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XIV.1‑18

This webpage reproduces a portion of
The Library of History

of
Diodorus Siculus

published in Vol. VI
of the Loeb Classical Library edition, 1954

The text is in the public domain.

This page has been carefully proofread
and I believe it to be free of errors.
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XIV.32‑39

(Vol. VI) Diodorus Siculus
Library of History

(Book XIV, continued)

 p61  19 1 At the close of the year Exaenetus was archon in Athens, and in Rome six military tribunes took over the consular magistracy, Publius Cornelius, Caeso Fabius, Spurius Nautius, Gaius Valerius, and Manius Sergius.​1 2 At this time Cyrus, who was commander of the satrapies on the sea,​2 had been planning for a long while to lead an army against his brother Artaxerxes; for the young man was full of ambition and had a keenness for the encounters of war that  p63 was not unrewarded. 3 When an adequate force of mercenaries had been collected for him and all preparations for the campaign had been completed, he did not reveal the truth to the troops, but kept asserting that he was leading the army to Cilicia against the despots who were in rebellion against the King. 4 He also dispatched ambassadors to the Lacedaemonians to recall to their minds the services he had rendered in their war against the Athenians and to urge them to join him as allies. The Lacedaemonians, thinking that the war would be to their advantage, decided to give aid to Cyrus and forthwith sent ambassadors to their admiral, named Samus,​3 with instructions that he should carry out whatever Cyrus ordered. 5 Samus had twenty-five triremes, and with these he sailed to Ephesus to Cyrus' admiral and was ready to co-operate with him in every respect. They also sent eight hundred infantry, giving the command to Cheirisophus. The commander of the barbarian fleet was Tamōs, who had fifty triremes which had been fitted out at great expense; and after the Lacedaemonians had arrived, the fleets put out to sea, following a course for Cilicia.

6 Cyrus, after gathering to Sardis both the levies of Asia and thirteen thousand mercenaries, appointed Persians of his kindred to be governors of Lydia and Phrygia, but of Ionia, Aeolis, and the neighbouring territories, his trusted friend Tamōs, who was a native of Memphis; then he with his army advanced in the direction of Cilicia and Pisidia, spreading the report that certain peoples of those regions were in revolt.  p65 7 From Asia he had in all seventy thousand troops, of whom three thousand were cavalry, and from the Peloponnesus and the rest of Greece thirteen thousand mercenaries. 8 The soldiers from the Peloponnesus, with the exception of the Achaeans, were commanded by Clearchus the Lacedaemonian, those from Boeotia by Proxenus the Theban, the Achaeans by Socrates the Achaean, and those from Thessaly by Menon of Larissa. 9 The officers of the barbarians, in minor commands, were Persians, and of the whole army Cyrus himself was commander-in‑chief. He had disclosed to the commanders that he was marching against his brother, but he kept this hid from the troops for fear that they would leave his enterprise stranded because of the scale of his expedition. Consequently along the march, by way of providing for the coming occasion, he curried favour with the troops by affability and by providing abundant supplies of provisions.

20 1 After Cyrus had traversed Lydia and Phrygia as well as the regions bordering on Cappadocia, he arrived at the boundaries of Cilicia and the entrance at the Cilician Gates. This pass is narrow and precipitous, twenty stades in length, and bordering it on both sides are exceedingly high and inaccessible mountains; and walls stretch down one side from the mountains as far as the roadway, where gates have been built across it. 2 Leading his army through these gates, Cyrus entered a plain which in beauty yields to no plain in Asia, and through which he advanced to Tarsus, the largest city of Cilicia, which  p67 he speedily mastered. When Syennesis, the lord of Cilicia, heard of the great size of the hostile army, he was at a great loss, since he was no match for it in battle. 3 When he was summoned to Cyrus' presence and had been given pledges, he went to him, and on learning the truth about the war he agreed to join him as an ally against Artaxerxes; and he sent one of his two sons along with Cyrus, giving him also a strong contingent of Cilicians for his army. For Syennesis, being by nature unscrupulous and having adjusted himself to the uncertainty of Fortune, had dispatched his other son secretly to the King to reveal to him the armaments that had been gathered against him and to assure him that he took the part of Cyrus out of necessity, but that he was still faithful to the King and, when the opportunity arose, would desert Cyrus and join the army of the King.

4 Cyrus rested his army twenty days in Tarsus, and after this, when he would have resumed the march, the troops suspected that the campaign was against Artaxerxes. And as each man reckoned up the length of the distances entailed and the multitude of hostile peoples through whom they would have to pass, he was filled with the deepest anxiety; for the word had got about that it was a four months' march for an army to Bactria and that a force of more than four hundred thousand soldiers had been mustered for the King. 5 Consequently the soldiers became most fearful and vexed, and in anger at their commanders they attempted to kill them on the ground that the commanders had betrayed them. But when Cyrus entreated one and all of them and assured them  p69 that he was leading the army, not against Artaxerxes, but against a certain satrap of Syria, the soldiers yielded, and when they had received an increase in pay, they resumed their former loyalty to him.

21 1 As Cyrus marched through Cilicia he arrived at Issus, which lies on the sea and is the last city of Cilicia. At the same time the fleet of the Lacedaemonians also put in at the city, and the commanders went ashore, met with Cyrus, and reported the goodwill of the Spartans toward him; and they disembarked and turned over to him the eight hundred infantry under the command of Cheirisophus. 2 The pretence was that these mercenaries were sent by the friends of Cyrus, but in fact everything was done with the consent of the ephors. The Lacedaemonians had not yet openly entered upon the war, but were concealing their purpose, awaiting the turn of the war.

Cyrus set out with his army, travelling toward Syria, and ordered the admirals to accompany him by sea with all the ships. 3 When he arrived at the Gates,​4 as they are called, and found the place clear of guards, he was elated, for he was greatly concerned lest troops might have occupied them before his arrival. The place is narrow and precipitous in character, so that it can be easily guarded by few troops. 4 For two mountains lie against each other, the one jagged and with great crags, and the other beginning right at the road itself, and it is the largest in those  p71 regions, bearing the name Amanus and extending along Phoenicia; and the space between the mountains, some three stades in length, has walls running its whole length and gates closed to make a narrow passage. 5 Now, after passing through the Gates without a fight, Cyrus sent off that part of the fleet that was still with him to make the return voyage to Ephesus, since it was of no further use to him now that he would be travelling inland. After a march of twenty days he arrived at the city of Thapsacus, which lies on the Euphrates River. 6 Here he remained five days, and after winning the army to himself both by abundant supplies and by booty from foraging, he summoned it to an assembly and disclosed the truth about his campaign. When the soldiers received his words unfavourably, he besought them, one and all, not to leave him in the lurch, promising, besides other great rewards, that, when they came to Babylon, he would give every man of them five minas of silver.​5 The soldiers, accordingly, soaring in their expectations, were prevailed upon to follow him. 7 When Cyrus crossed the Euphrates with his army, he pressed on the way without making any halt, and as soon as he reached the borders of Babylonia he rested his troops.

22 1 King Artaxerxes had learned some time before from Pharnabazus that Cyrus was secretly collecting an army to lead against him, and when he now learned that he was on the march, he summoned his armaments from every place to Ecbatana in Media. 2 When the contingents from the Indians and certain other  p73 peoples were delayed because of the remoteness of those regions, he set out to meet Cyrus with the army that had been assembled. He had in all not less than four hundred thousand soldiers, including cavalry, as Ephorus states. 3 When he arrived on the plain of Babylonia, he pitched a camp beside the Euphrates, intending to leave his baggage in it; for he had learned that the enemy was not far distant and he was apprehensive of their reckless daring. 4 Accordingly he dug a trench sixty feet wide and ten deep and encircled the camp with the baggage-waggons of his train like a wall. Having left behind in the camp the baggage and the attendants who were of no use in the battle, he appointed an adequate guard for it, and leading forward in person his army unencumbered, he advanced to meet the enemy which was near at hand.

5 When Cyrus saw the King's army advancing, he at once drew up his own force in battle order. The right wing, which rested on the Euphrates, was held by infantry composed of Lacedaemonians and some of the mercenaries, all under the command of Clearchus the Lacedaemonian, and helping him in the fight were the cavalry brought from Paphlagonia, more than a thousand. The left wing was held by the troops from Phrygia and Lydia and about a thousand of the cavalry, under the command of Aridaeus. 6 Cyrus himself had taken a station in the centre of the battle-line, together with the choicest troops gathered from the Persians and the other barbarians, about ten thousand strong; and leading the van before him were the finest-equipped cavalry, a thousand, armed with Greek breastplates and swords.  p75 7 Artaxerxes stationed before the length of his battle-line scythe-bearing chariots in no small number, and the wings he put under command of Persians, while he himself took his position in the centre with no less than fifty thousand élite troops.

23 1 When the armies were about three stades apart, the Greeks struck up the paean and at first advanced at a slow pace, but as soon as they were within range of missiles they began to run at great speed.​6 Clearchus the Lacedaemonian had given orders for them to do this, for by not running from a great distance he had in mind to keep the fighters fresh in body for the fray, while if they advanced on the run when at close quarters, this, it was thought, would cause the missiles shot by bows and other means to fly over their heads. 2 When the troops with Cyrus approached the King's army, such a multitude of missiles was hurled upon them as one could expect to be discharged from a host of four hundred thousand. Nevertheless, they fought but an altogether short time with javelin and then for the remainder of the battle closed hand to hand.

3 The Lacedaemonians and the rest of the mercenaries at the very first contact struck terror into the opposing barbarians both by the splendour of their arms and by the skill they displayed. 4 For the barbarians were protected by small shields and their divisions were for the most part equipped with light arms; and, furthermore, they were without trial in the perils of war, whereas the Greeks had been in constant battle by reason of the length of the Peloponnesian  p77 War and were far superior in experience. Consequently they straightway put their opponents to flight, pushed after them in pursuit, and slew many of the barbarians. 5 In the centre of the lines, it so happened, were stationed both the men who were contending for the kingship. Consequently, becoming aware of this fact, they made at each other, being eagerly desirous of deciding the issue of the battle by their own hands; for Fortune, it appears, brought the rivalry of the brothers over the throne to culmination in a duel as if in imitation of that ancient rash combat of Eteocles and Polyneices so celebrated in tragedy.​7 6 Cyrus was the first to hurl his javelin from a distance, and striking the King, brought him to the ground; but the King's attendants speedily snatched him away and carried him out of the battle. Tissaphernes, a Persian noble, now succeeded to the supreme command held by the King, and not only rallied the troops but fought himself in splendid fashion; and retrieving the reverse involved in the wounding of the King and arriving on the scene everywhere his élite troops, he slew great numbers of the enemy, so that his presence was conspicuous from afar. 7 Cyrus, being elated by the success of his forces, rushed boldly into the midst of the enemy and at first slew numbers of them as he set no bounds to his daring; but later, as he fought too imprudently, he was struck by a common Persian and fell mortally wounded. Upon his death the King's soldiers gained confidence for the battle and  p79 in the end, by virtue of numbers and daring, wore down their opponents.

24 1 On the other wing Aridaeus, who was second in command to Cyrus, at first withstood stoutly the charge of the barbarians, but later, since he was being encircled by the far-extended line of the enemy and had learned of Cyrus' death, he turned in flight with the soldiers under his command to one of the stations where he had once stopped, which was not unsuited as a place for retreat. 2 Clearchus, when he observed that both the centre of his allies and the other part as well had been routed, stopped his pursuit, and calling back the soldiers, set them in order; for he feared that if the entire army should turn on the Greeks, they would be surrounded and slain to a man. 3 The King's troops, after they had put their opponents to flight, first plundered Cyrus' baggage-train and then, when night had come on, gathered in force and set upon the Greeks; but when the Greeks met the attack valiantly, the barbarians withstood them only a short while and after a little turned in flight, being overcome by their deeds of valour and skill. 4 The troops of Clearchus, when they had slain great numbers of the barbarians, since it was already night, returned to the battlefield and set up a trophy, and about the second watch got safe to their camp. 5 Such was the outcome of the battle, and of the army of the King more than fifteen thousand were slain, most of whom fell at the hands of the Lacedaemonians and mercenaries under the command of Clearchus. 6 On the other side some three thousand of Cyrus' soldiers fell, while of the Greeks, we are told, not a man was slain, though a few were wounded.

 p81  7 When the night was past, Aridaeus, who had fled to the stopping-place, dispatched messengers to Clearchus, urging him to lead his soldiers to him and to join him in making a safe return to the regions on the sea. For now that Cyrus had been slain and the King's armaments held the advantage, deep concern had seized those who had dared to take the field to unset Artaxerxes from the throne.

25 1 Clearchus called together both the generals and commanders and took counsel with them on the situation. While they were discussing it, there came ambassadors from the King, the chief of whom was a man of Greece, Phalynus by name, who was a Zacynthian. They were introduced to the gathering and spoke as follows: "King Artaxerxes says: Since I have defeated and slain Cyrus, do you surrender your arms, come to my doors, and seek how you may appease me and gain some favour." 2 To these words each general gave a reply much like that which Leonides made when he was guarding the Pass of Thermopylae, and Xerxes sent messengers ordering him to lay down his arms.​8 3 For Leonides at that time instructed the messengers to report to the King: "We believe that if we become friends of Xerxes, we shall be better allies if we keep our arms, and if we are forced to wage war against him, we shall fight the better if we keep them." 4 When Clearchus had made a somewhat similar reply to the message, Proxenus the Theban said, "As things now stand, we have lost practically everything else, and all that is left to us is our valour and our arms. It is my  p83 opinion, therefore, that if we guard our arms, our valour also will be useful to us, but if we give them up, then not even our valour will be of any help to us." Consequently he gave them this message to the King: "If you are plotting some evil against us, with our arms we will fight against you for your own possessions." 5 We are told that also Sophilus, one of the commanders, said, "I am surprised at the words of the King; for if he believes that he is stronger than the Greeks, let him come with his army and take our arms away from us; but if he wishes to use persuasion, let him say what favour of equal worth he will grant us in exchange for them." 6 After these speakers Socrates the Achaean said, "The King is certainly acting toward us in a most astounding fashion; for what he wishes to take from us he requires at once, while what will be given us in return he commands us to request of him at a later time. In a word, if it is in ignorance of who are the victors that he orders us to obey his command as though we had been defeated, let him come with his numerous host and find out on whose side the victory lies; but if, knowing well enough that we are the victors, he uses lying words, how shall we trust his later promises?"

7 After the messengers had received these replies, they departed; and Clearchus marched to the stopping-place whither the troops had retired who had escaped from the battle. When the entire force had gathered in the same place, they counselled together how they should make their way back to the  p85 sea and what route they should take. 8 Now it was agreed that they should not return by the same way they had come, since much of it was waste country where they could not expect provisions to be available with a hostile army on their heels. They resolved, therefore, to make toward Paphlagonia, and set out in that direction with the army, proceeding at a leisurely pace, since they gathered provisions as they marched.

26 1 The King was recovering from his wound, and when he learned that his opponents were withdrawing, he believed that they were in flight and set out in haste after them with his army. 2 As soon as he had overtaken them because of their slow progress, for the moment, since it was night, he went into camp near them, and when day came and the Greeks were drawing up their army for battle, he sent messengers to them and for the time being agreed upon a truce of three days. 3 During this period they reached the following agreement: The King would see that his territory was friendly to them; he would provide them guides for their journey to the sea and would supply them with provisions on the way; the mercenaries under Clearchus and all the troops under Aridaeus would pass through his territory without doing any injury. 4 After this they started on their journey, and the King led his army off to Babylon. In that city he accorded fitting honours to everyone who had performed deeds of courage in the battle and judged Tissaphernes seem to have been the bravest of all. Consequently he honoured him with rich gifts, gave him his own daughter in marriage, and henceforth continued to hold him as his most trusted friend;  p87 and he also gave him the command which Cyrus had held over the satrapies on the sea.

5 Tissaphernes, seeing that the King was angered at the Greeks, promised him that he would destroy them one and all, if the King would supply him with armaments and come to terms with Aridaeus, for he believed that Aridaeus would betray the Greeks to him in the course of the march. The King readily accepted this suggestion and allowed him to select from his entire army as many of the best troops as he chose. 6 (When Tissaphernes caught up with the Greeks he sent word for Clearchus and the)​9 rest of the commanders to come to him and hear what he had to say in person. Consequently, practically all the generals, together with Clearchus and some twenty captains, went to Tissaphernes, and of the common soldiers about two hundred, who wanted to go to market, accompanied them. 7 Tissaphernes invited the generals into his tent and the captains waited at the entrance. And after a little, at the raising of a red flag from Tissaphernes' tent, he seized the generals within, certain appointed troops fell upon the captains and slew them, and others killed the soldiers who had come to the market. Of the last, one made his escape to the camp and disclosed the disaster that had befallen them.

27 1 When the soldiers learned what had taken place, at the moment they were panic-stricken and  p89 all rushed to arms in great disorder, since there was no one to command; but after this, since no one disturbed them, they elected a number of generals and put the supreme command in the hands of one, Cheirisophus the Lacedaemonian. 2 The generals organized the army for the march on the route they thought best and proceeded toward Paphlagonia. Tissaphernes sent the generals in chains to Artaxerxes, who executed the others but spared Menon alone, since he alone, because of a quarrel with his allies,​10 was thought to be ready to betray the Greeks. 3 Tissaphernes, following with his army, clung to the Greeks, but he did not dare to meet them in battle face to face, fearing as he did the courage and recklessness of desperate men; and although he harassed them in places well suited for that purpose, he was unable to do them any great harm, but he followed them, causing slight difficulties, as far as the country of the people known as the Carduchi.

4 Since Tissaphernes was unable to accomplish anything further, he set out with his army for Ionia; and the Greeks made their way for seven days through the mountains of the Carduchi, suffering greatly at the hands of the natives, who were a warlike people and well acquainted with the region. 5 They were enemies of the King and a free people who practised the arts of war, and they especially trained themselves in hurling largest stones they could with slings and in the use of enormous arrows, with which missiles they inflicted wounds on the Greeks from advantageous positions, slaying many and seriously  p91 injuring not a few. 6 For the arrows were more than two cubits long​11 and pierced both the shields and breastplates, so that no armour could withstand their force; and these arrows they used were so large, we are told, that the Greeks wound thongs about those that had been shot and used them as javelins to hurl back. 7 Now after they had traversed with difficulty the country we have mentioned, they arrived at the river Centrites, which they crossed, and entered Armenia. The satrap here was Tiribazus, with whom they made a truce and passed through his territory as friends.

28 1 As they made their way through the mountains of Armenia they encountered a heavy snow and the entire army came near to perishing. What happened was this. At first, when the air was stirred, the snow began to fall in light quantities from the heavens, so that the marchers experienced no trouble in their advance; but after this a wind rose and it came down heavier and heavier and so covered the ground that not only the road but even any distinguishing landmarks could no longer be seen at all. 2 Consequently despondency and fear seized the army, which was unwilling to turn back to certain destruction and unable to advance because of the heavy snow. As the storm increased in intensity, there came a great wind and heavy hail which beat in gusts on their faces and forced the entire army to come to a halt; for everyone, being unable to endure the hardship entailed in a further advance, was forced to remain wherever he happened to be. 3 Although without supplies  p93 of any kind, they stuck it out under the open sky that day and the following night, beset by many hardships; for because of the heavy snow which kept continually falling, all their arms were covered and their bodies were completely chilled by the frost in the air. The hardships they endured were so great that they got no sleep the entire night. Some lighted fires and got some help from them, and some, whose bodies were invaded by the frost, gave up all hope of succour, since practically all their fingers and toes were mortifying. 4 Accordingly, when the night was past, it was found that most of the baggage animals had perished, and of the soldiers many were dead and not a few, though still conscious, could not move their bodies because of the frost; and the eyes of some were blinded by reason of the cold and the glare from the snow. 5 And every man would certainly have perished had they not gone on a little farther and found villages full of supplies. These villages had entrances for the beasts of burden which were tunnelled under the ground and others for the human inhabitants who descended into them by ladders . . .​12 and in the houses the animals were supplied with hay, while the human inhabitants enjoyed a great abundance of all the necessities of life.

29 1 After they had remained in the villages eight days, they went on to the river Phasis. Here they passed four days and then made their way through  p95 the territory of the Chaoi​13 and the Phasians. When the natives attacked them, they defeated them in battle, slaying great numbers of them, seized their farms, which abounded in provisions, and spent fifteen days on them. 2 Continuing their advance from here, they then traversed the territory of the Chaldaeans, as they are called, in seven days and arrived at the river named Harpagus, which was four plethra wide. From here their advance brought them through the territory of the Scytini by a road across a plain, on which they refreshed themselves for three days, enjoying all the necessities of life in plenty. After this they set out and on the fourth day arrived at a large city which bore the name of Gymnasia. 3 Here the ruler of these regions concluded a truce with them and furnished them guides to lead them to the sea. Arriving in fifteen days at Mt. Chenium, when the men marching in the van caught sight of the sea, they were overjoyed and raised such a cry that the men in the rear, assuming that there was an attack by enemies, rushed to arms. 4 But when they had all got up to the place from which the sea could be seen, they raised their hands to the gods and gave thanks, believing they had now come through to safety; and gathering together into one spot a great number of stones, they formed from them great cairns on which they set up as a dedication spoils taken from the barbarians, wishing to leave an eternal memorial of their expedition. To the guide they gave as presents a silver bowl and a suit of Persian raiment; and he, after pointing out to them the road to the Macronians, took his departure. 5 The  p97 Greeks then entered the territory of the Macronians with whom they concluded a truce, receiving from them as a pledge of good faith a spear used by these barbarians and giving them in return a Greek one; for the barbarians declared that such an exchange had been handed down to them from their forefathers as the surest pledge of good faith. When they had crossed the boundaries of this people, they arrived at the territory of the Colchians. 6 When the natives gathered here against them, the Greeks overcame them in battle and slew great numbers of them, and then, seizing a strong position on a hill, they pillaged the territory, gathered their booty on the hill, and refreshed themselves plentifully.

30 1 There were found in the regions great numbers of beehives which yielded valuable honey. But as many as partook of it succumbed to a strange affliction; for those who ate it lost consciousness, and falling on the ground were like dead men. 2 Since many consumed the honey because of the pleasure its sweetness afforded, such a number had soon fallen to the ground as if they had suffered a rout in war. Now during that day the army was disheartened, terrified as it was at both the strange happening and the great number of the unfortunates; but on the next day at about the same hour all came to themselves, gradually recovered their senses, and rose up from the ground, and their physical state was like that of men recovered after a dose of a drug.

3 When they had refreshed themselves for three days, they marched on to the Greek city of Trapezus,​14 which is a colony of the Sinopians and lies in the territory of the Colchians. Here they spent thirty days,  p99 during which they were most magnificently entertained by the inhabitants; and they offered sacrifices to Heracles and to Zeus the Deliverer and held a gymnastic contest at the place at which, men say, the Argo put in with Jason and his men. 4 From here they dispatched Cheirisophus their commander to Byzantium to get transports and triremes, since he claimed to be a friend of Anaxibius, the admiral of the Byzantines. The Greeks sent him off on a light boat, and then, receiving from the Trapezians two small boats equipped with oars, they plundered the neighbouring barbarians both by land and by sea. 5 Now for thirty days they waited for the return of Cheirisophus, and when he still delayed and provisions for the troops were running low, they set out from Trapezus and arrived on the third day at the Greek city of Cerasus, a colony of the Sinopians. Here they spent some days and then came to the people of the Mosynoecians. 6 When the barbarians assembled against them, the Greeks defeated them in battle, slaying great numbers of them. And when they fled for refuge to a stronghold where they had their dwelling and which they defended with wooden towers seven stories high, the Greeks launched successive assaults upon it and took it by storm. This stronghold was the capitol of all the other walled communities and in it, in the loftiest part, their king had his dwelling. 7 A custom, handed down from their fathers, is followed that the king must remain for his entire life in the stronghold and from it issue his commands to the people. This was the most barbarous nation, the soldiers said, that they passed through: the men have intercourse with the women in the sight of all; the children of the wealthiest are  p101 nourished on boiled nuts; and they are all from their youth tattooed in various colours on both their back and breast. The territory they passed through in eight days and the next country, called Tibarenê, in three.

31 1 From there they arrived at Cotyora, a Greek city and a colony of the Sinopians. Here they spent fifty days, plundering both the neighbouring peoples of Paphlagonia and the other barbarians. And the citizens of Heracleia and Sinopê sent them vessels on which both the soldiers and their pack-animals were conveyed across.​15 2 Sinopê was a colony founded by the Milesians, and situated as it was in Paphlagonia, it held first place among the cities of those regions; and it was in this city that in our day Mithridates, who went to war with the Romans, had his largest palace. 3 And at that city also arrived Cheirisophus, who had been dispatched without success to get triremes. Nevertheless, the Sinopians entertained them in kindly fashion and sent them on their way by sea to Heracleia, a colony of the Megarians; and the entire fleet came to anchor at the peninsula of Acherusia, where, we are told, Heracles led up Cerberus from Hades. 4 As they proceeded from there on foot through Bithynia they fell among perils, as the natives skirmished with them along their route. So they barely made their way to safety to Chrysopolis in Chalcedonia, eight thousand three hundred surviving of the original ten thousand. 5 From there some of the Greeks got back in safety, without further trouble, to their native lands, and the rest banded  p103 together around the Chersonesus and laid waste the adjoining territory of the Thracians.

Such, then, was the outcome of the campaign of Cyrus against Artaxerxes.


The Loeb Editor's Notes:

1 Several manuscripts complete the number by adding "and Junius Lucullus."

2 See chap. 12.8 and note.

3 Samius in Xenophon, Hell. 3.1.1.

4 Between Cilicia and Syria.

5 Some ninety dollars.

6 The battle is known as that of Cunaxa.

7 The fullest account preserved to us is in Aeschylus, The Seven against Thebes.

8 See Book 11.5.5.

9 There is clearly a break in the text, as in fact is indicated by two of the manuscripts. The words in parenthesis suffice to carry on the narrative, although a section of considerable length may have fallen out.

10 Or "with his fellow commanders"; see critical note.

The critical note to the Greek text (στασιάζων πρὸς τοὺς συμμάχους) reads:

συμμάχους] Vogel suggests συνάρχοντας.

11 About three feet.

12 There is clearly a lacuna in the text. Any reconstruction should be guided by Xenophon's description (Anab. 4.5.25): "The houses here were under­ground, with a mouth like that of a well, but spacious below; and while entrances were tunnelled down for the beasts of burden, the human inhabitants descended by a ladder. In the houses were goats, sheep, etc." (tr. of Brownson in the L. C. L.). Such under­ground villages are still to be found in modern Armenia.

13 Probably the Toachians of Xenophon, Anab. 4.6.5.

14 The modern Trebizond.

15 To Sinopê (Xenophon, Anab. 6.1.14‑15).


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