Niebuhr's lectures on Roman history, Vol. 2 (of 3)Niebuhr, Barthold Georg
History
Niebuhr's lectures on Roman history, Vol. 2 (of 3)
Niebuhr, Barthold Georg
Rome -- History
The Ætolians did not rejoice with the rest, neither did Nabis of
Lacedæmon. The alliance with the latter was a disgrace to Rome. He
had made it a condition that he should keep Argos, which he had got
Philip to sell to him, and Flamininus was afterwards glad indeed to lay
hold of an opportunity of setting aside the treaty, and of waging war
against him. Livy is here very explicit, as he copies from Polybius,
to whom these events had a peculiar interest. In this war, the tyrant
showed himself to be not without ability; but he would have been
crushed and Sparta taken, had not Flamininus, guided no doubt by his
instructions, followed the baneful policy of not wishing to rid Greece
of this source of apprehension, in order that the Achæans might be
obliged to make great efforts, and thus want the help of Rome. A large
part of Laconia, the district which is now called Maina, was wrested
from the grasp of the tyrant, and formed into an independent state,
inhabited by the former periœcians; the Achæans got Argos; and Nabis
had to pay a war-contribution of a hundred talents down, and of four
hundred more within eight years, and also to give his son as a hostage.
This did not last long. When Flamininus was absent, the Achæans took
advantage of a riot in which Nabis was slain, to unite Sparta with the
rest of the Peloponnesus; which was very disagreeable to the Romans,
but at that time could not be helped.
The two fortresses, Chalcis and Demetrius, the Romans bound themselves
to evacuate, as soon as their affairs with Antiochus stood on a firm
footing. Thessaly was made much larger than it had hitherto been;
joined with Phthiotis, it formed the Thessalian republic: on the
other hand, Perrhæbia and some other districts were detached from it.
Orestis, which had fallen away from Macedon, was proclaimed free,
and probably united with Thessaly, as I conclude from the list of
the Thessalian generals. Magnesia became independent. Eubœa, Locris,
Acarnania, Bœotia, Phocis, Athens, Elis, Messene, and Lacedæmon became
separate states; the rest of the Peloponnesus and Megara were Achæan.
Whilst, however, the Romans called themselves the liberators of Greece,
they, in spite of principles which they had publicly professed, yielded
up Ægina to Eumenes, the son of Attalus. Athens, down to the times
of Sylla, was treated by Rome with peculiar favour: never were the
Muses so beneficial to any people. The Romans gave them Scyros, Delos,
Imbros, Paros.
THE INSUBRIANS AND BOIANS VANQUISHED. WAR WITH ANTIOCHUS. WAR WITH THE
GALATIANS.
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