+33.+ Philip having thus done all he could in the battle, but having
been decisively beaten, after taking up as many of the survivors as he
could, proceeded through Tempe into Macedonia. On the night previous
to his start he sent one of his guard to Larisa, with orders to
destroy and burn the king’s correspondence. And it was an act worthy
of a king to retain, even in the midst of disaster, a recollection
of a necessary duty. For he knew well enough that, if these papers
came into the possession of the Romans, they would give many handles
to the enemy both against himself and his friends. It has, perhaps,
been the case with others that in prosperity they could not use power
with the moderation which becomes mortal men, while in disaster they
displayed caution and good sense; but certainly this was the case with
Philip. And this will be made manifest by what I shall subsequently
relate. For as I showed without reserve the justice of his measures at
the beginning of his reign, and the change for the worse which they
subsequently underwent; and showed when and why and how this took
place, with a detailed description of the actions in this part of his
career;[86] in the same way am I bound to set forth his repentance, and
the dexterity with which he changed with his change of fortune, and may
be said to have shown the highest prudence in meeting this crisis in
his affairs.
As for Flamininus, having after the battle taken the necessary measures
as to the captives and the rest of the spoils, he proceeded to
Larisa....
[Sidenote: Estrangement of Aetolians.]
[Sidenote: Flamininus grants fifteen days’ truce to Philip.]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account