Nemesis: Alcibiades and the Fall of Ancient Athens by David
Stuttard
Harvard University Press: April 2018
Hardcover, 400 pages
Problematic sources
For
example: Thucydides’ History.
Thucydides may have interviewed Alcibiades as one of his sources. Add on top of
that Thucydides having his own agenda in writing the History. Further, Alcibiades would have been selective, putting his
own spin on what he did relay to Thucydides in order to put himself in the best
light possible. Other sources had their own agendas or intents, so how much of
it can be relied on? Note 8 on page 319 adds that many details of Alcibiades’
life are later fabrications.
Page 7 quote:
“For this
book is written not for the specialist but for general readership with an
interest in the many areas of human experience with which Alcibiades’ biography
intersects: politics and society, religion and philosophy, ambition and
betrayal, and the drama of a life lived to the fullest by a subject who often
seems to have been making up the rules as he went along. There can be no
denying the drama of Alcibiades’ life, either in general or in specifically
Greek terms. Its arc is that of the quintessential tragic hero who, from a
position of great power, engineers his own destruction thanks to bad choices or
flawed character.” (Introduction)
Athens è Sparta è Persia è
Athens è Thrace è Anatolia
~452BC – 404 BC
Lineage
From the
notorious Alcmaeonid family on his mother’s side. Cursed after Megacles (I)
“polluted” Athens by killing Cylon and other suppliants after their failed coup
attempt. Cleisthenes’ reforms were crucial for Athenian democracy, but he may
have headed the Athenian legation that inadvertently made themselves subjects
of Persia (with the symbolic proffering of earth and water) when seeking
Persia’s help against Sparta. (507BC)
Alcibiades’ father, Cleinias, was killed in a battle with
Boetia (447BC). Alcibiades went to live with Peracles.
In youth, Alcibiades was renown for looks and athletic
skill. He mingled with the finest minds of his day, such as Protagoras,
Anaxagoras, Damon, Pheidias, and was a student/follower of Socrates. Anecdotes
about him present him as headstrong, outrageous, and privileged.
The groundwork for the Peloponnesian War (Epidamnus,
Corinth/Corcyra, Megarian decrees) was being laid just as Alcibiades was coming
of age. Presented at age 18 in 435 or 434BC.
September 432BC: Battle of Potidaea
Socrates
helps save Alcibiades’ life (20 years old). Alcibiades was given the award for
bravery. Siege of Potidaea: 432 – 430BC (as winter approached). How long
Alcibiades was at the siege is unknown.
The siege ended as the Spartans returned to Attica for the
second year of the Peloponnesian War. When the Athenian soldiers returned home
from the siege, the plague had broken out.
Alcibiades moved from hoplite ranks to cavalry after his
return to Athens.
Aristophanes’ Clouds
performed in 423BC. It has Alcibiades (as Pheidippides—“horse-sparer”) and
Pericles (as Strepsiades—“twister”). Alcibiades is portrayed as a spendthrift.
Pericles is shown as being gullible. Socrates is in it, too, as himself.
Aristophanes’ Banqueters
(427BC) and Acharnians (425BC) have
suggestions/references to Alcibiades.
Apparently Alcibiades practiced law and had a speech
impediment.
Alcibiades also bankrolled Aeschylus’ trilogy that contained
Persians.
Example of Suttard’s writing style (from page 61):
“Alcibiades
is furious. He strides over to Taureas and the judges, and begins to
remonstrate with them. When they refuse to back down, he reaches out. He seizes
Taureas. And punches him. Hard.”
Alcibiades—an outrageous private life as a young man.
Whatever he wanted, he got. He abducted the painter Agathercus after the
painter rejected his request to paint his house. (62)
Alcibiades was a master at public relations and “spin,”
presenting himself in a way to keep people talking about him and staying in the
public eye. He was driven to achieve and win.
Alcibiades puts Eros on his shield. (55)
Alcibiades on the list of cavalry for the Delian campaign
(424BC) in Boetia with Hippocrates. During one disastrous battle, Alcibiades
saves Socrates’ life.
Note 8 on page 324: first use of a flamethrower (video has
been removed from link, unfortunately)
Earlier, Alcibiades had been a negotiator of the tribute
lists (how much allies were to pay Athens).
Alcibiades’ wife: Hipparete, daughter of Athens’ richest
man—Hipponicus (Callias III)
Hipparete petitioned for divorce. Alcibiades abducted her
from the hearing and effectively imprisoned her in his house (page 87). If the
divorce went through, Alcibiades would have to pay back the dowry received from
her family. Hipparete died while he was on a trip (business) to Ephesus.
Battle of Amphipolis (423BC): both Brasidas (Sparta) and
Cleon (Athens) killed.
With Cleon’s death, Nicias took center stage in Athenian
politics.
Note 44, page 326: Plutarch (and Donald Kagan follows)
incorrectly says Alcibiades was the Spartan proxenos
(like an advocate for a foreign city/state). Alcibiades’ grandfather had
renounced the role. The current proxeny
at this time was Callias (III).
March 421BC: The Peace of Nicias
Problems
with the treaty:
Nicias had not involved the younger Athenian men in
negotiations.
Thebes and Corinth refused to accept the treaty’s terms.
Alcibiades was opposed to the peace.
Not all terms were observed, such as the returns of Pylos to
Sparta or Amphipolos to Athens)
Xenophon in Hellenika
7.4.10 “An alliance does not mean peace but merely a change of war.”
Terms of the peace of Nicias were not always followed. Other
cities pursued separate negotiations now that Athens and Sparta were (at least
on paper) allies. Argos, Corinth, Boetia all scrambled to shore up their
interests as the peace unfolded.
This is when Alcibiades makes a political move, inviting
representatives of Argos in order to discuss an alliance. He had been leading
opposition to Nicias. It is at this point that Thucydides introduces Alcibiades
in his History (5.43).
Alcibiades achieves peace treaty in the Assembly—terms and
alignment with Argos (and Elis and Mantinea, too). Athens how has great influence
in northern Peloponnesian affairs.
Alcibiades leads a small force across the Argolid and
Arcadia, binding villages with Athens. He convinces Patrae to join with Athens
(on the southern shore at the entrance to the Gulf of Corinth). Page 111
However, he failed to take the nearby city of Rhium.
Soldiers from Corinth and surrounding areas blocked their way. Alcibiades
withdrew, thinking they had accomplished a lot in one campaign. Plus, he
expected the Argive allies to seize Epidaurus, on the eastern Greek coast near
Argos. If they did, Corinth would be squeezed. The campaign season was over
before Alcibiades and the Argives could take Epidaurus, though. (112)
That winter, though, the Spartans established a garrison at
Epidaurus. The Argives were upset and blamed Athens for allowing it to happen.
“Having stirred the hornet’s nest without achieving his aims
of establishing permanent Athenian positions on Corinth’s east and west flanks,
it was perhaps not unsurprising that, despite his real successes of the year
before, Alcibiades failed to be re-elected general.” (page 113)
418BC
Alcibiades is assigned as a special envoy with troops to
respond to Spartan aggression around Argos. It turns out Argos made a treaty
with Sparta. Compounding problems were reports of large armies from Boetia,
Corinth, Sicyon, and Megara assembling in the north with Spartans, heading
their way.
Argives attempted to block the Spartans, but their army was
outfoxed and surrounded. They (Argives) concluded a peace with Sparta. The
Athenian troops that arrived received a hostile reception. (page 114)
Given these circumstances, Alcibiades addressed the Argive
assembly. He argued that the concluded “peace” was unconstitutional. He
convinced the majority of Argos’ assembly to send troops into Arcadia.
Sparta was on guard, upset that their King, Agis, had walked
away from a fight that had been in his favor. The Spartan army headed toward
Mantinea. But the Spartans retreat on day one before the battle could take
place. On day two, the sides fought and, despite Agis’ bungling, the
Athenian/Argive side had to retreat. Fortunes are now reversed: Agis’ and
Sparta’s stock goes up, that of Athens goes down.
(Still in 418BC)
Argos sided with Sparta, suspending their democracy. The
ruling oligarchy allied with Sparta. Alcibiades presents the news that is
favorable toward him. While he was in charge, Sparta had been defensive.
When he wasn’t, Sparta was successful. In 417BC, he was elected general again.
In July 417BC, Argive democrats siding with Athens staged a
coup against Spartan-leaning oligarchs. Alcibiades delivers a message to Argos’
assembly—Athens is on your side. Argos builds walls to the sea (in the same
manner as Athens), but Spartans destroy them that autumn.
416BC Alcibiades
elected a general again. Cultivating contacts of possible and existing allies.
This made him the leading “hawk” in Athens, appearing to provoke Sparta into
clearly breaking the Peace of Nicias, which somehow was still standing. Barely.
Athens—no progress in the north. Macedonian King Perdiccas
was unpredictable in his support. Amphipolis has still not returned to Athenian
fold.
Nicias and Alcibiades are at odds in the apparent desires.
Chapter 5
January 416BC: Assembly agrees for an ostracism vote. Other
ambitious politicians include Phaeax and Hyperbolus. The latter was ostracized,
Athens’ last ostracism.
Vote to take Melos passes the Assembly. Invasion of 427BC
failed when Nicias was general. Now in 416BC, Alcibiades has a chance to make
his name and embarrass his rival.
His chariot victory at the 416BC Olympic Games would have
brought his fame. On the evening following the race, Alcibiades hosted a dinner
for everyone at the festival. But cracks were appearing in Athenian society,
some of it Alcibiades’ doing. Teisias has asked Alcibiades to negotiate a deal
with Argos to buy a chariot and team of horses. Alcibiades reneged on the deal,
buying them for himself. That chariot and team won first prize.
Outrage grew against Alcibiades. His behavior at the games
were compared to Xerxes and his lavish lifestyle. (page 135)
Melos capitulates, giving into Athens siege and begs for
mercy. All men of military age were slaughtered and women and children sold
into slavery. Alcibiades was a proponent of this punishment,
Alcibiades in Plato’s Symposium (set in 416BC)
Alcibiades
admits that while he agrees with Socrates, he cannot follow the philosopher’s advice, moderate his behavior,
or neglect his interest in political leadership.
(Page 139) Sicilians from Leontini (east) and Segesta (west)
begged for Athens intervention, with Alcibiades as their advocate (early 415BC)
Athens had failed in Sicily before, in 424 and 422BC…not
militarily but diplomatically.
Sicily:
Leontini—Syracuse,
a colony of Corinth, annexed our city and land. Leontini had a treaty with
Athens
Segasta—longtime
problem with Megara colony Selinus
Segasta offers to fund the war if Athens helps (later found
out to not have as much money as promised)
Three Athenian generals appointed to go to Sicily:
Alcibiades, Lamachus, Nicias
Nicias speaks out against the campaign in general and
Alcibiades as a general in particular
Note 9, page 335: Stuttard’s take on speeches in Thucydides
Alcibiades’ speech argued that Athens must help its allies,
and be proactive instead of reactive.
Nicias: things are going to be difficult. Grant us more
ships, more supplies, more troops, or I’ll resign. The Assembly pressed Nicias
to detail what was needed. Impulsively he lists exorbitant number of ships and
troops, the Assembly agreed to provide his request.
Just before leaving for Sicily, Athens experiences the
mutilation of the Herms. What was on the surface a vandalism with “profound
religious significance” would also take on political significance as the perpetrators
could not be found and speculative theories abound.
Enemies of Alcibiades used the turmoil to their advantage,
accusing him of impiety and profaning the Mysteries of Eleusis, too. Many
recent occurrences and past history were used to impugn Alcibiades and paint
him as believing he was above the law.
Page 152: “[S]acrilege and tyranny went hand in hand.” He
probably belonged to a private club, which may have copied or adapted some of
the Eleusis Mysteries rites.
The details Stuttard provides of events of the departure for
Sicily make things come alive.
The size of the expedition raised the suspicions of nearby
Sicilian and southern Italian cities…are they here to help or to subjugate?
The three generals propose very different plans, with
Alcibiades’ proposal to gauge the willingness of cities on Sicily to support
the Athenians getting approved.
Messana—first
city. Cool reception.
Naxos—favorable
Catane—city
gates barred
Syracuse—Alcibiades
taunts them by sailing into their harbor and announcing any Leontinians should
leave. No reaction from Syracuse.
Back to
Catane, where Alcibiades addressed their assembly. While he talked, Athenian
soldiers were able to enter the city.
Meanwhile in Athens, reactions to the mutilation reaches
levels of hysteria. People imprisoned, executed. Enemies of Alcibiades
repeatedly claimed his ambition to be tyrant.
Three hundred hostages Alcibiades had earlier seized and
then placed on nearby islands were executed—they “must” be involved in his
plot, right?
Alcibiades is recalled to Athens. A state ship is sent to
Sicily, but Alcibiades is not placed under arrest. As the state ship and
Alcibiades’ ship are on their way to Athens, they dock in Thurii (on the instep
of Italy’s boot). It’s from there that Alcibiades and his friends escape from
the Athenian state ship crew.
Chapter 7
Alcibiades “becomes” a Spartan. At Thurii, he’s not
technically under arrest. He probably went to Elis first—messages with Sparta
go back and forth. It would be interesting to put yourself in Sparta’s
sandals—here is one of your most vocal and persuasive enemies. Do you let him
in?
Personal connections with those in high ranks is strong.
It’s possible he really had sold Athens out before the state ship had arrived,
although that would be hard to prove. He claims to have been working on
Sparta’s behalf before leaving Sicily, claiming to have prevented Messana from
siding with Athens. Athens assumed his running away was a sign of guilt, and
Alcibiades was condemned to death.
During the following winter, Hemocrates called on fellow
Syracusans to ask for help from the Peloponnese. His representatives had had some
success in Corinth when asking for help.
(415 BC) This is when Alcibiades speaks to the Spartan Ecclesia in a masterful speech. It had
to be a balancing act since he was selling out his home city. He proclaims
Athens’ intent was to rule all of the Hellene world. His advice: 1) send some
troops to protect Syracuse, 2) send troops into Attica, establishing an outpost
in Decelea to inflict great damage on Athens…a strategic spot guaranteed to
disrupt Athenian life.
Decelea would also allow Sparatans to interfere with the
silver mines at Laurium, an economic impact as well as militarily. This would
be a long-term plan to impoverish Athens so it couldn’t pay for the war. The
Spartans did send someone to Syracuse, but not a true Spartan in order to
appear not to break the terms of the Peace of Nicias. For the same reluctance,
they did not immediately fortify Decelea. In the meantime, Alcibiades seems to
have been taken by King Agis’ wife, Timaea.
In 413 BC, the Athenians “flagrantly” broke the Peace of
Nicias, so King Agis takes men north to Decelea, and all Alcibiades had
promised in his request came true.
Quote (176-7):
It was to prove one of the most
brilliant moves of the entire war. Everything that Alcibiades predicted came to
pass. With a year-round Spartan presence just a few menacing hours from their
city walls, the Athenians found their freedoms severely restricted. No one knew
where the next Spartan raid might hit. Nor was it like the annual incursions
into Attica, which the Peloponnesians had made at the start of the first phase
of the war back in the late 430s and early 420s. Then the countryfolk knew
that, when the raids were over (and none lasted more than forty days), they
could return to their homes and farmsteads, even if these might have sustained
damage. Now they must either abandon their rural livelihoods completely, crowd
into Athens, and endure the cramped conditions, which in the past had proved
such fertile breeding-ground for plague, or brave it out at home, never knowing
from one day to the next, when their houses might be torched or when they
themselves might face the sharp edge of a Spartan sword.
And the
slaves at Laurium did indeed desert in droves. From the time that Agis first
put out the word that they would receive asylum until the ending of the war,
more than twenty thousand managed to escape their labour camps and steal
through the mountain glens to safety. For the Athenian economy, it was a
massive blow. For slave owners such as Callias, it was catastrophic. Already a
spendthrift, with ever slave who made it out to Decclea, he saw his
once-enviable wealth dwindle and disappear. And it drained Nicias’ coffers,
too.
Persia’s new king, Darius II, decided to strike back at
Athens support for a Persian rebel (Huraga, or as the Greeks knew him,
Amorges).
Two western Persian governors: Farnavaz/Pharnabazus and
Chithafarna/Tissaphernes.
During the turmoil as Darius came to power, Darius turned to
Tissaphernes to crush the rebellion in the western provinces (180).
Tissaphernes defeats the rebel Pissuthnes, but his son Humarga gets away.
Darius had wanted to enlist Spartans to take care of him.
Unfortunately Tissaphernues and Pharnabazus “were vicious
rivals.” Which meant they competed for having a Spartan alliance. Also
completing for Spartan attention and help were representatives from Chios,
Erythrae, and other Greek cities wishing to take advantage of Athens’ defeat in
Siciliy in order to escape from Athens’ yoke.
Alcibiades had connections with several of these cities.
Delegates from Cyzicus (with Pharnagazus) proposed that Sparta send ships and
troops to control the Hellespont, which would cut off Athens’ grain supply.
Alcibiades advocated for a long-term plan to break Athens
financially. He wanted Sparta, with Persia’s help, to chip away at the Athenian
empire, especially Aegean allies, in order to reduce the tribute they received.
Combined with the reduction of Laurium’s silver mining and bankruptcy of Athens
would follow.
A friend of Alcibiades was Endius, one of Sparta’s ephors
for this year (413). The Spartans back Pharnabazus, and Alcibiades and Endius
will go with the fleet to oversee plans. Spartan King Agis in Declea has other
plans. He doesn’t want to confine their attacks to Ionia, and meets with
Peloponnesian allies to argue his plans. He wants to include blockading the
Hellespont.
Allies of Sparta waited until the Isthmian games were over
(the games were held in Corinth). This gave Athens a chance to uncover the
plans and foil Spartan ships.
Sparta easily discouraged in overseas fighting, saw the
defeat as an ominous sign. Alcibiades, though, saw the revolution taking place,
a revolution that would help Sparta. Athens—weak after Sicily, plus money was
being choked off. Corinth had a strong fleet. Sparta was building a navy, back
by Persian money.
Queen Timaea (King Agis’ wife) gave birth to a boy that was
probably Alcibiades’ child. Alcibiades needed to carry out his plan before Agis
exacted revenge.
Alcibiades convinced the Ephors to back his plan and cement
a deal with Persia. Alcibiades, Endius, and Chalcideus (Spartan naval
commander) head to Asia.
Chapter 8
Alcibiades and the Spartan fleet first go to Chios
Chian envoys tell Acibiades it’s time for Chios to break
free of Athens. The Chian Council votes for independence from Athens.
Alcibiades and Chalcideus head to Teos next. Meanwhile in
Athens, Pericles had set aside 1,000 talents for an emergency. The city
declares the emergency is now. Athens ships get to Teo first and plead with
them to stay loyal. The Spartan and Chian fleets appear, outnumbering the
Athenians 3-1. Athenian ships turn tail and sail to Samos. Instead of following
them, the Spartan fleet goes to Miletus. With the loyalty of Miletus, Chios,
and Teos, the Athenian allies at Samos and Ephesus would be sandwiched. Alcibiades’
surprise works, and Miletus easily falls. Tissaphernes is there and negotiates
a treat with the Spartans. The treaty has “unbelievably generous terms” for
Persia.
Quote (189-190):
Yes, he agreed to help them in
their war with Athens, but, in return, he extracted a clause recognizing the
Great King’s possession of “all the lands that he now holds and that his ancestors
once held.” And, given that the Great King’s ancestors once held the Greek
cities of not just Asia Minor, but (albeit briefly) much of mainland Greece,
this would surely make Dārayavahuš [Darius II] a very happy man indeed.
New fleets from Athens arrive, and Athens regains Teos and
Samos (establishing a radical democracy).
From Sparta, the Peloponnesian fleet sails east under new
admiral Asyochus. His orders were to abandon Alcibiades’ plan and sail north to
take the Hellespont. The Peloponnesian fleet initially succeeds on Lesbos, but
are then defeated. Athens follows up by attacking Miletus and Chios. Chalcideus
is killed, and more Athenian ships arrive, commanded by Phrynichus (an old
enemy of Alcibiades). Athenian troops overwhelm Peloponnesian troops outside
Miletus, despite the Milesians winning their battle on the right wing).
Alcibiades accomplishes a midnight ride to Teichiusa to
catch a Spartan relief fleet in order to direct them to Miletus. This new fleet
drives the Athenians away from Miletus, back to Samos.
To repay Tissaphernes the debt Sparta owed, they now sail
south and capture the rebel Humarga in Iasus. Thissaphernes renegotiates his
deal with Sparta, leaving a sour taste in their mouth. Alcibiades probably
sensed the danger he was in (his ally Chalcideus had been killed, his friend
Endius no longer an Ephor, and Peloponnesian troops were muttering about
Alcibiades’ unreliability and non-stoic lifestyle).
So when Tissaphernes leaves Miletus, Alcibiades goes with
him to the provincial capital at Sardis. The Spartan admiral receives fresh
orders from Sparta and King Agis—put Alcibiades to death.
Quote (page 193-4):
As at
Athens, so, too, in Sparta: when Alcibiades was on hand to charm, dazzle,
seduce with the sheer force of his magnetic personality, he could convince even
many of his harshest critics of his indispensability. Once he was gone,
however, his magic evaporated with him. It was like remembering excesses from a
riotous symposium in the stark light of the next day’s dawn. Not just sober reconsiderations and
hardheaded reappraisals. But a desire to distance oneself as far as possible
from the withering evidence of decadence and dissolution.
While Alcibiades is enjoying a lavish lifestyle, the war
goes on. Sparta raises siege of Chios, but fails to support the islanders. The
slaves revolt and bring back the Athenians.
The Spartans don’t like the language of the draft treaty and
try to
renegotiate with Tissaphernes (on the Ionian coast). Tissaphernes storms
out of the meeting and goes to Magnesia (with Alcibiades tagging along). With a
death sentence on his head from both Athens and Sparta, it’s in Alcibiades’
best interest to keep the war going.
At some point, Thucydides apparently talked with Alcibiades,
but given his history, how truthful could Alcibiades be? (see footnote 32, page
345)
Alcibiades’ advice (supposedly) for Persia was to limit its
support of Sparta, withholding promised ships in order to string out the war
and weaken both sides. This coincides with Tissaphernes’ thinking.
Aristophanes’ play Lysistrata
was staged in 411BC, allegorizing the war between Sparta and Athens as a battle
between the sexes. He argued “that only when Athens and Sparta learned how to
live in harmony would Greece be strong.” (page 199, play lines 1131-4).
Persian interests, though, didn’t necessarily align with
Alcibiades’ plan. Persia wanted Ionia again, and to do that they would want a
Spartan victory.
Samos, hearing of Alcibiades’ influence with Tissaphernes
(and an audience with Darius), came begging Alcibiades for help, even if it
meant forgiving all charges and recalling him to Athens.
Samos wanted Alcibiades since the elite wanted to undermine
the democracy and get some reimbursement for the cost of the war. Athens, being
low on money, debated turning to the Persians. Alcibiades claimed he could help
them if they wanted him back, but they would need to do away with the democracy
that condemned him and go with a well-disposed oligarchy.
Page 202: How much was Alcibiades being used by the
Persians? It was a unique position for both of them. Persia’s goal—reclaim
Ionia, and for that they needed Sparta’s help. Alcibiades was uniquely
positioned to influence either side.
Samos and Athens—driven by money.
Samos:
rich, bearing the cost of war; exasperated by democracy.
Athens:
running out of money, needed rich backers. Persians?
Alcibiades, however, would want a mere “narrow” democracy
(more like an oligarchy) in Athens before considering a return. While they were
considering Alcibiades’ return, Phyrnichus spoke out against it, but was
ignored at Samos. Pisander was chosen to return to Athens from Samos to argue
for Alcibiades’ return.
Chapter 9
Phyrincus’ (Athens’) and Astyochus’ (Sparta’s)
actions—double-dealing? Strategic? A result of Alcibiades’ spin with
Thucydides? Alcibiades is at the heart of suspicions among allies.
Athens appoints ten probouloi
(high-ranking men to supersede the Council. A step/move away from democracy
(and favorable to Alcibiades). Argument: Athens had no hope without Persian
money/backing, and Alcibiades could bring that about. Pragmatism wins out over
politics and religion.
Persia’s opening terms with Athens: surrender Ionia and
Aegean islands close to Ionian coast (Ephesus, Chios, Samos, Lesbos). One last
clause: Athenians must allow Persians to sail where they liked—this was viewed
as a deal-breaker. Athenians blamed
Alcibiades for impossible terms (which he added at the third meeting). Persia
asks the impossible of both sides before settling on which side to back.
Alcibiades got terms to successfully return to Athens, but unable to seal the
deal with Persia. Persia then concluded
treaty with Sparta.
Pisander is upset. He sows discord with allies, stirring
dissent for oligarchies. Turmoil and terrorism reigns in Athens as the 400, an
oligarchy, is installed. Samos remains a democracy (through force).
Thrasybulus, an Athenian trireme captain, takes charge on Samos and proposes an
amnesty for Alcibiades.
Quote from page 217:
As for
Alcibiades, Thrasybulus’ appearance was a godsend. With the treaty signed
between Persia and Sparta, he had no real role left with Chithrafarna, and,
although he was assured of the satrap’s protection, the life of a Persian
courtier, with its sanitized hunting and terminable strolls through gardens,
hardly suited a man whose ambition triumphed even his love of luxury. And yet,
the Athenian People to whom he was returning were so different from those whom
he had left just four years earlier. Then they had been wealthy, confident,
anticipating victory not just in Sicily but across the Mediterranean. Now they
were impoverished, their allies and subject cities abandoning them by the week,
their Spartan enemies bankrolled by Persia and supported not just by armies
from the Peloponnese, but by ships as far away as Syracuse. Thank (in part) to
Alcibiades, a Spartan army was dug in on Attic soil. And now thuggish oligarchs
held power in Athens—thanks (again, in part) to him and his insistence that he
could not return as long as the city was being ruled by a democracy. Which made
it doubly ironic, that he, an exile, should be rehabilitated by an exiled, and
rampantly democratic, army.
But Spartan strategy was working. They took Abydus, a city
at the mouth of the Hellespont. Pharnabazus (northern satrap) sensed a turning
tide. More cities came over to Sparta/Persia, including Byzantium on the
Bosporus. Grain from Black Sea area
could be cut off. Lampsacus, another city on the Hellespont, gave in to Sparta
and Farnavaz, too.
Alcibiades had tried to keep the Athenian army on Samos from
returning home, both for his own safety but for keeping Ionia and the
Hellespont & Bosporus from being overrun. He succeeded, and was elected one
of their generals. He then visits Tissaphernes in Magnesia, which had the added
public relations benefit of making it look to the Spartans that their Persian
allies were contemplating treachery.
Somehow the Phoenician ships were no longer assigned to help
the Spartans. Maybe at the request of Tissaphernes? Morelikely, Dairus, the
Great King, ordered the Phoenician ships to deal with uprisings in Egypt and
Arabia.
Meanwhile, Alcibiades sends envoys to Athens to announce his
opposition to the Four Hundred oligarchs. He also announced he could “effect a
reconciliation between them [Athenian citizens] and the army on Samos, and
defeat the Spartans.”
Quote from page 223:
The irony
of Alcibiades—a man who had so recently refused to countenance returning home
unless under an oligarchy, and who had been so passionately accused just four
years earlier of wanting to install himself as tyrant—now stepping forward as
the leading champion of democratic Athens cannot have been lost on many. But,
for the moment, his views chimed in total harmony with the prevailing opinion on
the street. And they galvanized the citizenry to action.
The Four Hundred fall, and it is now the rule of the 5,000.
However, Sparta takes the island of Euobea, whose pastures were vital to
Athens.
While events in Athens are favorable to Alcibiades, the
Spartan commander Mindarus cut off ties with Tissaphenes in order to work with
Pharnabazus. Fortunately for Athens, though, the first Spartan attempt to block
grain ships failed (Mindarus at Cynossema).
Chapter 10
November 411 BC: sea battle along the Hellespont from Dardanus to Sesuts. The battle was
essentially a stalemate, swinging both ways, until eighteen ships under
Alcibiades appears and the Spartans flee. There was fierce fighting as they
fled, but Athens kept the Hellespont open for now.
The two Persian satraps Tissaphernes and Pharnabazus meet,
and Alcibiades shows up making things awkward (officially the Persians support
Sparta, but sworn friendships with Alcibiades complicates things). Alcibiades
is arrested and taken to Sardis. A month later he was free, escaping to Lesbos.
It was clear there would be no Persian support for Athens.
The Athenian fleet wintered in Sesuts.
Spartans:
Doricus (captain), Mindarus (admiral)
Athenians:
Thrasybulus and Thrasyllus were generals
The Athenians, fearing an attack at Sestus while half the
fleet out “raising funds” (raiding), evacuate Sesuts. Alcibiades asked to sai
north from Lesbos to join the fleet at Cardia (north of the Hellespont).
Mindarus (Spartan), however, took the Spartan fleet to Cyzicus, currently an
Athenian city, and with Pharnabazus’ army takes the city.
It was an audacious attack upon Cyzicus. The Spartans fight
well, adjusting for surprises, but then Mindarus fell and the Spartans flee.
The remaining Spartan leaders are unsure how to proceed, and negotiate for
peace. But desperate thens didn’t want peace with terms as things stood now.
Besides, Sparta was generous in granting Athenian territories in Ionia to
Persia. Athens felt the Spartans couldn’t be trusted.
(239) “A few months later, in a well-ordered, peaceful
transition, the rule of the Five Thousand came to an end, and the return of
democracy to Athens was underpinned by solemn oaths made by each citizen never
again to allow the constitution to be overthrown.
(241) 410-09 BC
Sparta is
building ships. Athens is collecting money , with Alcibiades at the helm.
Alcibiades chooses Chrysopolis for an eastern base (across from Spartan held
Byzantium).
(242) Setbacks during this time:
Athens:
lost Pylos, Nisaea, Megara, Euboea
Sparta: no
support on Sicily
Athens:
Thrassalus unsuccessful in reclaiming Ionian territories, but did defeat
Syracusan ships at Lesbos
Thrassalus
limps into Lampsacus, joining Athenian troops. He sails to Abydus while
Alcibiades leads troops there. Spartans and Persians meet them and the Persians
flee, but the Athenians pursue the troops instead of taking the city.
(244) Athens attempts to take Chalcedon (downstream from
Chrysopolis, across the Bosporus from Spartan-held Byzantium). Chalcedonians
attempt to hide wealth in nearby Bithynia, but the Bithynians surrender
property to the Athenians. The Athenians build a wall to isolate Chalcedon.
Persians and Chalcedons coordinate attack, but it’s a draw (although Alcibiades
and the cavalry make a big difference).
(246) Alcibiades seems to have been tasked with bringing
cities around the Hellespont into the Athenian fold. The taking of Selymbria
(north shore of the Propontis/Marmara Sea) was pure Alcibiades—quick thinking,
balls, confidence, bluff. In the meantime, Pharnabazus bought some time by
agreeing to a cease-fire with Athens regarding the Chalcedonians.
Alcibiades only agreed to those terms if Pharnabazus swore
the peace with him as well. At this point, Sparta had held Byzantium for four
years. Clearchus was the Spartan governor. Alcibiades hatched a plan to take
Byzantium (similar to the taking of Troy), promising no reprisals. The Athenian
policy of reconciliation, not retribution, was working. Alcibiades was a large
part of that (four years after his recall at Samos).
(255) On his return to Athens, Alcibiades first sailed down
the Ionian coast, rallying the remaining allies and collecting money. Good news
on his way home: Alcibiades re-elected general and the other nine were friends
or allies. Public opinion seems to be clearly in his favor. (Reminder: this is
8 years after the ships left for Sicily.)
(260) While Alcibiades was awarded honors and positions on
his return to Athens, his enemies claimed his return coincided with the
Plynteria, an ill-omened holiday where nothing was to be done.
(261) Meanwhile, the Athenian delegation to talk with the
Persian King had to winter in Gordium. Before they could make it to Susa, the
Spartans had won backing from the King, Tisaphernes was demoted, and Prince
Korush (Cyrus the younger) was appointed in his place.
(262) The new Spartan commander of the fleet in Ionia was
Lysander. He moves the Spartan center of operations from Miletus to Ephesus.
Naval practices and ship building continue.
Alcibiades announces he will lead the procession to Eleusis
for the celebration of the Mysteries, something that had been suspended while
Agis was at the nearby Decelea fortress (seven years). Participants had sailed
instead of walked during those years.
(268) The procession to Eleusis was a success thanks to
Alcibiades. Eight years ago he was tried and found guilty of profaning the very
ritual he just helped reinstate.
The adulation of the people of Athens (and not to mention
being outplayed) made his rivals even angrier.
The Spartan king Lysander was meeting with the Persian
Prince Korush (Cyrus the Younger) in Sardis. Lysander was able to get Korush’s
support and additional pay for his men. Korush made it clear he would not meet
with the Athenians for any further negotiations.
Alcibiades returns to the sea, with his friend Antiochus
assisting, to retake cities that had rebelled against Athens.
Chapter 12: Nemesis
Athens had secured the Hellespont and Bosporus, but needed
to focus on cities that had turned to Sparta. First up was the island of
Andros, where a quick military victory was not decisive…a siege would be
required. Part of the fleet stayed, the remainder sailed to Rhodes and Cos,
plundering as they went in order to take much needed food and funds. Then on to
Notium on the Ionian coast, just north of Lysander’s base in Ephesus.
Alcibiades left 80 triremes at Notium under Antiochus’
command, mostly to unnerve the Spartan fleet
and keep them pinned down, while he sailed north to gather funds and retake
cities. He came to Phocaea, meeting Thrasybulus there.
But…men were abandoning the Athenian side to go to the
well-stocked and high-paying Spartan camp. Then disaster: Antiochus taunted the
Spartan fleet at Notium, but due to the quick response of the Spartan fleet he
was killed and many Athenian ships sunk.
Desperate to notch a victory, Alcibiades turns to Cyme, an
Athenian ally where fifty of its oligarchs had supported the rebels at Lesbos
four years earlier. But Alcibiades left all the Athenian hoplites on Lesbos
when he pulled into Cyme, intending to use the ships to transport Cymean
citizens as slaves. But when the Cymean hoplites appeared, the Athenian sailors
had to flee, yet another setback for Alcibiades. The fleet moved to Samos for
the winter.
Meanwhile in Athens, King Agis marched on Athens. While the
Athenian cavalry was victorious in a brief skirmish, the impact of seeing the
Spartans at their gates was unsettling. Athenians were now hearing of the
fleet’s failures and attacking their allies. Alcibiades was stripped of his
command.
He had already fled, though, in order to avoid potential
lawsuits and punishments. He fled first to his property in Pectye (on the north
side of the Thracian Chersonese, above the Hellespont as the shore curved into
the Sea of Marmara). The Thracian leader was Amadocus I, while the prince in
charge of the area where Alcibiades’ property lay was Seuthes. Seuthes gave
Alcibiades control over a large section along the north shore of the Sea of
Marmara.
Alcibiades showed his loyalty by campaigning with his own
Thracian troops against rebellious tribes, amassing wealth while also providing
gifts to Seuthes. Alcibiades showed his acumen for adopting the local customs,
much as he had before in Sparta and in the Persian court). He also sent for his
son (15 years old), but his son rebelled.
Callias, Alcibiades’ bitterest enemy, was elected Archon
Eponymous. Conon commanded the Athenian fleet, while Callicratidas replaced
Lysander as the Spartan admiral. Colon’s fleet was chased to Mytilene (on
Lesbos), where he was blockaded and a siege was mounted. Athens was building
ships, but running out of money and men (especially sailors with experience).
Still, the Athenian fleet was able to rout the Spartan navy at Arginusae and
kill Callicratidas.
The storm that immediately followed the battle, though,
drowned those that had survived shipwrecks and scattered those that drowned,
meaning the generals did not collect shipwrecked survivors or the dead. The
generals were put on trial in the Assembly, where vengeance won over judgment.
The eight generals were condemned to death.
With Callicratidas dead, Lysander returned as admiral. Not only that, but when Korush as recalled to
Susa over his megalomaniacal behavior, Lysander was named satrap of Lydia,
Cappadocia, and Ionia. He took his fleet around the Aegean Sea to destroy
enemies, supporting allies. The Athenian fleet trailed as best they could.
Lysander then headed to the Hellespont where the grain ships would soon sail.
Lysander took the Spartan fleet to Lampsacus, in the Hellespont near the entrance to the Sea
of Marmara, seizing it and waiting for the Athenian fleet. After a couple of
days of posturing by both fleets while the Athenian fleet rested at Aegospotami
(“Goat’s Rivers), Lysander was able to see what was shaping up from a fortress
tower at Pactye, and he realized the Athenians had chosen a poor place as well
as behaving undisciplined. He rode into the Athenian camp and addressed the
generals, offering to help, but his advice and assistance were rejected.
The next day the Spartans waited until the Athenians had
scattered and attacked, destroying almost the entire Athenian navy. The
Hellespont was now in Spartan hands. Athens held out until the next March to capitulate
to Sparta. The long walls were torn down and the city was to be ruled by thirty
men loyal to Sparta, headed by Critias. Enemies of Sparta were hunted down, and
this included Alcibiades.
Alcibiades moved around Thrace. He prepared to move to Bithynia,
but his supplies and men were not there. The then went to Dascyleum and the
court of Farnavaz, pledging his alliance and support to Persia. The Persian
King Darayavahus died, leaving the eldest son, who took the name Artaxsaca.
Prince Korush was branded a traitor, but eventually released. Alcibiades
planned to approach the new Persian king and help him against Korush, which
would be attacking the backer of Lysander and the Spartans.
The satrap Farnavaz agreed to Alcibiades’ offer, granting
him control of several towns where he could wait for permission to travel to
Susa. Farnavaz received an ultimatum, however, that in order to maintain the
alliance with Sparta, Alcibiades must be killed. So in Melissa, his house was
set on fire and he was killed with spears/javelins/arrows as he tried to
escape.
Epilogue
Quote, page 299:
In death,
as in life, Alcibiades cast a long and troubling shadow. And because, like an
actor, he had changed his mask so often and so convincingly, his shifting,
mutating persona meant no just that no one could be certain who he had really
been but that his memory attracted a miscellany of anecdotes and stories, many
of them invented but most so plausible that they have ever since been more or
less accepted as the truth.
Farnavaz, hoping to distance himself from his role in
Alcibiades’ murder, maintained he was killed by a Phrygian family who were out
for revenge for the dishonor to a local girl by Alcibiades.
The next year Thrasybulus led a revolt that killed Critias,
and the Spartans allowed the Athenians return to its democratic constitution.
Years later (394 BC), “a joint Athenian and Persian fleet, led by Conon and
Farnavaz, respectively, defeated the Spartans at Cnidus and dashed all hopes
they [Sparta] might have helf of ruling the Aegean waves.”
After the Thirty, there were few reprisals…with Socrates as
the notable exception, probably because he was “closely linked to zealous,
arrogant aristocrats.”
Alcibiades son was targeted by many lawsuits., including the
question of stealing the winning chariot and team in the 416 Olympic chariot
race.
Alcibiades’ daughter had married Hipponicus, the son of
Callias (hereditary priest of the Eleusinian Mysteries). Remember, Alcibiades
had married Callias’ sister, held her captive when she wanted to be divorced,
and may have been complicit in her death. Hipponicus ended up divorcing
Alcibiades’ daughter. At some point the rumor started of incest between
Alcibiades the Younger and his sister.
Alcibiades’ philandering also raised issues after his death.
Agis’ son, Leotychidas, was believed to really be the son of Alcibiades. His
half-brother, Agesilaus, was appointed king instead.
Alcibiades’ reputation rebounded, notably in the Roman
world. The Roman
Emperor Hadrian erected a statue on Alcibiades’ tomb in
Melissa, ordaining that “an ox be sacrificed to his undying memory.” (306)
Sources to check
out
David Gribble Alcibiades
and Athens (London, 2011)
R. Waterfield Why
Socrates Died (London, 2009)
P. J. Rhodes Alcibiades,
Athenian Playboy, General and Traitor (Barnsley, 2011)
Fiction:
Peter Green
Achilles His Armor (London, 1955)
Rosemary
Sutcliffe The Flowers of Adonis
(London, 1969)
Steven
Pressfield Tides of War (London,
2000)
S. Verdegem Plutarch’s
Life of Alcibiades (Leuven, 2010)
Tom Holland Persian
Fire (London, 2005)
M. Munn The School of
History (Berkeley, 2000)
D. Kagan:
Pericles of Athens and the Birth of
Democracy (New York, 1991)
The Outbreak of the Peloponnesian War
(Ithaca, 1969)
The Archidamian War (Ithaca, 1974)
The Peace of Nicias and the Sicilian
Expedition (Ithaca, 1981)
The Fall oh the Athenian Empire (
M. M. Henry Prisoner
of History: Aspasia of Miletus and Her Biographical Tradition (Oxford,
1995)
D. Nails The People of
Plato (Indianapolis, 2002)
R. Waterfield Why
Socrates Died (London, 2009)
M. Vickers Aristophanes
and Alcibiades (Berlin, 2015)
Aelian, Varia Historia
(London, 1665)
Libnaius Declamatio
Hanson A War Like No
Other (London, 2005)
B. Hughes The Hemlock
Cup (London, 2011)
G. E. M. de Ste. Croix The
Origins of the Peloponnesian War (London, 1972)
E. Badian “The Peace of Callias,” JHS50 (1987): 1-39
M. A. Sears, Athens,
Thrace and the Shaping of Athenian Leadership (New York, 2013)
J. R. Hale, Lords of
the Sea: The Epic Story of the Athenian Navy and the Birth of Democracy
(New York, 2009)
P. Cartledge, The
Spartans: An Epic History (London, 2013)
A.T. Olmstead A
History of the Persian Empire (1948: Chicago)
J. M Cook The Persian
Empire (New York, 1983)
Aristophanes Lysistrada
Lines 1131-1134
C: Faulkner, “Astochus, Sparta’s Incompetent Navarch?” Phoenix 53, nos. 3-4 (1999)
K. Vlassopoulos Greeks
and Barbarians (Cambridge, 2013)
D. J. Mastronarde The
Art of Euripides: Dramatic Technique and Social Context (Cambridge, 2010)
F. M. Dunn Tragedy’s
End: Closure and Innovation and Euripidean Drama (Oxford, 1996)
Parke Festivals of the
Athenians
M. A. Sears Athens,
Thrace and the Shaping of Athenian Leadership (New York, 2013)
P. Krentz The Thirty
at Athens (Ithaca, 1982)
J. T. Roberts The
Plague of War, Athens, Sparta, and the Struggle for Ancient Greece (Oxford,
2017)
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