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A day's journey extends for two hundred and ten stades, about as far as going from Athens to Megara. In this way the Roman emperors divided both continents for themselves. 3.1.18 And of the islands, Britannia, being by far the greatest of all the islands beyond the Pillars of Heracles, was assigned, as was likely, to the western portion; and within them Ebusa, situated in the sea like an island in the Propontis after the mouth of the Ocean, extending for a journey of about seven days, and two other islands near it, called in the native tongue Majorica and Minorica. 3.1.19 And of the islands in the sea, each fell to one or the other of the two emperors, as it happened to lie somewhere within his boundaries. 3.2.1 And while Honorius held the empire toward the setting sun, barbarians seized his land; 3.2.2 who they were and in what manner, shall be told. There were and still are many other Gothic nations, but the greatest and most notable of all are the Goths, and the Vandals, and the Visigoths, and the Gepaids. In olden times, however, they were called Sauromatae and Melanchlaeni; and there are some who also called these nations Getic. 3.2.3 All these differ from one another in name, as has been said, but in all other respects they do not differ. 3.2.4 For they are all white of body and have fair hair, and are tall and handsome to look upon, and they use the same laws and practise a common 3.2.5 religion. For they are all of the Arian faith, and have one language, called Gothic; and it seems to me that they all came of one nation in ancient times, and were distinguished later by the names of those who led them. 3.2.6 This people dwelt from of old beyond the Ister river. Then the Gepaids occupied the country about Singidunum and Sirmium, on both sides of the Ister river, where they are settled even to my time. 3.2.7 Of the others, the Visigoths, having risen up from there, first came into an alliance with the emperor Arcadius, but later in time (for loyalty to the Romans is not wont to dwell with barbarians), with Alaric as their leader, they turned to plotting against both emperors, and beginning from Thrace they treated all of Europe as hostile territory. 3.2.8 Now the emperor Honorius was previously sitting in Rome, having nothing hostile in mind at all, but content, I think, if anyone would let him rest quietly in his palace. 3.2.9 But when the barbarians were reported to be not far off, but somewhere among the Taulantii with a large army, he abandoned the palace in no good order and fled to Ravenna, a strong city situated where the Ionian gulf comes to an end. 3.2.10 And there are some who say that he brought in the barbarians himself, a revolt against him having occurred on the part of his subjects, but to me they speak unconvincingly, at least as far as one can judge the character of the man. 3.2.11 And the barbarians, since no enemy met them, became the most savage of all men. For as many cities as they captured, they so devastated that no distinguishing mark has been left of them to my time, especially those within the Ionian gulf, except that one tower or one gate or something of that kind happened to be left to them. 3.2.12 And they killed all the people who came in their way, old and young alike, sparing neither women nor children. Whence it happens that Italy is sparsely populated even to this day. 3.2.13 They plundered all the wealth from all of Europe, and, to sum it up, leaving not a single thing either public or private in Rome, they proceeded to Gaul. And in what way Alaric captured Rome, I shall make clear. 3.2.14 Since much time had been worn away by him in the siege and he was unable to capture the place either by force or by any other device, 3.2.15 he devised the following. Having selected three hundred of the young men in his army who were not yet bearded, but just come to manhood, whom he knew to be both of good birth and to possess a valor beyond their years, he told them secretly that he intended to present them to some of the patricians in Rome, ostensibly as slaves. 3.2.16 And he instructed them that, as soon as they were in the houses of those men

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μιᾶς δὲ ἡμέρας ὁδὸς ἐς δέκα καὶ διακοσίους διήκει σταδίους, ὅσον Ἀθήνηθεν Μέγαράδε ἰέναι. οὕτω μὲν ἤπειρον ἑκατέραν οἱ Ῥωμαίων αὐτοκράτορες διείλοντο σφίσι. 3.1.18 τῶν δὲ δὴ νήσων Βρεττανία μὲν, ἡ ἐκτὸς στηλῶν τῶν Ἡρακλείων νήσων πασῶν μεγίστη παρὰ πολὺ οὖσα, μετὰ τῆς ἑσπερίας, ὥς γε τὸ εἰκὸς, ἐτάττετο μοίρας· ἐντὸς δὲ αὐτῶν Ἔβουσα, ὥσπερ ἐν Προποντίδι τῇ μετὰ τὴν ὠκεανοῦ ἐσβολὴν ἐν θαλάσσῃ κειμένη, ἐς ἑπτὰ ἡμερῶν ὁδὸν μάλιστα διήκουσα, καὶ δύο ἀμφ' αὐτὴν ἕτεραι, Μαϊορίκα τε καὶ Μινορίκα ἐπιχωρίως 3.1.19 καλούμεναι. τῶν δὲ κατὰ θάλασσαν νήσων ἑκάστη θατέρῳ τοῖν βασιλέοιν ἐπέβαλεν, ὡς αὐτῇ ἐντός που τῶν ἐκείνου ὁρίων ξυνέβαινε κεῖσθαι. 3.2.1 Ὁνωρίου δὲ τὴν πρὸς ἡλίου δυσμαῖς ἔχοντος βασιλείαν βάρβαροι τὴν ἐκείνου κατέλαβον χώραν· 3.2.2 οἵτινες δὲ καὶ ὅτῳ τρόπῳ, λελέξεται. Γοτθικὰ ἔθνη πολλὰ μὲν καὶ ἄλλα πρότερόν τε ἦν καὶ τανῦν ἔστι, τὰ δὲ δὴ πάντων μέγιστά τε καὶ ἀξιολογώτατα Γότθοι τέ εἰσι καὶ Βανδίλοι καὶ Οὐισίγοτθοι καὶ Γήπαιδες. πάλαι μέντοι Σαυρομάται καὶ Μελάγχλαινοι ὠνομάζοντο· εἰσὶ δὲ οἳ καὶ Γετικὰ ἔθνη ταῦτ' ἐκάλουν. 3.2.3 οὗτοι ἅπαντες ὀνόμασι μὲν ἀλλήλων διαφέρουσιν, ὥσπερ εἴρηται, ἄλλῳ δὲ τῶν πάντων οὐδενὶ διαλλάσ3.2.4 σουσι. λευκοί τε γὰρ ἅπαντες τὰ σώματά εἰσι καὶ τὰς κόμας ξανθοὶ, εὐμήκεις τε καὶ ἀγαθοὶ τὰς ὄψεις, καὶ νόμοις μὲν τοῖς αὐτοῖς χρῶνται, ὁμοίως δὲ τὰ ἐς 3.2.5 τὸν θεὸν αὐτοῖς ἤσκηται. τῆς γὰρ Ἀρείου δόξης εἰσὶν ἅπαντες, φωνή τε αὐτοῖς ἐστι μία, Γοτθικὴ λεγομένη· καί μοι δοκοῦν ἐξ ἑνὸς μὲν εἶναι ἅπαντες τὸ παλαιὸν ἔθνους, ὀνόμασι δὲ ὕστερον τῶν ἑκάστοις ἡγησαμένων 3.2.6 διακεκρίσθαι. οὗτος ὁ λεὼς ὑπὲρ ποταμὸν Ἴστρον ἐκ παλαιοῦ ᾤκουν. ἔπειτα Γήπαιδες μὲν τὰ ἀμφὶ Σιγγιδόνον τε καὶ Σίρμιον χωρία ἔσχον, ἐντός τε καὶ ἐκτὸς ποταμοῦ Ἴστρου, ἔνθα δὴ καὶ ἐς ἐμὲ ἵδρυνται. 3.2.7 Τῶν δὲ δὴ ἄλλων Οὐισίγοτθοι μὲν ἐνθένδε ἀναστάντες τὰ μὲν πρῶτα ἐς ξυμμαχίαν Ἀρκαδίου βασιλέως ἀφίκοντο, χρόνῳ δὲ ὕστερον (οὐ γὰρ οἶδε βαρβάροις ἐνδιαιτᾶσθαι ἡ ἐς Ῥωμαίους πίστις), ἡγουμένου αὐτοῖς Ἀλαρίχου, ἐς ἐπιβουλὴν ἑκατέρου βασιλέως ἐτράποντο, ἐκ Θρᾴκης τε ἀρξάμενοι ξυμπάσῃ Εὐρώπῃ ὡς πολεμίᾳ 3.2.8 ἐχρήσαντο. βασιλεὺς δὲ Ὁνώριος πρότερον μὲν ἐν Ῥώμῃ καθῆστο, οὐδὲν ὅ τι καὶ πολέμιον ἐν νῷ ἔχων, ἀλλ' ἀγαπῶν, οἶμαι, ἤν τις αὐτὸν ἐν τοῖς βασιλείοις 3.2.9 ἡσυχάζειν ἐῴη. ἐπεὶ δὲ οὐκ ἄποθεν οἱ βάρβαροι, ἀλλά που ἐν Ταυλαντίοις εἶναι στρατῷ μεγάλῳ ἠγγέλλοντο, καταλιπὼν τὰ βασίλεια οὐδενὶ κόσμῳ ἐς Ῥάβενναν φεύγει, πόλιν ἐχυρὰν ἐς αὐτόν που λήγοντα κειμένην 3.2.10 τὸν Ἰόνιον κόλπον. εἰσὶ δὲ οἳ καὶ φασὶν αὐτὸν τοὺς βαρβάρους ἐπαγαγέσθαι, στάσεως αὐτῷ πρὸς τῶν ὑπηκόων γεγενημένης, ἐμοὶ μὲν οὐ πιστὰ λέγοντες, ὅσα 3.2.11 γε τὸ τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ἐκλογίζεσθαι ἦθος. οἱ δὲ βάρβαροι, ἐπεὶ οὐδὲν σφίσιν ἀπήντα πολέμιον, γίνονται ὠμότατοι ἀνθρώπων ἁπάντων. πόλεις τε γὰρ, ὅσας εἷλον, οὕτω κατειργάσαντο ὥστε οὐδὲν εἰς ἐμὲ αὐταῖς ἀπολέλειπται γνώρισμα, ἄλλως τε καὶ ἐντὸς τοῦ Ἰονίου κόλπου, πλήν γε δὴ ὅτι πύργον ἕνα ἢ πύλην μίαν ἤ 3.2.12 τι τοιοῦτο αὐταῖς περιεῖναι ξυνέβη. τούς τε ἀνθρώπους ἅπαντας ἔκτεινον, ὅσοι ἐγένοντο ἐν ποσὶν, ὁμοίως μὲν πρεσβύτας, ὁμοίως δὲ νέους, οὔτε γυναικῶν οὔτε παίδων φειδόμενοι. ὅθεν εἰς ἔτι καὶ νῦν ὀλιγάνθρω3.2.13 πον τὴν Ἰταλίαν ξυμβαίνει εἶναι. χρήματα δὲ ἅπαντα ἐληίσαντο ἐκ πάσης Εὐρώπης, καὶ, τό γε κεφάλαιον, ἐν Ῥώμῃ τῶν τε δημοσίων τῶν τε ἰδίων οὐδ' ὁτιοῦν ἀπολιπόντες ἐπὶ Γαλλίας ἐχώρησαν. τρόπῳ δὲ ὅτῳ Ῥώμην Ἀλάριχος εἷλεν, ἐγὼ δηλώσω. 3.2.14 Ἐπειδὴ χρόνος τέ οἱ πολὺς ἐν τῇ προσεδρείᾳ ἐτέτριπτο καὶ οὔτε βίᾳ οὔτε τινὶ μηχανῇ ἄλλῃ ἴσχυσε 3.2.15 τὸ χωρίον ἑλεῖν, ἐπενόει τάδε. τῶν ἐν στρατῷ νεανιῶν οὔπω γενειασκόντων, ἀλλ' ἄρτι ἡβηκότων, τριακοσίους ἀπολεξάμενος, οὕσπερ εὖ τε γεγονέναι καὶ ὑπὲρ τὴν ἡλικίαν ἀρετῆς μεταποιεῖσθαι ἠπίστατο, ἔφασκε μὲν αὐτοῖς κρύφα ὡς σφίσι τῶν ἐν Ῥώμῃ πατρικίων τινὰς, ἅτε δούλοις οὖσι δῆθεν τῷ λόγῳ, δωρήσεσθαι μέλλοι. 3.2.16 παρήγγελλε δὲ ὥστε, ἐπειδὰν ἐν ταῖς ἐκείνων οἰκίαις