Textus Originalis
LIBRI XIV. XXXIX
Cap. 109. oppugnat. Rhegini duce Phytone fortissime pugnant, ipse Dionysius lancea vulneratur. Inter ipsum belli tempus Dionysius rhapsodos cum maximo apparatu ad ludos Olympicos mittit, qui carmina sua recitent. Tyranni carmina irridentur, quadrigae franguntur, ipsi legati violati et naufragi redeunt. 110. Romani cum Volsiniensibus feliciter dimicant. Ol. 98, 2 : 387 a. Chr. 110. Lacedaemonii bello attriti misso Antalcida cum Persis pacem faciunt invitis Atheniensibus et Thebanis. Artaxerxes bellum parat contra Euagoram. 111. Rhegini fame coacti in fidem Dionysii se dedunt; qui captivis ut mina se quisque redimeret concessit, ceteros sub corona vendidit. 112. Phytonem Rheginorum ducem Dionysius crudelissimo supplicio afficit. 113. Galli Transalpini eiectis Tyrrhenis regionem inter Apenninum et Alpes occuparant. Ex his Senones novas sedes quaerentes in Clusinorum agros irruptionem fecerunt. Quam ad rem cognoscendam Romani miserunt legatos; qui cum ipsi pugnae contra Gallos interfuissent, Galli eos ad poenam exposcunt. Populus Romanus invitis patribus id facere recusavit. 114. Quare infensi Galli Romam petunt. Conserta trans Tiberim pugna Romani fugantur, plurimi ferro aut flumine pereunt. 115. Romanorum, qui effugerant, plurimi occupant Veios, pauci Romam fugiunt. Ibi cives cibaria et res pretiosissimas conferunt in Capitolium. Galli quarto post pugnam die urbem ingressi omnia diruunt arcemque frustra impetu facto obsident. 116. Tuscis agrum Romanum populantibus superveniunt Romani qui Veios confugerant, eorumque armis suos armant. Pontius Cominius ad obsessos nuntius missus in arcem escendit. Cuius vestigia secuti Galli ad summam arcem perveniunt. Hostem anseres produnt. Mille libris auri solutis Galli abeunt. Urbs incondite restituitur. Matronarum virtus et honos.
Traduzione
English — scholarly
ARETHE Knowledge Engineering DivisionBOOK XIV. XXXIX
Ch. 109. The Rhegians, under the command of Phyton, fight most bravely; Dionysius himself is wounded by a spear. In the midst of the war itself, Dionysius sends rhapsodes with the greatest pomp to the Olympic games to recite his poems. The tyrant's poems are ridiculed, his chariots are wrecked, the envoys themselves are violated and return shipwrecked. 110. The Romans fight successfully against the Volsinians. Ol. 98, 2 : 387 BC 110. The Lacedaemonians, worn down by war, send Antalcidas and make peace with the Persians, against the wishes of the Athenians and Thebans. Artaxerxes prepares war against Euagoras. 111. The Rhegians, compelled by famine, surrender to the faith of Dionysius; he allowed each of the captives to ransom himself for a mina, and sold the rest at auction. 112. Dionysius inflicts a most cruel punishment on Phyton, the commander of the Rhegians. 113. The Transalpine Gauls, having expelled the Tyrrhenians, had occupied the region between the Apennines and the Alps. From these, the Senones, seeking new settlements, made an incursion into the territory of the Clusians. The Romans sent envoys to investigate this matter; when these envoys themselves took part in the battle against the Gauls, the Gauls demanded them for punishment. The Roman people, against the wishes of the senators, refused to do so. 114. Wherefore the Gauls, enraged, head for Rome. Battle being joined across the Tiber, the Romans are put to flight; very many perish by the sword or in the river. 115. Of the Romans who had escaped, most occupy Veii; a few flee to Rome. There the citizens bring provisions and most valuable items to the Capitol. The Gauls, entering the city on the fourth day after the battle, destroy everything and, having made an assault in vain, besiege the citadel. 116. While the Etruscans are ravaging the Roman territory, the Romans who had taken refuge at Veii come upon them and arm their own men with their weapons. Pontius Cominius, sent as a messenger to the besieged, ascends into the citadel. The Gauls, following his tracks, reach the top of the citadel. Geese betray the enemy. With a thousand pounds of gold paid, the Gauls depart. The city is restored in a haphazard manner. The virtue and honor of the matrons.
Commentario Arethe
Galli... Romam petunt... Romani fugantur
The Gallic sack of Rome (390 BC, or 387/6 in some chronologies) is covered in XIV 113–117. This event, one of the most traumatic in Roman history, occurs in Diodorus' narrative alongside the continuing Sicilian wars — a juxtaposition that reminds us Diodorus' universal history weaves Greek, Sicilian, and Roman threads together. The famous episode of the geese on the Capitol, Camillus' rescue, and the thousand pounds of gold paid to the Gauls are all included. For ARETHE's cross-Mediterranean perspective, the presence of Gallic mercenaries in the service of Dionysius I of Syracuse (XV 70) shows that the Celtic world was already economically connected to Sicily.