Very useful is enoch powells lexicon to herodotus, sadly out of print but kindly made available online by the tlg. Henceforward the struggle was uninterrupted, and they communicated with 2 one another only by heralds. In books 6 and 7, he describes the athenian expedition against sicily in the years 4154, an act of naked imperialism that ended in. Thucydides, history of the peloponnesian war, the second. Book 2 begins with thebes invading plataea, and ath. Thucydides quotes author of history of the peloponnesian war. Greek text with english translation includes index vol. The eight books of thucydides history, translated by r. I have added the section numbers to facilitate specific citation or to find a.
See all books authored by thucydides, including history of the peloponnesian war, and the landmark thucydides. By thucydides 431 bc book i chapter i chapter ii chapter iii chapter iv chapter v book ii. Thucydides, the peloponnesian war, book 2, chapter 34. Selfcontrol is the chief element in selfrespect, and selfrespect is the chief element in courage. The original account of the war by an athenian general. It contains memorable sections on alcibiades, on the athenians excitement at the sailing, on the mutilation of the herms and a digression. We catch a glimpse of it in thucydides book ii, with pericless funeral oration, where he lays out this vision of the ideal city. Page 385 olorus, the author of this history, who was at thasos, a parian colony, about a halfdays sail from amphipolis, and urged him to come to their aid.
For full treatment, see ancient greek civilization. Please look over our study guide questions below as you read through books 4 and the opening chapters of book 5 chs. The history follows the chronological order of events by. The history places great importance upon naval supremacy, arguing that a modern empire is impossible without a strong navy. The second book of thucydides history is of particular literary interest, containing as it does such important sections as the funeral oration, the account of the plague at athens and the obituary of pericles.
The first book 245k the second book 190k the third book 187k the fourth book 220k the fifth book 169k the sixth book 187k the seventh book 164k the eighth book 187k. We live in climactic times as did thucydides, and he understood that from the first and in his introductory chapters of book 1, especially chapters 2023, he outlines why he believed the peloponnesian war was the greatest in history to his time, if not the biggest in numbers chapter 21, and then makes the most extraordinary claim of all which. History of the peloponnesian warbook 2 wikisource, the. Essential for the early books is the commentary by asheri et al.
Thucydides s most popular book is history of the peloponnesian war. There is the silent testimony of the three historians who began where he. I also was a bit disappointed by his socalled objectivity. Thucydides history of the peloponnesian war, book 2, chapter 7 second year. Thucydides, greek historian thucydides was an athenian historian and general. The best books on thucydides five books expert recommendations. Thucydides, history of the peloponnesian war, the second book. It is also meant to be used with the abridged edition of liddell and scotts greek english lexicon, which reliably contains nearly all of the vocabulary of book i of thucydides. Designed to introduce both students and general readers to a work that is an essential part of a liberal education, this book seeks to encourage readers to explore thucydides one of the worlds greatest historians for themselves.
However, arnold freshly collated a number of greek manuscripts, including the important tenthcentury laurentian manuscript, which led to some revision of. The narrative is arranged according to summers and winters and follows the order of events. That was a regular occurrence in athens after the end of the persian wars. The goal of this book is to examine thucydides techniques of presenta tion and. Thucydides peloponnesian war read in original ancient. Pericles funeral oration book 2, chapters 3446 so as the spartans withdrew from attika to winter quarters after their first invasion of the war, the athenians gave a public funeral for those who died fighting for them in the year, the oration being given by the. But in the fifteenth year, being the fortyeighth of the priesthood of chrysis in argos, aenesias being then ephor at sparta and pythadorus, archon of athens, having then two months of his government to come, in the sixth month after the battle at potidaea and in the beginning of the spring. Although the greeks had been victorious in the persian wars, they. Thucydides the peloponnesian war part 1 going postal. Vanderspoel, department of greek, latin and ancient history, university of calgary. Every ancient text has its own unique system for locating content by numbers. The war marks a turning point in ancient greek history as the golden age of greek dominance is changed in the region. The book concludes with an insightful discussion of thucydides as a thinker and philosophic historian. Although from the mid700s bce the alphabet existed in the ancie.
Spartans, under archidamus ii, leading an army into attica, the region around athens. Oct 24, 2011 the leagues were led by sparta and athens respectively. It also allows me to voice a number of criticisms of lianeris approach and. The following narrative comes from the history of the pelo. Scientist who said universe follows the same laws that govern music and numbers. Thucydides history of the peloponnesian war complete the eight books of thucydides history, translated by r. In practice, the limited number of athenian ships allowed the conflict of corinth and corcyra to escalate to the level that it did. The funeral oration was recorded by thucydides in book two of his famous history of the peloponnesian war. Thucydides states that his work would be found profitable by. Pericles was a general, the leader we most associate with athens golden age, but he ended up dying of plague before the end of the peloponnesian war. Plutarch adds that the small number of athenian ships may have been the effect of perikles desire to humiliate the family of kimon. Pericles funeral oration on the greek 50 drachmai 1955 banknote. Herodotus histories is divided into nine books and each of these.
His work was the first recorded political and moral analysis of a nations war policies. Thucydides, history of the peloponnesian war, volume i. Called the father of modern history, thucydides between 460 and 455 b. Thucydides book the history of the peloponnesian war thucydides belief. Eurymachus, the person with whom the traitors had negotiated, being one. What thucydides achieves is one of the first real historical accounts detailing minute aspects of the war and how humanity records events in the centuries to follow. History of the peloponnesian war volume 2 bookshop. The first book on your list is by vincent azoulay, and its called pericles of athens. Of numerous suggested identifications none has found general approval.
Pericles begins his funeral speech in thucydides book 2 by dissenting from the view that the. Thucydides of athens, one of the greatest of historians, was born about 471 bce. Pericles funeral oration from the peloponnesian war book 2. History of the peloponnesian war by thucydides goodreads. This theorem is used in geometry today to help determine the length of the sides of a triangle. On reserve in the classics library, 233 allen bldg. A comprehensive guide to the peloponnesian war, by thucydides, with commentary by robert b. And he, on hearing this, sailed in haste with seven ships which happened to be at hand, wishing above all to secure amphipolis before it yielded, or, failing in that, to seize eion. Thucydides has been dubbed the father of scientific history by those who accept his. He is remembered for his history of the peloponnesian war, which analyses the origins and course of the war, and includes the reconstruction of political speeches of figures such as pericles. Thucydides classic work is a foundational text in the history of western political thought. Histories, thucydides translated into english volume 1.
There are also a fair number of contemporary documents recorded on stone, most of which confirm his account both in general and in detail. The first book 245k the second book 190k the third book 187k the fourth book 220k the fifth book 169k the sixth book 187k. The history, which is divided into eight books, probably not by thuc. Although thucydides records the speech in the first person as if it were a word for word record of what pericles said, there can be little doubt that he edited the speech at the very least. Thucydides has 458 books on goodreads with 95494 ratings. For now all intercourse except through the medium of heralds ceased, and hostilities were commenced and prosecuted without intermission. The state of greece from the earliest times to the commencement of the peloponnesian war. Scholars have developed a system of numbering to help read the text. His history of the peloponnesian war recounts the 5th century bc war between sparta and athens to the. Thucydides, greatest of ancient greek historians and author of the history of the peloponnesian war, which recounts the struggle between athens and sparta in the 5th century bc.
Thucydides and the plague of athens what it can teach us now. This is a shortened version of his fourvolume book about the same war, for the popular reader. Shutterstock plague narratives about 270 years after the iliad, or thereabouts, plague is the centrepiece of two great classical athenian works sophocles oedipus the king, and book 2 of thucydides history of the peloponnesian war. Thucydides was a greek historian and athenian general. Thucydides description of the great plague at athens the. Although from the mid700s bce the alphabet existed in the ancient. Citations in classics and ancient history the most common style in use in the field of classical studies is the authordate style, also known as chicago 2, but mla is also quite common and perfectly acceptable. The orator goes on to argue that this action rankled with the lacedaemonians and was a strong motive, 50 years later, in their influencing the theban night attack on plataea in 431 bc, which was the first action in the peloponnesian war described in thucydides book 2. One of the greatest ancient historians, thucydides c. The sourcebook is a collection of public domain and copypermitted texts related to medieval and byzantine history.
Thucydides, history of the peloponnesian war, volume ii. Book 1 is slightly anti athenian imperialism, book 2 light proathenian pericles. With an english translation by charles forster smith. Chapter vi beginning of the peloponnesian war first invasion of attica funeral oration of pericles the war between the athenians and peloponnesians and the allies on either side now really begins.
This done, the plataeans sent a messenger to athens, gave back the dead to the thebans under a truce, and arranged things in the city as seemed best to meet the present emergency. History of the peloponnesian war book summary, by thucydides. This edition, like its companions thucydides ll and iv, is intended primarily for undergraduates and candidates taking alevel examinations. Mar 21, 2020 statue portrait of historian thucydides outside the austrian parliament in vienna. Thucydides history of the peloponnesian war translated by richard crawley the first book chapter i. Jun 01, 1991 enter your mobile number or email address below and well send you a link to download the free kindle app. Thucydides bilingual anthology studies thucydides in print table of contents book 1 chapter i. The state of greece from the earliest times to the commencement of the peloponnesian war thucydides, an athenian, wrote the history of the war between the peloponnesians and the athenians, beginning at the moment that it. The peace, which after the winning of euboea was concluded for thirty years, lasted fourteen years. Thucydides summary of his importance to athens book 2, chapter 65 is quite explicit that pericles successors were simply not the equal of the great man and ultimately this led to athens defeat a quarter of a century later. Funerals after such battles were public rituals and pericles used the occasion to make a classic statement of the value of democracy. He saw the rise of athens to greatness under the inspired leadership of pericles. At about the same time, while the earthquakes prevailed, the sea at orobiae in euboea receded from what was then the shoreline, and then coming on in a great wave.
In the fifteenth, in the fortyeighth year of the priestessship of chrysis at argos, in the ephorate of aenesias at sparta, in the last month but two of the archonship of pythodorus at athens, and six months after the battle of potidaea, just. There are, nonetheless, a number of points in this. Page 155 agis son of archidamus, king of the lacedaemonians, advanced as far as the isthmus with the intention of invading attica. And now the war between the athenians and peloponnesians and the. Books by thucydides author of history of the peloponnesian war. A comprehensive guide to the peloponnesian war, and more on. The nature of the plague described by thucydides in book 2, chapter 49, has long been discussed both by medical and by classical scholars. Book vi of thucydides deals, through its speeches in particular, with athenian motivation towards sending the great expedition to sicily, with the attitudes of various factions involved, and with the seeds of the expeditions ultimate disastrous conclusion. It will also be useful to students who are approaching a book of thucydides for the first time, or studying the peloponnesian war from a more general, historical perspective. Thucydides books list of books by author thucydides. Thucydides anthology in english and greek side by side. Kagan is basically a military historian, and a conservative. For example, homers iliad is divided into 24 books what we might now call chapters and the lines of each book are numbered from line 1.
What can thucydides and the plague of athens teach us in. For instance, while thucydides considered the number of over 1,000 greek ships sent to troy to be a poetic. His history of the peloponnesian war recounts the 5th century bc war between sparta and athens to the year 411 bc. He kept to a strict chronological scheme, and, where it can be accurately tested by the eclipses that he mentions, it fits closely.
Modern interest in the classical greek historian thucydides stems in large part. Thucydides peloponnesian war read in original ancient greek. The history of the peloponnesian war has been divided into the following sections. Professor rustens commentary aims to assist the students to learn to read thucydides. Thucydides description of the plague that struck athens in 430 bc is one of the. Causes of the warthe affair of epidamnusthe affair of potidaea. Lets talk about the books youve chosen to better understand thucydides and his time. May 03, 2012 edith foster is associate professor of history at ashland university. The history of the peloponnesian war, by thucydides 431 bc. Thucydides the peloponnesian war part 2 going postal. Thucydides description of the great plague at athens. Histories, thucydides translated into english volume 1 1 of 32 translations.
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