Hellenica

Now those who knew of the plan were of course present, obeyed the order, and seized Ismenias; but of those who did not know about it and were opponents of Leontiades and his party, some fled at once out of the city, fearing that they would be put to death; others withdrew at first to their homes; when they learned, however, that Ismenias was imprisoned in the Cadmea, then all those who[*](383 B.C.) held the same views as Androcleidas and Ismenias retired to Athens, to the number of about three hundred.

When these things had been accomplished, they chose another polemarch in place of Ismenias, but Leontiades proceeded at once to Lacedaemon. There he found the ephors and the majority of the citizens angry with Phoebidas because he had acted in this matter without authorization by the state. Agesilaus, however, said that if what he had done was harmful to Lacedaemon, he deserved to be punished, but if advantageous, it was a time-honoured custom that a commander, in such cases, had the right to act on his own initiative. It is precisely this point, therefore, he said, which should be considered, whether what has been done is good or bad for the state.

Then Leontiades came before the assembly and spoke as follows: Men of Lacedaemon, that the Thebans were hostile to you before what has now been done came to pass, you were wont to say yourselves; for you saw that they were always friendly to your enemies, and enemies to your friends. Did they not refuse to join you in the campaign against the Athenian commons in Piraeus, who were bitter enemies of yours, and did they not, on the other hand, march against the Phocians because they saw that you were well disposed towards them?

Again, knowing that you were making war upon the Olynthians, they undertook to conclude an alliance with them, and you in those past days were always uneasily watching for the time when you should hear that they were forcing Boeotia to be under their sway; but now that this stroke has been accomplished,[*](383 B.C.) there is no need of your fearing the Thebans; on the contrary, a brief message from you will suffice to secure from that quarter all the support that you may desire, provided only you show as much concern for us as we have shown for you.

Upon hearing these words the Lacedaemonians resolved, so long as the Acropolis had been seized, to keep it garrisoned, and to bring Ismenias to trial. Accordingly they sent out as judges three Lacedaemonians and one from each of the allied states, whether small or great. And it was not until the court held its sitting that charges were brought against Ismenias, — that he was a supporter of the barbarians, that he had become a guest-friend of the Persian satrap to the hurt of Greece, that he had received a share of the money which came from the King, and that he and Androcleidas were chiefly responsible for all the trouble and disorder in Greece.

To all these charges he did indeed make a defence, but he failed to persuade the court that he was not a man of great and evil undertakings. So he was pronounced guilty and put to death; as for Leontiades and his party, they held possession of Thebes and gave the Lacedaemonians their support in even more than was demanded of them.

After these things had been accomplished, the[*](382 B.C.) Lacedaemonians with much more spirit set about dispatching the joint army to Olynthus. They sent out Teleutias as governor, and not only sent with him their own full contingent of the total ten thousand men, but also transmitted official dispatches to the various allied states, directing them to follow Teleutias in accordance with the resolution of the allies. And[*](382 B.C.) all the states gave their hearty support to Teleutias, — for he was regarded as a man not ungrateful to those who performed any service, — while the Theban state in particular, inasmuch as he was a brother of Agesilaus, eagerly sent with him both hoplites and horsemen.

Now he prosecuted his march with no great speed, his concern being rather to make the journey without doing any harm to the friends of his state and to collect as large a force as possible. He also sent word on ahead to Amyntas and asked him not only to hire mercenaries, but likewise to give money to the kings in his neighbourhood, that they might become allies, if he really wanted to recover his dominions. Furthermore, he sent to Derdas, the ruler of Elimia, pointing out to him that the Olynthians had already subdued the greater power, Macedonia, and would not let the lesser escape unless someone put a stop to their presumption.

As a result of his doing these things he had a very large army when he arrived in the territory of his state’s allies. And when he had come to Potidaea, he proceeded from there with his army in order of battle into the enemy’s country. Now on his way toward the city of Olynthus he neither burned nor cut down, believing that anything of this sort he should do would prove so many obstacles in his way both as he approached and as he withdrew; but he believed that when he should retire from the city it would be right to cut down the trees and put them in the way of anyone who might come against him from behind.

And when he was distant from the city not so much as ten stadia, he halted the army, himself occupying the left wing, — for in this way it fell to[*](382 B.C.) him to advance in the direction of the gate where the enemy issued forth, — while the rest of the phalanx, made up of the allies, stretched away to the right. As for the horsemen, he likewise posted upon the right wing the Laconians, the Thebans, and all the Macedonians who were present, while he kept by his own side Derdas and his horsemen, numbering about four hundred, not only because he admired this troop, but also to do honour to Derdas, so that he should be glad he had joined the expedition.

But when the enemy came and formed in opposing line beneath the city wall, their horsemen, massing themselves together, charged upon the Laconians and Boeotians. And they not only struck down from his horse Polycharmus, the Lacedaemonian commander of cavalry, and inflicted very many wounds upon him as he lay, but they also killed others, and finally put to flight the cavalry upon the right wing. Now as the cavalry fled, the infantry next them also gave way, and the whole army, indeed, would have been in danger of being defeated had not Derdas with his troop dashed straight for the gates of the Olynthians. And Teleutias also advanced to the attack with his troops in battle order.

When the Olynthian horsemen perceived these movements, being seized with fear lest they should be shut out from the gates, they turned about and retired in great haste. Then Derdas killed very many of them as they rode past him. And the foot-soldiers of the Olynthians also retired into the city; but not many of them were killed, because the wall was near.

And when a trophy had been set up and this victory had fallen to Teleutias, then as he withdrew[*](382 B.C.) he proceeded to cut down the trees. Now after continuing the campaign through this summer he dismissed both the Macedonian army and the horsemen of Derdas; the Olynthians, however, on their side made frequent raids into the territory of the cities allied with the Lacedaemonians, and carried off booty and killed men.

At the very beginning of the following spring[*](381 B.C.) the Olynthian horsemen, about six hundred in number, had made a raid into the district of Apollonia at midday and were scattered about pillaging; and it chanced that on that day Derdas had arrived with his horsemen and was breakfasting at Apollonia. When he saw the raid, he kept quiet, keeping his horses saddled and bridled and their riders fully armed. But when the Olynthians came riding disdainfully not only into the suburbs, but to the very gates of the city, then he dashed forth with his men in good order.

And upon seeing him the enemy took to flight. But he, when once he had turned them to flight, did not stop pursuing and killing for ninety stadia, until he had chased them to the very wall of the Olynthians. It was said, indeed, that Derdas killed in this action about eighty horsemen. And from this day forth the enemy stayed more closely within their wall and cultivated only an exceedingly small portion of their land.

As time went on, however, and Teleutias had led his army up to the city of the Olynthians in order to destroy whatever tree was left or whatever field had been cultivated by the enemy, the Olynthian horsemen issued forth and, proceeding quietly, crossed the river which flows by the city and held on their way towards the[*](381 B.C.) opposing army. And when Teleutias saw them, being irritated at their audacity, he immediately ordered Tlemonidas, the leader of the peltasts, to charge against them on the run.

Now when the Olynthians saw the peltasts sallying forth, they turned about, retired quietly, and crossed the river again. The peltasts, on the other hand, followed very rashly and, with the thought that the enemy were in flight, pushed into the river after them to pursue them. Thereupon the Olynthian horsemen, at the moment when they thought that those who had crossed the river were still easy to handle, turned about and dashed upon them, and they not only killed Tlemonidas himself, but more than one hundred of the others.

But Teleutias, filled with anger when he saw what was going on, snatched up his arms and led the hoplites swiftly forward, while he ordered the peltasts and the horsemen to pursue and not stop pursuing. Now in many other instances those who have pressed a pursuit too close to a city’s wall have come off badly in their retreat, and in this case also, when the men were showered with missiles from the towers, they were forced to retire in disorder and to guard themselves against the missiles.

At this moment the Olynthians sent out their horsemen to the attack, and the peltasts also came to their support; finally, their hoplites likewise rushed out, and fell upon the Lacedaemonian phalanx when it was already in confusion. There Teleutias fell fighting. And when this happened, the troops about him at once gave way, and in fact no one stood his ground any longer, but all fled, some for Spartolus, others for Acanthus, others to Apollonia, and the majority to Potidaea. As they fled in all directions,[*](381 B.C.) so likewise the enemy pursued in all directions, and killed a vast number of men, including the most serviceable part of the army.

From such disasters, however, I hold that men are taught the lesson, chiefly, indeed, that they ought not to chastise anyone, even slaves, in anger — for masters in anger have often suffered greater harm than they have inflicted; but especially that, in dealing with enemies, to attack under the influence of anger and not with judgment is an absolute mistake. For anger is a thing which does not look ahead, while judgment aims no less to escape harm than to inflict it upon the enemy.