱ περὶ τὰ ἔργα τοῦ Σύλλα διεσκεδάσθησαν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοῦ παρατεταγμένου συνεχύθη τὸ πλεῖστον φυγόντος.
When the two armies had encamped near each other, Archelaüs lay still, but Sulla proceeded to dig trenches on either side, in order that, if possible, he might cut the enemy off from the solid ground which was favourable for cavalry, and force them into the marshes. The enemy, however, would not suffer this, but when their generals sent them forth, charged impetuously and at full speed, so that not only Sulla’s labourers were dispersed, but also the greater part of the corps drawn up to protect them was thrown into confusion and fled.
ἔνθα δὴ Σύλλας αὐτὸς ἀποπηδήσας τοῦ ἵππου καὶ σημεῖον ἀναρπάσας ὠθεῖτο διὰ τῶν φευγόντων εἰς τοὺς πολεμίους, βοῶν ἐμοὶ μὲν ἐνταῦθά που καλόν, ὦ Ῥωμαῖοι, τελευτᾶν, ὑμεῖς δὲ τοῖς πυνθανομένοις ποῦ προδεδώκατε τὸν αὐτοκράτορα, μεμνημένοι φράζειν ὡς ἐν Ὀρχομενῷ. τούτους τε δὴ τὸ ῥηθὲν ἐπέστρεψε, καὶ τῶν ἐπὶ τοῦ δεξιοῦ κέρως σπειρῶν δύο προσεβοήθησαν, ἃς ἐπαγαγὼν τρέπεται τοὺς πολεμίους.
Then Sulla threw himself from his horse, seized an ensign, and pushed his way through the fugitives against the enemy, crying: For me, O Romans, an honourable death here; but you, when men ask you where you betrayed your commander, remember to tell them, at Orchomenus. The fugitives rallied at these words, and two of the cohorts on his right wing came to his aid; these he led against the enemy and routed them.
ἀναγαγὼν δὲ μικρὸν ὀπίσω, καὶ δοὺς ἄριστον αὐτοῖς, αὖθις ἀπετάφρευε τὸν χάρακα τῶν πολεμίων, οἱ δὲ αὖθις ἐν τάξει μᾶλλον ἢ πρότερον προσεφέροντο. καὶ Διογένης μὲν ὁ τῆς Ἀρχελάου γυναικὸς υἱὸς ἀριστεύων ἐπὶ τοῦ δεξιοῦ περιόπτως ἔπεσεν, οἱ δὲ τοξόται, τῶν Ῥωμαίων ἐκβιαζομένων, οὐκ ἔχοντες ἀναστροφὴν ἀθρόοις τοῖς ὀϊστοῖς ἐκ χειρὸς ὥσπερ ξίφεσι παίοντες ἀνέκοπτον αὐτούς, τέλος δὲ κατακλεισθέντες εἰς τὸν χάρακα μοχθηρῶς ὑπὸ τραυμάτων καὶ φόνου διενυκτέρευσαν. ἡμέρας δὲ πάλιν τῷ χάρακι τοὺς στρατιώτας προσαγαγὼν ὁ Σύλλας ἀπετάφρευεν.
Then he fell back a little distance, and after giving his men breakfast, again proceeded to fence the enemy’s entrenchments off with his ditches. But they attacked him again in better order than before, Diogenes, the step-son of Archelaüs, fought gallantly on their right wing, and fell gloriously, and their archers, being hard pressed by the Romans, so that they had no room to draw their bows, took their arrows by handfuls, struck with them as with swords, at close quarters, and tried to beat back their foes, but were finally shut up in their entrenchments, and had a miserable night of it with their slain and wounded. Next day Sulla again led his soldiers up to the enemy’s fortifications and continued trenching them off,
ἐξελθόντας δὲ τοὺς πολλοὺς ὡς ἐπὶ μάχην συμβαλὼν τρέπεται, καὶ πρὸς τὸν ἐκείνων φόβον οὐδενὸς μένοντος αἱρεῖ κατὰ κράτος τὸ στρατόπεδον. καὶ κατέπλησαν ἀποθνήσκοντες αἵματος τὰ ἕλη καὶ νεκρῶν τὴν λίμνην, ὥστε μέχρι νῦν πολλὰ βαρβαρικὰ τόξα καὶ κράνη καὶ θωράκων σπάσματα σιδηρῶν καὶ μαχαίρας ἐμβεβαπτισμένας τοῖς τέλμασιν εὑρίσκεσθαι, σχεδὸν ἐτῶν διακοσίων ἀπὸ τῆς μάχης ἐκείνης διαγεγονότων. τὰ μὲν οὖν περὶ Χαιρώνειαν καὶ πρὸς Ὀρχομενῷ τοιαῦτα λέγεται γενέσθαι.
and when the greater part of them came out to give him battle, he engaged with them and routed them, and such was their panic that no resistance was made, and he took their camp by storm. The marshes were filled with their blood, and the lake with their dead bodies, so that even to this day many bows, helmets, fragments of steel breastplates, and swords of barbarian make are found embedded in the mud, although almost two hundred years have passed since this battle. Such, then, are the accounts given of the actions at Chaeroneia and Orchomenus.
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