AESCHINES' AND DEMOSTHENES' HARANGUES: PROSECUTION AND DEFENSE IN A FAMOUS TRIAL OF ANCIENT GREECE


DEMOSTHENES-AESCHINES. Due orationi, l'vna di Eschine contra di Tesifonte, l'altra di Demosthene à sua difesa. Di greco in volgare nuouamente tradotte per un gentilhuomo firentino [sic]. In Vinegia: [Venice: heirs of Aldo Manuzio], 1554.

8vo, attractive binding in 18th century water-colored wrappers, ff. 106, [2]. Text in Italian, translated from Greek language by the Florentine humanist Girolamo Ferro.
Aldine dolphin and anchor device on title-page and final leaf (woodcuts).
Capital spaces with guide letters.

First and only Aldine edition of the two harangues by Aeschines and Demosthes, the first one as Ctesiphon's prosecutor and the second as his defense attorney.
Demosthenes won the legal battle with Aeschines, although Aeschines' legal objections to the crowning were probably valid.

THE TRIAL:
Ctesiphon was an orator in Athens during the reign of Alexander the Great. He is best known for sparking this controversy that led to Demosthenes' speech «On the Crown» and Aeschines' speech «Against Ctesiphon».

In 336 BC, Alexander the Great's empire was spreading, and many in Athens were opposed to the ongoing wars. Among the most outspoken was the orator Demosthenes. In 336 BC, Ctesiphon proposed that Athens honor Demosthenes for services to the city by presenting him with a golden crown. This proposal became a political issue, and in 330 BC, Aeschines prosecuted Ctesiphon on charges of legal irregularities. In his most brilliant speech, On the Crown, Demosthenes effectively defended Ctesiphon and attacked vehemently those who backed Alexander the Great's empire. On legal irregularities Aeschines prosecuted Ctesiphon for having violated the law in three points:

1. For making false allegations in a state document.
2. For unlawfully conferring a crown to a state official (Demosthenes) who had not yet rendered a report of his term of office.
3. For unlawfully offering the crown at the Dionysia.

Demosthenes (384–322 BC), was a prominent Greek statesman and orator of ancient Athens. His orations constitute a significant expression of contemporary Athenian intellectual prowess and provide an insight into the politics and culture of ancient Greece during the 4th century BC. For a time, Demosthenes made his living as a professional speech-writer (logographer) and a lawyer, writing speeches for use in private legal suits.

He went on to devote his most productive years to opposing Macedon’s expansion. He idealized his city and strove throughout his life to restore Athens’ supremacy and motivate his compatriots against Philip II of Macedon. He sought to preserve his city’s freedom and to establish an alliance against Macedon, in an unsuccessful attempt to impede Philip’s plans to expand his influence southwards by conquering all the Greek states. After Philip’s death, Demosthenes played a leading part in his city’s uprising against the new King of Macedon, Alexander the Great. However, his efforts failed and the revolt was met with a harsh Macedonian reaction. To prevent a similar revolt against his own rule, Alexander’s successor in this region, Antipater, sent his men to track Demosthenes down. Demosthenes took his own life, in order to avoid being arrested by Archias, Antipater’s confidant.

According to Longinus, Demosthenes «perfected to the utmost the tone of lofty speech, living passions, copiousness, readiness, speed». Cicero acclaimed him as «the perfect orator» who lacked nothing, and Quintilian extolled him as lex orandi («the standard of oratory») and that inter omnes unus excellat («he stands alone among all the orators»).

Sixty-one of Demosthenes’orations, fifty-six prologues and six letters survived till the present day.

Demosthenes’ fame continued down the ages. The scholars at the Library of Alexandria carefully edited the manuscripts of his speeches, and Roman schoolboys studied his art as part of their own oratorical training. During the Middle Ages and Renaissance, Demosthenes had a reputation for eloquence and he was read more than any other ancient orator. John Jewel, Bishop of Salisbury, and Jacques Amyot, a French Renaissance writer and translator, regard Demosthenes as a great or even the «supreme» orator.

In modern history, orators such as HENRY CLAY would mimic Demosthenes’ technique. His ideas and principles survived, influencing prominent politicians and movements of our times. Hence, he constituted a source of inspiration for the authors of the Federalist Papers (series of 85 articles arguing for the ratification of the United States Constitution) and for the major orators of the French Revolution. French Prime Minister Georges Clemenceau was among those who idealized Demosthenes and wrote a book about him. For his part, Friedrich Nietzsche often composed his sentences according to the paradigms of Demosthenes, whose style he admired. During World War II, the fighters of the French Resistance identified themselves with Demosthenes, and Adolf Hitler with Philip.

Advertising executive David Ogilvy frequently cited Demosthenes as a model for creating persuasive advertising, saying, «When Aeschines spoke, they said, ‘How well he speaks.’ But when Demosthenes spoke, they said, ‘Let us march against Philip’».

The Demosthenian Literary Society at The University of Georgia is named after Demosthenes, as a tribute to his oratorical ability and the manner in which he improved his speaking ability.

Aeschines (389 – 314 BC) was a Greek statesman and one of the ten Attic orators, especially famous for his rivalry with Demosthenes. In 336 BC, when Ctesiphon proposed that his friend Demosthenes should be rewarded with a golden crown for his distinguished services to the state, Aeschines accused him of having violated the law in bringing forward the motion. The matter remained in abeyance till 330 BC, when the two rivals delivered their speeches Against Ctesiphon and On the Crown. The result was a complete victory for Demosthenes.
Aeschines went into voluntary exile at Rhodes, where he opened a school of rhetoric. He afterwards removed to Samos, where he died aged seventy-five. His three speeches, called by the ancients "the Three Graces," rank next to those of Demosthenes.

References: CNCE 327. OCLC 10371780.

A very good copy.