 VIII. So it was that Xerxes took complete possession of Athens, and he sent a horseman to Susa to announce his present success to Artibasus. On the day after the messenger was sent, he called together the Athenian exiles who accompanied him, and asked them to go up to the Acropolis and perform sacrifices in their customary way, an order given because he had been inspired by a dream, or because he felt remorse after burning the sacred precinct. The Athenian exiles did as they were commanded. I will tell why I have mentioned this. In that Acropolis is a shrine of Erechtheus, called the Earthborn, and in the shrine are an olive tree and a pool of salt water. The story among the Athenians is that they were set there by Poseidon and Athena as tokens when they contended for the land. It happened that the olive tree was burnt by the barbarians with the rest of the sacred precinct, but on the day after its burning, when the Athenians ordered by the king to sacrifice went up to the sacred precinct, they saw a shoot of about a cubit's length sprung from the stump, and they reported this. When this business concerning the Athenian Acropolis was announced to the Hellenes at Salamis, some of the Peloponnesian generals became so alarmed that they did not even wait for the proposed matter to be decided, but jumped into their ships and hoisted their sails for flight. Those left behind resolved that the fleet should fight for the Isthmus. The fight fell, and they dissolved the assembly and boarded their ships. When Themastocles returned to his ship, Menesophilus, an Athenian, asked him what had been decided. Learning from him that they had resolved to sail to the Isthmus and fight for the Peloponnesus, he said, if they depart from Salamis, you will no longer be fighting for one country. Each will make his way to his own city, and neither your Abiades nor any other man will be able to keep them from disbanding the army. Themastocles will be destroyed by bad planning. If there is any way at all that you could persuade your Abiades to change his decision and remain here, go try to undo this resolution. This advice greatly pleased Themastocles. He made no answer and went to the ship of your Abiades. When he arrived there, he said he wanted to talk with him on a matter of common interest, so your Abiades bad him come aboard and say what he wanted. Themastocles sat next to him and told him all that he had heard from Menesophilus, pretending it was his own idea and adding many other things. Finally by his entreaty he persuaded him to disembark and gather the generals for a council of war. When they were assembled and before your Abiades had a chance to put forward the reason he had called the generals together, Themastocles spoke at length in accordance with the urgency of his request. While he was speaking, the Corinthian general Adiamentus, son of Ossetus, said, Themastocles, at the games those who start before the signal are beaten with rods. Themastocles said, in justification, those left behind win no crown. He answered the Corinthian mildly and said to Euribides nothing of what he had said before, how if they put out from Salamis they would flee different ways, for it would be unbecoming for him to accuse the allies in their presence. But he relied on a different argument and said, it is in your hands to save Helus, if you will obey me and remain here to fight, and not obey the words of these others and move your ships back to the Isthmus. Compare each plan after you have heard. If you join battle at the Isthmus you will fight in the open sea where it is least our advantage, since our ships are heavier and fewer in number. You will also lose Salamis and Magara and Agina, even if we succeed in all else. Your land army will accompany their fleet, and so you will lead them to the Peloponnesus and risk all Helus. But if you do what I say you will find it useful in these ways. First, by engaging many ships with our few in the strait, we shall win a great victory, if the war turns out reasonably, for it is to our advantage to fight in a strait and to their advantage to fight in a wide sea. Second, Salamis will survive, where we have carried our children and women to safety. It also has in it something you are very fond of. By remaining here you will be fighting for the Peloponnesus just as much as the Isthmus, and you will not lead them back to the Peloponnesus, if you exercise good judgment. If what I expect happens and we win the victory with our ships, you will not have the Barbarians upon you at the Isthmus. They will advance no further than Attica and depart in no order, and we shall gain an advantage by the survival of Magara, Agina, and Salamis. There is prophesied that we will prevail against our enemies. Men usually succeed when they have reasonable plans. If their plans are unreasonable, the God does not wish to assent to human intentions. As the masticle said this, Adi Amantus the Corinthian attacked him again, advising that a man without a city should keep quiet, and that your abeities should not ask the vote of a man without a city. He advised the masticleys to contribute his opinion when he provided a city, attacking him in this way because Athens was captured and occupied. This time the masticleys said many things against him and the Corinthians, declaring that so long as they had two hundred manned ships, the Athenians had both a city and a land greater than theirs, and that none of the Hellenes could repel them if they were attacked. Next he turned his argument to your abeities, saying more vehemently than before, if you remain here you will be a noble man. If not you will ruin Helles. All our strength for war is in our ships, so listen to me. If you do not do this we will immediately gather up our households and travel to Ceres in Italy, which has been ours since ancient times, and the prophecies say we must found a colony there. You will remember these words when you are without such allies. When the masticleys said this, your abeities changed his mind. I think he did so chiefly out of fear that the Athenians might desert them if they set sail for the Isthmus. If the Athenians left, the rest would be no match for the enemy, so he made the choice to remain there and fight. After this skirmish of words, since your abeities had so resolved, the men at Salamis prepared to fight where they were. At sunrise on the next day there was an earthquake on land and sea, and they resolved to pray to the gods and summon the sons of Achas as allies. When they had so resolved they did as follows. They prayed to all the gods, called Iax and Telemond to come straight from Salamis, and sent a ship to Agena for Achas and his sons. Dacheus, son of Theosides, an Athenian exile who had become important among the meddys, said that at the time when the land of Attica was being laid waste by Xerxes's army, and there were no Athenians in the country, he was with Demaratus the Lachodemonian on the Thracian plain, and saw advancing from Elucis a cloud of dust, as if raised by the feet of about thirty thousand men. They marveled at what men might be raising such a cloud of dust, and immediately heard a cry. The cry seemed to be the Iacus of the mysteries, and when Demaratus, ignorant of the rites of Elucis, asked him what was making this sound, Dacheus said, Demaratus, there is no way that some great disaster will not befall the king's army. Since Attica is deserted it is obvious that this voice is divine and comes from Elucis to help the Athenians and their allies. If it descends upon the Peloponnes, the king himself and his army on the mainland will be endangered. If, however, it turns towards the ships at Salamis, the king will be in danger of losing his fleet. Every year the Athenians observe this festival for the mother and the maiden, and any Athenian or other Helene who wishes is initiated. The voice which you hear is the Iacus they cry at this festival. For this Demaratus replied, Keep silent, and tell this to no one else. If these words of yours are reported to the king you will lose your head, and neither eye nor any other man will be able to save you, so be silent. The gods will see to the army. Thus he advised, and after the dust and the cry came a cloud, which rose aloft and floated away towards Salamis to the camp of the Helenes. In this way they understood that Xerxes's fleet was going to be destroyed. Decaus, son of Theosities, used to say this, appealing to Demaratus and others as witnesses. When those stationed with Xerxes's fleet had been to see the Lachonian disaster at Thermopylae, they crossed over from Trakas to Histia, waited three days, and then sailed through the Euripists, and in three more days they were at Phalarum, the port of Athens. I think no less a number invaded Athens by land and sea than came to Cepheus and Thermopylae. Those killed by the storm at Thermopylae, and in the naval battles at Artemisium, I offset with those who did not yet follow the king, the Mellians and Dorians and Lachrians, and the whole force of Bocia, except the Thespians and Plataeans, and the Kerestians and Andrians and Teneins and all the rest of the Islanders, except the five cities whose names I previously mentioned. The farther into Hellas the Persian advanced, the more nations followed him. All these came to Athens except the Perians. The Perians stayed behind in Synthesis watching to see which way the war turned out. When the rest of them reached Phalarum, Xerxes himself went down to the ships, wishing to mix with the sailors and hear their opinions. He came and sat on his throne, and present at his summons were the tyrants of all the people and the company leaders from the fleet. They sat according to the honor which the king had granted each of them, first the king of Sidon, then the king of Tyre, then the rest. When they sat in order one after another, Xerxes sent Mardonius to test each by asking if they should fight at sea. Mardonius went about questioning them, starting with the Sidonian, and all the others were unanimous, advising to fight at sea. But Artemisia said, Tell the king, Mardonius, that I, who neither was most cowardly in the sea-battles off Uboa, nor performed the least feats of arms, say this, Master, it is just for me to declare my real opinion, what I consider to be best for your cause. And I say to you this, spare your ships and do not fight at sea. Their men are as much stronger than your men by sea, as men are stronger than women. Why is it so necessary for you to risk everything by fighting at sea? Do you not possess Athens, for which you set out on this march, and do you not have the rest of Hellas? No one stands in your way. Those who opposed you have received what they deserved. I will tell you how I think the affairs of your enemies will turn out. If you do not hurry to fight at sea, but keep your ships here and stay near land, or even advance into the Peloponnese, then, my Lord, you will easily accomplish what you had in mind in coming here. The Hellenes are not able to hold out against you for a long time, but you will scatter them, and they will each flee to their own cities. I have learned that they have no food on this island, and it is not likely, if you lead your army against the Peloponnese, that those of them who have come from there will sit still, nor will they care to fight at sea for Athens. But if you hurry to fight at sea immediately, I fear that your fleet, if reduced to cowardice, may also injure your army on land. In addition, my king, take this to heart. Good people, slaves, tend to be base, and the slaves of the base tend to be good. You, who are best among men, have base slaves, who are accounted your allies, the Egyptians and Cyprians and Ciliciaeans and Phanphaleans, who are of no use at all. When she said this to Mardonius, all who were well disposed toward Artemisia lamented her words, thinking she would suffer some ill from the king because she advised against fighting at sea. Those who were jealous and envied her, because she was given honour among the chief of all the allies, were glad at her answer, thinking she would be killed. But when the councils were reported to Xerxes, he was greatly pleased by Artemisia's opinion. Even before this he had considered her an excellent character, and now he praised her much more highly. Still he ordered that the majority be obeyed, for he believed that at Yuboa they had purposefully fought badly because he was not there. This time he had made preparations to see the battle in person. When the command to put out to sea was given, they set sail for Salamis and were calmly marshaled in line. There was not enough daylight left for them to fight, since night came on, so they made preparations for the next day. Fear and dread possessed the Hellenes, especially those from the Peloponnese. They were afraid because they were stationed in Salamis and were about to fight at sea on behalf of the land of the Athenians, and if they were defeated they would be trapped on an island and besieged, leaving their own land unguarded. That very night the land army of the Barbarians began marching to the Peloponnese. Yet every possible device had been used to prevent the Barbarians from invading by the mainland. As soon as the Peloponnese learned that Leonidas and his men at Thermopylae were dead, they ran together from their cities and took up the position on the Isthmus. Their general was Cleombrotus' son of Anaxandrates, the brother of Leonidas. When they were in position at the Isthmus they demolished the Scaronian road, and then, after resolving in council, built a wall across the Isthmus. Since there were many tens of thousands and every one worked, the task was completed, as they brought in stones and bricks and logs and baskets full of sand. At no moment of the day or night did those who had marched out there rest from their work. These were the Hellenes who marched out in a body to the Isthmus, the Lachodimonians and all the Arcadians, the Elians and Carinthians and Sikonians and Epidarians and Fliatians and Trozenians and Hermionians. These were the ones who marched out and feared for Hellas in her peril. The rest of the Peloponnese cared nothing, though the Olympian and Carnian festivals were now passed. Seven nations inhabit the Peloponnese. Two of these are aboriginal and are now settled in the land where they lived in the old days, the Arcadians and Cenurians. One nation, the Achaian, has never left the Peloponnese, but it has left its own country and inhabits another nation's land. The four remaining nations of the seven are immigrants, the Dorians and Aetolians and Dryopians and Lemnians. The Dorians have many famous cities, the Aetolians only Elis, the Dryopians, Hermione and Asin near Lachonian Cardamil, the Lemnians, all the Perurete. The Cenurians are aboriginal and seem to be the only Ionians, but they have been Dorianized by time and by Argyve rule. They are the Orniette and the Periacoi. All the remaining cities of these seven nations, except those I enumerated, stayed neutral. If I may speak freely, by staying neutral they metized. Those at the Isthmus were involved in so great a labor, since all they had was at stake and they did not expect the ships to win distinction. Those at Salamis heard of their labors, but still were full of dread, fearing not for themselves but for the Peloponnes. For a time each man talked quietly to his neighbor, wondering at Euribides' folly, but finally it came out into the open. They held an assembly and talked at length on the same matters as before. Some said that they must sail away to the Peloponnes in risk battle for that country, not stay and fight for a captured land. But the Aethenians and Agenitans and Magarians said they must stay and defend themselves. When the Peloponnesians were outvoting him, the Mastocles secretly left the assembly and sent a man by boat to the Median fleet after ordering him what to say. His name was Sickenus, and he was the Mastocles' servant and his son's attendant. Later the Mastocles enrolled him as a Thespian, when Thespians were adopting citizens and made him wealthy with money. He now came by boat and said to the generals of the Barbarians, The Athenian general has sent me without the knowledge of the other Hellenes. He is on the king's side and prefers that your affairs prevail, not the Hellenes. I am to tell you that the Hellenes are terrified and plan fight, and you can now perform the finest deed of all if you do not allow them to escape. They do not all have the same intent, and they will no longer oppose you. Instead you will see them fighting against themselves, those who are on your side against those who are not. They are indicating this to them, he departed. Finding the message creditable, they first landed many of the Persians on the Islet of Pyselitia, which lies between Salamis and the mainland. When it was midnight, they brought their western wing in a circle toward Salamis, and those stationed at Sios and Sinosura also put out to sea, occupying all the passages as far as Munikeia with their ships. They launched their ships in this way so that the Hellenes would have no escape. They would be trapped at Salamis and pay the penalty for the battles at Artemisium. The purpose of their landing Persians on the Islet called Pyselitia was this. When the battle took place, it was chiefly there that the men and wrecks would be washed ashore, for the island lay in the path of the impending battle. The Persians would be able to save some of those who washed up and killed the others. They did this in silence, for fear that their enemies here, making their preparations at night without sleep. End of Volume 3, Part XIII. I cannot say against oracles that they are not true, and I do not wish to try to discredit them when they speak plainly. Look at the following matter. When the sacred headland of golden-sorted Artemis and Sinosura by the sea they bridge with ships. After sacking shiny Athens in mad hope, divine justice will extinguish mighty greed the son of insolence, lusting terribly, thinking to devour all. Bronze will come together with bronze, and aries will redden the sea with blood. To hell us the day of freedom, far-seeing Zeus and August victory will bring. During this, I dare to say nothing against Bacchus concerning oracles when he speaks so plainly, nor will I consent to it by others. Among the generals at Salamis there was a fierce argument. They did not yet know that the barbarians had encircled them with their ships, supposing them still marshaled in the place where they had seen them by day. As the generals disputed, Aristides, son of Lysimachus, and Athenian, crossed over from Ejena. Although he had been ostracized by the people, I, learning by inquiry of his character, have come to believe that he was the best and most just man in Athens. This man stood at the assembly and called the Mosticles out, although he was no friend of his but his bitter enemy. Because of the magnitude of the present ills, he deliberately forgot all that and called him out, wanting to talk to him. He had already heard that those from the Peloponnesus were anxious to set sail for the Isthmus. So when the Mosticles came out, he said, on all occasions and especially now, our contention must be over which of us will do our country more good. I say that it is all the same for the Peloponnesians to speak much or little about sailing away from here. For I have seen with my own eyes that even if the Corinthians and Eurebiades himself wanted to, they would not be able to escape. We are encircled by the enemy. Go in and indicate this to them. The Mosticles answered, Your exhortation is most useful and you bring good news. You have come as an eyewitness of just what I wanted to happen. Know that I am the cause of what the Medes are doing. When the Hellenes would not willingly enter battle, it was necessary to force them against their will. Since you have come bringing good news, tell it to them yourself. If I say these things, they will think I invented it and they will not believe that the barbarians are doing this. Go in yourself and let them know how it stands. It would be best if they believe you when you tell them, but if they find these things incredible, it is all the same to us. They will not be able to run away if indeed we are surrounded on all sides, as you say. Aristides went in and told them, saying that he had come from Agena and had barely made it past the blockade when he sailed out, since all the Hellenic camp was surrounded by Xerxes' ships. He advised them to prepare to defend themselves. He said this and left, and again a dispute arose among them. The majority of the generals did not believe the news. While they were still held by disbelief, a trireme of Tenian deserters arrived, captained by Paniatis, son of Sosomenes, which brought them the whole truth. For this deed the Tenians were engraved on the tripod at Delphi, with those who had conquered the barbarian. With this ship that deserted Atsalimus and the Lemnian, which deserted earlier at Artemisium, the Hellenic fleet reached its full number of three hundred and eighty ships, for it had fallen short of the number by two ships. When they found the words of the Tenians worthy of belief, the Hellenes prepared to fight at sea. As dawn glimmered, they held an assembly of the fighting men, and the Masticles gave the best address among the others. His entire speech involved comparing the better and lesser elements in human nature and the human condition. He concluded his speech by advising them to choose the better of these, then gave the command to mount the ships. Just as they embarked, the trireme which had gone after the sons of Echos arrived from Agena. Then the Hellenes set sail with all their ships, and as they were putting out to sea the barbarians immediately attacked them. The rest of the Hellenes began to backwater and tried to breach their ships, but Amanias of Pallene and Athenian charged and rammed a ship. When his ship became entangled and the crew could not free it, the others came to help Amanias in joint battle. The Athenians say that the fighting at sea began this way, but the Agenitans say that the ship which had been sent to Agena after the sons of Echos was the one that started it. The story is also told that the phantom of a woman appeared to them, who cried commands loud enough for all the Hellenic fleet to hear, reproaching them first with, men possessed, how long will you still be backing water? The Phoenicians were marshaled against the Athenians, holding the western wing towards Elucis. Against the Lachydimonians were the Ionians on the eastern wing toward Piraeus, and a few of them fought badly according to Themastoclese's instructions, but the majority did not. I can list the names of many captains who captured Hellenic ships, but I will mention none except Theomaster's son of Adrodamus, and Philakus' son of Hesteus, both Sammians. I mention only these because Theomaster was appointed tyrant of Sammos by the Persians for this feat, and Philakus was recorded as a benefactor of the king and granted much land. The king's benefactors are called Orosongae in the Persian language. Thus it was concerning them. But the majority of the ships at Salamis were sunk, some destroyed by the Athenians, some by the Agenitans. Since the Hellenes fought in an orderly fashion by line, but the barbarians were no longer in position and did nothing with forethought, it was likely to turn out as it did. Yet they were brave that day, much more brave than they had been at Yuboa, for they all showed zeal out of fear of Xerxes, each one thinking that the king was watching him. I cannot say exactly how each of the other barbarians or the Hellenes fought, but this is what happened to Artemisia, and it gave her still higher esteem with the king. When the king's side was all in commotion, at that time Artemisia's ship was pursued by a ship of Attica. She could not escape, for other allied ships were in front of her, and hers was the nearest to the enemy. So she resolved to do something which did in fact benefit her, as she was pursued by the Attic ship she charged and rammed an allied ship with a Chalindian crew and Domicithymus himself, king of the Chalindians aboard. I cannot say if she had some quarrel with him while they were still at the Hell's-pond, or whether she did this intentionally, or if the ship of the Chalindians fell in her path by chance. But when she rammed and sank it she had the luck of gaining two advantages. When the captain of the Attic ship saw her ram a ship with a barbarian crew, he decided that Artemisia's ship was either Hellenic or a deserter from the barbarians fighting for them, so he turned away to deal with others. Thus she happened to escape and not be destroyed, and it also turned out that the harmful thing which she had done won her exceptional esteem from Xerxes. It is said that the king, as he watched the battle, saw her ship ram the other, and one of the bystanders said, Master, do you see how well Artemisia contends in the contest, and how she has sunk an enemy ship? When he asked if the deed was truly Artemisia's, they affirmed it, knowing reliably the marking of her ship, and they suppose that the ruined ship was an enemy. As I have said, all this happened to bring her luck, and also that no one from the Chalindian ship survived to accuse her. It is said that Xerxes replied to what was told him, My men have become women, and my women men. In this struggle the general Arya Bignes died, son of Darius and the brother of Xerxes. Many other famous men of the Persians and Medes and other allies also died, but only a few Hellenes, since they knew how to swim. Those whose ships were sunk swam across to Salamis, unless they were killed in action, but many of the barbarians drowned in the sea since they did not know how to swim. Most of the ships were sunk when those in front turned to flee, since those marshaled in the rear, as they tried to go forward with their ships, so they too could display some feet to the king, ran afoul of their own ships' sides in flight. It also happened in this commotion that certain Phoenicians whose ships had been destroyed came to the king and accused the Ionians of treason, saying that it was by their doing the ships had been lost. It turned out that the Ionian generals were not put to death, and those Phoenicians who slandered them were rewarded as I will show. While they were still speaking, a semi-thracian ship rammed an attic ship. The attic ship sank, and an aginiton ship bore down and sank the semi-thracian ship, but the semi-thracians, being javelin throwers, by pelting them with missiles, knocked the fighters off the ship that had sunk theirs and boarded and seized it. This saved the Ionians. In his deep vexation Xerxes blamed everyone. When he saw the Ionians performing this great feat, he turned to the Phoenicians and commanded that their heads be cut off, so that they who were base not slander men more noble. For Xerxes, as he sat beneath the mountain opposite Salamis, which is called a Jolios, saw one of his own men achieve some feat in battle, he inquired who did it, and his scribe wrote down the captain's name with his father and city of residence. The presence of Ariamnes, a Persian and a friend of the Ionians, contributed still more to this calamity of the Phoenicians. Thus they dealt with the Phoenicians. The Barbarians were routed and tried to flee by sailing out to Felorum, but the Agenitans lay and wait for them in the Strait, and then performed deeds worth telling. The Athenians in the commotion destroyed those ships which either resisted or tried to flee, the Agenitans those sailing out of the Strait, whoever escaped from the Athenians charged right into the Agenitans. The ships of Themastocles, as he was pursuing a ship, and of Polycritus, son of Crius, and Ageniton, then met. Polycritus had rammed a Sedonian ship, the one which had captured the Agenitans ship that was on watch off Sceathus, and on it was Pythias, son of Ishenus, the one the Persians marvelled at when severely wounded and kept on board their ship because of his virtue. This Sedonian ship carrying him with the Persians was now captured, so Pythias came back safe to Agena. When Polycritus saw the Attic ship, he recognized it by seeing the flagships marking and shouted to Themastocles, mocking and reproaching him concerning the medizing of the Agenitans. Under ramming an enemy ship, Polycritus hurled these insults at Themastocles. The barbarian ships that were still intact fled and reached Polarum under cover of the land army. In this battle the Helenes with the reputation as most courageous were the Agenitans, then the Athenians. Among the individuals they were Polycritus the Ageniton, and the Athenians Eumenus of Anagyrus and Amenius of Palin, the one who pursued Artemisia. If he had known she was in that ship, he would not have stopped before either capturing it or being captured himself. Such were the orders given to the Athenian captains, and there was a prize offered of ten thousand drachmas to whoever took her alive, since they were indignant that a woman waged war against Athens. But she escaped, as I said earlier, and the others whose ships survived were also in Polarum. The Athenians say that when the ships joined battle, the Corinthian general Adiamentus, struck with bewilderment and terror, hoisted his ships and fled away. When the Corinthians saw their flagship fleeing, they departed in the same way, but when in their flight they were opposite the sacred precinct of Athenus Scurus on Salamis, by divine guidance the boat encountered them. No one appeared to have sent it, and the Corinthians knew nothing about the affairs of the fleet when it approached. They reckoned the affair to involve the gods, because when the boat came near the ships, the people on the boat said, Adiamentus, you have turned your ships to flight and betrayed the Hellenes, but they are overcoming their enemies to the fulfillment of their prayers for victory. Adiamentus did not believe them when they said this, so they spoke again, saying that they could be taken as hostages and killed if the Hellenes were not seen to be victorious. So he and the others turned their ships around and came to the fleet, but it was all over. The Athenians spread this rumor about them, but the Corinthians do not agree at all, and they consider themselves to have been among the foremost in the battle. The rest of Helus bears them witness. Aristides, son of Lysimachus, the Athenian whom I mentioned a little before this as a valiant man, did this in the commotion that arose at Salamis. Taking many of the armed men who were raid along the shore of Salamis, he brought them across and landed them on the island of Pysitalia, and they slaughtered all the Persians who were in that islet. When the battle was broken off, the Hellenes towed to Salamis as many of the wrecks as were still there, and kept ready for another battle, supposing that the king could still make use of his surviving ships. A west wind had caught many of the wrecks and carried them to the shore in Attica called Cholias. Thus not only was all the rest of the oracle fulfilled which Bacchus and Museus had spoken about this battle, but also what had been said many years before this in an oracle by Lysistratus, an Athenian soothsayer concerning the wrecks carried to shore there. Its meaning had eluded all the Hellenes. The Corian women will cook with oars, but this was about to happen after the king had marched away. When Xerxes understood the calamity which had taken place, he feared that some of the Ionians might advise the Hellenes, if they did not think of it themselves, to sail to the Hell's pond and destroy the bridges. He would be trapped in Europe in danger of destruction, so he resolved on flight. He did not want to be detected either by the Hellenes or by his own men, so he attempted to build a dyke across to Salamis and joined together Phoenician cargo ships to be both a bridge and a wall, making preparations as if to fight another sea battle. All who saw him doing this confidently supposed that he fully intended to stay and fight there, but none of this eluded Mardoneus, who had the most experience of the king's intentions. While doing all this, Xerxes sent a messenger to Persia to announce the disaster. While Xerxes did thus, he sent a messenger to Persia with news of his present misfortune. Now there is nothing mortal that accomplishes a course more swiftly than do these messengers, by the Persians' skillful contrivance. It is said that as many days as there are in the whole journey so many are the men and horses that stand along the road, each horse and man at an interval of a day's journey. These are stopped neither by snow nor rain nor heat nor darkness from accomplishing their appointed course with all speed. The first rider delivers his charge to the second, the second to the third, and thence it passes from hand to hand, even as in the Greek torchbearers' race in honor of Hephaestus. This riding-post is called in Persia, and Geryon. When the first message came to Susa, saying that Xerxes had taken Athens, it gave such delight to the Persians who were left at home, that they strewed all the roads with myrtle-bows and burnt incense and gave themselves up to sacrificial feasts and jollity. The second, however, coming on the heels of the first, so confounded them that they all tore their tunics and cried and lamented without ceasing, holding Mardonius to blame. It was not so much in grief for their ships that they did this, as because they feared for Xerxes himself. End of Volume 3, Part 14. Much was the plight of the Persians, for all the time until the coming of Xerxes himself ended it. Mardonius, however, seeing that Xerxes was greatly distressed because of the sea fight, and suspecting that he planned flight from Athens, thought that he would be punished for persuading the king to march against Helus, and that it was better for him to risk the chance of either subduing Helus or dying honorably while engaged in a noble cause. Yet his hope rather inclined to the subduing of Helus. Taking all this into account, he made this proposal. Sire, be not grieved nor greatly distressed because of what has befallen us. It's not on things of wood that the issue hangs for us, but on men and horses. Furthermore, there's no one among these men who thinks that he is now one a crowning victory, and will disembark from his ship in an attempt to withstand you, no, nor anyone from this mainland. Those who have withstood us have paid the penalty. If then you so desire, let us straightway attack the Peloponnes, or if it pleases you to wait, that also we can do. Do not be downcast for the Greeks have no way of escaping guilt for their former and their later deeds, and from becoming your slaves. It's best then that you should do as I've said, but if you've resolved to lead your army away, even then I have another plan. Do not, O king, make the Persians the laughing stock of the Greeks, for if you've suffered harm, it's by no fault of the Persians, nor can you say that we have anywhere done less than brave men should. And if Phoenicians and Egyptians and Cyprians and Solitions have so done, it's not the Persians who have any part in this disaster. Therefore, since the Persians are in no way to blame, be guided by me. If you are resolved not to remain, march homewards with the greater part of your army. It is for me, however, to enslave and deliver hell us, to you with 300,000 of your host, whom I will choose. When Xerxes heard that, he was as glad and joyful as a man in his situation might be, and said to Mardonius that he would answer him after deliberating which of the two plans he would follow. When he consulted with those Persians whom he summoned, he resolved to send Artemisia as well, because he saw that she alone at the former sitting had discerned what was best to do. When Artemisia came, Xerxes baited all others withdraw, both Persian counselors and guards, and said to her, it is Mardonius' advice that I should follow here and attack the Peloponnes. For the Persians, he says, and the land army are not to blame for our disaster. Of that, they would willingly give proof. Therefore, he advises me to do this, or else he offers to choose 300,000 men of the army and deliver hell us to me enslaved, while I, myself, by his counsel, march homeward with the rest of the host. Now, I ask of you, seeing that you correctly advised me against the late sea fight, counsel me as to which of these two things would be best for me to do. When she was asked for advice, she replied, it's difficult, O king, to answer your plea for advice by saying that which is best. But in the present turn of affairs, I think it's best that you march back, and that Mardonius, if he so wishes and promises to do as he says, be left here with those whom he desires. For if he subdues all that he offers to subdue and prospers in his design, the achievement, sire, is yours, since it will be your servants who have accomplished it. If, on the other hand, the issue is contrary to Mardonius' expectation, it's no great misfortune so long as you and all that household of yours are safe. For while you and the members of your household are safe, many a time will the Greeks have to fight for their lives. As for Mardonius, if any disaster befalls him, it doesn't much matter, nor will any victory of the Greeks be a real victory when they have but slain your servant. As for you, you will be marching home after the burning of Athens, which thing was the whole purpose of your expedition. Artemisia's counsel pleased Xerxes, for it happened that she spoke what he himself had in mind. In truth, I think that he wouldn't have remained even if all men and women had counseled him so to do, so panic-stricken was he. Having then thanked Artemisia, he sent her away to take his sons to Ephesus, for he had some bastard sons with him. With these sons he sent her modemess as guardian. This man was by birth of Padasa, and the most honored by Xerxes of all his eunuchs. The people of Padasa dwell above Helacarnassus. The following thing happens among these people. When anything untoward is about to befall those who dwell about their city, the priestess of Athena then grows a great beard. This had already happened to them twice. Her modemess, who came from Padasa, had achieved a fuller vengeance for wrong done to him than had any man whom we know. When he had been taken captive by enemies and put up for sale, he was bought by one Pannonius of Chios, a man who had set himself to earn a livelihood out of most wicked practices. He would procure beautiful boys and castrate and take them to Sardis and Ephesus, where he sold them for a great price. For the barbarians value eunuchs more than perfect men by reason of the full trust that they have in them. Now among the many whom Pannonius had castrated was her modemess, who was not entirely unfortunate. He was brought from Sardis, together with other gifts to the king, and as time went on, he stood higher in Xerxes' favor than any other eunuch. Now while the king was at Sardis and preparing to lead his Persian army against Athens, her modemess came for some business down to the part of Misia which is inhabited by Chians and called Etarnius. There he found Pannonius. Perceiving who he was, he held long and friendly converse with him, telling him that it was to him that he owed all this prosperity and promising that he would make him prosperous in return if he were to bring his household and dwell there. Pannonius accepted his offer gladly and brought his children and his wife. When her modemess had gotten the man and all his household into his power, he said to him, Tell me, you who have made a livelihood out of the wickedest trade on earth, what harm had I or any of my forefathers done to you or yours, that you made me to be no man, but a thing of not? You no doubt thought that the gods would have no knowledge of your former practices, but their just law has brought you for your wicked deeds into my hands. Now you will be well content with the fullness of that justice, which I will execute upon you. With these words of reproach, he brought Pannonius' sons before him and compelled him to castrate all four of them, his own children. This Pannonius was compelled to do. When he had done this, the sons were compelled to castrate their father in turn. This, then, was the way in which Pannonius was overtaken by vengeance at the hands of her modemess. Having given his sons to Artemisia's charge to be carried to Ephesus, Xerxes called Mardonius to him and made him choose whom he would from the army and make his words good so far as endeavor availed. That is as far as matters went on that day. In the night, however, the admirals, by the king's command, put out to sea from Philarum and made for the helispon again with all speed to guard the bridge for the king's passage. When the barbarians came near to the girdle in their course, they thought that certain little headlands, which here, jut out from the mainland, were ships, and they fled for a long way. When they learned at last that they were no ships but headlands, they drew together and went on their way. When it was day, the Greeks saw the land army abiding where it had been and supposed the ships also to be at Philarum, thinking also that there would be a sea fight, they prepared to defend themselves. When, however, they learned that the ships were gone, they straightway resolved on pursuit, so they pursued Xerxes' fleet as far as Andros, but failed to catch sight of it. When they came to Andros, they held a council there. The mysticlies declared his opinion that they should hold their course through the islands and having pursued the ships, should sail forthwith to the helispon to break the bridges. Eurebiades, on the other hand, offered a contrary opinion, saying that to break the bridges would be the greatest harm that they could do to helis. For, said he, if the Persian is cut off and compelled to remain in Europe, he will attempt not to be inactive. This he will do, because if he remains inactive, he can neither make his cause prosper, nor find any way of return home, but his army will perish of hunger. If, on the other hand, he is enterprising inactive, it may well be that every town and nation in Europe will join itself to him by conquest or before that by a compact. He will then live on whatever yearly fruits of the earth helis produces. But, as I think that the Persians will not remain in Europe after his defeat in the sea fight, let us permit him to flee to his own country. Thereafter, let it be that country and not ours which is at stake in the war. With that opinion, the rest of the Peloponnesian admirals also agreed. When the mysticlies perceived that he couldn't persuade the greater part of them to sail to the helispawn, he turned to the Athenians, for they were the angriest of the Persians' escape, and they were minded to sail to the helispawn even by themselves, if the rest wouldn't, and addressed them as follows. This I have seen with my eyes and heard yet more often, namely that beaten men, when they be driven to bay, will rally and retrieve their former mishap. Therefore I say to you, as it is to a fortunate chance that we owe ourselves and helis, and have driven away so mighty a band of enemies, let us not pursue them who flee, for it is not we who have won this victory, but the gods and the heroes who deemed Asia and Europe too great a realm for one man to rule, and that a wicked man and an impious one who dealt alike with temples and bones, burning and overthrowing the images of the gods, yes, and one who scourged the sea and threw fetters into it, but as it is well with us for the moment, let us abide now and helis, and take thought for ourselves and our households, let us build our houses again, and be diligent in sowing, when we have driven the foreigner completely away, then when the next spring comes, let us set sail for the helispawn, Andionia. This he said with intent to have something to his credit with the Persians, so that he might have a place of refuge, if ever as might chance, he should suffer anything at the hands of the Athenians, and just that did in fact happen. Thus spoke the mysticlies with intent to deceive, and the Athenians obeyed him, since he had always been esteemed wise, and now had shown himself to be both wise and prudent. They were ready to obey whatever he said, having won them over, the mysticlies straightway sent men in a boat whom he could trust not to reveal under any question the message which he charged them to deliver to the king. One of these was his servant Sysinnes. When these men came to Attica, the rest remained with the boat, and Sysinnes went up to Xerxes. The mysticlies, son of Neoclies, he said, who is the Athenian general, and of all the allies the worthiest and wisest, has sent me to tell you this. The mysticlies, the Athenian, has out of his desire to do you a service, stayed the Greeks when they wanted to pursue your ships, and break the bridges of the helispawn. Now he bids you go your way, none hindering you. With that message, the men returned in their boat. But the Greeks, now that they were no longer minded to pursue the barbarians' ships farther or to sail to the helispawn and break the way of passage, besieged Andros so that they might take it. For the men of that place, the first islanders of whom the mysticlies demanded money, wouldn't give it. When, however, the mysticlies gave them to understand that the Athenians had come with two great gods to aid them, persuasion and necessity, and that the Andrians must therefore certainly give money, they said in response, it is then but reasonable that Athens is great and prosperous, being blessed with serviceable gods. As for us Andrians, we are but blessed with a plentiful lack of land, and we have two unserviceable gods who never quit our island, but want to dwell there forever, namely poverty and helplessness. Since we are in the hands of these gods, we will give no money. The power of Athens can never be stronger than our inability. It was forgiving this answer and refusing to give what was asked of them, that they were besieged. There was no end to the mysticlies' avarice. Using the same agents whom he had used with the king, he sent threatening messages to the other islands, demanding money and saying that if they would not give what he asked, he would bring the Greek armada upon them and besiege and take their islands. Thereby, he collected great sums from the Carestians and the Parians, for these were informed that Andros was besieged for taking the Persian side and that the mysticlies was of all the generals the most esteemed. This frightened them so much that they sent money. I suppose that there were other islanders too who gave and not these alone, but I cannot say with certainty. Nevertheless, the Carestians got no respite from misfortune by doing this. The Parians, however, propitiated the mysticlies with money and so escaped the force. So the mysticlies went away from Andros and took money from the islanders, unknown to the other generals. Those were with Xerxes waited for a few days after the sea fight and then marched away to Biosha by the road by which they had come, Mardonius wanted to give the king safe conduct and thought the time of year unreasonable for war. It was better, he thought, to win her in Thessaly and then attack the Peloponnes in the spring. When they had arrived in Thessaly, Mardonius first chose all the Persians called immortals, save only Hedarnes, their general, who said that he would not quit the king's person and next the Persian Couriciers and the Thousand Horse and the Medes and Sakai and Bactrians and Indians, alike their infantrymen and the rest of the horsemen. These nations he chose in their entirety of the rest of his allies, he picked out a few from each people, the best men and those whom he knew to have done some good service. The Persians whom he chose, men who wore torques and bracelets were more in number than those of any other nation and next to them the Medes. These indeed were as many as the Persians but not such stout fighters. Thereby the whole number together with the horsemen grew to 300,000 men. Now while Mardonius was choosing his army and Xerxes was in Thessaly, there came an oracle from Delphi to the Lesser Demonians that they should demand justice of Xerxes for the slaying of Leonidas and take whatever he should offer them. The Spartans then sent a herald with all speed. He found the army yet undivided in Thessaly, came into Xerxes's presence and spoke as follows, the Lesser Demonians and the Heraclidae of Sparta demand of you, King of the Medes, that you pay the penalty for the death of their king whom you killed while he defended Hellas. At that Xerxes laughed and after a long while he pointed to Mardonius who chanced to be standing by him and said, then here is Mardonius who shall pay those you speak of such penalty as befits them. So the herald took that response and departed but Xerxes left Mardonius and Thessaly. He himself journeyed with all speed to the Hellaspaw and came in 45 days to the passage for crossing bringing back with him as good as none if one may say so of his host. Wherever and to whatever people they came they seized and devoured its produce. If they found none they would eat the grass of the field and strip the bark and pluck the leaves of the trees garden and wild alike leaving nothing. Such was the degree of their starvation. Moreover pestilence and dysentery broke out among them on their way from which they died. Some who were sick Xerxes left behind charging the cities to which he came in his march to care for them and nourish them. Some in Thessaly and some in Cyrus, a Peonia and in Macedonia. In Cyrus he had left the sacred chariot of Zeus when he was marching to Hellas but on his return he didn't get it back again. The Peonians had given it to the Thracians and when Xerxes demanded it back they said that the horses had been carried off from pasture by the Thracians of the hills who dwelled about the headwaters of the Stremone. It was then that a monstrous deed was done by the Thracian king of the Basalti and the Crestonian country. He had refused to be of his own free will Xerxes' slave and fled to the mountains called Rodope. He forbade his sons to go with the army to Hellas but they took no account of that. They had always wanted to see the war and they followed the Persians' march. For this reason when all the six of them returned back scabless, their father tore out their eyes. This was their reward. Now the Persians journeying through Thrace to the passage made haste to cross to Abidos and their ships. For they had found the bridges no longer made fast but broken by a storm. There their march halted and more food was given them than on their way. Then by reason of their immoderate gorging and the change of the water which they drank, many of the army that had survived died. The rest came with Xerxes, Sassardis. There is, however, another tale which is this. When Xerxes came in his march from Athens to Ion on the Stremone, he traveled no farther than that by land but committed his army to Hedarnes to be led to the Hellaspa. He himself embarked and set sail for Asia in a Phoenician ship. In the course of this voyage he was caught by a strong wing called the Stremonian which lifted up the waves. This storm bearing the harder upon him by reason of the heavy load of the ship for the Persians of his company who were on the deck were so many. The king grew afraid and cried to the ship's pilot asking him if there were any way of deliverance. To this the man said, Sire, there is none. If we do not rid ourselves of these many who are on board, hearing that it is said, Xerxes said to the Persians, now is for you to prove your concern for your king for it seems that my deliverance rests with you. At this they bowed and leapt into the sea. The ship now much lighter came by these means safe to Asia. No sooner had Xerxes disembarked on land than he made the pilot a gift of a golden crown for saving the king's life but cut off his head for being the death of many Persians. This is the other tale of Xerxes' return but I for my part believe neither the story of the Persians fate nor any other part of it. For if indeed the pilot had spoken to Xerxes in this way I think that there is not one in 10,000 who would not say that the king would have bidden the men on deck who were Persians and of the best blood of Persia, descend into the ship's hold and would have taken from the Phoenician rowers a number equal to the number of the Persians and cast them into the sea. No, the truth is that Xerxes did as I have already said and returned to Asia with his army by road. There is further proof of this for it's known that when Xerxes came to Abdu'ra in his return, he made a compact of friendship with its people and gave them a golden sword and a gilt tiara. As the people of Abdu'ra say, but for my part I wholly disbelieve them, it was here that Xerxes and his flight back from Athens first loosed his girdle as being here in safety. Now Abdu'ra lies nearer to the Hellespont than the Stremone and the Ion where they say that he took ship. End of Volume 3, Part 15, recording by Scott Michael de Brokker. Volume 3, Part 16 of Herodotus's Histories. This is the LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox.org. Recording by Scott Michael de Brokker. Histories, Volume 3, by Herodotus of Helicarnassus. Translated by E.D. Gudley. Part 16. As for the Greeks, not being able to take Andros, they went to Caristus. When they laid at waste, they returned to Salamis. First of all, they set apart for the gods, among other first fruits, three Phoenician triremes, one to be dedicated at the Isthmus, where it was till my lifetime, the second at Sunium, and the third for Ajax at Salamis where they were. After that, they divided the spoils and sent the first fruits of it to Delphi. Of this was made a man's image, 12 cubits high, holding in his hand the figurehead of a ship. This stood in the same place as the golden statue of Alexander, the Macedonian. Having sent the first fruits to Delphi, the Greeks, in the name of the country generally, made inquiry of the god whether the first fruits which he had received were of full measure and whether he was content. To this he said that he was content with what he had received from all other Greeks, but not from the Aegean Etins. From these he demanded the victor's prize for the sea fight of Salamis. When the Aegean Etins learned that, they dedicated three golden stars which are set on the bronze mast in the angle nearest to Cresus's bowl. After the division of the spoils, the Greeks sailed to the Isthmus, there to award the prize of excellence to him who had shown himself most worthy of it in the war. When the admirals came at the altar of Poseidon, gave their votes to judge who was first and who second among them, each of them voted for himself, supposing himself to have done the best service. The greater part of them, however, united in giving the second place to the mysticlies. So they each gained but one vote while the mysticlies far outstripped them and votes for the second place. The Greeks were too jealous to assign the prize and sailed away each to his own place, leaving the matter undecided. Nevertheless, the mysticlies was lauded and throughout all of Helus was deemed the wisest man by far of the Greeks. However, because he had not received from those that fought at Salamis the honor due to his preeminence, he immediately afterwards went to Lysidimon in order that he might receive honor there. The Lysidimonians welcomed him and paid him high honor. They bestowed on your abeities a crown of olives as the reward of excellence and another such crown on the mysticlies for his wisdom and cleverness. They also gave him the finest chariot in Sparta and with many words of praise, they sent him home with the 300 picked men of Sparta who are called knights to escort him as far as the borders of Tegea. The mysticlies was the only man of whom we know to whom the Spartans gave this escort. But when the mysticlies returned Athens from Lysidimon to Modimus of Ephedany who was one of the mysticlies' enemies but not a man of note was crazed with envy and spoke bitterly to the mysticlies of his visit to Lysidimon saying that the honors he had from the Lysidimonians were paid him for Athens' sake and not for his own. This he kept saying until the mysticlies replied, this is the truth of the matter. If I had been a man of Belbina I would not have been honored in this way by the Spartans nor would you, sir. For all, you are a man of Athens. Such was the end of that business. Arthabasus' son Farnesys who is already a notable man among the Persians and grew to be yet more so through the Platian business escorted the king as far as the passageway with 60,000 men of the army that Mardonius had chosen. Xerxes then was now in Asia and when Arthabasus came near Pelene in his return for Mardonius was wintering in Thessaly and Macedonia and making no haste to come to the rest of his army he thought it right that he should enslave the people of Potidia who he found in revolt when the king had marched away past the town and the Persian fleet had taken flight from Salamis. Potidia had openly revolted from the barbarians and so too had the rest of the people of Pelene. Thereupon Arthabasus laid siege to Potidia and suspecting that Olyntus too was plotting revolt from the king he laid siege to it also. This town was held by Potians who had been driven from the Dermaic Gulf by the Macedonians having besieged and taken Olyntus he brought these men to a lake and there cut their throats and delivered their city over to the charge of Cretobulus of Tyrone and the Chalcidian people. It was in this way that the Chalcidians gained possession of Olyntus. Having taken Olyntus, Arthabasus dealt immediately with Potidia and his zeal was aided by Tumoxinus the general of the Scionians who agreed to betray the place to him. I do not know how the agreement was first made since there is no information available about it. The result, however, was as I will now show. Whenever Tumoxinus wrote a letter to be sent to Arthabasus or Arthabasus to Tumoxinus they would wrap it around the shaft of an arrow at the notches, attach feathers to the letter and shoot it to a place upon which they had agreed. Tumoxinus' plot to betray Potidia was, however, discovered for Arthabasus and shooting an arrow to the place agreed upon missed it and hit the shoulder of a man at Potidia. A throng gathered quickly around the man when he was struck which is a thing that always happens in war and they straight away took the arrow, found the letter and carried it to their generals. The rest of their allies of Pelene were also their present. The generals read the letter and perceived who was the traitor but they resolved for Scionia's sake that they would not condemn Tumoxinus with a charge of treason for fear that the people of Scionia should hereafter be called traitors. This is how Tumoxinus' treachery was brought to light. When Arthabasus had besieged Potidia for three months there was a great abtide in the sea which lasted for a long while and when the foreigners saw that the sea was turned to a marsh they prepared to pass over it into Pelene. When they had made their way over two-fifths of it, however, and three yet remained across before they could be in Pelene there came a great flood tide higher as the people of the place say than any one of the many that had been before. Some of them who didn't know how to swim were drowned and those who knew were slain by the Potidians who came among them in boats. The Potidians say that the cause of the high sea and flood and the Persian disaster lay in the fact that those same Persians who now perished in the sea had profaned the temple and the image of Poseidon which was in the suburb of the city. I think that in saying that this was the cause that they are correct. Those who escaped alive were led away by Arthabasus to Mardonius and Decili. This is how the men who had been the king's escort fared. All that was left of Xerxes' fleet having in its flight from Salamis touched the coast of Asia and ferried the king and his army over from the Charsonisi to Ovidos, wintered at Sime. Then early in the first dawn of spring they mustered at Salamis where some of the ships had wintered. The majority of their fighting men were Persians and Medes. Mardantes, son of Agaius and Artaintes, son of Artechaus came to be their admirals and Artaintes chose also his own nephew, Ythamitres to have a share in the command. But by reason of the heavy blow dealt them they went no further out to sea westwards nor did anyone insist that they should so do. They did, however, lie off Sammos keeping watch against a revolt in Ionia. The whole number of their ships, Ionian and other, was 300. In truth, they didn't expect that the Greeks would come to Ionia but rather that they would be content to guard their own country. This they thought because the Greeks had not pursued them when they fled from Salamis but had been glad to be quit of them. In regard to the sea, the Persians were at heart beaten men but they supposed that on land Mardonius would easily prevail. So they were at Sammos and they planned to do what harm they could to their enemies and to listen in the interim for news of how Mardonius's affairs were proceeding. As for the Greeks, the coming of spring and Mardonius's being in Thessaly moved them to action. They had not yet begun the mustering of their army but their fleet, 110 ships, came to Ijina. Their general and admiral was Lutichides, son of Manaris, who traced his lineage from son to father through Hegisalas, Hippocrates, Lutichides, Anoxalas, Archedimus, Anaxandridis, Theopampus, Nicandrus, Charalas, Yunamus, Pallidectes, Pretanus, Europhon, Procles, Arastodemus, Arastamacus, Cleodeus, Tehillus, who is the son of Heracles. He was of the second royal house. All of the aforesaid had been kings of Sparta, save the seven named first after Lutichides. The general of the Athenians was Xanthippus, son of Eryphron. When all the ships had arrived at Ijina, there came to the Greek quarters messengers from the Ionians, the same who a little while before that had gone to Spartan and treated the Lessa demonians to free Ionia. One of these was Herodotus, the son of Bessalaides. These who at first were seven made a faction and conspired to slay Stratus, the tyrant of Chios. But when their conspiracy became known, one of the accomplices having revealed their enterprise, the six who remained got themselves secretly out of Chios. From there they went to Sparta and now to Ijina and treating the Greeks to sail to Ionia. The Greeks took them as far as Delos, and that not readily, for they, having no knowledge of those parts and thinking that our men were everywhere, feared all that lay beyond. They supposed too that Samos was no nearer to them than the pillars of Heracles. So it happened that the barbarians were too disinheartened to dare to sail farther west than Samos, while at the same time the Greeks dared to go at the Chians, request no farther east than Delos. It was fear which kept the middle space between them. The Greeks then sailed to Delos and Mordonius wintered in Thessaly. Having his headquarters there, he sent a man of Europus called Mies to visit the places of divination, charging him to inquire of all the oracles which he could test. What it was that he desired to learn from the oracles when he gave this charge, I cannot say, for no one tells of it. I suppose that he sent to inquire concerning his present business and that alone. This man Mies is known to have gone to Labodian to have bribed a man of the country to go down into the cave of Trophonius and to have gone to the place of divination at a be in focus. He went first to the Ebes where he inquired of his many in Apollo, sacrifices there the way of divination as at Olympia, and moreover he bribed one who is no Theban but a stranger to lie down to sleep in the shrine of Amphiarus. No Theban may seek a prophecy there. Amphiarus bade them by an oracle to choose which of the two they wanted and forgo the other and take him either for their prophet or for their ally. They chose that he should be their ally. Therefore no Theban may lie down to sleep in that place. But at this time there happened as the Theban say a thing at which I marvel greatly. It would seem that this man Mies of Europus came in his wanderings among the places of divination to the precinct of Paton, Apollo. This temple is called Patom and belongs to the Thebans. It lies by hill above Lake Copias very near to the town of Krafia. When the man called Mies entered in this temple together with three men of this town who were chosen on the state's behalf to write down the oracles that should be given straightway the diviner prophesied in a foreign tongue. The Thebans who followed him were astonished to hear a strange language instead of Greek and knew not what this present matter might be. Mies of Europus however, snatched from them the tablet which they carried and wrote on it that which was spoken by the prophet saying that the words of the oracle were Charyon. After writing everything down, he went back to Thessaly. Mardonius read whatever was said in the oracles and presently he sent a messenger to Athens, Alexander, a Macedonian, son of Amintas. Him he sent partly because the Persians were akin to him. Bubarus, a Persian, had taken to wife Jagea, Alexander's sister and Amintas's daughter who had borne to him that Amintas of Asia who is called by the name of his mother's father and to whom the kings gave Alabanda, a great city in Frigia for his dwelling. Partly too he sent him because he learned that Alexander was a protector and benefactor to the Athenians. It was thus that he supposed he could best gain the Athenians for his allies of whom he heard that they were enumerous and valiant people and knew that they had been the chief authors of the Calamities which had befallen the Persians at sea. If he gained their friendship, he thought he would easily become master of the seas as truly he would have been. On land he supposed himself to be by much the stronger and he accordingly reckoned that thus he would have the upper hand of the Greeks. This chance to be the prediction of the oracles which counseled him to make the Athenians his ally. It was an obedience to this that he sent his messenger. This Alexander was seventh in descent from Perdiccas who got for himself the tyranny of Macedonia in the way that I will show. Three brothers of the lineage of Taminus came as banished men from Argos to Illyria, Guwanis and Oropis and Perdiccas and from Illyria they crossed over into the highlands of Macedonia till they came to the town of Labea. There they served for wages as Thedes in the king's household, one tending horses and another oxen. Perdiccas, who was the youngest, tended the lesser flocks. Now the king's wife cooked their food for them for in old times the rolling houses among men and not the common people alone were lacking in wealth. Whenever she baked bread, the loaf of the Thedae Perdiccas grew double in size. Seeing that this kept happening, she told her husband and it seemed to him when he heard it that this was a portent signifying some great matter. So he sent for his Thedes and bade them depart from his territory. They said it was only just that they should have their wages before they departed. When they spoke of wages, the king was moved to foolishness and said, that is the wage you merit and it's that I give you. Pointing to the sunlight that shone down the smoke vent into the house. Guwanis and Oropis, who were the elder, stood astonished when they heard that but the boy said, we accept what you give, O king. And with that he took a knife, which he had with him and drew a line with it on the floor of the house around the sunlight. When he had done this, he three times gathered up the sunlight into the fold of his garment and went his way with his companions. So they departed. But one of those who sat nearby declared to the king what this was that the boy had done and how it was of set purpose that the youngest of them had accepted the gift offered. When the king heard this, he was angered and sent riders after them to slay them. There is, however, in that land or river to which the descendants from Argos of these men offer sacrifices their deliverer. This river, when the sons of Tomenos had crossed it, rose in such flood that the riders could not cross. So the brothers came to another part of Macedonia and settled near the place called the Garden of Midas, son of Gordias, where roses grove themselves, each bearing 60 blossoms and of surpassing fragrance. In this garden, according to the Macedonian story, Salinas was taken captive. Above it rises the mountain called Bermias, which none can ascend from the wintery cold. From there, they issued forth when they had won that country and presently subdued also the rest of Macedonia. From that Perdiccas, Alexander was descended. Being the son of Amintas, who was the son of Alcides, Alcides' father was Oropus and his was Philippus. Philippus' father was Argeus and his again was Perdiccas, who won that lordship. Such was the lineage of Alexander, son of Amintas. When he came to Athens from Mardonius, who had sent him, he spoke as follows. This Athenians is what Mardonius says to you. There is a message come to me from the king, saying, I forgive the Athenians all the offenses which they have committed against me and now Mardonius, I bid you do this. Give them back their territory and let them choose more for themselves besides wherever they will and dwell under their own laws. Rebuild all their temples which I burn if they will make a pact with me. This is the message and I must obey it, says Mardonius, unless you take it upon yourselves to hinder me. This too, I say to you, why are you so insane as to wage war against the king? You cannot overcome him nor can you resist him forever. As for the multitude of Xerxes army, what it did you have seen and you've heard of the power that I now have with me. Even if you overcome and conquer us, whereof, if you be in your right minds you can have no hope. Yet there will come another host many times as great as this. Be not then minded to match yourselves against the king and thereby lose your land and always be yourselves in jeopardy, but make peace. This you can most honorably do since the king is that way inclined. Keep your freedom and agree to be our brothers in arms in all faith and honesty. This, Athenians, is the message which Mardonius charges me to give you. For my own part, I will say nothing of the goodwill that I have towards you for it would not be the first that you have learned of that but I entreat you to follow Mardonius' counsel. Well, I see that you will not have power to wage war against Xerxes forever. If I saw such power in you, I would never have come to you as such language as this. For the king's might is greater than human and his arm is long. If therefore, you will not straightway agree with them when the conditions which they offer you are so great, I fear what may befall you. For of all the allies, you dwell most in the very path of war and you alone will never escape destruction. Your country being marked out for a battlefield. No, rather follow his counsel for it's not to be lightly regarded by you who are the only men in Hellas whose offense the great king is ready to forgive and whose friend he would be. These were the words of Alexander. The Lysidemonians, however, had heard that Alexander had come to Athens to bring the Athenians to an agreement with the barbarian. Remembering the oracles, how they themselves with the rest of the Dorians must be driven out of the Peloponnes by the Medes and the Athenians. They were greatly afraid that the Athenians should agree with the Persian and they straightway resolved that they would send envoys. Moreover, it so fell out for both that they made their entry at one in the same time. For the Athenians delayed and waited for them, being certain that the Lysidemonians were going to hear that the messenger had come from the Persians for an agreement. They had heard that the Lysidemonians would send their envoys with all speed. Therefore, it was set purpose that they did this in order that they might make their will known to the Lysidemonians. So when Alexander had made an end of speaking, the envoys from Sparta said, We on our part have been sent by the Lysidemonians to entreat you to do nothing harmful to Hellas and accept no offer from the barbarians. That would be unjust and dishonorable for any Greek, but for you, most of all, on many counts, it was you who stirred up this war by no desire of ours and your territory was first the stake of that battle in which all Hellas is now engaged. Apart from that, it's unbearable that not this alone but slavery too should be brought upon the Greeks by you Athenians who have always been known as givers of freedom too many. Nevertheless, we grieve with you and your afflictions, saying that you've lost two harvests and your substance has been for a long time wasted and requital for this the Lysidemonians and their allies declare that they will nourish your women and all of your household members who are unserviceable for war. So long as this war will last, let not Alexander the Macedonian win you with his smooth tongue praise and Mardonius his counsel. It's in his business to follow that counsel, for as he is a tyrant, so must he be the tyrant's fellow worker. It's not your business. If your men rightly minded, for you know that in foreigners, there's no faith nor truth. These are the words of the envoys. But to Alexander the Athenians replied as follows, we know of ourselves that the power of the Medi is many times greater than ours. There is no need to taunt us with that. Nevertheless, in our zeal for freedom we will defend ourselves to the best of our ability. But as regards agreements with the barbarians, do not attempt to persuade us to enter into them, nor will we consent. Now carry this answer back to Mardonius from the Athenians, that as long as the son holds the course by which he now goes, we will make no agreement with Xerxes. We will fight against him without ceasing, trusting in the aid of the gods and the heroes whom he is disregarded and burnt their houses and their adornments. Come no more to Athenians with such a plea, nor under the semblance of rendering us a service. Counsel us to act wickedly, for we do not want those who are our friends and protectors to suffer any harm at Athenian hands. Such was their answer to Alexander, but to the Spartan envoys they said. It was most human that the Lesser Demonian should fear our making an agreement with the barbarian. We think that it was an ignoble thing to be afraid, especially since we know the Athenian temper to be such that there is nowhere on earth such store of gold or such territory of surpassing fairness and excellence that the gift of it should win us to take the Persian part and enslave Hell us. For there are many great reasons why we should not do this, even if we so desired, first and foremost, the burning and destruction of the adornments and temples of our gods whom we are constrained to avenge to the utmost rather than make pacts with the perpetrator of these things and next the kinship of all Greeks in blood and speech and the shrines of gods and the sacrifices that we have in common and the likeness of our way of life to all of which it would not be fit the Athenians to be false. Know this, now, if you knew it not before, that as long as one Athenian is left alive, we will make no agreement with Xerxes. Nevertheless, we thank you for your forethought concerning us and that you have so provided for our wasted state that you offered to nourish our households. For your part, we have given us full measure of kindness, yet for ourselves, we will make shift to endure as best we may and not be burdensome to you. But now, seeing that this is so, send your army with all speed, for as we guess the barbarian will be upon us and invade our country in no long time, as soon as the message comes to him that we will do nothing that he requires of us. Therefore, before he comes into Attica, now is the time for us to march first into Biosha. At this reply of the Athenians, the envoys return back to Sparta. End of Volume 3, Part 16. Recording by Scott Michael DeBrucker. Volume 3, Part 17 of Herodotus Histories. This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox.org. Histories, Volume 3 by Herodotus of Heliconarsis. Translated by E. D. Godly, Part 17. When Alexander returned and told him what he had heard from the Athenians, Mardonius set forth from Thessaly and led his army with all zeal against Athens. He also took with him all the people to whose countries he came along the way. The rulers of Thessaly did not repent of what they had already done and were readier than before to further his march. Thorax of Larissa, who had given Xerxes safe conduct in his flight, now, without any attempt of concealment, opened a passage for Mardonius into Helus. But when in the course of its march the army had come into Boshua, the Thebans attempted to stay Mardonius, advising him that he could find no country better fitted than theirs for encampment. He should not, they begged, go further, but rather halt there and subdue all Helus without fighting. As long as the Greeks who were previously in accord remained so, it would be difficult even for the whole world to overcome them by force of arms. But if you do as we advise, said the Thebans, you will without trouble be master of all their battle-plans. Send money to the men who have power in their cities, and thereby you will divide Helus against itself. After that, with your partisans to aid you, you will easily subdue those who are your adversaries. Such was their counsel, but he would not follow it. What he desired was to take Athens once more. This was partly out of mere perversity, and partly because he intended to signify to the king at Sardis by a line of beacons across the islands that he held Athens. When he came to Attica, however, he found the city as unpopulated as before. For, as he learned, the majority of them were on ship-board at Salamis. So he took the city, but without any of its men. There were ten months between the kings taking of the place and the later invasion of Mardonius. When Mardonius came to Athens, he sent to Salamis a certain Murray-Kitties, a man from Hellespont, bearing the same offer as Alexander the Macedonian had ferried across to the Athenians. He sent this for the second time because, although he already knew the Athenians' unfriendly purpose, he expected that they would abandon their stubbornness now that Attica was the captive of his spear and lay at his mercy. For this reason he sent Murray-Kitties to Salamis, who came before the council and conveyed to them Mardonius's message. Then Lysidus, one of the counselors, said that it seemed best to him to receive the offer brought to them by Murray-Kitties and lay it before the people. This was the opinion which he declared, either because he had been bribed by Mardonius or because the plan pleased him. The Athenians in the council were, however, very angry. So, too, were those outside when they were bribed with it. They made a ring round Lysidus and stoned him to death. Murray-Kitties, the Hell's Pontian, however, they permitted to depart unharmed. There was much noise at Salamis over the business of Lysidus and when the Athenian women learned what was afoot, one calling to another and bidding her to follow, they went on their own impetus to the house of Lysidus and stoned to death his wife Salamis. As long as they expected that the Peloponnesian army would come to their aid, they remained in Attica. But when the Peloponnesians took longer and longer to act and the invader was said to be in Bosia already, they then conveyed all their goods out of harm's way and themselves crossed over to Salamis. They also sent envoys to Lachidamon, who were to abrade the Lachidimonians for permitting the barbarian to invade Attica and not helping the Athenians to meet him in Bosia and who were to remind the Lachidamonians of the promises which the Persian had made to Athens if she would change sides and warn them that the Athenians would devise some means of salvation for themselves if the Lachidamonians sent them no help. The Lachidamonians were at this time celebrating the festival of Hyacinthus and their chief concern was to give the god his due. Moreover, the wall which they were building on the Isthmus was by now getting its battlements. When the Athenian envoys arrived in Lachidamon, bringing with them envoys from Magara and Platea, they came before the effers and said, The Athenians have sent us with this message. The king of the Medes is ready to give us back our country and to make us his confederates, equal in right and standing, in all honour and honesty, and to give us whatever land we ourselves may choose besides our own. But we, since we do not want to sin against Zeus, the god of Helus and the shameful to betray Helus, have not consented. This we have done despite the fact that the Greeks are dealing with us wrongfully and betraying us to our hurt. Furthermore, we know that it is more to our advantage to make terms with the Persians than to wage war with them, yet we will not make terms with him of our own free will. For our part we act honestly by the Greeks. But what of you, who once were in great dread lest we should make terms with the Persian? Now that you have a clear idea of our sentiments and are sure we will never betray Helus, and now that the wall which you are building across the Isthmus is nearly finished, you take no account of the Athenians, but have deserted us despite all your promises that you would withstand the Persian in Bosia and have permitted the barbarian to march into Attica. For the present then, the Athenians are angry with you since you have acted in a manner unworthy of you. Now they ask you to send with us an army with all speed so that we may await the foreigners on set in Attica. Since we have lost Bosia in our own territory the most suitable place for a battle is the Thracian plain. When the Ephers heard that they delayed answering till the next day and again till the day after. This they did for ten days, putting an off from day to day. In the meantime all the Peloponnesians were doing all they could to fortify the Isthmus, and they had nearly completed the task. I cannot say for certain why it was when Alexander the Macedonian came to Athens the Lachodemonians insisted that the Athenians should not join the side of the Persian. Yet now took no account of that. It may be that with the Isthmus fortified they thought they had no more need of the Athenians, whereas when Alexander came to Attica their wall was not yet built and they were working at this in great fear of the Persians. The nature of their response was as follows. On the day before the final hearing of the Athenian delegation Chilius, a man of Taghia, who had more authority with the Lachodemonians than any other of their guests, learned from the Ephors all that the Athenians had said. Upon hearing this, he, as the tale goes, said to the Ephors, Sirs, if the Athenians are our enemies and the barbarians' allies, then although you push a strong wall across the Isthmus a means of access in the Peloponnes lies wide open for the Persian. No, give heed to what they say before the Athenians take some new resolve which will bring calamity to Hellas. This was the council he gave the Ephors, who straightway took it to heart. Without saying a word to the envoys who had come from the cities they ordered five thousand Spartans to march before dawn. Seven Hellas were appointed to each of them and they gave the command to Pausanias, son of Cleombrotus. The leaders place rightfully belonged to Plastarchus, son of Cleombrotus, but he was still a boy and Pausanias his guardian and cousin. Cleombrotus, Pausanias's father and Anaxandridus' son was no longer living. After he led the army which had built the wall away from the Isthmus he lived but a little while before his death. The reason for Cleombrotus leading the army away from the Isthmus was that while he was offering sacrifice for victory over the Persian the son was darkened in the heavens. Pausanias chose as his colleague a man of the same family, Euryannic, son of Diorius. So Pausanias's army had marched away from Sparta, but as soon as it was day the envoys came before the Effors, having no knowledge of the expedition and being minded themselves too to depart each one to his own place. When they arrived, you Lachodimonians they said, remain where you are, observing your hyacinthia and celebrating, leaving your allies departed. For the wrong that you do them and for lack of allies the Athenians will make their peace with the Persian as best they can, and thereafter insofar as we will be king's allies we will march with him and against whatever land his men lead us. Then you will learn what the issue of this matter will be for you. In response to this the Effors swore to them that they believed their army to be even now at Orestium marching against the strangers as they called the barbarians. With the knowledge of this the envoys questioned them further as to the meaning of this and thereby learned the whole truth. They marveled at this and hastened with all speed after the army. With them went five thousand men at arms of the Lachodimonian countrymen. So they made haste to reach the Isthmus. The Argyves however had already promised Mardonius that they would prevent the Spartans from going out to war. As soon as they were informed that Pausanius and his army had departed they sent as their herald to Attica the swiftest runner of long distances whom they could find. When he came to Athens he spoke to Mardonius in the following manner. I have been sent by the Argyves to tell you that the young men have gone out from Lachodimon to war and that the Argyves cannot prevent them from so doing. Therefore make plans accordingly. So spoke the herald and went back again. When Mardonius heard that he no longer desired to remain in Attica. Before he had word of it he had held his land, desiring to know the Athenians plan and what they would do. He neither harmed nor harried the land of Attica, for he still supposed that they would make terms with him. But when he could not prevail upon them and learned the truth of the matter he withdrew before Pausanius' army prior to its entering the Isthmus. First however he burnt Athens and utterly overthrew and demolished whatever wall or house or temple standing. The reason for his marching away was that Attica was not a land fit for horses and if he should be defeated in a battle there was no way of retreat save one so narrow that a few men could prevent his passage. He therefore planned to retreat to Thebes and do battle where he had a friendly city at his back and ground suitable for horsemen. So Mardonius drew his men off and when he had now set forth on his road there came a message that in addition an advance guard of a thousand Lachodemonians had arrived at Megara. When he heard this he deliberated how he might first make an end of these. He accordingly turned about and led his army against Megara, his cavalry going first and overrunning the lands of that city. That was the western most place in Europe which this Persian army reached. Presently there came a message to Mardonius that the Greeks were gathered together on the Isthmus. Thereupon he marched back again through Dessalia. The rulers of Boscia sent for those of the Isopus country who lived nearby and these guided him to Svendile and from there to Tanagra. Here he camped for the night and on the next day he turned from there to Skolas, where he was in Theban territory. There he laid waste the lands of the Thebans though they sided with the Persian part. This he did not for any ill will that he bore them but because sheer necessity drove him to make a stronghold for his army and to have this for a refuge if the fortune of battle were other than he wished. His army stationed along the Isopus river covered the ground from Eurythrae past Hissiae and up to the lands of Plataea. I do not mean to say that the wild camp which he made was of this size each side of it was a length of about ten furlongs. While the barbarians were engaged in this task Etiganus, son of Frenin, of Theban, made great preparations and invited Mardonius with fifty who were the most notable of the Persians to be his guest at a banquet. They came as they were bitten. The dinner was held at Thebes. What follows was told me by Thersander of Orcomennus, one of the most notable men of that place. Thersander, too, he said, was invited to this dinner and fifty Thebans in addition. Etiganus made them sit, not each man by himself but on each couch a Persian together. Now as they were drinking together after dinner the Persian who sat with him asked Thersander in the Greek tongue from what country he was. Thersander answered that he was from Orcomennus. Then said the Persian, since you have eaten at the board with me and drunk with me afterwards I would like to leave a memorial of my belief so that you yourself may have such knowledge as to take fitting counsel for your safety. Do you see these Persians at the banquet and that host left encamped by the Riverside? In a little while you shall see but a small remnant left alive of all these. As he said this the Persian wept bitterly. Marvelling at these words Thersander answered, must you not then tell this to Mardonius and to those honorable Persians who are with him? Sir, said the Persian, that which a God wills to send no man can turn aside, for even truth sometimes finds no one to believe it. What I have said is known to many of us Persians but we follow in the bonds of necessity. It is the most hateful thing for a person to have much knowledge and no power. This tale I heard from Thersander of Orcomennus who told me in addition that he had straightway told this to others before the battle of Plataea. So Mardonius was making his encampment in Boscia. All the Greeks of that region who sided with the Persians furnished fighting men and they joined with him in his attack upon Athens with the exception of the Phocians. As for taking the Persian side that they did right away though from necessity rather than willingly. A few days after the Persians coming to Thebes, a thousand Phocian men at arms under the leadership of Hermosides the most notable of their countrymen arrived. When these men too were in Thebes Mardonius sent horsemen and bade the Phocians take their station on the plain by themselves. The Persian cavalry appeared and presently word was spread through all of the Greek army which was with Mardonius and likewise among the Phocians themselves that Mardonius would shoot them to death with javelins. Then their general, Hermosides, exhorted them, men of Phocius, he said, seeing that death at these fellow's hands is staring us in the face we being as I surmise maligned by the Thessalians in our lives in action and fighting then tamely to suffer a shameful death. No, rather we will teach them that they who slaying they have devised are men of Helus. Thus he exhorted them. But when the horsemen had encircled the Phocians they rode at them as if to slay them and drew their bows to shoot. It is likely too that some did in fact shoot. The Phocians opposed them in every possible way drawing in together and closing their ranks to the best of their power. At this the horsemen wheeled about and rode back and away. Now I cannot with exactness say whether they came at the Thessalians' desire to slay the Phocians, but when they saw the men preparing to defend themselves they feared lest they themselves should suffer some hurt, and so rode away, for such was Mardonius's command, or if Mardonius wanted to test the Phocians' medal. When the horsemen had ridden away Mardonius sent a herald with this message. Be of good courage, for you have shown yourselves to be valiant men, and not as it was reported to me. Now push this war zealously forward for you will outdo neither myself nor the king in the rendering of service. This is how the matter of the Phocians turned out. As for the Lachydamans, when they had come to the Isthmus they encamped there. When the rest of the Peloponnesians who chose the better cause heard that, seeing the Spartans setting forth to war they thought that they should not lag behind the Lachydamonians in so doing. Accordingly they all marched from the Isthmus, the omens of sacrifice being favourable, and came to Eleusis. When they had offered sacrifice there also and the omens were favourable they continued their march, having now the Athenians with them who had crossed over from Salamis and joined with them at Eleusis. When they came, as it is said, to Eurythrae in Boshia they learned that the barbarians were encamped in the Ossopus. Taking note of that, they arrayed themselves opposite the enemy on the lower hills of Citharon. When the Greeks did not come down into the plain, Mardonius sent against them his entire cavalry, whose commander was Mesistius, whom the Greeks call Machistius, a man much honoured among the Persians. He rode an Asayan horse which had a golden bit, and was elaborately adorned all over. Thereupon the horsemen rode up to the Greeks and charged them by squadrons. As they attacked, they did them much hurt and called them women all the while. Now it chanced that the Magarians were posted in that part of the field which was most open to attack and here the horsemen found the readiness to approach. Therefore, being hard-pressed by the charges the Magarians sent a herald to the generals of the Greeks who came to them and spoke as follows. From the men of Magara to their allies we cannot alone withstand the Persian cavalry, although we have till now held our ground with patience and valor, despite the fact that we were hard-pressed, in the position to which we were first appointed. Know that now we will abandon our post unless you send others to take our place there. This the herald reported, and Pausanius inquired among the Greeks if any would offer to go to that place and relieve the Magarians by holding the post. All the others did not want to, but the Athenians took it upon themselves, that is, three hundred picked men of Athens, whose campus was Olympiadorus son of Lampen. Those who volunteered themselves were posted at Eurythrae in front of the whole Greek army and they took with them the archers also. They fought for a long time and the end of the battle was as I will now tell. The cavalry charged by squadrons and Magistius's horse, being at the head of the rest was struck in the side by an arrow. Rearing in pain it threw Magistius who, when he fell, was straightway set upon by the Athenians. His horse they took then and there and he himself was killed fighting. They could not, however, kill him at first for he was outfitted in the following manner. He wore a purple tunic over a cures of golden scales which was within it. Thus they accomplished nothing by striking at the cures until someone saw what was happening and stabbed him in the eye. Then he collapsed and died. But as chance would have it the rest of the horsemen knew nothing of this for they had not seen him fall from his horse or die. They wheeled about and rode back without perceiving what was done. As soon as they halted, however, they saw what they were missing since there was no one to give them orders. Then, when they perceived what had occurred they gave each other the word and all rode together to recover the dead body. When the Athenians saw the horsemen riding at them, the Athenians as before but altogether they cried to the rest of the army for help. While all their infantry was rallying to aid, there was a bitter fight over the dead body. As long as the three hundreds stood alone they had the worst of the battle by far and were ready to leave the dead man. When the main body came to their aid then it was the horsemen who could no longer hold their ground nor help to recover the dead man but rather lost others of their comrades in addition to Macistius. They accordingly withdrew and halted about two furlongs away where they deliberated what they should do. Since there was no one to give them orders they resolved to report to Mardoneus. When the cavalry returned to camp Mardoneus and the whole army mourned deeply for Macistius cutting their own hair and the hair of their horses and beasts of burden and lamenting loudly the sound of this was heard over all Boshia for a man was dead who, next to Mardoneus was most esteemed by all Persia and the king. So the barbarians honored Macistius's death in their customary way but the Greeks were greatly encouraged that they withstood and drove off the charging horsemen. First they laid the dead man on a cart and carried him about their ranks and the body was well worth seeing because of its stature and grandeur therefore they would even leave their ranks and come to view Macistius. Presently they resolved that they would march down to Plataea and the ground there was generally more suited for encampment than at Eurythrae and chiefly because it was better watered. It was to this place and to the Gargafian spring which was there that they resolved to go and pitch camp in their several battalions. They took up their arms and marched along the lower slopes of Catheryn past Hissiae and the lands of Plataea and when they arrived they arrayed themselves nation by nation near the Gargafian spring and the precinct of the hero Andocrates among low hills and in a level country. End of Volume 3, Part 17 Volume 3, Part 18 of Herodotus' Histories This is a LibriVox recording All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more information or to volunteer please visit LibriVox.org Histories, Volume 3 by Herodotus of Halecanarsis translated by Ed Godly Part 18 During the drawing up of battle formation there arose much dispute between the Tijians and the Athenians for each of them claimed that they should hold the second wing of the army justifying themselves by tales of deeds new and old. First the Tijians spoke We among all the allies have always had the right to hold this position in all campaigns of the united Peloponnesian armies both ancient and recent ever since that time when they heard Hylis Theia's death attempted to return to the Peloponnes. We gained because of the achievement which we will relate. When we marched out at the Isthmus for war along with the Achaeans and Ionians who then dwelt in the Peloponnes and encamped opposite the returning exiles then it is said Hylis announced that armies should not be risked against armies in battle but that the champion in the host of the Peloponnesians whom they chose to their best should fight with him in real combat on agreed conditions. The Peloponnesians resolving that this should be so swore a compact that if Hylis should overcome the Peloponnesian champion the Heraklides should return to the land of their fathers but if he were himself beaten then the Heraklides should depart and lead their army away not attempting to return to the Peloponnes until a hundred years had passed. Then our general and king Echemus son Aphegius' son Eropus volunteered and was chosen out of all the allied host he fought that duel and killed Hylis it was for that feat of arms that the Peloponnesians granted us this in addition to other great privileges which we have never ceased to possess namely that in all united campaigns we should always lead the army's second wing. Now with you men of Lekedamen we have no rivalry but for bear and bid you choose the command of whichever wing you want we do however say that our place is at the head of the other as it has always been quite a part from that feat which we have related we are worthier than the Athenians to hold that post for we have fought many battles which turned out favorably for you men of Lekedamen and others besides it is accordingly we and not the Athenians who should hold the second wing for neither at some earlier period nor recently have they achieved such feats of arms as we to these words the Athenians replied it is our belief that we are gathered for battle with the Barbarian and not for speeches but since the man of Tagaea has made it his business to speak of all the Valorist deeds old and new which either of our nations has at any time achieved we must prove to you how we rather than Arcadians have by virtue of our Valor a hereditary right to the place of honor these Tagaeans say that they killed the leader of the Heraclidae at the Ismus now when those same Heraclidae had been rejected by every Greek people to whom they resorted to escape the tyranny of the Mycenaeans we alone received them with them we vanquished those who then inhabited the Peloponnese and we broke the pride of Eurysthis furthermore when the Argyves who had marched with Polynykes against thieves had there made an end of their lives and Le'en buried know that we sent our army against the Cadmeans and recovered the dead and buried them in Eurysthis we also have on record our great victory against the Amazons who once came from the river Thermodon and broke into Attica and in the hard days of Troy we were second to none but since it is useless to recall those matters for those who are previously valiant may now be of lesser metal and those who lacked metal then may be better men now enough of the past supposing that we were known for no achievement than any other of the Greeks we nevertheless deserved to have this honor and more beside because of the role we played at Marathon seeing that alone of all the Greeks we met the Persians single-handedly and did not fail in that enterprise but overcame 46 nations is it not then our right to hold this post for that one feet alone yet seeing that this is no time for wrangling about our place in battle we are ready to obey you whatever place and face whatever enemy you think fitting wherever you see us we will strive to be valiant men command us then knowing that we will obey this was the Athenians response and the whole army shouted aloud that the Athenians were worthier to hold the wing than the Arcadians it was in this way that the Athenians were preferred to the men of Tagia and gained that place presently the whole Greek army was arrayed as I will show and the earliest comers on the right wing were ten thousand Lachidaemans five thousand of these who were Spartans had a guard of thirty five thousand light-armed helots seven appointed for each man the Spartans chose the Tagians for their neighbors in the battle both to do them honor and for their valor there were of these fifteen hundred men at arms next to these in the line were five thousand Corinthians at whose desire Passanius permitted the three hundred men of Pelene then present to stand by them next to these were six hundred Arcadians from Orcomenus and after them three thousand men of Sisyon by these one thousand Trazinians were posted and after them two hundred men of Lepreum then four hundred from Mycenae and Tyrens and next to them one thousand from Flius by these stood three hundred men of Hermione next to the men of Hermione were six hundred Eritreans next to them four hundred Calcadians next again five hundred Amperseus after these stood eight hundred Lucidians and Anectorians and next to them two hundred from Pale in Cephalinia after them in the array five hundred Agenitans by them stood three thousand men of Magara and next to these six hundred Pelthians at the end and first in the line were the Athenians who held the left wing three thousand in number and their general was Aristides son of Lysimachus all these except the seven appointed to attend each Spartan were Men at Arms and the whole sum of them was thirty eight thousand in seven hundred this was the number of Men at Arms that mustered for war against the barbarian as regards the number of the light-armed men there were in the Spartan armies seven for each Men at Arms that is thirty five thousand the light-armed from the rest of Lacedaemon and Helus were as one to every Men at Arms and their number was thirty four thousand in five hundred so the total of all the light-armed men who were fighting was sixty nine thousand five hundred and of the whole Greek army mustered at Plateia Men at Arms and Light-Armed fighting men together eleven times ten thousand less eighteen hundred the Cepheans who were present were one hundred and ten thousand in number and the survivors of the Cepheans were also present with the army eighteen hundred in number these then were arrayed and encamped by the Esopas when Mardonius's barbarians had finished their mourning for Mesistius and heard that the Greeks were at Plateia they also came to the part of the Esopas River nearest to them when they were there they arrayed for battle by Mardonius as I shall show he posted the Persians facing the Persians by far outnumbered the Lachodemonians they were arrayed in deeper ranks and their line ran opposite the Tigeans also in his arraying of them he chose out the strongest part of the Persians to set it over against the Lachodemonians and posted the weaker by them facing the Tigeans this he did so being informed and taught by the Thebans next to the Persians he posted the Medes opposite the men of Corinth Potidaea or Comenus and Sisyon next to the Medes the Bactrians opposite the men of Ipodaris Tirans, Mycenae, and Flias after the Bactrians he set the Indians opposite the men of Hermione and Eritrea and Styra and Calcas next to the Indians he posted the Sase opposite the Amprisiats Anactorians Luchadians Palaeans and Egenictens next to the Sase and opposite the Athenians Magarians, the Boshans Lukrians, Malians, Thessalians and the Thousand that came from Phosas for not all the Phosians took the Persian side but some of them gave their aid to the Greek cause these had been besieged on Parnassus and issued out from there to Harry Mordones's army and the Greeks who were with him beside these he arrayed the Macedonians also and those who lived in the area of Thessaly opposite the Athenians these which I have named were the greatest of the nations set in arrayed by Mordones but there was also in the army a mixture of Phrygians, Thracians Missians, Paonians and the rest besides Ethiopians and the Egyptian swordsmen called Hermatibes and Caliseries who are the only fighting men in Egypt these had been fighters on ship board till Mordones while yet at Philarum disembarked them from their ships for the Egyptians were not appointed to serve in the land army and the Xerxes led to Athens of the barbarians then there were 300,000 as I have already shown as for the Greek allies of Mordones no one knows the number of them for they were not counted I suppose them to have been mustered to the number of 50,000 these were the footmen that were set in array the cavalry were separately ordered on the second day after they had all been arrayed according to their nations and their battalions both armies offered sacrifice it was Tissemenes who sacrificed for the Greeks for he was with their army as a diviner he was an Allian by birth a clityad of the Iomed clan and the Lachodemonians gave him the freedom of their city this they did for when Tissemenes was inquiring of the oracle at Delphi concerning offspring the priestess prophesied to him that he should win five great victories not understanding that oracle he engaged in bodily exercise thinking that he would then be able to win in similar sports when he had trained himself for the five contests he came within one wrestling bout of winning the Olympic prize in a match with Hieronymus of Andros the Lachodemonians however perceived that the oracle given to Tissemenes spoke of the lists not of sport but of war and they attempted to bribe Tissemenes to be a leader in their wars jointly with their kings of Heracles's line when he saw that the Spartans set great store by his friendship he set his price higher and made it known to them that he would do what they wanted only in exchange for the gift of full citizenship and all of the citizens' rights hearing that the Spartans were at first angry and completely abandoned their request but when the dreadful menace of this Persian host hung over them they consented and granted his demand when he saw their purpose changed he said that he would not be content with that alone his brother Hagees too must be made a Spartan on the same terms as himself by so saying he imitated Malampus insofar as one may compare demands for kingship with those for citizenship for when the women of Argos had gone mad and the Argives wanted him to come from Pylos and heal them of that madness Malampus demanded half of their kingship for his wages this the Argives would not put up with and depart it when however the madness spread among their women they promised what Malampus demanded and were ready to give it to him there upon seeing their purpose changed he demanded yet more and said that he would not do their will except if they gave a third of their kingship to his brother Bias now driven into dire straits the Argives consented to that also the Spartans too were so eagerly desirous of winning to Semenis that they granted everything that he demanded when they had granted him this also to Semenis of Illis now a Spartan engaged in divination for them they have very great victories no one on earth saved to Semenis and his brother ever became citizens of Sparta now the five victories were these one, the first, this victory at Platea next, that which was won at Taghia over the Taghians and Argives after that, over all the Arcadians saved the Mentoneans at Depea next, over the Messinians at Ithom lastly, the victory at Tanagra over the Athenians and Argives which was the last one of the five victories this to Semenis had now been brought by the Spartans and was the diviner of the Greeks at Platea the sacrifices boated good to the Greeks if they would just defend themselves but evil if they should cross the Asopas and be the first to attack Mordonius' sacrifices also foretold an unfavorable outcome if he should be zealous to attack first and good if he should but defend himself he too used the Greek manner of sacrifice and Hegesistratus of Elis was his diviner the most notable of the sons of Tellius this man had been put in prison and condemned to die by the Spartans for the great harm which he had done them being in such bad shape and as much as he was in peril of his life and was likely to be very grievously maltreated before his death he did something which was almost beyond belief made fast in iron bound stocks he got an iron weapon which was brought in some way into his prison and straightway conceived a plan of such courage as we have never known reckoning how best the rest of it might get free he cut off his own foot at the instep this done he tunneled through the wall out of the way of the guards who kept watch over him and so escaped to Tegea all night he journeyed and all day he hid and lay in the woods till on the third night he came to Tegea while all the people of Lachidamon sought him the latter were greatly amazed when they saw of his foot which had been cut off and lying there but were unable to find the man himself this then is the way in which he escaped the Lachidamonians and took refuge into Tegea which at that time was unfriendly to Lachidamon after he was healed and had made himself a foot of wood he declared himself an open enemy of the Lachidamonians yet the enmity which he bore them brought no good at the last for they caught him at his divinations in Zesynthes and killed him the death of Haggis Estratus however took place after the Plataean business at the present he was by the Aesopus hired by Mordonius for no small wage where he sacrificed and worked zealously both for the hatred he bore the Lachidamonians and for gain when no favorable omens for battle could be won either by the Persians themselves or by the Greeks who were with them for they too had a diviner of their own Hippomachus of Lucas and the Greeks kept flocking in and their army grew Timogenus son of Herpes a Theban advised Mordonius to guard the outlet of the pass over Catherin telling him that the Greeks were coming in daily and that he would thereby cut off many of them the armies had already lain hidden opposite each other for eight days when he gave this council Mordonius perceived that the advice was good and when night had fallen he sent his horsemen to the outlet of the pass over Catherin which leads towards Plataea this pass the Bocians call the three heads and the Athenians the Oaks heads the horsemen who were sent out did not go in vain where they caught both five hundred beasts of burden which were going into the low country bringing provisions from the Peloponnese for the army and men who came with the wagons when they had taken this quarry the Persians killed without mercy sparing neither man nor beast when they had their fill of slaughter they circled the rest and drove them to Mordonius and his camp after this deed they waited two days more neither side desiring to begin the battle for although the barbarians came to the Esophus to test the Greeks intent neither army crossed it Mordonius's cavalry however kept pressing upon and troubling the Greeks for the Thebans in their zeal for the Persian part waged war heartily and kept on guiding the horsemen to the encounter thereafter the return of the Persians and Medes and they and none other would do deeds of valor until ten days passed no more was done than this on the eleventh day from their first encampment opposite each other the Greeks growing greatly in number and Mordonius being greatly vexed by the delay there was a debate held between Mordonius son of Gobrius and Artibasus son of Farnacus who stood as high as only a few others in Xerxes esteem their opinions in council were as I will show Artibasus thought it best that they should strike their camp with all speed and lead the whole army within the walls of Thebes here there was much food stored and fodder for their beasts of burden furthermore they could sit at their ease here and conclude the business by doing as follows they could take the great store they had of gold, minted and other and silver drinking cups and send all this to all places in Hellas without stint accepting none but especially to the chief men in the cities of Hellas let them do this he said and the Greeks would quickly surrender their liberty but do not let the Persians risk the event of a battle this opinion of his was the same as the Thebans in as much as he too had special foreknowledge Mordonius's council however was more vehement and intemperant and not at all leaning to moderation he said that he thought their army was much stronger than the Greeks and that they should give battle with all speed so as not to let more Greeks muster than were mustered already as for the sacrifices of Hegis Astratus let them pay no heed to these nor seek to wring good from them but rather give battle after Persian custom no one withstood this argument and his opinion accordingly prevailed for it was he and not Artibasus who was commander of the army by the king's commission he therefore sent for the leaders of the battalions and the generals of those Greeks who were with him and asked them if they knew any oracle which prophesied that the Persians should perish in Hellas those who were summoned said nothing some not knowing the prophecies and some knowing them but thinking it perilous to speak and then Mordonius himself said since you either have no knowledge or are afraid to declare it hear what I tell you based on the full knowledge that I have there is an oracle that Persians are fated to come to Hellas and all perish there after they have plundered the temple at Delphi since we have knowledge of this same oracle we will neither approach that temple nor attempt to plunder it insofar as destruction hinges on that none awaits us therefore as many of you as wish the Persians well may rejoice in that we will overcome the Greeks having spoken in this way he gave command to have everything prepared and put in good order for the battle which would take place early the next morning now for this prophecy which Mordonius said was spoken of the Persians I know it to have been made concerning not them but the Illyrians and the army of the enchilies there is however a prophecy made by Bacchus concerning this battle by Thermodon's stream and the grass-grown banks of Asopus will be a gathering of Greeks for fight and the ring of the barbarians war cry many a Median archer by untimely death overtaken will fall there in the battle when the day of his doom is upon him I know that these verses and others very similar to them for Musseus referred to the Persians as for the river Thermodon it flows between Tanagra and Glyces end of volume 3 part 18