from Athens. The Eolians contributed sixty ships, and were equipped like the Greeks; they were anciently called Pelasgians, as the Grecians say. The Hellespontines, except those of Abydos, for the people of Abydos were ordered by the king to stay at home and guard the bridges,—the rest, however, who joined the expedition from the Pontus, contributed a hundred ships; they were equipped like the Greeks: these are colonists of the Ionians and Dorians.

96. Persians, Medes, and Sacæ served as marines on board all the ships. Of these the Phoenicians furnished the best sailing ships, and of the Phoenicians the Sidonians. Over all these, as well as over those that formed the land-army, native officers were appointed to each; but I do not mention their names, for I am not necessarily constrained to do so for the purpose of the history; nor were the officers of each nation worthy of mention; and in each nation, as many as the cities were, so many were the leaders. They did not, however, follow in the quality of generals, but like the other subjects who joined the expedition. Moreover the generals, who had all the power, and were the commanders of the several nations, such of them as were Persians have been already mentioned by me. 97. The following were admirals of the navy: Ariabignes, son of Darius; Prexaspes, son of Aspathines: Megabazus, son of Megabates; and Achæmenes, son of Darius: of the Ionian and Carian force, Ariabignes, son of Darius and the daughter of Gobryas; Achæmenes, who was brother to Xerxes on both sides, commanded the Egyptians; and the other two commanded the rest of the fleet. Triëconters, penteconters, light boats, and long horse transports were found to assemble to the number of three thousand. 98. Of those who served in the fleet, the following, next to the admirals, were the most illustrious; Tetramnestus, son of Anysus, a Sidonian; Mapen, son of Siromus, a Tyrian; Merbalus, son of Agbalus, an Āridian; Syennesis, son of Oromedon, a Cilician; Cyberniscus, son of Sicas, a Lycian; Gorgus, son of Chersis, and Timonax, son of Timagoras, Cyprians; and of the Carians, Histiæus, son of Tymnes; Pygres, son of Seldomus, and Damasithymus, son of Candaules. 99. Of the other captains I make no mention, as I deem it unnecessary, except of Artemisia, whom I most admire, as having, though a woman, joined this expedition against Greece; who, her husband being dead, herself hold

ing the sovereignty while her son was under age, joined the expedition from a feeling of courage and manly spirit, though there was no necessity for her doing so. Her name was Artemisia, and she was the daughter of Lygdamis, and by birth she was of Halicarnassus on her father's side, and on her mother's a Cretan. She commanded the Halicarnassians, the Coans, the Nisyrians, and the Calydnians, having contributed five ships and of the whole fleet, next to the Sidonians, she furnished the most renowned ships, and of all the allies, gave the best advice to the king. The cities which I have mentioned as being under her command, I pronounce to be all of Doric origin; the Halicarnassians being Trozenians, and the rest Epidaurians. Thus far the naval armament has been spoken of.

:

100. Xerxes, when he had numbered his forces, and the army was drawn up, desired to pass through and inspect them in person. Accordingly he did so, and driving through on a chariot, by each separate nation, he made inquiries, and his secretaries wrote down the answers; until he had gone from one extremity to the other, both of the horse and foot. When he had finished this, and the ships had been launched into the sea, Xerxes thereupon removing from his chariot to a Sidonian ship, sat under a gilded canopy, and then sailed by the prows of the ships, asking questions of each, as he had done with the land-forces, and having the answers written down. The captains of the ships having drawn their vessels about four plethra from the beach, lay to, all having turned their ships frontwise to land, and having armed the marines as if for a battle; but Xerxes, sailing between the prows and the beach, inspected them.

101. When he had sailed through them, and had landed from the ship, he sent for Demaratus, son of Ariston, who accompanied him in the expedition against Greece; and having called him, he addressed him thus: "Demaratus, it is now my pleasure to ask of you certain questions that I wish. You are a Greek, and, as I am informed by you, and other Greeks who have conversed with me, of a city neither the least nor the weakest. Now, therefore, tell me this, whether the Grecians will venture to lift their hands against me: for, as I think, if all the Grecians, and all the rest of the nations that dwell towards the west, were collected together, they would

not be able to withstaregadostid my attack, unless they were united together. However, i the PI am desirous to know what you say on this subject." Sroughch was the question he asked; but Demaratus answeefing said, "O king, whether shall I speak truth to you or what is pleasing?" He bade him speak truth, assuring him that he would not be at all less agreeable than he was before. 102. When Demaratus heard this, he spoke thus: "O king, since you positively require me to speak truth, I will say such things, as whoever should utter them, would not hereafter be convicted of falsehood. Poverty has ever been familiar to Greece, but virtue has been acquired, having been accomplished by wisdom and firm laws; by the aid of which, Greece has warded off poverty and tyranny. I commend, indeed, all those Greeks who dwell round those Doric lands; but I shall now proceed to speak, not of all, but of the Lacedæmonians only. In the first place, I say it is not possible that they should ever listen to your proposals, which bring slavery on Greece: secondly, that they will meet you in battle, even if all the rest of the Greeks should side with you. With respect to their number, you need not ask how many they are, that they are able to do this; for whether a thousand men, or more, or even less, should have marched out, they will certainly give you battle." 103. Xerxes, having heard this, replied, "Demaratus, what have you said? that a thousand men will fight with such an army as this? Come, tell me, you say that you were yourself king of these men? Are you, then, willing on the spot to fight with ten men? And yet if all your citizens are such as you represent, you, who are their king, ought by your own institutions to be matched against twice that number; for if each of them is a match for ten men in my army, I expect that you should be a match for twenty, so the opinion you have given utterance to would prove correct. But if, being such as yourself, and of the same stature as you and other Greeks who have conversed with me, ye boast so much, beware that the opinion you have uttered be not an idle vaunt. For come, let us consider every probability: how could a thousand men, or even ten thousand, or even fifty thousand, being all equally free, and not subject to the command of a single person, resist such an army as this? for if they are five thousand, we are more than a thousand against one. Were they, indeed, according

66

to our custom, subject to the command of a single person, they might, through fear of him, prove superior to their natural courage; and, compelled by the lash, might, though fewer, attack a greater number: but now, being left to their own free-will, they will do nothing of the kind. And I am of opinion, that even if they were equal in numbers, the Grecians would hardly contend with the Persians alone. For the valour that you speak of, exists amongst us; it is not, however, common, but rare. For there are Persians among my body-guards, who would readily encounter three Greeks at once; and you, having no experience of these men, talk very idly." 104. To this Demaratus replied, "O king, I knew from the first, that by adhering to the truth, I should not say what would be agreeable to you; but since you constrained me to speak the exact truth, I told you the real character of the Spartans. However, you yourself well know how tenderly I must love them, who, after they had deprived me of my paternal honours and dignity, have made me citiless and an exile; but your father, having received me, gave me maintenance and a home: it is not probable therefore that a prudent man should repel manifest benevolence, but should by all means cherish it. For my part, I do not pretend to be able to fight with ten men, nor with two; nor would I willingly fight with one. But if there was any necessity, or any great stake to rouse me, I would most willingly fight with one of those men, who pretend to be singly a match for three Grecians. In like manner the Lacedæmonians in single combat are inferior to none; but together are the bravest of all men. For though free, they are not absolutely free; for they have a master over them, the law, which they fear much more than your subjects do you. They do, accordingly, whatever it enjoins; and it ever enjoins the same thing, forbidding them to fly from battle before any number of men, but to remain in their ranks, and conquer or die. If I appear to you, in saying this, to talk idly, I will for the future observe silence on this subject, and now I have spoken through compulsion ; however, may events, O king, turn out according to your wish."

105. Such was the reply he made. But Xerxes turned it into ridicule, and evinced no anger, but dismissed him kindly. Xerxes, having held this conversation, and appointed Mas

cames, son of Megadostes, to be governor of this Doriscus, and having deposed the person placed there by Darius, marched his army through Thrace towards Greece. 106. Mascames, whom he left, proved so excellent a man, that Xerxes used to send presents every year to him alone, as being the best of all the governors whom either he or Darius had appointed; and he used to send them every year; as did also Artaxerxes, son of Xerxes, to the descendants of Mascames. For even before this expedition governors had been appointed in Thrace, and throughout the Hellespont. Now all these, both in Thrace and on the Hellespont, except the one in Doriscus, were driven out by the Greeks after this invasion; but none were able to drive out Mascames, who was in Doriscus, though many made the attempt. On this account presents are sent to his family by the reigning king of Persia. 107. But of all those who were driven out by the Greeks, king Xerxes thought no one had behaved himself with courage except Boges, who was governor of Eion. Him he never ceased praising, and conferred the highest honours on his sons who survived in Persia. And indeed Boges deserved great praise; for when he was besieged by the Athenians under Cimon, son of Miltiades, and might have marched out by capitulation and returned to Asia, he would not do so, lest the king should think he saved his life through cowardice; but he held out to the last. And when there was no longer any food in the fort, having raised a great pile, he slew his children and wife, and concubines and servants, and then threw their bodies into the fire; after this he cast all the gold and silver that was in the tower, from the fort into the Strymon; and having done this, he threw himself into the fire. So that he is with justice commended by the Persians even to this day.

108. Xerxes set out from Doriscus towards Greece, and compelled such nations as he met with to join his army. For, as I before observed," the whole country as far as Thessaly had been brought to subjection, and made tributary to the king, Megabazus, and afterwards Mardonius, having subdued it. In his march from Doriscus, he first passed the Samothracian fortresses; the last of which is situate towards the west, and is a city called Mesambria; near this is Stryme, a city of the Thasians. Between these two places the river Lissus flows;

5 See B. V. ch. 12, 15; and B. VI. ch. 43-45.