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Denys d'Halicarnasse, Les Antiquités romaines, livre VIII

Chapitre 19

  Chapitre 19

[8,19] Ἐντεῦθεν δὲ τὴν δύναμιν ἀναλαβὼν ἦγεν ἐπὶ τοὺς καλουμένους Λαβικανούς. ἦν δὲ καὶ αὕτη τότε Λατίνων πόλις Ἀλβανῶν ὥσπερ καὶ ἄλλαι ἄποικος. καταπλήξασθαι δὲ βουλόμενος τοὺς ἔνδον ἔκαιεν αὐτῶν τὴν χώραν εὐθὺς ἐπιών, ὅθεν μάλιστα ἔμελλον ὄψεσθαι τὴν φλόγα. οἱ δὲ Λαβικανοὶ τεῖχος εὖ κατεσκευασμένον ἔχοντες οὔτε κατεπλάγησαν αὐτοῦ τὴν ἔφοδον οὔτε μαλακὸν ἐνέδοσαν οὐδέν, ἀλλ´ ἀντεῖχον ἀπομαχόμενοι γενναίως καὶ πολλάκις ἐπιβαίνοντας τοῦ τείχους τοὺς πολεμίους ἀπήραξαν. οὐ μὴν εἰς τέλος γ´ ἀντέσχον ὀλίγοι πρὸς πολλοὺς ἀγωνιζόμενοι καὶ χρόνον οὐδὲ τὸν ἐλάχιστον ἀναπαυόμενοι. πολλαὶ γὰρ προσβολαὶ καὶ καθ´ ὅλην τὴν πόλιν ἐγίνοντο ὑπὸ τῶν Οὐολούσκων ἐκ διαδοχῆς ὑποχωρούντων μὲν αἰεὶ τῶν κεκμηκότων, ἑτέρων δὲ προσιόντων νεαρῶν· πρὸς οὓς ἀγωνιζόμενοι δι´ ὅλης ἡμέρας, καὶ οὐδὲ τὸν τῆς νυκτὸς ἀναπαυσάμενοι χρόνον ἐκλιπεῖν ἠναγκάσθησαν τὸ τεῖχος ὑπὸ κόπου. παραλαβὼν δὲ καὶ ταύτην Μάρκιος τὴν πόλιν ἐξηνδραποδίσατο καὶ τοῖς στρατιώταις ἐφῆκε μερίσασθαι τὰς ὠφελείας. ἀναστήσας δὲ τὴν δύναμιν ἐκεῖθεν ἐπὶ τὴν Πεδανῶν πόλιν· ἦν δὲ καὶ αὕτη τοῦ Λατίνων γένους· συντεταγμένην ἔχων τὴν στρατιὰν ἀφικνεῖται καὶ αὐτὴν ἅμα τῷ πλησιάσαι τοῖς τείχεσιν αἱρεῖ κατὰ κράτος. καὶ ταὐτὰ διαθεὶς ὅσα τὰς πρότερον ἁλούσας ἕωθεν εὐθὺς ἀναστήσας τὴν δύναμιν ἦγεν ἐπὶ Κορβιῶνα. ὄντι δ´ αὐτῷ πλησίον τοῦ τείχους τὰς πύλας ἀνοίξαντες οἱ ἔνδον ἀπαντῶσιν ἀντὶ τῶν ὅπλων προτείνοντες ἱκετηρίας καὶ παραδιδόντες ἀμαχητὶ τὸ τεῖχος. οὓς ἐπαινέσας ὡς τὰ κράτιστα περὶ σφῶν βεβουλευμένους, ἐκέλευσεν ὧν ἔδει τῇ στρατιᾷ φέροντας ἥκειν ἀργύριόν τε καὶ σῖτον, καὶ λαβὼν ὅσα προσέταξεν ἀπῆγε τὴν δύναμιν ἐπὶ τὴν Κοπιολανῶν πόλιν. παραδόντων δὲ κἀκείνην τῶν ἔνδον ἀμαχητὶ καὶ μετὰ πολλῆς προθυμίας ἀγοράς τε παρασχόντων τῇ δυνάμει καὶ χρήματα καὶ ὅσα ἄλλα ἐπετέτακτο αὐτοῖς ἀπῆγε τὴν στρατιὰν ὡς διὰ φιλίας γῆς. πάνυ γὰρ δὴ καὶ τοῦτ´ ἐσπούδαζεν, ὡς μηδὲν οἱ παραδιδόντες αὐτοῖς τὰς πόλεις πάθοιεν, ὧν φιλεῖ δρᾶν πόλεμος, ἀλλὰ καὶ γῆν ἀδῄωτον ἀπολαμβάνοιεν καὶ βοσκήματα καὶ ἀνδράποδα, ὅσα κατέλιπον ἐπὶ τῶν κτήσεων, κομίζοιντο, αὐλίζεσθαί τ´ οὐκ εἴα τὴν δύναμιν ἐν ταῖς πόλεσιν, ἵνα μή τι γένηται δι´ ἁρπαγῆς πρὸς αὐτῶν κλοπῆς κακόν, ἀλλὰ παρὰ τοῖς τείχεσι κατεστρατοπέδευεν. [8,19] From there he took his army and marched against the place called Labici. This city too belonged then to the Latins and was, like the others, a (p53) colony of the Albans. In order to terrify the inhabitants, as soon as he entered their territory he set fire to the part of the country from which the flames would most clearly be seen by them. But the Labicani, since they had well-constructed walls, neither became terrified at his invasion nor showed any sign of weakness, but made a brave resistance and often repulsed the enemy as they were attempting to scale the walls. Notwithstanding this, they were not able to resist to the end, fighting as the were few against many and without the least respite. For many attacks were made upon all parts of the city by the Volscians, who fought in shifts, those who were fatigued continually retiring and other forces that were fresh taking their place; and the inhabitants, contending against these all day, without any respite even at night, were forced through exhaustion to abandon at walls. Marcius, having taken this city also, made slaves of the inhabitants and allowed his soldiers to divide the spoils. Thence he marched to Pedum — this also was a city of the Latins — and advancing with his army in good order, he took the town by storm as soon as he came near the walls. And having treated it in the same manner as the cities he had captured earlier, he led his forces at break of day against Corbio. When he was near its walls, the inhabitants opened their gates and came to meet him, holding out olive-branches instead of weapons and offering to surrender their walls without striking a blow. Marcius, after commending them (p55) for adopting the course that was to their best interest, ordered them to come out bringing whatever his army required, both money and corn; and having obtained what he demanded, he led his forces to Corioli. When the inhabitants of this place also surrendered it without resistance and very readily supplied his army with provisions and money and everything else that he ordered, he led the army away through their territory as through a friendly land. For this too was a matter about which he always took great care — that those who surrendered their cities to him should suffer none of the ills incident to war, but should get back their lands unravaged and recover all the cattle and slaves they had left behind on their farms; and he would not permit his army to quarter itself in the cities, limestone some mischief should result from their plundering or stealing, but he always encamped near the walls.


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Dernière mise à jour : 25/01/2007