Today's Passage
This passage presents the Corcyraean ambassadors' appeal to the Athenian assembly in 433 BCE, seeking an alliance against Corinth.
Crawley Translation (1910)
“Now there are many reasons why in the event of your compliance you will congratulate yourselves on this request having been made to you. First, because your assistance will be rendered to a power which, herself inoffensive, is a victim to the injustice of others. Secondly, because all that we most value is at stake in the present contest, and your welcome of us under these circumstances will be a proof of goodwill which will ever keep alive the gratitude you will lay up in our hearts. Thirdly, yourselves excepted, we are the greatest naval power in Hellas. Moreover, can you conceive a stroke of good fortune more rare in itself, or more disheartening to your enemies, than that the power whose adhesion you would have valued above much material and moral strength should present herself self-invited, should deliver herself into your hands without danger and without expense, and should lastly put you in the way of gaining a high character in the eyes of the world, the gratitude of those whom you shall assist, and a great accession of strength for yourselves? You may search all history without finding many instances of a people gaining all these advantages at once, or many instances of a power that comes in quest of assistance being in a position to give to the people whose alliance she solicits as much safety and honour as she will receive. But it will be urged that it is only in the case of a war that we shall be found useful. To this we answer that if any of you imagine that that war is far off, he is grievously mistaken, and is blind to the fact that Lacedaemon regards you with jealousy and desires war, and that Corinth is powerful there—the same, remember, that is your enemy, and is even now trying to subdue us as a preliminary to attacking you. And this she does to prevent our becoming united by a common enmity, and her having us both on her hands, and also to ensure getting the start of you in one of two ways, either by crippling our power or by making its strength her own. Now it is our policy to be beforehand with her—that is, for Corcyra to make an offer of alliance and for you to accept it; in fact, we ought to form plans against her instead of waiting to defeat the plans she forms against us.
Modern Translation
There are numerous compelling reasons why you will have cause to congratulate yourselves if you accept our proposal. First, you will be extending aid to a state that has committed no offense against others but finds itself the victim of unprovoked aggression. Second, everything we hold most dear hangs in the balance in this conflict, and by welcoming us in our hour of desperate need, you will demonstrate a goodwill that will ensure our eternal gratitude. Third, with the exception of Athens herself, we possess the most formidable naval force in all of Greece. Can you imagine a more extraordinary piece of good fortune, or one more devastating to your adversaries, than having a power whose alliance you would have paid dearly to secure come to you voluntarily, placing itself in your hands without risk or expense on your part, while simultaneously offering you the opportunity to earn international acclaim, the lasting gratitude of those you protect, and a significant enhancement of your own military capabilities? You could search through the entire historical record without finding many examples of a nation gaining all these benefits simultaneously, or many instances where a state seeking assistance could offer its prospective ally as much security and prestige as it stands to receive. Some will argue that we would only prove useful in the event of war. To this objection we respond that anyone who believes such a war to be distant is dangerously deluded and fails to recognize that Sparta views you with suspicion and actively desires conflict, and that Corinth wields considerable influence there—the very same Corinth that is your sworn enemy and currently seeks to crush us as a prelude to attacking you. Their strategy is to prevent us from uniting against them through shared hostility, and to avoid fighting us both simultaneously. They aim either to neutralize our naval power or to appropriate it for their own use. Our policy must be to act preemptively—for Corcyra to propose this alliance and for Athens to embrace it. We should be formulating strategies against them rather than merely reacting to their machinations against us.
Historical Context
This passage presents the Corcyraean ambassadors' appeal to the Athenian assembly in 433 BCE, seeking an alliance against Corinth. Corcyra, a powerful naval state, had remained neutral in Greek affairs but now faced war with Corinth over the colony of Epidamnus. The ambassadors argue that Athens should accept their alliance for three reasons: moral justification (helping an innocent victim), practical benefits (gaining naval strength), and strategic necessity (preempting Spartan-Corinthian aggression). This debate would prove pivotal, as Athens' acceptance of the alliance became one of the immediate causes of the Peloponnesian War. The speech demonstrates the sophisticated diplomatic rhetoric of the period and illustrates how smaller conflicts could escalate into general war.
Key Themes
Annotations & References
Greek Naval Power
Corcyra possessed the second-largest navy in Greece after Athens, with approximately 120 triremes. Naval supremacy was crucial for controlling trade routes and projecting power across the Mediterranean. The combination of Athenian and Corcyraean fleets would create an overwhelming maritime force.
Learn more →Epidamnian Affair
The conflict began when Epidamnus, a colony of Corcyra, experienced civil strife. When Corcyra refused to help, Epidamnus turned to Corinth, Corcyra's mother city. This triggered a dispute over colonial rights and spheres of influence that escalated into open warfare.
Learn more →Delian League Politics
Athens led the Delian League, while Corinth was a key member of the Peloponnesian League under Sparta. The Corcyraean alliance threatened to upset the balance of power between these competing alliance systems, making war more likely despite the Thirty Years' Peace.
Learn more →Ancient Greek Diplomacy
Greek diplomatic speeches followed established rhetorical patterns, appealing to justice (dike), advantage (sympheron), and necessity (ananke). The Corcyraeans skillfully employ all three arguments to persuade Athens that alliance serves both moral and practical interests.
Learn more →Parallel Ancient Sources
Diodorus Siculus: Library of History (Book 12.30-31)
Diodorus provides a condensed account of the Corcyraean appeal to Athens, emphasizing the naval strength argument and Corinthian opposition, though with less rhetorical detail than Thucydides.
Read passage →Plutarch: Life of Pericles (29.1-2)
Plutarch describes Pericles' role in supporting the Corcyraean alliance, noting how this decision contributed to the outbreak of war and criticizing Pericles for prioritizing Athenian expansion over peace.
Read passage →Xenophon: Hellenica (Book 1.1.1)
While Xenophon begins his history where Thucydides ends, he references the Corcyraean alliance as one of the original causes of the great war that consumed Greece for nearly three decades.
Read passage →Discussion Questions
- How do the Corcyraeans balance moral arguments about justice with practical appeals to Athenian self-interest? Which type of argument seems more persuasive?
- The ambassadors claim that war with Sparta is inevitable. How does this assumption of inevitability shape their argument, and might it become a self-fulfilling prophecy?
- Analyze the rhetoric of 'preemptive alliance' presented here. How does this compare to modern debates about preventive war and balance of power?
- What does this speech reveal about the nature of interstate relations in classical Greece? How do smaller powers navigate between larger ones?