Histories

Having loaded the horses into these, and embarked the land army in the ships, they sailed to Ionia (region (general)), Europe Ionia with six hundred triremes. From there they held their course not by the mainland and straight towards the Canakkale Bogazi (strait), Canakkale, Marmara, Turkey, Asia Hellespont and Thrace (region (general)), EuropeThrace, but setting forth from +Nisos Samos [26.8,37.75] (island), Samos, Aegean Islands, Greece, Europe Samos they sailed by the Icarian sea and from island to island; this, to my thinking, was because they feared above all the voyage around +Mount Athos [24.316,40.166] (inhabited place), Pangaion Oros, Macedonia, Greece, Europe Athos, seeing that in the previous year they had come to great disaster by holding their course that way; moreover, +Nisos Naxos [25.583,32.33] (island), Cyclades, Aegean Islands, Greece, Europe Naxos was still unconquered and constrained them.

When they approached +Naxos [15.283,37.816] (deserted settlement), Messina, Sicily, Italy, Europe Naxos from the Icarian sea and came to land (for it was +Naxos [15.283,37.816] (deserted settlement), Messina, Sicily, Italy, Europe Naxos which the Persians intended to attack first), the Naxians, remembering what had happened before,[*](This probably refers to the Persian treatment of rebels, described in Hdt. 6.31 and 32.) fled away to the mountains instead of waiting for them. The Persians enslaved all of them that they caught, and burnt their temples and their city. After doing this, they set sail for the other islands.

While they did this, the Delians also left Delos [25.2833,37.4] (Perseus)Delos and fled away to +Nisos Tinos [25.166,37.583] (island), Cyclades, Aegean Islands, Greece, Europe Tenos. As his expedition was sailing landwards, Datis went on ahead and bade his fleet anchor not off Delos [25.2833,37.4] (Perseus)Delos, but across the water off Rhenaea. Learning where the Delians were, he sent a herald to them with this proclamation:

“Holy men, why have you fled away, and so misjudged my intent? It is my own desire, and the king's command to me, to do no harm to the land where the two gods[*](Apollo and Artemis.) were born, neither to the land itself nor to its inhabitants. So return now to your homes and dwell on your island.” He made this proclamation to the Delians, and then piled up three hundred talents of frankincense on the altar and burnt it.