Kitap 5
"This oath shall be renewed by the Athenians, who shall go to Elis and to Mantineia and to Argos thirty days before the Olympian games; and by the Argives, Eleians, and Mantineans, who shall come to Athens ten days before the Panathenaean holidays.
"The articles of this league and peace and the oath shall be inscribed in a pillar of stone by the Athenians in the citadel; by the Argives in their market place within the precincts of the temple of Apollo; and by the Mantineans in their market place within the precinct of the temple of Jupiter. And at the Olympian games now at hand, there shall be jointly erected by them all a brazen pillar in Olympia [with the same inscription].
If it shall seem good to any of these cities to add anything to these articles, whatsoever shall be determined by them all in common council, the same shall stand good.
Thus was the league and the peace concluded; and that which was made before between the Lacedaemonians and the Athenians was, notwithstanding, by neither side renounced.
But the Corinthians, although they were the confederates of the Argives, yet would they not enter into this league; nay, though there were made a league before this between [them and] the Argives, Eleians, and Mantineans that where one there all should have war or peace, yet they refused to swear to it, but said that their league defensive was enough, whereby they were bound to defend each other but not to take part one with another in invading.
So the Corinthians fell off from their confederates and inclined again to the Lacedaemonians.
This summer were celebrated the Olympian games, in which Androsthenes, an Arcadian, was the first victor in the exercise called Pancratium. And the Lacedaemonians were by the Eleians prohibited the temple there, so as they might neither sacrifice nor contend for the prizes amongst the rest; for that they had not paid the fine set upon them, according to an Olympic law, by the Eleians, that laid to their charge that they had put soldiers into the fort of Phyrcon and into Lepreum in the time of the Olympic truce. The fine amounted unto two thousand minae, which was two minae for every man of arms, according to the law.
But the Lacedaemonians, by their ambassadors which they sent thither, made answer that they had been unjustly condemned, alleging that the truce was not published in Lacedaemon when their soldiers were sent out.
To this the Eleians said again that the truce was already begun amongst themselves, who used to publish it first in their own dominion; and thereupon, whilst they lay still and expected no such matter, as in time of truce, the Lacedaemonians did them the injury unawares.
The Lacedaemonians hereunto replied that it was not necessary to proceed to the publishing of the truce in Lacedaemon at all if they thought themselves wronged already; but rather, if they thought themselves not wronged yet, then to do it by way of prevention, that they should not arm against them afterwards.
The Eleians stood stiffly in their first argument, that they would never be persuaded but injury had been done them, but were nevertheless contented if they would render Lepreum, both to remit their own part of the money and also to pay that part for them which was due unto the god.
When this would not be agreed unto, they then required this: not that they should render Lepreum, unless they would, but that then they should come to the altar of Jupiter Olympian, seeing they desired to have free use of the temple, and there before the Grecians to take an oath to pay the fine at least hereafter.
But when the Lacedaemonians refused that also, they were excluded the temple, the sacrifices, and the games, and sacrificed at home; but the rest of the Grecians, except the Lepreates, were all admitted to be spectators.
Nevertheless, the Eleians, fearing lest they would come and sacrifice there by force, kept a guard there of their youngest men in arms, to whom were added Argives and Mantineans, of either city one thousand, and certain Athenian horsemen, who were then at Argos waiting the celebration of the feast.
For a great fear possessed all the assembly lest the Lacedaemonians should come upon them with an army; and the rather because Lichas, the son of Arcesilaus, a Lacedaemonian, had been whipped by the serjeants upon the race; for that when his chariot had gotten the prize, after proclamation made that the chariot of the Boeotian state had won it (because he himself was not admitted to run), he came forth into the race and crowned his charioteer, to make it known that the chariot was his own. This added much unto their fear, and they verily expected some accident to follow. Nevertheless the Lacedaemonians stirred not; and the feast passed over.
After the Olympian games, the Argives and their confederates went to Corinth to get the Corinthians into their league. And the Lacedaemonian ambassadors chanced to be there also; and after much conference and nothing concluded, upon occasion of an earthquake they brake off the conference and returned every one to his own city. And so this summer ended.
The next winter, the men of Heracleia in Trachinia fought a battle against the Aenianians, Dolopians, Melians, and certain Thessalians.
For the neighbour cities were enemies to this city, as built to the prejudice only of them; and both opposed the same from the time it was first founded, annoying it what they could; and also in this battle overcame them and slew 51enares, a Lacedaemonian, their commander, with some others, Heracleots. Thus ended this winter, and the twelfth year of this war.
In the very beginning of the next summer, the Boeotians took Heracleia, miserably afflicted, into their own hands, and put Hegesippidas, a Lacedaemonian, out of it for his evil government. They took it because they feared lest, whilst the Lacedaemonians were troubled about Peloponnesus, it should have been taken in by the Athenians. Nevertheless the Lacedaemonians were offended with them for doing it.
The same summer Alcibiades, the son of Clinias, being general of the Athenians, by the practice of the Argives and their confederates, went into Peloponnesus, and having with him a few men at arms and archers of Athens and some of the confederates which he took up there as he passed through the country with his army, both ordered such affairs by the way concerning the league as was fit; and coming to the Patreans, persuaded them to build their walls down to the seaside, and purposed to raise another wall himself towards Rhium in Achaia. But the Corinthians, Sicyonians, and such others as this wall would have prejudiced came forth and hindered him.
The same summer fell out a war between the Epidaurians and the Argives; the pretext thereof was about a beast for sacrifice, which the Epidaurians ought to have sent in consideration of their pastures to Apollo Pythius, and had not done it, the Argives being the principal owners of the temple. But Alcibiades and the Argives had indeed determined to take in the city, though without pretence at all, both that the Corinthians might not stir and also that they might bring the Athenian succours from Aegina into those parts, a nearer way than by compassing the promontory of Scyllaeum. And therefore the Argives prepared, as of themselves, to exact the sacrifice by invasion.
About the same time also the Lacedaemonians, with their whole forces, came forth as far as Leuctra, in the confines of their own territory towards Lycaeum, under the conduct of Agis, the son of Archidamus, their king. No man knew against what place they intended the war; no, not the cities themselves out of which they were levied.
But when in the sacrifices which they made for their passage the tokens observed were unlucky, they went home again and sent word about to their confederates (being now the month Carneius) to prepare themselves, after the next feast of the new moon (kept by the Dorians), to be again upon their march.
The Argives, who set forth the twentysixth day of the month before Carneius, though they celebrated the same day, yet all the time they continued invading and wasting Epidauria.
And the Epidaurians called in their confederates to help them, whereof some excused themselves upon the quality of the month; and others came but to the confines of Epidauria and there stayed.
Whilst the Argives were in Epidauria, the ambassadors of divers cities, solicited by the Athenians, met together at Mantineia, where in a conference amongst them Euphamidas of Corinth said that their actions agreed not with their words; forasmuch as whilst they were sitting there to treat of a peace, the Epidaurians with their confederates and the Argives stood armed, in the meantime, against each other in order of battle; that it was therefore fit that somebody should go first unto the armies from either side and dissolve them, and then come again and dispute of peace.
This advice being approved, they departed, and withdrew the Argives from Epidauria. And meeting afterwards again in the same place, they could not for all that agree; and the Argives again invaded and wasted Epidauria. The Lacedaemonians also drew forth their army against Caryae;
but then again, their sacrifice for passage being not to their mind, they returned.
And the Argives, when they had spoiled about the third part of Epidauria, went home likewise. They had the assistance of one thousand men of arms of Athens, and Alcibiades their commander; but these hearing that the Lacedaemonians were in the field, and seeing now there was no longer need of them, departed. And so ended this summer.
The next winter the Lacedaemonians, unknown to the Athenians, put three hundred garrison soldiers under the command of Agesippidas into Epidaurus by sea.
For which cause the Argives came and expostulated with the Athenians that whereas it was written in the articles of the league that no enemy should be suffered to pass through either of their dominions, yet had they suffered the Lacedaemonians to pass by sea; and said they had wrong, unless the Athenians would again put the Messenians and Helotes into Pylus against the Lacedaemonians.
Hereupon the Athenians, at the persuasion of Alcibiades, wrote upon the Laconian pillar, [under the inscription of the peace], that the Lacedaemonians had violated their oath; and they drew the Helotes out of Cranii and put them again into Pylus to infest the territory with driving off booties;
but did no more. All this winter, though there was war between the Argives and Epidaurians, yet was there no set battle, but only ambushes and skirmishes, wherein were slain on both sides such as it chanced.
But in the end of winter, and the spring now at hand, the Argives came to Epidaurus with ladders, as destitute of men by reason of the war, thinking to have won it by assault, but returned again with their labour lost. And so ended this winter, and the thirteenth year of this war.
In the middle of the next summer, the Lacedaemonians, seeing that the Epidaurians their confederates were tired and that of the rest of the cities of Peloponnesus some had already revolted and others were but in evil terms, and apprehending that if they presented it not the mischief would spread still further, put themselves into the field with all their own forces, both of themselves and their Helotes, to make war against Argos, under the conduct of Agis, the son of Archidamus, their king.
The Tegeats went also with them, and of the rest of Arcadia all that were in the Lacedaemonian league. But the rest of their confederates, both within Peloponnesus and without, were to meet together at Phlius; that is to say, of the Boeotians five thousand men of arms and as many light-armed, five hundred horse, and to every horseman another man on foot, of Corinthians two thousand men of arms, and of the rest more or less as they were; but the Phliasians, because the army was assembled in their own territory, put forth their whole power.
The Argives, having had notice both formerly of the preparation of the Lacedaemonians and afterward of their marching on to join with the rest at Phlius, brought their army likewise into the field. They had with them the aids of the Mantineans and their confederates and three thousand men of arms of the Eleians;
and marching forward, met the Lacedaemonians at Methydrium, a town of Arcadia, each side seizing on a hill. And the Argives prepared to give battle to the Lacedaemonians whilst they were single. But Agis, dislodging his army by night, marched on to Phlius to the rest of the confederates, unseen.
Upon knowledge hereof, the Argives betimes in the morning retired first to Argos and afterwards to the forest of Nemea, by which they thought the Lacedaemonians and their confederates would fall in.
But Agis came not the way which they expected, but with the Lacedaemonians, Arcadians, and Epidaurians, whom he acquainted with his purpose, took another more difficult way to pass and came down into the Argive plains. The Corinthians also, and Pellenians and Phliasians, marched another troublesome way. [Only] the Boeotians, Megareans, and Sicyonians were appointed to come down by the way of the forest of Nemea, in which the Argives were encamped, to the end that if the Argives should turn head against the Lacedaemonians, these might set upon them at the back with their horse.