Agesilaus

At the first sign of spring[*](395 B.C.) he collected the whole of his forces at Ephesus. With a view to their training he offered prizes for the cavalry squadron that rode best, and for the company of heavy infantry that reached the highest level of physical fitness. He also offered prizes to the targeteers and the archers who showed the greatest efficiency in their particular duties. Thereupon one might see every gymnasium crowded with the men exercising, the racecourse thronged with cavalrymen riding, and the javelin-men and archers shooting at the mark.

Indeed he made the whole city in which he was quartered a sight to see. For the market was full of arms and horses of all sorts on sale, and the coppersmiths, carpenters, workers in iron, cobblers, and painters were all busy making weapons of war, so that you might have thought that the city was really a war factory.

And an inspiring sight it would have been to watch Agesilaus and all his soldiers behind him returning garlanded from the gymnasium and dedicating their garlands to Artemis. For where men reverence the gods, train themselves in warfare and practise obedience, there you surely find high hopes abounding.

Moreover, believing that contempt for the enemy would kindle the fighting spirit, he gave instructions to his heralds that the barbarians captured in the raids should be exposed for sale naked. So when his soldiers saw them white because they never stripped, and fat and lazy through constant riding in carriages, they believed that the war would be exactly like fighting with women. He also gave notice to the troops that he would immediately lead them by the shortest route to the most fertile parts of the country, so that he might at once find them preparing themselves in body and mind for the coming struggle.

Tissaphernes, however, believed that in saying this he meant to deceive him again, and that now he would really invade Caria. Accordingly he sent his infantry across into Caria as before, and stationed his cavalry in the plain of the Maeander. But Agesilaus did not play false: in accordance with his notice he marched straight to the neighbourhood of Sardis; and for three days his route lay through a country bare of enemies, so that he supplied his army with abundance of provisions.

On the fourth day the enemy’s cavalry came up. Their leader told the officer in command of the baggage-train to cross the river Pactolus and encamp. The cavalry, meantime, catching sight of the Greek camp-followers plundering in scattered bands, killed a large number of them. On noticing this, Agesilaus ordered his cavalry to go to their help. The Persians in turn, seeing the supports coming, gathered in a mass and confronted them with the full strength of their horse.

Then Agesilaus, realising that the enemy’s infantry was not yet up, while he had all his resources on the spot, thought the moment was come to join battle if he could. Therefore, after offering sacrifice, he led forward the battle line immediately against the opposing cavalry, the heavy infantrymen of ten years service having orders to run to close quarters with the enemy, while the targeteers were to lead the advance at the double. He also sent word to the cavalry to attack in the knowledge that he himself was following with the whole army.