Hellenica

After this a Syracusan named Herodas, being[*](396 B.C.) in Phoenicia with a certain shipowner, and seeing Phoenician war-ships—some of them sailing in from other places, others lying there fully manned, and yet others still making ready for sea—and hearing, besides, that there were to be three hundred of them, embarked on the first boat that sailed to Greece and reported to the Lacedaemonians that the King and Tissaphernes were preparing this expedition; but whither it was bound he said he did not know.

Now while the Lacedaemonians were in a state of great excitement, and were gathering together their allies and taking counsel as to what they should do, Lysander, thinking that the Greeks would be far superior on the sea, and reflecting that the land force which went up country with Cyrus had returned safely, persuaded Agesilaus to promise, in case the Lacedaemonians would give him thirty Spartiatae, two thousand emancipated Helots,[*](396 B.C.) and a contingent of six thousand of the allies, to make an expedition to Asia. Such were the motives which actuated Lysander, but, in addition, he wanted to make the expedition with Agesilaus on his own account also, in order that with the aid of Agesilaus he might re-establish the decarchies[*](In the cities which fell under his control after the battle of Aegospotami Lysander had established oligarchical governments, the supreme power being lodged in a council of ten, corresponding to the Thirty at Athens.) which had been set up by him in the cities, but had been overthrown through the ephors, who had issued a proclamation restoring to the cities their ancient form of government.

When Agesilaus offered to undertake the campaign, the Lacedaemonians gave him everything he asked for and provisions for six months. And when he marched forth from the country after offering all the sacrifices which were required, including that at the frontier,[*](Spartan commanders always offered sacrifices to Zeus and Athena before crossing the Laconian frontier.) he dispatched messengers to the various cities and announced how many men were to be sent from each city, and where they were to report; while as for himself, he desired to go and offer sacrifice at Aulis, the place where Agamemnon had sacrificed before he sailed to Troy.

When he had reached Aulis, however, the Boeotarchs,[*](The presiding officials of the Boeotian League.) on learning that he was sacrificing, sent horsemen and bade him discontinue his sacrificing, and they threw from the altar the victims which they found already offered. Then Agesilaus, calling the gods to witness, and full of anger, embarked upon his trireme and sailed away. And when he arrived at Gerastus and had collected there as large a part of his army as he could, he directed his course to Ephesus.

When he reached Ephesus, Tissaphernes at once sent and asked him with what intent he had come.[*](396 B.C.) And he answered: That the cities in Asia shall be independent, as are those in our part of Greece. In reply to this Tissaphernes said: Then if you are willing to make a truce until I can send to the King, I think you could accomplish this object and, if you should so desire, sail back home. Indeed I should so desire, said he, if I could but think that I was not being deceived by you. But, said he, it is possible for you to receive a guarantee on this point, that in very truth and without guile, if you follow this course, we will do no harm to any part of your domain during the truce.

After this agreement had been reached, Tissaphernes made oath to the commissioners who were sent to him, Herippidas, Dercylidas, and Megillus, that in very truth and without guile he would negotiate the peace, and they in turn made oath on behalf of Agesilaus to Tissaphernes that in very truth, if he did this, Agesilaus would steadfastly observe the truce. Now Tissaphernes straightway violated the oaths which he had sworn; for instead of keeping peace he sent to the King for a large army in addition to that which he had before. But Agesilaus, though he was aware of this, nevertheless continued to abide by the truce.

Meanwhile, during the time that Agesilaus was spending in quiet and leisure at Ephesus, since the governments in the cities were in a state of confusion—for it was no longer democracy, as in the time of Athenian rule, nor decarchy, as in the time of Lysander—and since the people all knew Lysander, they beset him with requests that he should obtain from Agesilaus the granting of their petitions; and for this reason a very great crowd was continually courting and following him, so that Agesilaus appeared[*](396 B.C.) to be a man in private station and Lysander king.

Now Agesilaus showed afterwards that he also was enraged by these things; but the thirty Spartiatae[*](See 2 above.) with him were so jealous that they could not keep silence, but said to Agesilaus that Lysander was doing an unlawful thing in conducting himself more pompously than royalty. When, however, Lysander now began to introduce people to Agesilaus, the king would in every case dismiss, without granting their petitions, those who were known by him to be supported in any way by Lysander. And when Lysander found that the outcome was invariably the opposite of what he desired, he realized how the matter stood; and he no longer allowed a crowd to follow him, while he plainly told those who wanted him to give them any help that they would fare worse if he supported them.

But being distressed at his disgrace, he went to Agesilaus and said: Agesilaus, it seems that you, at least, understand how to humiliate your friends. Yes, by Zeus, I do, said he, at any rate those who wish to appear greater than I; but as for those who exalt me, if I should prove not to know how to honour them in return, I should be ashamed. And Lysander said: Well, perhaps it is indeed true that you are acting more properly than I acted. Therefore grant me this favour at least: in order that I may not be shamed by having no influence with you, and may not be in your way, send me off somewhere. For, wherever I may be, I shall endeavour to be useful to you.

When he had thus spoken, Agesilaus also thought it best to follow this course, and he sent him to the Hellespont. There Lysander, upon learning that Spithridates the Persian had suffered a slight at the hands of Pharnabazus, had a conference with him and persuaded him to[*](396 B.C.) revolt, taking with him his children and the money he had at hand and about two hundred horsemen. And Lysander left everything else at Cyzicus, but put Spithridates himself and his son on board ship and brought them with him to Agesilaus. And when Agesilaus saw them, he was pleased with the exploit, and immediately inquired about the territory and government of Pharnabazus.

Now when Tissaphernes, growing confident because of the army which had come down from the King, declared war upon Agesilaus if he did not depart from Asia, the allies and the Lacedaemonians who were present showed that they were greatly disturbed, thinking that the force which Agesilaus had was inferior to the King’s array; but Agesilaus, his countenance radiant, ordered the ambassadors to carry back word to Tissaphernes that he felt very grateful to him because, by violating his oath, he had made the gods enemies of his side and allies of the Greeks. Then he straightway gave orders to the soldiers to pack up for a campaign, and sent word to the cities which had to be visited by anyone who marched upon Caria, that they should make ready a market. He also dispatched orders to the Ionians, Aeolians, and Hellespontines to send to him at Ephesus troops which should take part in the campaign.

Now Tissaphernes, both because Agesilaus had no cavalry (and Caria was unsuited for cavalry), and because he believed that he was angry with him on account of his treachery, made up his mind that he was really going to march against his own residence in Caria, and accordingly sent all his infantry across into that province, and as for his cavalry, he led it round into the plain of the Maeander, thinking that he was strong enough to trample the Greeks under[*](396 B.C.) foot with his horsemen before they should reach the regions which were unfit for cavalry. Agesilaus, however, instead of proceeding against Caria, straightway turned in the opposite direction and marched towards Phrygia, and he picked up and led along with him the contingents which met him on the march, subdued the cities, and, since he fell upon them unexpectedly, obtained great quantities of booty.

Most of the time he pursued his march through the country in safety; but when he was not far from Dascyleium, his horsemen, who were going on ahead of him, rode to the top of a hill so as to see what was in front. And by chance the horsemen of Pharnabazus, under the command of Rhathines and Bagaeus, his bastard brother, just about equal to the Greek cavalry in number, had been sent out by Pharnabazus and likewise rode to the top of this same hill. And when the two squadrons saw one another, not so much as four plethra[*](The plethrum=c. 100 feet.) apart, at first both halted, the Greek horsemen being drawn up four deep like a phalanx,[*](The phalanx of this period was sometimes four, seldom more than eight, deep. The tendency of later tactics was to increase its depth greatly (cp. IV. ii. 18, VI. iv. 12), a tendency which culminated in the famous Macedonian phalanx.) and the barbarians with a front of not more than twelve, but many men deep. Then, however, the barbarians charged.

When they came to a hand-to-hand encounter, all of the Greeks who struck anyone broke their spears, while the barbarians, being armed with javelins of cornel-wood, speedily killed twelve men and two horses. Thereupon the Greeks were turned to flight. But when Agesilaus came to the rescue with the hoplites, the barbarians withdrew again and one of them was killed.

After this cavalry battle had[*](396 B.C.) taken place and Agesilaus on the next day was offering sacrifices with a view to an advance, the livers of the victims were found to be lacking a lobe. This sign having presented itself, he turned and marched to the sea. And perceiving that, unless he obtained an adequate cavalry force, he would not be able to campaign in the plains, he resolved that this must be provided, so that he might not have to carry on a skulking warfare. Accordingly he assigned the richest men of all the cities in that region to the duty of raising horses; and by proclaiming that whoever supplied a horse and arms and a competent man would not have to serve himself, he caused these arrangements to be carried out with all the expedition that was to be expected when men were eagerly looking for substitutes to die in their stead.

After this, when spring was just coming on, he[*](395 B.C.) gathered his whole army at Ephesus; and desiring to train the army, he offered prizes both to the heavy-armed divisions, for the division which should be in the best physical condition, and to the cavalry divisions, for the one which should show the best horsemanship; and he also offered prizes to peltasts and bowmen, for all who should prove themselves best in their respective duties. Thereupon one might have seen all the gymnasia full of men exercising, the hippodrome full of riders, and the javelin-men and bowmen practising.

In fact, he made the entire city, where he was staying, a sight worth seeing; for the market was full of all sorts of horses and weapons, offered for sale, and the copper-workers, carpenters, smiths, leather-cutters, and painters were all engaged in making martial weapons, so that one[*](395 B.C.) might have thought that the city was really a workshop of war.

And one would have been encouraged at another sight also—Agesilaus in the van, and after him the rest of the soldiers, returning garlanded from the gymnasia and dedicating their garlands to Artemis. For where men reverence the gods, train themselves in deeds of war, and practise obedience to authority, may we not reasonably suppose that such a place abounds in high hopes?

And again, believing that to feel contempt for one’s enemies infuses a certain courage for the fight, Agesilaus gave orders to his heralds that the barbarians who were captured by the Greek raiding parties should be exposed for sale naked. Thus the soldiers, seeing that these men were white-skinned because they never were without their clothing, and soft and unused to toil because they always rode in carriages, came to the conclusion that the war would be in no way different from having to fight with women.

Meanwhile the year had now ended since the time when Agesilaus had set sail from Greece, so that Lysander and the thirty Spartiatae sailed back home, and Herippidas with his thirty came as their successors. Of these, Agesilaus assigned Xenocles and one other to the command of the cavalry, Scythes to the command of the Helot hoplites, Herippidas to the Cyreans,[*](I.e. the Greek troops which had served under Cyrus, and now made part of Agesilaus’ army. Cp. III. i. 6, ii. 7.) and Mygdon to the troops from the allied cities, and he announced to them that he would immediately lead them by the shortest route to the best parts of the country, his object being to have them begin at once to prepare their bodies and spirits for the fray.