The histories of greekborn, roman historian polybius c. The histories polybius news newspapers books scholar jstor november 20 learn how and when to remove this template message. The main part of the work, a vital achievement despite the incomplete state in which all but the first five books of an original forty survive, describes the rise of rome, its destruction of carthage, and its eventual domination of the greek world. The project gutenberg ebook of the histories of polybius. Aimed at readers who are approaching a given text for the first time, these books are meant to be essays in criticism and interpretation that will. Volume ii and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. The histories of polybius book one translated by evelyn s. The histories incorporate folklore, legend, mythic motifs, and literary patterns in a grand narrative that reveals the influence of fate and the divine, as well as individual agency, in human affairs and emphasizes the instability of human happiness and fortune. The histories is a work of roman history, written in greek by an eyewitness of the political and martial world of the.
Tyche, which means fate or fortune, plays an integral role in polybius understanding of history. Had the praise of history been passed over by former chroniclers it introduction. He was a prisoner in rome for several years where he became the personal friend of scipio aemilianus. The histories, volume iv polybius harvard university press. He is also renowned for his ideas of political balance in government, which were later used. The histories tacitusbook 2 wikisource, the free online.
Books iv are extant and there are various excerpts for the rest. Contents and organization of the work the historians task art and history. The histories, volume ii polybius harvard university press. Polybius, greek statesman and historian who wrote of the rise of rome to world prominence. Polybius histories begin in the year 264 bc and end in 146 bc. I am aware that some will be at a loss to account for my interrupting the course of my narrative for the sake of. These are the first two volumes of a revised text and translation of the histories of polybius. Written in 40 books of which only the first five are preserved in full, it originally set out to explain the dramatic rise of rome in the half century from the war against hannibal to the defeat and abolishment of. The project gutenberg ebook of the histories of polybius vol. Comprising fragments of books 10 to 39 17, 19, and 37 are missing, a compendium of smaller fragments, and an extensive index, volume 2 covers, inter alia, the hannibalian war from 209 bce, the.
Polybius 200118 bc was a hellenistic greek historian. The histories, volume ii, books 3 4 loeb classical library no. The chronology of polybius histories, books i and ii jstor. He is primarily concerned with the 53 years in which ancient rome became a dominant world power. Jan 12, 2016 depopulation in ancient greece and rome by polybius and emperor augustus sub replacement fertility duration. The bulk of the work was passed down through collections of excerpts kept in libraries in byzantium. Another translation of the five books was published by edward grimestone, london, 1634, of which a second and third edition appeared in 1648 and 1673. Book i the complete histories of polybius by polybius. A chronological retrospect centered on polybius histories iii. Polybius histories were originally written in 40 volumes, only the first five of which are. Nov 08, 20 free kindle book and epub digitized and proofread by project gutenberg.
I am aware that some will be at a loss to account for my interrupting the course of my narrative for the sake of entering upon the following disquisition on the roman constitution. Polybius the histories w 1402 by na and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. I shall adopt as the startingpoint of this book the first occasion on which the romans crossed the sea from italy. The remainder of the histories discusses the period in which rome came to dominate the mediterranean, from the defeat of hannibal in 201 bc to the destruction of carthage and the greek citystate of corinth in 146 bc. Polybius histories download ebook pdf, epub, tuebl, mobi. Polybius was the greek historian who wrote of the rise of rome to mediterranean power, and who is usually ranked as one of the ancient worlds great historians. He is best known for his work, the histories, which describes the rise of the roman republic and contain some of the earliest analysis of separation of powers and mixed constitution. The main part of polybiuss history covers the years 264146 bce.
Brian mcgings lucid introduction discusses the period covered by the histories, polybius major role in the reconstruction of greece after the defeat of the achaean league, the themes and subject matter of the individual books, polybius outspoken views on how and how not, and his significance for historiography. His edition of polybius s histories, translated by robin waterfield, is. The histories, on which his reputation rests, consisted of 40 books, the last being indexes. This article needs additional citations for verification. The histories, vol 4, books 915 loeb classical library, no. See all books authored by polybius, including histories, and the historians of ancient rome, and more on. Polybius, a historian from the greek city of megalopolis in arcadia. Book 4 covers the social war in greece through 218 as well as wars in crete, rhodes and byzantium. While polybius was held captive in rome, he wrote his book histories, which encompassed the history of rome from 264 bc to 146 bc with a primary focus on the punic wars along with commentary on the historical profession and methods. The histories covers 264146 bc and detail how, in just half a century, the ancient roman republic surpassed and subdued carthage and other regional rivals, to become the predominant mediterranean power. Polybius histories cover the period from 264 bc to 146 bc.
Mar 24, 2010 polybius histories is one of classical antiquitys great political narratives. Descending to particulars, i brought my story up to the flight of cleomenes, king of sparta. This period, from 220167 bc, saw rome subjugate carthage and gain control over hellenistic greece. From 168 to 151 he was hostage in rome where he became a friend of aemilius paulus and his. The histories is a vital achievement of the first importance despite the incomplete state in which all but the first five of its original forty books survive. Historiai were originally written in 40 volumes, only the first five of which are extant in their entirety. Receiving an answer that the way was open and the sea propitious, he then, after sacrificing a number of victims, asked some. But i think that i have already in many passages made it fully evident that this particular branch of my work. The histories by polybius, robin waterfield, brian mcging.
Free kindle book and epub digitized and proofread by project gutenberg. He is also renowned for his ideas of political balance in government, which were later used in montesquieus the spirit of. Mar 29, 2012 in this short film, brian mcging of trinity college, dublin, introduces the work of the ancient greek historian, polybius. The founders could hardly ignore the ancient influence on montesquieus thought as they were fully immersed. Titus, after surveying the treasures, the royal presents, and the other objects which the antiquarian tendencies of the greek arbitrarily connect with some uncertain past, first consulted the oracle about his voyage. From 168 to 151 he was held hostage in rome, where he became a friend of scipio aemilianus, whose campaigns, including the destruction of carthage, he later attended. In this short film, brian mcging of trinity college, dublin, introduces the work of the ancient greek historian, polybius.
A translation of the mercenary war from the first book was made by sir walter raleigh, and published after his death in 1647 london, 4to. Paton 1922, which has long served scholars but has been in sore need of updating and correction. His work the histories, of which only a fraction survives, purported to explain and elucidate romes ascendancy and supremacy over the known world towards the end of the second century bc. Book from the collections of unknown library language english. Historiai were originally written in 40 volumes, only the. In my former book i explained the causes of the second war between rome and carthage. Fortunately, we can answer this question, because we can compare books 23 of the history of rome from its foundation with livys source, books 318 of the world history by the greek writer polybius of megalopolis c. Pdf of public domain loeb edition in greek and english. May 31, 2010 in book 3, polybius begins his history proper and covers the causes and beginnings of the second punic war, hannibals campaign in spain, his crossing of the alps and the war in italy up to and including the battle of cannae. Nevertheless, the question is relevant how livy treated his sources. Historiai by polybius are an account of events in the mediterranean world from 264 bc to 146 bc, and an attempt to understand romes rise to supremacy during that period. The histories oxford worlds classics polybius, robin. Dec 04, 2018 in his seminal work on the spirit of laws, montesquieu drew heavily from polybiuss analysis in book six of the histories. Contributor robarts university of toronto language english volume 2.
The histories of polybius book six translated by evelyn s. Polybius histories is one of classical antiquitys great political narratives. It describes the rise of rome to the destruction of carthage and the domination of greece by rome. His father was a greek military commander, and his political ties led to polybius being arrested and deported to rome. The histories of polybius and millions of other books are available for. The main part of his history covers the years 264146 bc, describing the rise of rome, the destruction of carthage, and the eventual domination of the greek world. Narrative structures in polybius histories ku scholarworks the. Volume i of the histories contains the first nine books. In his histories, polybius begins in the year 264 bc and ends in 146 bc polybius himself was born around 200 and died around 117 bc.
The histories of polybius book four translated by evelyn s. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. Polybius was a greek soldier who was captured by the romans during the roman conquest of greece. Check out the new look and enjoy easier access to your favorite features. Brian mcging has written articles on the hellenistic period and recently completed a book on polybius. We would like to show you a description here but the site wont allow us. Within the limits marked by these terminal olympiad dates, which simply. Comprising fragments of books 10 to 39 17, 19, and 37 are missing, a compendium of smaller fragments, and an extensive index, volume 2 covers, inter alia, the hannibalian war from 209 bce, the characters of scipio africanus and philip of macedonia, the flawed historical method of timaeus. The main part of his history covers the years 264146 bce, describing the rise of rome, her destruction of carthage, and her eventual domination of the greek world. There are six volumes of polybius in the loeb series. Buy the complete histories of polybius by polybius, paton, w. Walbank revised by harvard university press, 9780674996380, 568pp.
636 1 120 623 1616 461 500 922 521 628 1340 291 1346 844 581 197 1478 1521 992 1618 1264 822 454 54 554 960 111 1387 157 951 885 1422 329 752 627 1426 1180 1236 1194 564 442 301 583 1167 73 347 1202 169