Hobbes > Thucydides Translation
Hobbes' first publication was this 1629 translation of Thucydides' Eight Bookes of the Peloponnesian Warre. Hobbes wrote in his introduction to this translation that he believed that men could learn from history “how to bear themselves prudently in the present and providently toward the future.” An accomplished linguist, Hobbes devoted significant time to translation projects and could read Italian, French, Greek, and Latin. He wrote his first philosophical writings in Latin, but Leviathan was written and first released in English and only later translated into Latin.
The edition included illustrations of battles and a fold-out map of the Peloponnesus and surrounding territories. All images are from Thomas Hobbes, Eight Bookes of the Peloponnesian Warre (London, Hen. Seile, 1629; RBML Lodge 1629 T42). Click through on the images above to access a larger image.