Polybius
Ancient Greek historian of the middle Hellenistic period, author of The Histories
Polybius, a Greek historian from the middle Hellenistic period, was born around 200 BC in Megalopolis, Arcadia, a city that had been revived a century earlier as part of the Achaean League. His father, Lycortas, was a wealthy landowner and politician who rose to become the league’s commanding general. Growing up in this environment, Polybius spent his first three decades observing political and military affairs firsthand, often traveling with his father on diplomatic missions. He also developed a passion for horseback riding and hunting, skills that later helped him connect with his Roman captors. In 182 BC, he was chosen to carry the funeral urn of Philopoemen, a leading Achaean statesman. By 170 or 169, he had been elected hipparchus, the league’s second-highest office, and was expected to support Rome militarily during the Third Macedonian War—though that deployment never happened. His political career ended abruptly in 168 BC, when Rome, suspicious of Achaean loyalties after defeating the Antigonid dynasty, interned 1,000 Achaeans, including Polybius, in Rome and its surroundings.
Polybius’s father had advocated neutrality during Rome’s war against Perseus of Macedon (171–168), which drew Roman suspicion. As a result, Polybius was among the 1,000 Achaean nobles taken as hostages to Rome in 167 BC, where he remained for 17 years. Despite his status, his high culture gained him entry into elite Roman homes, most notably that of Lucius Aemilius Paullus Macedonicus, the general who had won the Third Macedonian War. Paullus entrusted Polybius with educating his sons, Fabius and Scipio Aemilianus (the latter adopted by the eldest son of Scipio Africanus). Polybius stayed close to Scipio Aemilianus throughout his life, becoming part of the Scipionic Circle. When Scipio defeated Carthage in the Third Punic War, Polybius served as his counselor. The Achaean hostages were freed in 150 BC, and Polybius was allowed to return home, but the following year he joined Scipio’s campaign in Africa, witnessing the Sack of Carthage in 146 BC, which he later described. After that, he likely traveled along Africa’s Atlantic coast and through Spain. Following the destruction of Corinth in the same year, Polybius returned to Greece, using his Roman connections to ease conditions there. He was tasked with organizing new governments in Greek cities, earning great recognition.
In later years, Polybius lived in Rome, finishing his historical work while making long journeys across the Mediterranean to visit historical sites and interview veterans for accuracy. He also gained access to archival material. Details of his later life are scarce; he probably accompanied Scipio to Spain as a military advisor during the Numantine War, writing a lost monograph about it. Numerous inscriptions and statues in Greece suggest he returned there. The last event mentioned in his *Histories* is the construction of the Via Domitia in southern France in 118 BC, and Pseudo-Lucian’s claim that Polybius died at 82 after falling from a horse may be accurate.
His major work, *The Histories*, is a universal history explaining how the Roman Republic became a global power in the ancient Mediterranean. It covers political and military events from 264 to 146 BC, focusing especially on 221 to 146 BC, and details Rome’s rise over rivals like Carthage, Macedonia, and the Seleucid Empire. The first two books introduce the work, describing earlier events in Italy and Greece before 221/0 BC, including the First Punic War. The *Histories* is notable not only as the only substantial surviving Hellenistic historical work but also for its analysis of constitutional change and the mixed constitution. Polybius’s ideas about separating powers, checks and balances, and the role of “the people” later influenced Montesquieu’s *The Spirit of the Laws*, John Locke’s *Two Treatises of Government*, and the framers of the U.S. Constitution.
- born
- c. 200 BC, Megalopolis, Arcadia
- died
- c. 118 BC
- field
- History
- nationality
- Greek
- known_for
- Histories, analysis of mixed constitution and separation of powers
Lore & Background
Polybius was born around 200 BC in Megalopolis, Arcadia, when it was an active member of the Achaean League. His father, Lycortas, was a prominent, land-owning politician and member of the governing class who became strategos of the Achaean League. Polybius was able to observe first-hand during his first 30 years the political and military affairs of Megalopolis, gaining experience as a statesman. In his early years, he accompanied his father while travelling as ambassador. He developed interests in equestrianism and hunting. In 182 he was given the honour of carrying the funeral urn of Philopoemen. In 170 or 169 Polybius was elected hipparchus. His political career was cut short in 168; as a consequence of the final defeat of the Antigonid dynasty in the Third Macedonian War, 1,000 Achaeans (including Polybius) with suspect allegiances were interned in Rome and its surrounding area. Polybius's father, Lycortas, was a prominent advocate of neutrality during the Roman war against Perseus of Macedon in 171–168. Lycortas attracted the suspicion of the Romans, and Polybius subsequently was one of the 1,000 Achaean nobles who were transported to Rome as hostages in 167, and was detained there for 17 years. In Rome, by virtue of his high culture, Polybius was admitted to the most distinguished houses, in particular to that of Lucius Aemilius Paullus Macedonicus, who entrusted Polybius with the education of his sons, Fabius and Scipio Aemilianus. Polybius remained on cordial terms with his former pupil Scipio Aemilianus and was among the members of the Scipionic Circle. When Scipio defeated the Carthaginians in the Third Punic War, Polybius remained his counsellor. The Achaean hostages were released in 150, and Polybius was granted leave to return home, but the next year he went on campaign with Scipio Aemilianus to Africa, and was present at the Sack of Carthage in 146. Following the destruction of Carthage, Polybius likely journeyed along the Atlantic coast of Africa, as well as Spain. After the destruction of Corinth in the same year, Polybius returned to Greece, making use of his Roman connections to lighten the conditions there. Polybius was charged with the difficult task of organizing the new form of government in the Greek cities. In the succeeding years, Polybius resided in Rome, completing his historical work while occasionally undertaking long journeys t
Reader's Guide
Polybius's Histories is important not only for being the only Hellenistic historical work to survive in any substantial form, but also for its analysis of constitutional change and the mixed constitution. Polybius's discussion of the separation of powers in government, of checks and balances to limit power, and his introduction of 'the people', all influenced Montesquieu's The Spirit of the Laws, John Locke's Two Treatises of Government, and the framers of the United States Constitution. The Histories is a universal history which describes and explains the rise of the Roman Republic as a global power in the ancient Mediterranean world. The work documents in detail political and military affairs across the Hellenistic Mediterranean between 264 and 146 BC, and in its later books includes eyewitness accounts of the sack of Carthage and Corinth in 146 BC, and the Roman annexation of mainland Greece after the Achaean War. While Polybius's Histories covers the period from 264 BC to 146 BC, it focuses mainly on the years 221 to 146. Books I-II are The Histories' introduction, describing events in Italy and Greece before 221/0 BC. Books III-XXXIX describe in detail political and military affairs in the leading Mediterranean states. Only books I-V survive in full; the rest are in varying states of fragmentation. Three discursive books on politics, historiography and geography break up the historical narrative: In Book VI Polybius outlines his famous theory of the 'cycle of constitutions' (the anacyclosis) and describes the political, military, and moral institutions that allowed the Romans to defeat their rivals. In Book XII Polybius discusses how to write history and criticises the historical accounts of numerous previous historians, including Timaeus. Book XXXIV discusses geographical matters and the importance of geography in a historical account and in a statesman's education. Polybius holds that historians should, if possible, only chronicle events whose participants the historian was able to interview, and was among the first to champion the notion of factual integrity in historical writing. He championed this by interviewing participants of the Second Punic War for the third volume of Histories, including some who knew Hannibal. In the twelfth volume of his Histories he defines the historian's job as the analysis of documentation, the review of relevant geogra
Did You Know?
- Polybius was a close friend and mentor to the Roman politician and general Scipio Aemilianus (also called Scipio Africanus the Younger), and had a lasting influence on his decision-making and life.
- Polybius was present at the Sack of Carthage in 146 BC, which he later described.
- The last event mentioned in Polybius's Histories seems to be the construction of the Via Domitia in southern France in 118 BC.
Notable Quotes (Wikiquote)
"There is no more ready corrective of conduct than knowledge of the past." — Polybius "The only method of learning how to bear bravely the vicissitudes of fortune, is to recall the calamities of others." — Polybius "In all human affairs, and especially in those that relate to war, ... leave always some room to fortune, and to accidents which cannot be foreseen." — Polybius "This is a sworn treaty made between us, Hannibal … and Xenophanes the Athenian ... in the presence of all the gods who possess Macedonia and the rest of Greece." — Polybius
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