Hellenica

In the following year—in which was celebrated[*](404 B.C.) an Olympiad, wherein Crocinas the Thessalian was victorious in the stadium, Endius being now ephor at Sparta and Pythodorus archon at Athens. Since, however, Pythodorus was chosen during the time of the oligarchy, the Athenians do not use his name to mark the year, but call it the archonless year. And this oligarchy came into being in the way hereafter described[*](See critical note on the text.)—

it was voted by the people to choose thirty men to frame the ancient laws[*](i.e., those of Cleisthenes and Solon, as contrasted with the radical, extreme democracy of more recent times. Cp. Aristot. Const. Ath. 29.17) into a constitution under which to conduct the government. And the following men were chosen: Polychares, Critias, Melobius, Hippolochus, Eucleides, Hieron, Mnesilochus, Chremon, Theramenes, Aresias, Diocles, Phaedrias, Chaereleos, Anaetius, Peison, Sophocles, Eratosthenes, Charicles, Onomacles,[*](404 B.C.) Theognis, Aeschines, Theogenes, Cleomedes, Erasistratus, Pheidon, Dracontides, Eumathes, Aristoteles, Hippomachus, Mnesitheides.

When this had been done, Lysander sailed off to Samos, while Agis withdrew the land force from Decelea and dismissed the several contingents to their cities.

It was near this date, and at about the time of an eclipse of the sun, that Lycophron of Pherae, who wanted to make himself ruler of all Thessaly, defeated in battle those among the Thessalians who opposed him, namely the Larisaeans and others, and slew many of them.

It was at the same time also that Dionysius, the tyrant of Syracuse, was defeated in battle by the Carthaginians and lost Gela and Camarina. Shortly afterwards also the Leontines, who had been dwelling at Syracuse, revolted from Dionysius and the Syracusans and returned to their own city. And immediately thereafter the Syracusan horsemen were despatched by Dionysius to Catana.

Meanwhile the Samians were being besieged by Lysander on every side, and when, seeing that at first they refused to come to terms, he was on the point of making an attack upon them, they came to an agreement with him that every free person should depart from the city with but one cloak and that all else should be surrendered; and on these terms they withdrew.

And Lysander gave over the city and everything therein to the former citizens, and appointed ten rulers to guard it; then he dismissed the naval contingents of the allies to their several[*](404 B.C.) cities,

and he sailed home with the Laconian ships to Lacedaemon, taking with him the prows of the captured ships, the triremes from Piraeus except twelve, the crowns which he had received from the cities as gifts to himself individually, four hundred and seventy talents in money, being the balance that remained of the tribute money which Cyrus had assigned to him for the prosecution of the war, and whatever else he had obtained during the course of the war.

All these things he delivered over to the Lacedaemonians at the close of the summer—with which ended the twenty-eight years and six months of the war, during which years the eponymous ephors were the following: Aenesias first, in whose term the war began, in the fifteenth year of the thirty years’ truce which followed the conquest of Euboea, and after him the following:

Brasidas, Isanor, Sostratidas, Exarchus, Agesistratus, Angenidas, Onomacles, Zeuxippus, Pityas, Pleistolas, Cleinomachus, Ilarchus, Leon, Chaerilas, Patesiadas, Cleosthenes, Lycarius, Eperatus, Onomantius, Alexippidas, Misgolaidas, Isias, Aracus, Euarchippus, Pantacles, Pityas, Archytas, and Endius; it was in Endius’ term that Lysander sailed home after performing the deeds above described.

Now at Athens the Thirty had been chosen as soon as the long walls and the walls round Piraeus were demolished; although chosen, however, for the purpose of framing a constitution under which to conduct the government, they continually delayed framing and publishing this constitution, but they appointed a Senate and the other magistrates as they saw fit.

Then, as a first[*](404 B.C.) step, they arrested and brought to trial for their lives those persons who, by common knowledge, had made a living in the time of the democracy by acting as informers and had been offensive to the aristocrats; and the Senate was glad to pronounce these people guilty, and the rest of the citizens—at least all who were conscious that they were not of the same sort themselves—were not at all displeased.

When, however, the Thirty began to consider how they might become free to do just as they pleased with the state, their first act was to send Aeschines and Aristoteles to Lacedaemon and persuade Lysander to help them to secure the sending of a Lacedaemonian garrison, to remain until, as they said, they could put the scoundrels out of the way and establish their government; and they promised to maintain this garrison at their own charges.

Lysander consented, and helped them to secure the dispatch of the troops and of Callibius as governor. But when they had got the garrison, they paid court to Callibius in every way, in order that he might approve of everything they did, and as he detailed guardsmen to go with them, they arrested the people whom they wished to reach,—not now the scoundrels and persons of little account, but from this time forth the men who, they thought, were least likely to submit to being ignored, and who, if they undertook to offer any opposition, would obtain supporters in the greatest numbers.

Now in the beginning Critias and Theramenes were agreed in their policy and friendly; but when Critias showed himself eager to put many to death, because, for one thing, he had been banished by the democracy, Theramenes opposed him, saying that it[*](404 B.C.) was not reasonable to put a man to death because he was honoured by the commons, provided he was doing no harm to the aristocrats. For, said he, you and I also have said and done many things for the sake of winning the favour of the city.

Then Critias (for he still treated Theramenes as a friend) replied that it was impossible for people who wanted to gain power not to put out of the way those who were best able to thwart them. But if, he said, merely because we are thirty and not one, you imagine that it is any the less necessary for us to keep a close watch over this government, just as one would if it were an absolute monarchy, you are foolish.

But when, on account of the great numbers continually—and unjustly—put to death, it was evident that many were banding together and wondering what the state was coming to, Theramenes spoke again, saying that unless they admitted an adequate number of citizens into partnership with them in the management of affairs, it would be impossible for the oligarchy to endure.

Accordingly Critias and the rest of the Thirty, who were by this time alarmed and feared above all that the citizens would flock to the support of Theramenes, enrolled a body of three thousand, who were to share, as they said, in the government.

Theramenes, however, objected to this move also, saying that, in the first place, it seemed to him absurd that, when they wanted to make the best of the citizens their associates, they should limit themselves to three thousand, as though this number must somehow be good men and true and there could neither be excellent men outside this body nor rascals within[*](404 B.C.) it. Besides, he said, we are undertaking, in my opinion, two absolutely inconsistent things,—to rig up our government on the basis of force and at the same time to make it weaker than its subjects.

This was what Theramenes said. As for the Thirty, they held a review, the Three Thousand assembling in the market-place and those who were not on the roll in various places here and there; then they gave the order to pile arms, and while the men were off duty and away, they sent their Lacedaemonian guardsmen and such citizens as were in sympathy with them, seized the arms of all except the Three Thousand, carried them up to the Acropolis, and deposited them in the temple.