---
title: "On the Twelve Years · Ὑπὲρ τῆς δωδεκαετίας"
author: "Demades"
translator: "John Ormiston Burtt"
languages: [grc, en]
shelf: "Classical Greek"
section: 1 of 1
url: https://scriptura.si/works/demades-on-the-twelve-years/1/
cite: "Demades, tr. John Ormiston Burtt, On the Twelve Years · Ὑπὲρ τῆς δωδεκαετίας, section 1. Scriptura (scriptura.si), https://scriptura.si/works/demades-on-the-twelve-years/1/"
---

# On the Twelve Years · Ὑπὲρ τῆς δωδεκαετίας

*Demades, tr. John Ormiston Burtt*

The Macedonian partisan Demades defends his policy.

> Greek: ed. J. O. Burtt, from the Perseus Digital Library (canonical-greekLit, tlg0535.tlg001, CC BY-SA 4.0).

> English: John Ormiston Burtt, from the Perseus Digital Library (tlg0535.tlg001.perseus-eng2). Notes are not included.

> Rows follow the references the two texts share (chapters and sections), cut where both reach the end of a sentence.

## 1. Sections 1–65

Source: https://scriptura.si/works/demades-on-the-twelve-years/1/ · cite a paragraph as https://scriptura.si/works/demades-on-the-twelve-years/1/#p-N

[¶0] 1. The laws have given you the right, Athenians, to acquit or punish men on trial. A doctor cannot treat his patients skilfully if he has not discerned the cause of the disease, nor can a member of a jury give a fair vote unless he has followed intelligently the rights and wrongs of the case.

> Greek: 1. τῆς μὲν τῶν κινδυνευόντων σωτηρίας, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, καὶ τῆς τιμωρίας ὑμεῖς παρὰ τῶν νόμων τὴν ἐξουσίαν εἰλήφατε· οὔτε δʼ ἰατρὸς ἐμπείρως δύναται θεραπεῦσαι τοὺς κάμνοντας, ἂν μὴ τὴν αἰτίαν τοῦ νοσήματος κατανοήσῃ, οὔτε δικαστὴς ὁσίαν θεῖναι τὴν ψῆφον, ἐὰν μὴ τοῖς τῆς κρίσεως δικαίοις σαφῶς ᾖ παρηκολουθηκώς.

[¶1] 2. Since I have myself become exposed to the full hatred of the orators, I am asking not only for divine assistance but for your help also. For they are casting aspersions on my personal history, thinking to undermine your confidence in my speech. I am of no consequence whether alive or dead; for what do the Athenians care if Demades is lost to them, too? No soldier will shed tears over my death—(How could he, when war brings him advancement and peace destroys his livelihood?); but it will be lamented by the farmer, the sailor, and everyone who has enjoyed the peaceful life with which I fortified Attica, encircling its boundaries, not with stone, but with the safety of the city.

> Greek: 2. ἐμπεσὼν δʼ αὐτὸς εἰς μέσην τὴν τῶν ῥητόρων δυσμένειαν, ὥσπερ τῆς παρὰ θεῶν, οὕτω τῆς παρʼ ὑμῶν δέομαι τυχεῖν βοηθείας. διαβάλλουσι γάρ μου τὸν βίον, οἰόμενοι τὸν λόγον ἄπιστον καταστήσειν. ἐγὼ δʼ ἀποθανὼν μὲν ἢ ζῶν οὐδέν εἰμι· τί γὰρ Ἀθηναίοις, εἰ παρανάλωμα Δημάδης; δακρύσει δέ μου τὴν ἀπώλειαν οὐχ ὁ στρατιώτης — πῶς γὰρ; ὃν αὔξει μὲν πόλεμος, εἰρήνη δʼ οὐ τρέφει — ἀλλʼ ὁ τὴν χώραν γεωργῶν καὶ ὁ τὴν θάλατταν πλέων καὶ πᾶς ὁ τὸν ἡσύχιον βίον ἠγαπηκώς, ᾧ τὴν Ἀττικὴν ἐτείχισα, τοὺς ὅρους τῆς χώρας περιβαλὼν οὐ λίθοις ἀλλὰ τῇ τῆς πόλεως ἀσφαλείᾳ.

[¶2] 3. In many cases, gentlemen of the jury, when men are serving as judges they are seriously misled. For, just as a complaint of the eyes, by confusing the vision, prevents a man from seeing what lies before him, so an unjust speech, insinuating itself into the minds of the jury, prevents them in their anger from perceiving the truth. You should therefore exercise more care in dealing with the accused than with the plaintiffs. For the latter, by virtue of speaking first, have the jury in the mood which suits them, while the former are compelled to plead their cause to judges already prejudiced by anger.

> Greek: 3. δεινὸν δέ τι συμβαίνει πολλοῖς τῶν κρινόντων, ὦ ἄνδρες δικασταί. ὥσπερ γὰρ ἡ τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν νόσος τὴν ὅρασιν συγχέασα κωλύει τὰ ἐμποδὼν κείμενα θεωρεῖν, οὕτως ἄδικος παρεισδύνων λόγος εἰς τὰς τῶν δικαστῶν γνώμας οὐκ ἐᾷ διʼ ὀργὴν συνορᾶν τὴν ἀλήθειαν. διὸ καὶ δεῖ συνορᾶν ὑμᾶς εὐλαβῶς ἐπὶ τῶν κινδυνευόντων μᾶλλον ἢ τῶν ἐγκαλούντων· οἱ μὲν γὰρ αὐτόθεν ἔχουσιν ἐκ τῆς πρωτολογίας ὁποῖον αὐτοὶ βούλονται τὸν δικαστήν, οἱ δʼ ἀναγκάζονται πρὸς ὠργισμένους κριτὰς τὴν διάνοιαν ἀντιτάσσεσθαι.

[¶3] 4. Now, if you hold me liable for the charges, condemn me out of hand; I ask no pardon. But if, on considerations of justice, law, and expediency, I prove to be innocent of these charges, do not leave me to the savagery of my prosecutors. If my death will contribute in the least, as these men say, to the common safety, I am ready to die. For it is a noble thing to win public esteem by the loss of one’s own life, so long as it is given in answer to the country’s need and not the argument of these accusers.

> Greek: 4. ἐὰν μὲν οὖν φαίνωμαι τοῖς ἐγκαλουμένοις ἔνοχος, καταψηφίσασθε, μὴ φείσησθε· οὐ παραιτοῦμαι· ἂν δʼ εὑρίσκωμαι τῶν ἐγκεκλημένων κεχωρισμένος τῷ δικαίῳ, τοῖς νόμοις, τῷ συμφέροντι, μὴ πρόησθέ με τῇ τῶν κατηγόρων ὠμότητι. εἰ δὲ πάντως ἀποθανὼν συμβαλοῦμαί τι πρὸς τὴν κοινὴν σωτηρίαν, ὡς οὗτοι λέγουσιν, ἑτοίμως ἔχω τελευτᾶν· κτήσασθαι γὰρ ἰδίῳ θανάτῳ δημοσίαν εὔνοιαν καλόν, ἐὰν ἡ χρεία τῆς πατρίδος, ἀλλὰ μὴ ὁ τούτων λόγος τὸ ζῆν ἀφαιρήσηται.

[¶4] 5. I entreat you by the gods, Athenians, give me free scope to explain to you my claims to fair treatment. I have, I believe, the power even to be of assistance to others, but on this occasion fear restrains my speech. Apart from that I am not afraid that the facts will convict me; all I fear is my opponents’ slander which, instead of bringing wrongdoers to justice, attaches to any with a reputation as an orator or statesman.

> Greek: 5. δότε δή μοι πρὸς θεῶν, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, δότε διαλεχθῆναι ὡς προαιροῦμαι πρὸς ὑμᾶς περὶ τῶν δικαίων. δοκῶ μὲν γὰρ δύναμιν εἶναί μοι καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις βοηθεῖν· ἐν δὲ τούτοις ἐμποδίζει μου τὸν λόγον ὁ φόβος. ἄλλως δʼ οὐ τὸν ἔλεγχον τοῦ πράγματος δέδοικα, ἀλλὰ τὴν τῶν ἀντιδίκων διαβολὴν μόνον, ἥτις οὐ κρίνει τοὺς ἀδικοῦντας, ἀλλὰ φύεται τοῖς δοκοῦσι λέγειν ἢ πράττειν.

[¶5] 6. The hopes I place in you are justified; for the sympathy of his hearers, when it is ranged on the side of justice, is no small factor in securing the acquittal of the accused. If I gain this I shall rebut all the calumnies; without it neither speech nor laws, nor the light of facts, can save a man unjustly brought to trial. I need not remind you that numerous prosecutors on many occasions in the past have, on the strength of their pleas, been thought to be urging a just case, but after a comparison with the defence they have been found to be themselves speaking falsely and I am convinced that my accusers now will have the same experience, if you consent to grant me a favorable hearing.

> Greek: 6. ἡ παρʼ ὑμῖν ἐλπὶς δὲ δικαία· οὐ μικρὰ ⟨γάρ⟩ ἐστι τῷ κινδυνεύοντι ῥοπὴ πρὸς σωτηρίαν ἡ τῶν ἀκουόντων βούλησις ταττομένη μετὰ τοῦ δικαίου. ἐὰν ταύτης κατατύχω, πάσας ἀπολύσομαι τὰς διαβολάς· ἄνευ δὲ ταύτης οὔθʼ ὁ λόγος οὔθʼ οἱ νόμοι οὔθʼ ἡ τῶν πραγμάτων ἀλήθεια σῶσαι δύνανται τὸν ἀδίκως κρινόμενον. οὐκ ἀγνοεῖτε δὲ ὅτι πολλοὶ πολλάκις ἤδη τῶν ἐγκαλούντων ἀπὸ μὲν τῆς κατηγορίας ἔδοξαν δίκαια λέγειν, παρατεθείσης δὲ τῆς ἀπολογίας εὑρέθησαν αὐτοὶ συκοφαντοῦντες· ὃ δὴ καὶ νῦν πέπεισμαι τούτοις παρακολουθήσειν ὑμῶν ἀκούειν προαιρουμένων μετʼ εὐνοίας.

[¶6] 7. As they attempted to question the rest of my administration, I wish to make a few points in connexion with it and then to pass on to the remainder of my defence in order to prove their dishonesty to you. I am the son of Demeas, Athenians, as the elder ones among you know, and the early part of my life I lived as best I could, neither doing harm to the community nor troubling any individual in the city. I merely persisted in trying, by my own efforts, to better my humble position.

> Greek: 7. ἐπεὶ δὲ καὶ τῆς ἄλλης μου πολιτείας κατηγορεῖν ἐπεχείρησαν, βραχέα βούλομαι περὶ αὐτῆς εἰπεῖν, ἔπειθʼ οὕτως ἐπὶ τὴν λοιπὴν δικαιολογίαν ἀπελθεῖν, ἵνα μὴ λάθωσιν ὑμᾶς παρακρουσάμενοι. γεγονὼς γάρ, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, Δημέου πατρός, ὡς καὶ ὑμῶν οἱ πρεσβύτεροι γινώσκουσι, τὸν μὲν ἄλλον χρόνον οὕτως ἔζων ὡς ἐδυνάμην, οὔτε κοινῇ τὸν δῆμον ἀδικῶν οὔτʼ ἰδίᾳ λυπῶν οὐδένα τῶν ἐν τῇ πόλει, πειρώμενος δʼ ἀεὶ τοῖς ἰδίοις πόνοις τὴν ἀσθένειαν τοῦ βίου διορθοῦσθαι.

[¶7] 8. Penury may involve inconvenience and hardship but it carries with it no discredit, since poverty is frequently, I imagine, a mark not of weakness of character but of sheer misfortune. When I entered public life I did not concentrate on lawsuits or the perquisites to be derived from writing speeches but on speaking freely from the platform, a practice which makes the lives of orators dangerous but holds out the clearest opportunities of success, if men are careful; for, though they succumb to the speaker, their country’s safety must not also fall a victim.

> Greek: 8. ἡ πενία δʼ ἴσως δύσχρηστον μὲν ἔχει τι καὶ χαλεπόν, κεχώρισται δʼ αἰσχύνης, ὡς ἄν, οἶμαι, τῆς ἀπορίας ἐπὶ πολλῶν οὐ τρόπου κακίαν ἀλλὰ τύχης ἀγνωμοσύνην ἐλεγχούσης. προσελθὼν δὲ τοῖς κοινοῖς, οὐκ εἰς δίκας καὶ τὴν ἀπὸ τῆς λογογραφίας ἐργασίαν ἔθηκα τὸν πόνον, ἀλλʼ εἰς τὴν ἀπὸ τοῦ βήματος παρρησίαν ἣ τοῖς μὲν λέγουσιν ἐπισφαλῆ παρέχεται τὸν βίον, τοῖς δʼ εὐλαβουμένοις μεγίστην δίδωσιν ἀφορμὴν πρὸς κατόρθωσιν· οὐ γὰρ ἐν τῇ τοῦ λέγοντος χάριτι δεῖ συνεκπίπτειν τὴν τῆς πατρίδος σωτηρίαν.

[¶8] 9. I have, to bear me out, the burial of a thousand Athenians performed by the hands of our adversaries, hands which I won over from enmity to friendship towards the dead. Then, on coming to the fore in public life, I proposed the peace. I admit it. I proposed honors to Philip. I do not deny it. By making these proposals I gained for you two thousand captives free of ransom, a thousand Athenian dead, for whom no herald had to ask, and Oropus without an embassy.

> Greek: 9. χιλίων ταφὴ Ἀθηναίων μαρτυρεῖ μοι, κηδευθεῖσα ταῖς τῶν ἐναντίων χερσίν, ἃς ἀντὶ πολεμίων φιλίας ἐποίησα τοῖς ἀποθανοῦσιν. ἐνταῦθα ἐπιστὰς τοῖς πράγμασιν ἔγραψα τὴν εἰρήνην· ὁμολογῶ. ἔγραψα καὶ Φιλίππῳ τιμάς· οὐκ ἀρνοῦμαι. δισχιλίους γὰρ αἰχμαλώτους ἄνευ λύτρων καὶ χίλια πολιτῶν σώματα χωρὶς κήρυκος καὶ τὸν Ὠρωπὸν ἄνευ πρεσβείας λαβὼν ὑμῖν ταῦτʼ ἔγραψα.

[¶9] 10. The hand that wrote them was constrained, not by Macedonian gifts, as my accusers falsely allege, but by the need of the moment, the interest of my country, and the generosity of the king. For he entered the war as our foe but emerged from the struggle as a friend, awarding to the vanquished the prize of the victors.

> Greek: 10. ἐπείληπτο δὲ τῆς γραφούσης χειρὸς οὐχ ἡ δωροδοκία τῶν Μακεδόνων, ὡς οὗτοι πλαττόμενοι λέγουσιν, ἀλλʼ ὁ καιρὸς καὶ ἡ χρεία καὶ τὸ τῆς πατρίδος συμφέρον καὶ ἡ τοῦ βασιλέως φιλανθρωπία. ἐλθὼν γὰρ ἐπὶ τὸν κίνδυνον ἐχθρὸς τῶν ἀγώνων φίλος ἐχωρίσθη, τὸ τῶν νενικηκότων ἆθλον τοῖς σφαλεῖσι προσθείς.

[¶10] 11. Again, there came a second crisis for the city; for I deliberately ignore the intervening dangers. All other inhabitants of Greece were promoting Alexander to the rank of leader, and by remoulding him in their decrees they raised the aspirations of a young and ambitious man to an excessive pitch. We and the Spartans remained, with neither revenues nor armaments nor regiments of infantry to be the bulwark of our safety, yet fortified by a great desire, though our power was small and humble.

> Greek: 11. πάλιν τοίνυν ἧκε τῇ πόλει καιρὸς ἕτερος, ἵνα τοὺς μεταξὺ κινδύνους ἑκὼν ἐπιλάθωμαι· καὶ πάντες μὲν οἱ τὴν Ἑλλάδα κατοικοῦντες τὸν Ἀλέξανδρον ἐπὶ τὴν ἡγεμονίαν ἀνεβίβαζον, καὶ τοῖς ψηφίσμασιν ἀναπλάττοντες φρόνημα μεῖζον τοῦ δέοντος ἀνδρὶ νέῳ καὶ φιλοδόξῳ περιέθηκαν· λοιποὶ δʼ ἦμεν ἡμεῖς καὶ Λακεδαιμόνιοι, πρόβλημα τῆς σωτηρίας ἔχοντες, οὐ χρημάτων πλῆθος, οὐχ ὅπλων παρασκευάς, οὐχὶ πεζῶν σύνταξιν, ἀλλʼ ἐπιθυμίαν μεγάλην, δύναμιν δʼ ἀσθενῆ καὶ ταπεινήν.

[¶11] 12. The Spartans had been deprived of their strength by the battle of Leuctra, and the Eurotas, which had never yet heard an enemy trumpet, saw Boeotians camping in Laconia. For the Theban had cut off the bloom of Sparta, enveloping in ashes the flower of her young men, the established boundaries of Laconia. Our own resources were spent with war and the hopes of the survivors were oppressed by the fate of the dead.

> Greek: 12. ὧν μὲν γὰρ ἐσύλησε τὴν ἰσχὺν ὁ περὶ Λεῦκτρα κίνδυνος, ὁ δὲ πρότερον ἀπείρατος ὢν πολεμίας σάλπιγγος Εὐρώτας Βοιωτοὺς ἐν τῇ Λακωνικῇ στρατοπεδεύοντας εἶδεν ἀπέκειρε γὰρ τὴν ἀκμὴν τῆς Σπάρτης ὁ Θηβαῖος, καὶ τοὺς ὅρους τῆς Λακωνικῆς τεθειμένους, τὴν ἀκμὴν τῶν νέων, συνέκλεισε ταῖς τέφραις. τὰς δʼ ἡμετέρας παρασκευὰς ἀνάλωσεν ὁ πόλεμος, καὶ τὴν ἐλπίδα τῶν ζώντων συνέτριψεν ἡ συμφορὰ τῶν ἀποθανόντων.

[¶12] 13. The Thebans were suffering the closest restriction in the Macedonian garrison which bound their hands together and had even deprived them of their freedom of speech. Time buried the power of Thebes with the body of Epaminonidas. The Macedonians had reached their full strength, and in their aspirations Fortune was already leading them across the sea against the throne and treasuries of Persia.

> Greek: 13. Θηβαῖοι δὲ μέγιστον εἶχον δεσμὸν τὴν τῶν Μακεδόνων φρουράν, ὑφʼ ἧς οὐ μόνον τὰς χεῖρας συνεδέθησαν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὴν παρρησίαν ἀφῄρηντο· τῷ γὰρ Ἐπαμινώνδου σώματι συνέθαψε τὴν δύναμιν τῶν Θηβαίων ὁ καιρός. ἤκμαζον δὲ τοῖς σύμπασιν οἱ Μακεδόνες, οὓς ἤδη ταῖς ἐλπίσιν ἐπὶ τὰ σκῆπτρα καὶ τοὺς Περσῶν θησαυροὺς ἡ τύχη διεβίβαζεν.

[¶13] 14. Then too Demosthenes decided upon war, offering to his compatriots counsel which, though seemingly prudent, was in reality fraught with danger. When the enemy was encamped near Attica and the country was being confined in the town, when the city, worthy to be striven for and marvelled at by all, was being filled like a stable with oxen, sheep and flocks and there was no hope of help from any quarter, I proposed the peace.

> Greek: 14. ἐνταῦθʼ ὁμοίως Δημοσθένης μὲν ἐκύρωσε πόλεμον, καλὴν μὲν τοῖς ὀνόμασιν, οὐ σωτήριον δὲ τοῖς ἔργοις συμβουλίαν εἰσηγησάμενος τοῖς πολίταις· ὡς δὲ πλησίον ἔστη τῆς Ἀττικῆς ὁ πολέμιος, ἡ χώρα δὲ εἰς τὴν πόλιν κατεκλείετο, καὶ τὸ περιμάχητον καὶ θαυμαζόμενον ὑπὸ πάντων ἄστυ βοῶν καὶ προβάτων ὥσπερ ἔπαυλις καὶ τῶν βοσκημάτων ἐπληροῦτο, βοηθείας δʼ οὐδαμόθεν ἦν ἐλπίς, ἔγραψα τὴν εἰρήνην.

[¶14] 15. I admit it and I maintain that it is an honorable and expedient course to have taken. For it is better to shun the cloud as it approaches than to be swept away in the rush of the flood. I ask, Athenians, that the grief occasioned by events shall not engender in you any bitterness against me. For I have no mastery over Fortune; it is Fortune which controls life and gives it its danger. The counsellor, like the doctor, must not take blame for the disease; he must be thanked for the cure.

> Greek: 15. ὁμολογῶ, καί φημι καλῶς καὶ συμφερόντως πεπραχέναι τοῦτο· κρεῖττον γὰρ ἐπερχόμενον ἐκκλῖναι τὸ νέφος ἢ φερομένῳ συναπενεχθῆναι τῷ ῥεύματι. ἀξιῶ δʼ, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, τὴν ἐκ τῶν πραγμάτων λύπην ἐμοὶ παρʼ ὑμῶν μηδεμίαν ἀπογεννῆσαι δυσμένειαν. οὐ γὰρ ἐγὼ κρατῶ τῆς τύχης, ἀλλʼ ἡ τύχη τοῦ βίου, διʼ ἣν κινδυνεύει. δεῖ δὲ τὸν σύμβουλον, καθάπερ τὸν ἰατρόν, οὐ τῆς νόσου τὴν αἰτίαν ἔχειν, ἀλλὰ τῆς θεραπείας τὴν χάριν ἀπολαμβάνειν.

[¶15] 16. Discount, therefore, what happened from extraneous causes and simply examine my policy naked in the light of facts. To resume then: after this the city was exposed to a third and paramount danger, not this time sent by Fortune but brought on us by the politicians of the day.

> Greek: 16. καταχωρίσαντες οὖν τὰ συμβάντα διὰ τὰς ἔξωθεν αἰτίας, ψιλῶς ἐπὶ τῶν πραγμάτων γυμνὴν θεωρήσατέ μου τὴν πολιτείαν. μετὰ ταῦτα τοίνυν τῇ πόλει τρίτος ἐπήγετο κίνδυνος πάντων χαλεπώτατος, οὐκέτι πεμφθεὶς ὑπὸ τῆς τύχης, ἀλλʼ ὑπὸ τῶν τότε ῥητόρων ἐπαχθείς.

[¶16] 17. I would ask you to recall their conduct when Demosthenes and Lycurgus, side by side in their speeches, were defeating the Macedonians among the Triballi and almost exhibited the body of Alexander on the platform for us to see; when, in the Assembly, they calmed the Theban exiles, who were present, with specious words and spurred on their minds to conceive a hope of freedom, protesting that I was gloomy and over pessimistic since I did not approve...

> Greek: 17. καί μοι τῶν πεπραγμένων ἀναμνήσθητε, ἡνίκα Δημοσθένης καὶ Λυκοῦργος τῷ μὲν λόγῳ παραταττόμενοι τοὺς Μακεδόνας ἐνίκων ἐν Τριβαλλοῖς, μόνον δʼ οὐχ ὁρατὸν ἐπὶ τοῦ βήματος νεκρὸν τὸν Ἀλέξανδρον προέθηκαν, ἐν τῷ δήμῳ δʼ ἀλείψαντες λόγοις εὐπρεπέσι Θηβαίων τοὺς παρόντας φυγάδων θυμοὺς ἐπʼ ἐλπίδι τῆς ἐλευθερίας ἠκόνησαν, ἐμὲ δὲ στυγνὸν καὶ περίλυπον ἔφασκον εἶναι, μὴ συνευδοκοῦντα … ἔχει τι πικρὸν ὁ τῆς ἀληθείας λόγος, ἐπειδάν τις ἀκράτῳ παρρησίᾳ χρώμενος μεγάλων ἀγαθῶν προσδοκίαν ἀφαιρῆται·

[¶17] 18. There is bitterness in the voice of truth, when the speaker with simple frankness takes away the expectation of great successes: while pleasant words, though they are false, convince those who hear them. The danger was expected to reach Attica. In a short time the Macedonian spearheads had already closed on Attica, and now that the catastrophe was on our borders and Greece was cowering we had need to soothe and tame the anger of the king, which had been roused against our people.

> Greek: 18. τὰ δὲ προσηνῆ κἂν ᾖ ψευδῆ πείθει τοὺς ἀκούοντας. προσδόκιμος ἦν εἰς τὴν Ἀττικὴν ὁ κίνδυνος. μετὰ βραχὺ δὲ καὶ αἱ τῶν Μακεδόνων ἐπιδορατίδες ἥπτοντʼ ἤδη τῆς Ἀττικῆς, καὶ γειτνιώσης τῆς συμφορᾶς καὶ τῆς Ἑλλάδος κατεπτηχυίας, ἔδει καταψᾶν καὶ τιθασεύειν τὴν ὀργὴν τοῦ βασιλέως ἠρεθισμένην κατὰ τοῦ δήμου.

[¶18] 21. It is not the giving of the bribe that distresses us but the action of the man who takes it, if it is directed against our interests.

> Greek: 21. οὐχ ἡ δόσις τῶν χρημάτων λυπεῖ, ἀλλʼ ἡ πρᾶξις τοῦ λαμβάνοντος, ἐὰν ᾖ κατὰ τοῦ συμφέροντος.

[¶19] 22. With these words he raises the firebrand of war and the enemy encamps at the gates.

> Greek: 22. ταῦτα λέγων τὸν τοῦ πολέμου πυρσὸν αἴρει, καὶ ὁ πολέμιος ἐπὶ τῶν πυλῶν στρατοπεδεύει.

[¶20] 23. He decided the war with bloodshed.

> Greek: 23. αἵματι τὸν πόλεμον διέκρινεν.

[¶21] 24. My purpose is not to get gold, as these men falsely allege; it is this.

> Greek: 24. οὐ γὰρ ἵνα λάβω χρυσίον, ὡς αὐτοὶ πλαττόμενοι λέγουσιν, ἀλλʼ ἵνα τόδε.

[¶22] 25. ... had suspicion as an ally.

> Greek: 25. … σύμμαχον εἶχεν ὑποψίαν.

[¶23] 26. If only the Thebans had possessed a Demades; for Thebes would then be still a city. Now it is but the site of a city, a remnant of catastrophe, razed to its foundations by enemy hands.

> Greek: 26. ὄφελον καὶ Θηβαίους ἔχειν Δημάδην· ἔτι γὰρ ἂν ἦσαν αἱ Θῆβαι πόλις· νῦν δʼ εἰσιν οἰκόπεδον πόλεως καὶ λείψανα κακῶν ταῖς τῶν ἐχθρῶν χερσὶν εἰς ἔδαφος ἀχθεῖσαι.

[¶24] 27. It was not honorable to admit enemy blood and Macedonian fire into Attica nor to be silent and endure the sight of the city sinking like a ship.

> Greek: 27. πολέμιον αἷμα καὶ Μακεδονικὸν πῦρ εἰς τὴν Ἀττικὴν ὑποδέχεσθαι ἦν οὐ καλόν, οὐδὲ σιωπᾶν καὶ καρτερεῖν ὁρῶντα καταδυομένην ὥσπερ ναῦν τὴν πόλιν.

[¶25] 28. But the cowardly politicians, leading out the flower of the city to Boeotia, led them to a graveyard.

> Greek: 28. ἀλλʼ οἱ δείλαιοι σύμβουλοι ἐξαγαγόντες εἰς τὴν Βοιωτίαν τὴν ἀκμὴν τῆς πόλεως εἰσήγαγον εἰς πολυάνδριον.

[¶26] 29. It is with peace, not argument, that we must counter the Macedonian phalanx; for argument lacks power to take effect when urged by men whose strength is less than their desire.

> Greek: 29. εἰρήνην δεῖ καὶ οὐ λόγον ἀντιτάττειν τῇ τῶν Μακεδόνων φάλαγγι· ἄπρακτος γὰρ ἡ σπουδὴ τοῦ λόγου τῶν ἐλάττονα τῆς βουλήσεως ἐχόντων τὴν δύναμιν.

[¶27] 30. The anger of those who have been wronged is appeased whenever he who is to blame refrains from contentiousness and lets the party wronged judge for himself the kindness he will show.

> Greek: 30. πραύνεται γὰρ ὁ τῶν ἠδικημένων θυμός, ἐπειδὰν ὁ τὴν αἰτίαν ἔχων μὴ φιλονικῇ, κριτὴν δὲ ποιῇ τῆς εἰς αὑτὸν φιλανθρωπίας τὸν ἀδικούμενον.

[¶28] 31. They entombed the envoys in a well, noble in so far as they stood by their resolution, but impious in the execution of the punishment.

> Greek: 31. τοὺς πρέσβεις εἰς φρέαρ κατέχωσαν, εὐγενῶς μὲν τοῖς θυμοῖς παραστάντες, οὐκ εὐσεβῶς δὲ τῇ τιμωρίᾳ χρησάμενοι.

[¶29] 32. Sparta was worn out with difficulties.

> Greek: 32. ἐπόνει τοῖς κακοῖς ἡ Σπάρτη.

[¶30] 33. Demosthenes, bitter sycophant that he is, by the cleverness of his words distorted the fact and showed it in a bad light.

> Greek: 33. ὁ Δημοσθένης ὁ πικρὸς συκοφάντης διαστρέφων τὸ πρᾶγμα τῇ δεινότητι τῶν ῥημάτων διέβαλεν.

[¶31] 34. They came to realize clearly the changeability of the politician’s life, the uncertainty of the future, the variety of fortune’s changes, and the difficulty of gauging the crises that hold Greece in their grip. Therefore the law which they intended to direct against others...

> Greek: 34. ἐγίνωσκον ἀκριβῶς τὸν μὲν τῶν πολιτευομένων βίον εὐκίνητον ὄντα, τὸ δὲ μέλλον ἀόρατον, ποικίλας δὲ τὰς τῆς τύχης μεταβολάς, ἀκρίτους δὲ τοὺς τὴν Ἑλλάδα κατέχοντας καιρούς· ὃν οὖν καθʼ ἑτέρων ἤμελλον τίθεσθαι νόμον.

[¶32] 35. It was not I that advised this course: my country, the occasion, the circumstances themselves, thought fit to use my voice to put the measures into effect. It Is unjust therefore that an adviser should be held accountable for circumstances and for events whose outcome rested with fortune.

> Greek: 35. οὐκ ἐγὼ ταῦτα συνεβούλευον, ἀλλʼ ἡ πατρίς, ὁ καιρός, τὰ πράγματα διὰ τῆς ἐμῆς φωνῆς ἠξίου ταῦτα πράττειν· οὐ δίκαιον οὖν τὸν σύμβουλον καιρῶν εὐθύνας ὑπέχειν καὶ ὧν ἐν τῇ τύχῃ τὸ τέλος.

[¶33] 36. Killed by his own hand he departed this life.

> Greek: 36. αὐτοχειρὶ σφαγεὶς τὸν βίον ἐξέλιπεν.

[¶34] 37. The daughters of Erechtheus, by nobility of virtue, triumphed over the woman’s weakness in their hearts the frailty of their nature was made virile by devotion to the soil that reared them.

> Greek: 37. αἱ θυγατέρες Ἐρεχθέως τῷ καλῷ τῆς ἀρετῆς τὸ θῆλυ τῆς ψυχῆς ἐνίκησαν, καὶ τὸ τῆς φύσεως ἀσθενὲς ἔπανδρον ἐποίησεν ἡ πρὸς τὸ θρέψαν ἔδαφος φιλοστοργία.

[¶35] 38. Old men shrink from death in the sunset of life.

> Greek: 38. πρεσβῦται φιλοψυχοῦσιν ἐπὶ δυσμαῖς τοῦ βίου.

[¶36] 39. ... lit up Greece with the fire of war.

> Greek: 39. … πολεμίῳ πυρὶ τὴν Ἑλλάδα περιέλαμψεν.

[¶37] 40. A word, if rashly uttered, will sharpen the sword of war, and yet, if skilfully chosen, it will blunt the spear even though it is already whetted. There is more speed in management than in force.

> Greek: 40. λόγος κενῶς μὲν ἐξενεχθεὶς θήγει τὰ ξίφη, δεξιῶς δὲ τεθεὶς καὶ τὰς ἠκονημένας λόγχας ἀπαμβλύνει· οἰκονομία δʼ ἀνύει πλέον ἢ βία.

[¶38] 41. The barbarian accepted the statement but did not probe its meaning. For his ears interpreted the message to conform with his own pleasure rather than with the truth. But this was no idle speech, for deeds followed hard upon it.

> Greek: 41. ἐπίστευσεν ὁ βάρβαρος τὸν λόγον, οὐ τὸν νοῦν ἠρεύνησεν· ἔκρινε γὰρ τοῖς ὠσὶ πρὸς ἡδονὴν τὴν ἐπαγγελίαν, οὐ πρὸς ἀλήθειαν. τὰ δʼ οὐκ ἦν λόγος, ἀλλʼ ἔργα εὐθέως ἠκολούθει.

[¶39] 42. Force does not enable a man to master even the smallest things. It was inventiveness and system that made him yoke the ox to the plough for the tilling of the land, bridle the horse, set a rider on the elephant, and cross the boundless sea in boats of wood. The engineer and craftsman of all these things is mind, and we must use it as our guide, not always seeking to follow the subtleties of our own plans but rather the natural changes of events. This was the method by which I tamed Alexander, like some fearful beast, with flattering words and made him tractable for the future.

> Greek: 42. βίᾳ μὲν οὐδὲ τῶν ἐλαχίστων δύναται κρατεῖν ἄνθρωπος, ἐπινοίᾳ δὲ καὶ μεθόδῳ ὑπέζευξε μὲν ἀρότρῳ βοῦν πρὸς τὴν ἐργασίαν τῆς χώρας, ἐχαλίνωσε δὲ τὸν ἵππον, ἐλέφαντι δὲ παρέστησεν ἐπιβάτην καὶ ξύλῳ τὴν ἀμέτρητον θάλασσαν διεπέρασεν. τούτων δὲ πάντων ἀρχιτέκτων καὶ δημιουργός ἐστιν ὁ νοῦς, ᾧ δεῖ καθηγεμόνι χρωμένους μὴ πάντα ζητεῖν πρὸς τὰς ἰδίας ὀξύτητας, ἀλλὰ πρὸς τὰς τῶν πραγμάτων φύσεις καὶ μεταπτώσεις. οὕτω κἀγὼ καθάπερ τι φοβερὸν θηρίον κεχαρισμένοις λόγοις τιθασεύσας τὸν Ἀλέξανδρον ἐποίησα χειροήθη πρὸς τὸ μέλλον.

[¶40] 43. A manly utterance and a frankness worthy of the name Athenian.

> Greek: 43. ἄρρενα λόγον καὶ τοῦ τῶν Ἀθηναίων ὀνόματος ἀξίαν παρρησίαν.

[¶41] 44. I hate the popular leaders because they disturb the people and shatter the peace, the fruit of my administration, with a decree in favour of war.

> Greek: 44. μισῶ τοὺς δημαγωγούς, ὅτι ταράττουσι τὸν δῆμον καὶ τὸ κτῆμα τῆς ἐμῆς πολιτείας τὴν εἰρήνην ψηφίσματι πολέμου παραθραύουσιν.

[¶42] 45. Our ancestors left Athens and held the sea as a city, and the naval disaster shattered the land army also.

> Greek: 45. οἱ πρόγονοι τὴν πόλιν ἐκλιπόντες πόλιν ἔσχον τὴν θάλατταν· ἡ δʼ ἀπὸ τῆς ναυμαχίας ἧττα καὶ τὴν πεζὴν δύναμιν συνέτριψεν.

[¶43] 46. Freedom is not on guard against a spy.

> Greek: 46. ἐλευθερία ὠτακουστὴν οὐκ εὐλαβεῖται.

[¶44] 47. The changes to which events are subject are treacherous and unceasing.

> Greek: 47. ὀλισθηραὶ δὲ καὶ συνεχεῖς αἱ παρὰ τῶν πραγμάτων γινόμεναι μεταβολαί.

[¶45] 48. For it is by a resolution of goodwill that the altar of immortality has been erected.

> Greek: 48. ψηφίσματι γὰρ εὐνοίας ὁ τῆς ἀθανασίας ἀφίδρυται βωμός.

[¶46] 49. You will set over them time speaking as a herald.

> Greek: 49. ἐπιστήσεις αὐτοῖς κήρυκα τὸν χρόνον φθεγγόμενον.

[¶47] 50. Alexander who framed his hopes to gain world dominion.

> Greek: 50. Ἀλέξανδρος ὁ τὰς ἐλπίδας συνάπτων πρὸς τὴν τῆς οἰκουμένης ἡγεμονίαν.

[¶48] 51. Demosthenes, a little man made up of syllables and a tongue.

> Greek: 51. ὁ Δημοσθένης ἀνθρωπάριον ἐκ συλλαβῶν καὶ γλώσσης συγκείμενον.

[¶49] 52. For those words as it were lulled to sleep the king’s anger.

> Greek: 52. ἐκεῖνοι γὰρ οἱ λόγοι τὴν ὀργὴν τοῦ βασιλέως ὥσπερ ὕπνῳ κατεκοίμησαν.

[¶50] 53. For the powers of the city and the pride of Greece were still at their height, and fortune favoured the people. But now every element of value in the political world has been ostracized and the cities’ hamstrings removed men’s lives have inclined to relaxation and luxury, the means of concord are no longer there, and the hopes of our friends have proved vain.

> Greek: 53. ἔτι γὰρ ἤκμαζον αἱ δυνάμεις τῆς πόλεως καὶ τῆς Ἑλλάδος τὸ φρόνημα, καὶ συνέρρει ἡ τύχη τῷ δήμῳ· νῦν δʼ ἐξωστράκισται μὲν πᾶν τὸ χρήσιμον ἐκ τῶν πραγμάτων, ἐξῄρηται δὲ τὰ νεῦρα τῶν πόλεων, εἰς ἄνεσιν δὲ καὶ τρυφὴν νενεύκασιν οἱ βίοι, τὰ δὲ τῆς ὁμονοίας οὐκέτι μένει, νόθαι δὲ γεγόνασιν αἱ τῶν φίλων ἐλπίδες.

[¶51] 54. War, like a cloud, was threatening Europe from every quarter, suppressing my right to speak my mind in the assembly and taking away all power of free and noble utterance.

> Greek: 54. ὁ δὲ πόλεμος ὥσπερ νέφος ἐκ παντὸς τόπου τῆς Εὐρώπης ἐπήρτητο, καὶ συνέκλειέ μου τὴν ἐπὶ τῆς ἐκκλησίας παρρησίαν, καὶ τὴν μετʼ ἐλευθερίας καὶ δόξης φωνὴν ἀφῄρει.

[¶52] 55. Examine the truth in the light of events and do not give more weight to false charges than to accepted facts.

> Greek: 55. ἐκ τῶν πραγμάτων σκοπεῖτε τὴν ἀλήθειαν, καὶ μὴ ψευδεῖς αἰτίας ὁμολογουμένων ἔργων προκρίνητε.

[¶53] 56. ... by the course of events proclaims the fire of war. This letter of Alexander’s broke my purpose. This letter, embracing war in characters of ink, almost seized me by the hand and roused me. It travelled through my thoughts and did not let me rest in peace; for the danger was at our gates.

> Greek: 56. … διὰ τῶν πραγμάτων πολέμιον πῦρ προαγορεύει. αὕτη ἡ Ἀλεξάνδρου ἐπιστολὴ συνέτριβέ μου τὴν διάνοιαν· αὕτη πόλεμον ἐν τύπῳ γραμμάτων περιέχουσα μονονοὺκ ἐπιλαβομένη μου τῆς χειρὸς ἐξήγειρεν· αὕτη πορευομένη διὰ τῶν λογισμῶν τὴν ἡσυχίαν ἄγειν οὐκ ἐπέτρεψεν· ἐν πύλαις γὰρ ὁ κίνδυνος.

[¶54] 57. My diplomacy and the clamor that greeted it combined to set the city on the watch, saved Attica from being swamped from every side as by a wave and turned the army in Boeotia against the Persians.

> Greek: 57. ἡ δʼ ἐμὴ πολιτεία καὶ ὁ τότε θόρυβος συνεπέστησε τὴν πόλιν, καὶ διεκώλυσεν ὥσπερ κῦμα πανταχόθεν ἐπικλύσαι τὴν Ἀττικήν, καὶ τὴν ἐν Βοιωτίᾳ παρασκευὴν ἔτρεψεν εἰς Πέρσας.

[¶55] 58. Fear of war, like darkness, does not present the same aspect when it confronts us as when it has been averted.

> Greek: 58. οὐ τὴν αὐτὴν ἔχει φαντασίαν ἐφεστηκὼς καὶ διαλλαγεὶς ὁ τοῦ πολέμου φόβος ὥσπερ γνόφος.

[¶56] 59. It seems, therefore, the harshest imaginable rule that a man should be held accountable in time of peace for his administration during war. For every critic judges it with reference to the present calm, not to the danger that is over. And yet, if we make no allowance for the crisis, we are removing too the justification for the action.

> Greek: 59. διὸ καί πάντων δοκεῖ χαλεπώτατον, ἐν εἰρήνῃ λόγον ὑποσχεῖν τῶν ἐν πολέμῳ πεπολιτευμένων· κρίνει γὰρ ἕκαστος πρὸς τὴν παροῦσαν ἡσυχίαν, οὐ πρὸς τὸν παρελθόντα κίνδυνον. ὅταν δέ τις ἀνέλῃ τῶν πραγμάτων τὸν καιρόν, ἀνταναιρεῖται καὶ τὸ δίκαιον τῆς πράξεως.

[¶57] 60. Each offence is dealt with in its own particular way some call for the council of the Areopagus, some for lesser courts, others for the Heliaea. All these are distinguished in name, circumstance, time, penalty, procedure, and in the number of the jury.

> Greek: 60. ἕκαστον τῶν ἀδικημάτων ἰδίας ἔχει τὰς οἰκονομίας· ἃ μὲν γάρ ἐστι δεόμενα τῆς ⟨ἐξ⟩ Ἀρείου πάγου βουλῆς, ἃ δὲ τῶν ἐλαττόνων δικαστηρίων, ἃ δὲ τῆς ἡλιαίας· πάντα δὲ ταῦτα διώρισται τοῖς ὀνόμασι, τοῖς πράγμασι, τοῖς χρόνοις, τοῖς ἐπιτιμίοις, ταῖς ἀγωγαῖς καὶ τῷ πλήθει τῶν δικαζόντων.

[¶58] 61. Those who malign me are making unwarranted accusations. They do not charge me with plotting, for their villainy is bound by no oath. But the jury’s judgement is governed by an oath.

> Greek: 61. ἀδίκους οἱ συκοφάνται μου ποιοῦνται τὰς διώξεις· οὐ γὰρ βουλεύσεως ἐγκαλοῦσιν, οἷς ἀνώμοτος ἡ κακία· τοῖς δὲ δικασταῖς ἔνορκος ἡ κρίσις.

[¶59] 62. An unjust trial differs from an unjust punishment only in name.

> Greek: 62. ἄδικος κρίσις ἀδίκου τιμωρίας ὀνόματι μόνον διαφέρει.

[¶60] 63. They think that they will plunge me below the surface.

> Greek: 63. ὑποβρύχιον ὤσειν μʼ ὑπολαμβάνουσιν.

[¶61] 64. It is not right that the saving of a man in danger should provide fuel for the malicious charges of those who have abandoned all principle, nor that an accusation based on stories should be held stronger than a defence grounded on facts.

> Greek: 64. οὐ δίκαιόν ἐστι τὴν τοῦ κινδυνεύοντος σωτηρίαν ἐφόδιον γενέσθαι συκοφαντίας τοῖς πάντα τολμᾶν προῃρημένοις, οὐδὲ τὴν ἐκ τῶν λόγων κατηγορίαν ἰσχυροτέραν ἡγεῖσθαι τῆς ἐκ τῶν πραγμάτων ἀπολογίας.

[¶62] 65. Greece has lost an eye in the destruction of the Thebans’ city.

> Greek: 65. ἑτερόφθαλμος γέγονεν ἡ Ἑλλὰς τῆς τῶν Θηβαίων ἀναιρεθείσης πόλεως.