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Warfare and Society in Ancient Greece
Lecture 13
Thucydides, Xenophon and the Decelean War
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i. The outcome of the Sicilian expedition
Thucydides, 8.1-2
Such were the events in Sicily.
When the news was brought to Athens, for a long while they disbelieved even the most respectable of the
soldiers who had themselves escaped from the scene of action and clearly reported the matter, a destruction so
complete not being thought credible. When the conviction was forced upon them, they were angry with the
orators who had joined in promoting the expedition, just as if they had not themselves voted it, and were
enraged also with the reciters of oracles and soothsayers, and all other omenmongers of the time who had
encouraged them to hope that they should conquer Sicily. [2] Already distressed at all points and in all quarters,
after what had now happened, they were seized by a fear and consternation quite without example. It was
grievous enough for the state and for every man in his proper person to lose so many heavy infantry, cavalry,
and able-bodied troops, and to see none left to replace them; but when they saw, also, that they had not
sufficient ships in their docks, or money in the treasury, or crews for the ships, they began to despair of
salvation. They thought that their enemies in Sicily would immediately sail with their fleet against Piraeus,
inflamed by so signal a victory; while their adversaries at home, redoubling all their preparations, would
vigorously attack them by sea and land at once, aided by their own revolted confederates. [3] Nevertheless, with
such means as they had, it was determined to resist to the last, and to provide timber and money, and to equip
a fleet as they best could, to take steps to secure their confederates and above all Euboea, to reform things in
the city upon a more economical footing, and to elect a board of elders to advise upon the state of affairs as
occasion should arise. [4] In short, as is the way of a democracy, in the panic of the moment they were ready to
be as prudent as possible.
These resolves were at once carried into effect.
2. Summer was now over. The winter ensuing saw all Hellas stirring under the impression of the great Athenian
disaster in Sicily. Neutrals now felt that even if uninvited they ought no longer to stand aloof from the war, but
should volunteer to march against the Athenians, who, as they severally reflected, would probably have come
against them if the Sicilian campaign had succeeded. Besides, they considered that the war would now be short,
and that it would be creditable for them to take part in it. Meanwhile the allies of the Lacedaemonians felt all
more anxious than ever to see a speedy end to their heavy labours. [2] But above all, the subjects of the
Athenians showed a readiness to revolt even beyond their ability, judging the circumstances with passion, and
refusing even to hear of the Athenians being able to last out the coming summer. [3] Beyond all this,
Lacedaemon was encouraged by the near prospect of being joined in great force in the spring by her allies in
Sicily, lately forced by events to acquire their navy. [4] With these reasons for confidence in every quarter, the
Lacedaemonians now resolved to throw themselves without reserve into the war considering that, once it was
happily terminated, they would be finally delivered from such dangers as that which would have threatened
them from Athens, if she had become mistress of Sicily, and that the overthrow of the Athenians would leave
them in quiet enjoyment of the supremacy over all Hellas.
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ii. The fortification of Decelea: starving Athens to defeat
Thucydides, 6.91-92.1
The friends that you have already will thus become more confident, and the waverers will be encouraged to
join you. [5] Meanwhile you must carry on the war here more openly, that the Syracusans seeing that you do
not forget them, may put heart into their resistance, and that the Athenians may be less able to reinforce their
armament. [6] You must fortify Decelea in Attica, the blow of which the Athenians are always most afraid and
the only one that they think they have not experienced in the present war; the surest method of harming an
enemy being to find out what he most fears, and to choose this means of attacking him, since every one
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naturally knows best his own weak points and fears accordingly. [7] The fortification in question, while it
benefits you, will create difficulties for your adversaries, of which I shall pass over many, and shall only
mention the chief. Whatever property there is in the country will most of it become yours, either by capture or
surrender; and the Athenians will at once be deprived of their revenues from the silver mines at Laurium, of
their present gains from their land and from the law courts, and above all of the revenue from their allies,
which will be paid less regularly, as they lose their awe of Athens, and see you addressing yourselves with
vigour to the war.
92. The zeal and speed with which all this shall be done depends, Lacedaemonians, upon yourselves; as to its
possibility, I am quite confident, and I have little fear of being mistaken.
Xenophon, Hellenica 1.1.35-36
Meanwhile Agis, who could see from Decelea great numbers of grain-ships sailing in to Piraeus, said that it was
useless for his troops to be trying all this long time to shut off the Athenians from access to their land, unless
one should occupy also the country from which the grain was coming in by sea; and that it was best to send to
Calchedon and Byzantium Clearchus, the son of Rhamphias, who was diplomatic agent for the Byzantines at
Sparta. [36] When this was resolved upon, fifteen ships were manned by the Megarians and the other allies,
more properly transports than warships, and Clearchus set out with them. Three of his ships were destroyed in
the Hellespont by the nine Attic ships which were continually on duty there to protect the Athenian
merchantmen, but the rest escaped to Sestus and from there made their way safely to Byzantium.
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iii. The war in the Aegean (Ionian War): The new scenario
Thucydides, 8.5.4-5
While Agis was engaged with the Lesbians, the Chians and Erythraeans, who were also ready to revolt, applied,
not to him but at Lacedaemon; where they arrived accompanied by an ambassador from Tissaphernes, the
commander of King Darius, son of Artaxerxes, [5] in the maritime districts, who invited the Peloponnesians to
come over, and promised to maintain their army. The king had lately called upon him for the tribute from his
government, for which he was in arrears, being unable to raise it from the Hellenic towns by reason of the
Athenians; and he therefore calculated that by weakening the Athenians he should get the tribute better paid,
and should also draw the Lacedaemonians into alliance with the king; and by this means, as the king had
commanded him, take alive or dead Amorges, the bastard son of Pissuthnes, who was in rebellion on the coast
of Caria.
Thucydides, 8.8
Agis, on the other hand, seeing the Lacedaemonians bent upon going to Chios first, himself came in to their
views; and the allies assembled at Corinth and held a council, in which they decided to sail first to Chios under
the command of Chalcideus, who was equipping the five vessels in Laconia, then to Lesbos, under the
command of Alcamenes, the same whom Agis had fixed upon, and lastly to go to the Hellespont, where the
command was given to Clearchus, son of Ramphias. [3] Meanwhile they would take only half the ships across
the Isthmus first, and let those sail off at once, in order that the Athenians might attend less to the departing
squadron than to those to be taken across afterwards, [4] as no care had been taken to keep this voyage secret
through contempt of the impotence of the Athenians, who had as yet no fleet of any account upon the sea.
Agreeably to this determination twenty-one vessels were at once conveyed across the Isthmus.
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iv. The war in the Aegean (Ionian War): Athenian victories and lost opportunities
Xenophon, Hellenica I.1.16-23 (battle of Cyzicus)
And after the assembly he made preparations for battle and, in the midst of a heavy rain, set out for Cyzicus.
When he was near Cyzicus, the weather cleared and the sun came out, and he sighted the ships under
Mindarus, sixty in number, engaged in practice at some distance from the harbour and already cut off from it
by his own fleet. [17] But the Peloponnesians, when they saw that the Athenian triremes were far more
numerous than before and were near the harbour, fled to the shore; and mooring their ships together, they
fought with their adversaries as they sailed down upon them. [18] Alcibiades, however, with twenty of his ships
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sailed round the fleets and landed on the shore. When Mindarus saw this, he also landed, and fell fighting on
the shore; and those who were with him fled. And the Athenians took away with them to Proconnesus all the
Peloponnesian ships, except those of the Syracusans; for these were burned by their own crews.
From Proconnesus the Athenians sailed on the next day against Cyzicus; [19] and the Cyzicenes admitted them,
inasmuch as the Peloponnesians and Pharnabazus had evacuated the city. [20] There Alcibiades remained for
twenty days, and after obtaining a great deal of money from the Cyzicenes, but without doing any further harm
in the city, sailed back to Proconnesus. From there he sailed to Perinthus and Selymbria. [21] And the
Perinthians admitted the Athenian forces to their city, and the Selymbrians, while not admitting them, gave
them money. [22] From there they proceeded to Chrysopolis, in Calchedonia, and fortified it, established a
custom house in the city, and proceeded to collect the tithe-duty from vessels sailing out of the Pontus; they
also left there as a garrison thirty ships and two of the generals, Theramenes and Eumachus, to have charge of
the fort, to attend to the outgoing ships, and to harm the enemy in any other way they could. The other
generals returned to the Hellespont. [23]
Meanwhile a letter dispatched to Lacedaemon by Hippocrates, vice-admiral under Mindarus, was intercepted
and taken to Athens; it ran as follows: “The ships are gone. Mindarus is dead. The men are starving. We know
not what to do.”
Xenophon, Hellenica I.5.10-17 (battle of Notium and dismissal of Alcibiades)
As for Lysander, when he had finished organising his fleet, he hauled ashore the ships which were at Ephesus,
now ninety in number, and kept quiet, while the ships were being dried out and repaired. [11] Meantime
Alcibiades, hearing that Thrasybulus had come out from the Hellespont and was investing Phocaea, sailed
across to see him, leaving in command of the fleet Antiochus, the pilot of his own ship, with orders not to
attack Lysander's ships. [12] Antiochus, however, with his own ship and one other sailed from Notium into the
harbour of Ephesus and coasted along past the very prows of Lysander's ships. [13] Lysander at first launched a
few ships and pursued him, but when the Athenians came to the aid of Antiochus with more ships, he then
formed into line of battle every ship he had and sailed against them. Thereupon the Athenians also launched
the rest of their triremes at Notium and set out, as each one got a clear course. [15] From that moment they fell
to fighting, the one side in good order, but the Athenians with their ships scattered, and fought until the
Athenians took to flight, after losing fifteen triremes. As for the men upon them, the greater part escaped, but
some were taken prisoners. Then Lysander, after taking possession of his prizes and setting up a trophy at
Notium, sailed across to Ephesus, while the Athenians went to Samos. After this Alcibiades came to Samos, set
sail with all his ships to the harbour of Ephesus, and formed the fleet in line at the mouth of the harbour as a
challenge to battle, in case anyone cared to fight. But when Lysander did not sail out against him, because his
fleet was considerably inferior in numbers, Alcibiades sailed back to Samos. And a little later the
Lacedaemonians captured Delphinium and Eion. [16]
When the Athenians at home got the news of the battle at Notium, they were angry with Alcibiades, thinking
that he had lost the ships through neglect of duty and dissolute conduct, and they chose ten new generals,
Conon, Diomedon, Leon, Pericles, Erasinides, Aristocrates, Archestratus, Protomachus, Thrasyllus, and
Aristogenes. [17] So Alcibiades, who was in disfavour with the army as well, took a trireme and sailed away to
his castle in the Chersonese. [18] After this Conon set sail from Andros, with the twenty ships which he had, to
Samos, there to assume command of the fleet in accordance with the vote which the Athenians had passed.
They also sent Phanosthenes to Andros, with four ships, to replace Conon.
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v. Athens on the trail
Xenophon, Hellenica I.5.20
When, meanwhile, Conon had arrived at Samos, where he found the Athenian fleet in a state of despondency,
he manned with full complements seventy triremes instead of the former number, which was more than a
hundred, and setting out with this fleet, in company with the other generals, landed here and there in the
enemy's territory and plundered it.
Diodorus, XIII.76.1
About this time Conon, the Athenian general, now that he had taken over the armaments in Samos, fitted out
the ships which were in that place and also collected those of the allies, since he was intent upon making his
fleet a match for the ships of the enemy.
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Xenophon, Hellenica II.1.13-14
At this point Cyrus sent for Lysander, for a messenger had come to him from his father with word that he was
ill and summoned him, he being at Thamneria, in Media, near the country of the Cadusians, against whom he
had made an expedition, for they were in revolt. [14] And when Lysander arrived, Cyrus warned him not to
give battle to the Athenians unless he should far outnumber them in ships; for, Cyrus said, both the King and
he had money in abundance, and hence, so far as that point was concerned, it would be possible to man many
ships. He then assigned to Lysander all the tribute which came in from his cities and belonged to him
personally, and gave him also the balance he had on hand; and, after reminding Lysander how good a friend he
was both to the Lacedaemonian state and to him personally, he set out on the journey to his father.
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