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X. DION.
http://www.tertullian.org/fathers/preface#preface Cornelius Nepos: Lives of Eminent Commanders (1886) pp. 305-450. Translated by the Rev. John Selby Watson, MA (Watson's notes are available at the end section in which they appear.)
Dion's family; is connected
with the two Dionysii,
I. DION, the son of Hipparinus, a native of Syracuse, was of a noble family, and allied to both the Dionysii, the tyrants 91 of Sicily; for the elder married Aristomache, Dion's sister, by whom he had two sons, Hipparinus and Nysaeus, and also two daughters named Sophrosyne and Arete, the elder of whom he gave in marriage to his son Dionysius,92 to whom he also left his dominions, and the other, Arete, to Dion.93 But Dion, besides this noble connexion, and the honourable character of his ancestors, inherited many other advantages from nature; among them, a disposition docile, courteous, and adapted for acquiring the most important branches of knowledge, and extreme grace of person, which is no small recommendation;94 he had also great wealth bequeathed him by his father, which he himself had augmented by the presents he received from the tyrant. He was familiar with the elder Dionysius, not less on account of his character than his relationship; for though the cruelty of Dionysius offended him, yet he was desirous that he should be secure because of his family connexion with himself, and still more for the sake |352 of his own relatives.95 He aided him in important matters, and the tyrant was greatly influenced by his advice, unless, in any case, some violent humour of his own interposed. But embassies,96 such at least as were of a more distinguished kind, were all conducted by Dion; and by discharging them assiduously, and managing faithfully, he palliated the most cruel name of tyrant with his own benevolence. The Carthaginians so much respected him, when he was sent thither by Dionysius, that they never regarded any man that spoke the Greek tongue with more admiration. 91. * Utrâque implicatus tyrannide Dionysiorum.] "Involved in," or "connected with, each tyranny of the Dionysii." For utroque Dionysio tyranno. 92. † Dionysius married two wives in the same day, Doris, a native of Locris, and Aristomache, the sister of Dion. But Dionysius the Younger was the son of Doris; so that, if Nepos is correct in saying that Sophrosyne was the daughter of Aristomache, he married his half-sister. See Plut. Vit. Dion. c. 3. 93. ‡ Dion, therefore, as Ernstius observes, married his own niece. 94. § Quae non minimum commendatur.] "Which is not in the lowest degree (i.e. which is in the highest degree) commended." Lambinus, from conjecture, read commendat, sc. hominem, which is more elegant (as Bos admits), and has been generally adopted by editors. 95. * Suorum causa.] For the sake of Aristomache and her children. 96. † Legationes.] Most editions have omnes after legationes. Bos and Van Staveren omit it.
II. Nor did these
circumstances escape the notice of Dionysius, for he was sensible how
great an honour he was to him; hence it happened that he showed him more
favour than any other person,97
and loved him not less than a son. When a report reached
In the meantime Dionysius fell ill of some disease, and when he was labouring under the severity of it, Dion inquired of the physicians "how he was," and begged them, at the same time, "if he should happen to be in extreme danger, to acquaint him of it; for he wished to speak to him about a division of the |353 realm, as he thought that the sons of his sister by him ought to have a share in the dominions." This request the physicians did not keep secret, but reported the words to Dionysius the younger, who, taking alarm at it, compelled the physicians to give his father a sleeping potion, that Dion might have no opportunity of addressing him. The sick man, having taken the draught, ended his life like one buried in deep sleep. 97. ‡ Uni huic maxime indulgeret.] "He indulged him alone most " 98. § Ambitione.] Exquisito apparatu et ambitioso comitatu.----Gebhard. It was not, however, the elder, but the younger Dionysius, that received Plato with such ceremony. See Plato's Epist. 3 and 7; Plutarch, Vit. Dion., and Aelian, Var. Hist. iv. 18. Plato visited Sicily three times; the ostentatious reception occurred on the second occasion. 99. || Quippe quem venundari jussisset.] Bremi conjectures quippe qui eum, &c, which the sense indeed requires. Consult Plutarch, Vit. Dion., who, however, relates the matter a little differently. Lucian says that Plato was sent to a parasite, because he was ignorant of the parasite's art. See Diod. Sic. xv. 7; Diog. Laërt. iii. 18, 21.----Bos.
III. Such was the commencement
of the dissension between Dion and Dionysius; and it was increased by many
circumstances; yet in the beginning of his reign there subsisted for a
time an assumed friendship between them; and as Dion persisted in
soliciting Dionysius to send for Plato from Athens, and follow his
counsels, he, who was willing to imitate his father in something, complied
with his wishes. At the same time, also, he brought back Philistus the
historian to
IV. Being conscious that he was surpassed by Dion in ability, influence, and in the affection of the people, and fearing that, if he kept Dion with him, he might give him some opportunity of overthrowing him, he gave him a trireme to sail to Corinth, declaring that he did so for both their sakes, lest, as they were afraid of each other, one of them might take the other by surprise. As many people were indignant at this proceeding, and as it was the cause of great hatred to the tyrant, Dionysius put on board some vessels all the property of Dion that could be removed, and sent it after him; for he wished it to be thought that he had adopted that course, not from hatred of the man, but for the sake of his own safety. But when he heard that Dion was levying troops in the Peloponnesus, and endeavouring to raise a war against him, he gave Arete, Dion's wife, in marriage to another man, and caused his son to be brought up in such a manner, that he might, through indulgence, be imbued with the most disgraceful |354 propensities; for mistresses were brought him when but a boy, before he was full grown; he was overwhelmed with wine and luxuries, nor was any time allowed him to be sober. He was so little able to bear such a change in his way of life, which was altered after his father returned to his country (for keepers were set over him to draw him from his former mode of living), that he threw himself from the top of a house and so perished. But I return to the point from whence I digressed. V. When Dion had arrived at Corinth, and Heraclides, who had been commander of the cavalry, had also come thither (having been likewise banished by Dionysius), they began to prepare for war in every possible way; but they made but little progress; for a tyranny of many years' standing was thought to be of great strength, and for that reason few were induced to join in so perilous an undertaking. But Dion, who trusted not so much to his troops as to the general hatred towards the tyrant, setting out, with the greatest courage, in two transport vessels, to attack a power of fifty years' growth, defended by five hundred ships of war, ten thousand cavalry, and a hundred thousand infantry, so easily made an impression upon it (what seemed wonderful to all people), that he entered Syracuse the third day after he touched the coast of Sicily. Hence it may be understood that no government is safe, unless guarded by the love of its subjects. Dionysius at that time was absent, and waiting for his fleet in Italy, supposing that none of his enemies would come against him without a great force; a supposition which deceived him; for Dion curbed the tyrant's pride with those very men that had been under the rule of his adversary, and gained possession of all that part of Sicily which had been under the government of Dionysius; and with like success he secured the city of Syracuse, except the citadel and the island adjoining the town, and brought matters to such a state, that the tyrant consented to make peace on such terms as these: that Dion should have Sicily, Dionysius Italy,100 and Apollocrates, in whom alone Dionysius 101 had great confidence, Syracuse. |355 100. * That is, the portion of Italy, or Great Greece, which had been under the power of the elder Dionysius, part of which was still retained by his son. 101. † Lambinus first saw that we ought to read Dionysius, not Dion, Bos, Mosche, and most other editors, approve Lambinus's suggestion. Van Staveren omits the name altogether the sense being sufficiently clear without it.
VI. A sudden change followed
close upon such eminent and unexpected success, for fortune, through her
fickleness, endeavoured to sink him whom she had just before exalted. In
the first place she exercised her power over his son, of whom I have
previously made mention; for after he had taken back his wife, who had
been given to another, and wished to recall his son, from his abandoned
course of sensuality, to habits of virtue, he received, as a father, a
most severe affliction in the death of that son. A disagreement next arose
between him and Heraclides, who, refusing to yield the supremacy to Dion,
organized a party against him; nor had he indeed less influence than Dion
among the aristocracy, with whose sanction he commanded the fleet, while
Dion had the direction of the land forces. Dion could not endure this
opposition patiently, but retorted with that verse of Homer in the second
book of the Iliad,102
in which is this sentiment, "That a state cannot be managed well by the
government of many." Much ill feeling, on the part of the people, followed
this remark; for he appeared to have let it escape him that he wished
everything to be under his own authority. This feeling he did not try to
soften by conciliation, but to overcome by severity, and caused Heraclides,
when he came to
VII. This act struck extreme terror into every one; for nobody, after Heraclides was killed, considered himself safe. Dion, when his adversary was removed, distributed among his soldiers, with greater freedom, the property of those whom he knew to have been unfavourable to him. But after this division had taken place, money, as his daily expenses grew very great, began to fail him; nor was there anything on which he could lay his hands but the property of his friends; a circumstance which was attended with this effect, that while he gained the soldiery, he lost the aristocracy. At this state of things he was overcome with anxiety, and, being unaccustomed to be ill spoken of, he could not patiently endure that a bad opinion of him should be entertained by those by whose praises he had just before been extolled to the skies. |356 The common people, however, when the feelings of the soldiers were rendered unfavourable towards him,103 spoke with less restraint, and said that "he was a tyrant not to be endured." 102. * Ver. 204. 103. * Offensa in eum militum voluntate.] Yet Nepos says above, in this same chapter, that Dion "had gained the soldiery." Quum milites reconciliâsset, amitteret optimates.
VIII. While he knew not, as he
contemplated this state of things, how he should put a stop to it, and was
apprehensive as to what it might end in, a certain Callicrates, a citizen
of Athens, who had accompanied him from the Peloponnesus to Sicily, a man
of address, subtle enough for any artifice, and without any regard for
religion or honour, went to him, and told him that "he was in great danger
on account of the disaffection of the people and the hostile feelings of
the soldiers; which danger he could by no means escape, unless he
commissioned some one of his friends to pretend that he was an enemy to
him; and that, if he found him fit for the undertaking, he would learn the
feelings of every one, and cut off his enemies, as his opponents would
readily disclose their thoughts to any one disaffected towards him." This
suggestion being approved, Callicrates himself undertook this part, and
armed himself through the unsuspiciousness of Dion; he sought for
accomplices to join in killing him; he held meetings with his enemies, and
formed an actual conspiracy against him. But these proceedings, as many
were privy to what was going on, became known, and were communicated to
Aristomache, Dion's sister, and his wife Arete; who, being struck with
alarm, sought an interview with him for whose danger they were concerned.
Dion assured them that no plot was concerted against him by Callicrates,
but that what was done, was done by his own
directions. The women, notwithstanding, took Callicrates into the
IX. With this resolution, on the next festival day, while Dion was keeping himself at home, secluded from the assembly |357 of the people, and was reposing in an upper room,104 he committed to his accomplices the stronger parts of the city, surrounded Dion's house with guards, and stationed trusty persons at the door, who were not to leave it; he also manned a trireme with an armed force, entrusted it to his brother Philocrates, and gave directions that it should be rowed about in the harbour, as if he wished to exercise the rowers, with a view, if fortune should baffle his attempts, to have a vessel in which he might flee to a place of safety. He then chose from among his followers some young men of Zacynthus, of great courage and extraordinary strength, whom he ordered to go to Dion's house unarmed, so that they might seem to have come for the sake of speaking with him. These youths, as being well known, were admitted, but as soon as they had crossed the threshold, they bolted the door, seized him as he lay on his couch, and bound him. A great noise ensued, so that it was distinctly heard out of doors. And here it was easy to be understood, as has often been said before, how unpopular absolute power is, and how unhappy the life of those who had rather be feared than loved; for those very guards,105 if they had been favourably inclined towards him, might have saved him by breaking open the door, as the Zacynthians, who were unarmed, were holding him still alive, calling to those without for a weapon. Nobody coming to his rescue, one Lyco, a Syracusan, gave them a sword through the window, with which Dion was slain. 104. * The ancients were accustomed, when they wished to devote themselves to prayer, or to do anything in private, to go up into the higher part of the house, or to keep a chamber in that part for that particular purpose. So Suetonius says of Augustus, c. 72, Si quando quid secreto aut sine interpellatione agere proposuisset, erat illi locus in edito sincularis. So Tacitus of Tiberius, Ann. vi. 21, Quoties super negotio Consultaret, edita domus parte utebatur.----Bos. He also refers to Judith, c. 8, and to Acts x. 9. 105. † Illi ipsi custodes.] The guards that had been stationed by Callicrates round Dion's house.
X. When the murder was
consummated, and the people came in to view the scene, some were killed as
guilty by those who were ignorant of the real actors; for a report being
soon spread abroad that violence had been offered to Dion, many, to whom
such a deed was detestable, ran together to the spot; and these persons,
prompted by a false suspicion, killed the
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innocent as if they had been the delinquents. But as soon as his death
became publicly known, the feeling of the populace was wonderfully
altered, for those who had called him a tyrant while he was alive,
called him now the deliverer of his country and the expeller of
a tyrant. So suddenly had pity succeeded to
hatred, that they wished to redeem him from Acheron, if they could,
with their own blood. He was therefore honoured with a sepulchral monument
in the city, in the most frequented part of it, after having been interred
at the public expense. He died at the age of about fifty-five years, four
years after he had returned from the Peloponnesus into
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