第6巻 第30章

Greek Τινὲς τοῦ Ῥωμαίων στρατοῦ ἄρχοντες βασκανίαν ἐς Βελισάριον ἔχοντες διέβαλλον αὐτὸν βασιλεῖ, τυραννίδα οὐδαμόθεν αὐτῷ προσήκουσαν ἐπενεγκόντες.

Dewing Certain officers of the Roman army, out of malice toward Belisarius, began to slander him to the emperor, advancing against him a charge of usurpation for which there were no grounds whatever in his case.

Greek βασιλεὺς δὲ οὐχ ὅσον ταῖς διαβολαῖς ταύταις ἀναπεισθείς, ἀλλ’ ὅτι οἱ ὁ Μηδικὸς πόλεμος ἐνέκειτο ἤδη, Βελισάριον μὲν ὡς τάχιστα μετεπέμψατο, ὅπως ἐπὶ Πέρσας στρατεύσειεν· ἐπιμελεῖσθαι δὲ Ἰταλίας Βέσσαν τε καὶ Ἰωάννην ξὺν τοῖς ἄλλοις ἐκέλευε, καὶ Κωνσταντιανῷ ἐς Ῥάβενναν ἐκ Δαλματίας ἐπέστελλεν ἰέναι.

Dewing And the emperor, not so much because he was persuaded by these slanders as because the Medic war was already pressing upon him, summoned Belisarius to come as quickly as possible, in order to take the field against the Persians; meanwhile he commanded Bessas and John with the others to take charge of Italy, and directed Constantianus to go to Ravenna from Dalmatia.

Greek Γότθοι δὲ οἳ Πάδου τε ποταμοῦ καὶ Ῥαβέννης ἐκτὸς ἵδρυντο, ἀκούσαντες ὡς Βελισάριον βασιλεὺς μεταπέμποιτο, τὰ μὲν πρῶτα ἐν ἀλογίᾳ τὸ πρᾶγμα εἶχον, οὐκ ἄν ποτε οἰόμενοι Βελισάριον τῆς ἐς Ἰουστινιανὸν πίστεως περὶ ἐλάσσονος τὴν Ἰταλίας βασιλείαν ποιήσασθαι.

Dewing Now the Goths who inhabited the country to the north of the Po and of Ravenna, upon hearing that the emperor was summoning Belisarius, at first, indeed, paid no heed to the matter, thinking that Belisarius would never regard the kingdom of Italy as of less account than loyalty to Justinian.

Greek ἐπεὶ δὲ αὐτοῦ πολλὴν τῆς ἀφόδου τὴν παρασκευὴν ἐπύθοντο εἶναι, ξυμφρονήσαντες, εἴ τι αὐτῶν καθαρὸν ἐνταῦθα ἔτι ἐλέλειπτο, ἐς Τικινὸν παρὰ Οὐραΐαν τὸν Οὐιττίγιδος ἀδελφιδοῦν ἦλθον, πολλά τε πρότερον ξὺν αὐτῷ κλαύσαντες ἔλεξαν τοιάδε·

Dewing But when they learned that he was making preparations for his departure in real earnest, all the loyal Goths of that region who were still left formed a common purpose and went to Uraias, the nephew of Vittigis, at Ticinum; and after first lamenting long with him, they spoke as follows:

Greek “Οὐκ ἄλλος οὐδεὶς τῷ Γότθων γένει αἰτιώτατος τῶν παρόντων κακῶν ἢ σὺ γέγονας. ἡμεῖς γὰρ τὸν θεῖον τὸν σόν, οὕτως ἀνάνδρως τε καὶ ἀτυχῶς ἐξηγούμενον, πάλαι ἂν τῆς ἀρχῆς παρελύσαμεν, ὥσπερ Θευδάτον τὸν Θευδερίχου ἀδελφιδοῦν, εἰ μή σου τὸ δοκοῦν δραστήριον αἰσχυνόμενοι Οὐιττίγιδι μὲν τὸ τῆς βασιλείας ὄνομα ξυγχωρεῖν ἔγνωμεν, ἔργῳ δὲ σοὶ μόνῳ παραδιδόναι τὴν Γότθων ἀρχήν.

Dewing "The man who has proved to be chiefly responsible for the present misfortunes of the nation of the Goths is no other than you. For we, on our part, should have long ago removed that uncle of yours from the kingship, seeing that he has led us in such a cowardly manner and with such ill fortune, just as we removed Theodatus, the nephew of Theoderic, unless, out of respect for the natural vigour which you seemed to display, we had decided to concede to Vittigis merely the title of king, but in fact to entrust to you alone the rule of the Goths.

Greek ἀλλὰ περιέστηκεν ἡ τότε δοκοῦσα ἡμῶν εὐγνωμοσύνη, νῦν ἄνοιά τε φαινομένη καὶ τῶνδε ἡμῖν τῶν ξυμφορῶν αἰτία.

Dewing What, however, seemed then consideration, now stands out clearly as folly and the cause of these misfortunes of ours.

Greek Γότθων γάρ, ὥσπερ οἶσθα, ὦ φίλε Οὐραΐα, τεθνάναι μὲν ἐν τῷ πολέμῳ πλείστους τε καὶ ἀρίστους ξυμβαίνει, τῶν δὲ περιόντων, εἴ τι μὲν ἄριστον ἀπολέλειπται, ξύν τε Οὐιττίγιδι καὶ χρήμασι πᾶσι Βελισάριος ἄγων οἰχήσεται.

Dewing For very many of the Goths, as you know, dear Uraias, and our noblest, have perished in the war, and such nobles as are left among the survivors Belisarius will lead away along with Vittigis and all our wealth.

Greek ταὐτὸ δὲ τοῦτο μὴ οὐχὶ καὶ ἡμᾶς ὀλίγῳ ὕστερον πείσεσθαι, ὀλίγους τε καὶ λίαν οἰκτροὺς καθεστῶτας, οὐδεὶς ἂν ἀντείποι.

Dewing And no one could deny that we too shall suffer this same fate a little later, seeing that we are reduced to a small and pitiable band.

Greek τοιούτων τοίνυν περιεστηκότων δεινῶν, τὸ ξὺν εὐκλείᾳ τεθνάναι μᾶλλον ξυνοίσει ἢ παῖδάς τε καὶ γυναῖκας πρὸς τῶν πολεμίων ἐς τῆς γῆς τὰς ἐσχατιὰς ἀγομένους ἰδεῖν.

Dewing Since, therefore, such a dire fate has encompassed us, it will be preferable for us to die with glory rather than to see our wives and children led by the enemy to the extremities of the earth.

Greek πράξομεν δέ τι, ὡς τὸ εἰκός, ἀρετῆς ἄξιον, ἤν γέ σε τῶν ἔργων ἀρχηγὸν ἕξομεν.” Γότθοι μὲν τοσαῦτα εἶπον.

Dewing And we shall, in all probability, accomplish something worthy of valorous men, if only we have you as leader of our struggles." Thus spoke the Goths.

Greek Οὐραΐας δὲ ἀμείβεται ὧδε· “Ὡς μὲν δεῖ ἐν τοῖς παροῦσι δεινοῖς πρὸ τῆς δουλείας ἡμᾶς τὸν κίνδυνον αἱρεῖσθαι, ταὐτά με ὑμῖν γινώσκειν ξυμβαίνει.

Dewing And Uraias replied as follows: "You say that we ought in our present extremity to choose the peril of battle rather than slavery, and this opinion I share with you.

Greek ἐς Γότθων δέ με τὴν βασιλείαν καθίστασθαι παντάπασιν οἶμαι ἀξύμφορον εἶναι· πρῶτα μέν, ὅτι Οὐιττίγιδος ἀδελφιδοῦς ὤν, ἀνδρὸς οὕτως ἠτυχηκότος, εὐκαταφρόνητος ἂν τοῖς πολεμίοις εἶναι δοκοίην, ἐπεὶ ἐς τοὺς συγγενέας ἀεὶ τὰς ὁμοίας τύχας παραπέμπεσθαι οἴονται ἄνθρωποι·

Dewing But, on the other hand, I think it altogether inexpedient for me to ascend the throne of the Goths, in the first place because, being the nephew of Vittigis, a man who has been so unfortunate, I should appear to the enemy as worthy to be despised, since men believe that among kinsmen the like fortune is ever handed on from one to another;

Greek ἔπειτα δὲ οὐδὲ ὅσια ποιεῖν δόξαιμι, ἐπιβατεύων τῆς τοῦ θείου ἀρχῆς, καὶ ἀπ’ αὐτοῦ μοι ἀχθομένους ὑμῶν τοὺς πλείστους, ὡς τὸ εἰκός, ἕξω.

Dewing and, in the second place, I should seem to act impiously in usurping the rule of my uncle, and in case I do this I shall probably have the most of you angry with me.

Greek ἐγὼ δέ φημι χρῆναι Γότθων ἄρχοντα ἐς κίνδυνον τόνδε Ἰλδίβαδον καθίστασθαι, ἄνδρα ἐς ἄκρον ἀρετῆς ἥκοντα καὶ διαφερόντως δραστήριον.

Dewing But my opinion is that Ildibadus must become ruler of the Goths for this perilous enterprise, a man who has attained the highest excellence and is conspicuously energetic.

Greek ᾧ δὴ καὶ Θεῦδιν θεῖόν γε ὄντα τὸν τῶν Οὐισιγότθων ἡγούμενον ξυνάρασθαι τοῦ πολέμου διὰ τὸ ξυγγενὲς οὐδὲν ἀπεικός. διὸ δὴ καὶ τὸν ἀγῶνα ξὺν ἐλπίδι ἀμείνονι πρὸς τοὺς ἐναντίους διοίσομεν.”

Dewing And it is to be expected with certainty that Theudis also, the ruler of the Visigoths, seeing that he is Ildibadus' uncle, will assist him in the war because of his kinship. And this indeed will be ground for more confident hope in carrying on the struggle against our opponents."

Greek Τοσαῦτα καὶ Οὐραΐας εἰπὼν τὰ ξύμφορα Γότθοις ἅπασι λέγειν ἔδοξε. καὶ αὐτοῖς Ἰλδίβαδος ἐκ Βερώνης αὐτίκα μετάπεμπτος ἦλθεν.

Dewing When Uraias, in his turn, had spoken thus, it seemed to all the Goths that his words pointed out the course which would be to their advantage. And Ildibadus was straightway summoned by them and came from Verona.

Greek ᾧ δὴ τὴν πορφύραν περιβαλόντες, βασιλέα τε Γότθων ἀνεῖπον καὶ σφίσιν εὖ θέσθαι τὰ παρόντα ἐδέοντο. ὧδε μὲν ἐς τὴν ἀρχὴν Ἰλδίβαδος κατέστη.

Dewing Then, after clothing him in the purple, they declared him king of the Goths and entreated him to take the situation in hand and set matters right for them. Thus did Ildibadus come into the royal power.

Greek ὀλίγῳ δὲ ὕστερον Γότθους ἅπαντας ξυγκαλέσας ἔλεξε τοιάδε· “Ἅπαντας ὑμᾶς, ἄνδρες ξυστρατιῶται, πολλῶν ξυνεπίσταμαι εἶναι πολέμων ἐμπείρους, ὥστε οὔποτε εἰκότως εἰς τὸ πολεμεῖν ἐκ τοῦ εὐθέος χωρήσομεν. ἐμπειρία γὰρ λογισμὸν φέρουσα θρασύνεσθαι ῆκιστα εἴωθεν.

Dewing But a short time after this, he called all the Goths together and spoke as follows: "All of you, fellow-soldiers, as I am well aware, have had experience in many wars, so that we shall probably never proceed to make war on the spur of the moment. For experience brings a man sober judgment, so that he is not wont to act rashly in any case.

Greek ἄξιον δὲ ἀναμνησθέντας πάντων ὑμᾶς τῶν πρότερον ξυμπεπτωκότων, οὕτω τανῦν ὑπὲρ τῶν παρόντων βουλεύεσθαι.

Dewing Now you ought, in fairness to yourselves, to call to recollection all that has befallen us heretofore, and make plans to meet the present situation with this in mind.

Greek λήθη γὰρ πολλοῖς τισιν ἐπιγενομένη τῶν ἤδη φθασάντων ἐπῆρε μὲν αὐτῶν οὐκ ἐν δέοντι ὑπὸ ἀμαθίας τὰς γνώμας,

Dewing For when forget­fulness of past events comes upon men, it often, through folly, exalts their minds at the wrong moment, and then, when their all is at stake, utterly overthrows them.

Greek ἐν δὲ τοῖς μεγίστοις ἱκανῶς ἔσφηλεν. Οὐίττιγις τοίνυν οὐκ ἀκόντων γε οὐδὲ ἀντιτεινόντων ὑμῶν ἐς τῶν πολεμίων αὑτὸν καθῆκε τὰς χεῖρας, ἀλλ’ ἀπειπόντες τότε πρὸς τὰ τῆς τύχης ἐναντιώματα ξυμφορώτατον ἡμῖν αὐτοῖς ἡγήσασθε εἶναι Βελισαρίῳ οἴκοι καθήμενοι ἐπακούειν μᾶλλον ἢ τοῖς σώμασι διακινδυνεύειν ἀπέραντα.

Dewing Now when Vittigis placed himself in the hands of the enemy, it was not against your will nor did you strive to prevent him, but at that time you bowed before the adversities of fortune and considered that we should best consult our own interests by sitting at home and obeying Belisarius rather than by risking our lives in endless dangers.

Greek νῦν μέντοι αὐτὸν ἀκηκοότες ἐς Βυζάντιον στέλλεσθαι, νεωτέροις πράγμασιν ἐγχειρεῖν ἔγνωτε. καίτοι ἐχρῆν ἐκλογίζεσθαι ὑμῶν ἕκαστον ὡς οὐχ ἅπαντα τοῖς ἀνθρώποις ᾗ δοκεῖ γίγνεται, ἀλλὰ τῶν δεδογμένων παρὰ δόξαν πολλάκις ἡ τῶν πραγμάτων ἀπόβασις ἀπ’ ἐναντίας ἐχώρησε.

Dewing But now, upon hearing that Belisarius is setting out for Byzantium, you have decided to undertake a revolution. And yet each one of you ought to have taken into consideration that things do not always happen for men as they will them, but many times the outcome of events has unexpectedly gone contrary to what has been determined upon.

Greek τύχη γὰρ καὶ μετάμελος τὰ πολλὰ κατορθοῦν ἐκ τοῦ ἀπροσδοκήτου πεφύκασιν· ὅπερ καὶ νῦν Βελισαρίῳ ξυμβήσεσθαι οὐδὲν ἀπεικός.

Dewing For chance or a change of heart have a way of setting most things right when least expected; and even now it is by no means improbable that this is what will happen to Belisarius.

Greek ἄμεινον τοίνυν πυθέσθαι μὲν αὐτοῦ πρότερον, πειρᾶσθαι δὲ ἀντικαθιστάναι τὸν ἄνθρωπον ἐπὶ τὰ πρώην ξυγκείμενα, οὕτω τε ὑμᾶς ἐπὶ τῶν πράξεων τὰ δεύτερα ἰέναι.”

Dewing It is better, therefore, to make enquiries of him first and to attempt to bring the man back to the earlier agreement, and only after this should you proceed to the next best step."

Greek Ταῦτα Ἰλδίβαδος εἰπὼν εὖ τε βεβουλεῦσθαι Γότθοις ἔδοξε καὶ πρέσβεις ἐς Ῥάβενναν κατὰ τάχος ἔπεμψεν. οἳ δὴ Βελισαρίῳ ἐς ὄψιν ἐλθόντες τῶν τε ξυγκειμένων σφίσιν ὑπέμνησαν καὶ ἅτε διαλυτὴν τῶν ὡμολογημένων ἐκάκιζον, αὐθαίρετον μὲν ἀποκαλοῦντες ἀνδράποδον, ὀνειδίζοντες δὲ ὅτι δὴ οὐκ ἐρυθριῴη πρὸ τῆς βασιλείας τὴν δουλείαν αἱρούμενος, ἄλλα τε τοιαῦτα πολλὰ λέγοντες ἐπὶ τὴν ἀρχὴν παρεκάλουν.

Dewing When Ildibadus had thus spoken, the Goths decided that he had counselled well, and he sent envoys to Ravenna with all speed. So these envoys, upon coming before Belisarius, reminded him of the agreement made with them and reproached him as a breaker of his promises, calling him a slave by his own choice, and chiding him because, they said, he did not blush at choosing servitude in place of the kingship; and with many other speeches of a similar sort they kept urging him to accept the rule.

Greek οὕτω γὰρ καὶ Ἰλδίβαδον ἐθελούσιον ἀφίξεσθαι ἰσχυρίζοντο, τήν τε πορφυρίδα καταθησόμενον ἐς τοὺς αὐτοῦ πόδας καὶ βασιλέα Βελισάριον Γότθων τε καὶ Ἰταλιωτῶν προσκυνήσοντα.

Dewing For, should he do so, they declared that Ildibadus would come of his own accord in order to lay down the purple at his feet and do obeisance to Belisarius as king of the Goths and Italians.

Greek οἱ μὲν πρέσβεις ταῦτα ἔλεγον, οἰόμενοι τὸν ἄνδρα τὸ τῆς βασιλείας ὄνομα οὐδὲν μελλήσαντα ἐπισπάσασθαι αὐτίκα δὴ μάλα.

Dewing So the envoys, on their part, kept making these speeches, thinking that the man would without any hesitation take upon himself the kingly title immediately.

Greek ὁ δὲ οὐ προσδεχομένοις αὐτοῖς ἄντικρυς ἀπεῖπεν, ὡς οὐκ ἄν ποτε ζῶντος Ἰουστινιανοῦ βασιλέως Βελισάριος ἐπιβατεύοι τοῦ τῆς βασιλείας ὀνόματος.

Dewing But he, contrary to their expectation, refused them outright, saying that never, while the emperor Justinian lived, would Belisarius usurp the title of king.

Greek καὶ οἱ μὲν ταῦτα ἀκούσαντες ἀπηλλάσσοντό τε ὡς τάχιστα καὶ Ἰλδιβάδῳ τὸν πάντα λόγον ἀπήγγελλον.

Dewing So they, upon hearing this, departed as quickly as possible and reported the whole matter to Ildibadus.

Greek Βελισάριος δὲ τὴν ἐπὶ τὸ Βυζάντιον ᾔει καὶ ὁ χειμὼν ἔληγε, καὶ τὸ πέμπτον ἔτος ἐτελεύτα τῷ πολέμῳ τῷδε, ὃν Προκόπιος ξυνέγραψεν.

Dewing And Belisarius took his way to Byzantium; and the winter drew to its close and the fifth year ended in this war, the history of which Procopius has written. The Loeb Editor's Notes: 1 Cf. chap. xxv.9, above. ❦ 2 i.e. either good or bad. ❦ 3 Modern Treviso. ◂ previous next ▸ Images with borders lead to more information. The thicker the border, the more information. (Details here.) UP TO: Gothic Wars Ancient Military History Military History Home Procopius Greek & Latin Texts LacusCurtius A page or image on this site is in the public domain ONLY if its URL has a total of one *asterisk. If the URL has two **asterisks, the item is copyright someone else, and used by permission or fair use. If the URL has none the item is © Bill Thayer. See my copyright page for details and contact information. Page updated: 14 Sep 20 Accessibility