Book 7
It is said that another of the three hundred survived because he was sent as a messenger to +Thessaly [22.25,39.5] (region), Greece, Europe Thessaly. His name was Pantites. When he returned to Sparta [22.4417,37.0667] (Perseus) Sparta, he was dishonored and hanged himself.
The Thebans, whose general was Leontiades, fought against the king's army as long as they were with the Hellenes and under compulsion. When, however, they saw the Persian side prevailing and the Hellenes with Leonidas hurrying toward the hill, they split off and approached the barbarians, holding out their hands. With the most truthful words ever spoken, they explained that they were Medizers, had been among the first to give earth and water to the king, had come to +Thermopylae [22.5583,38.8] (Perseus) Thermopylae under constraint, and were guiltless of the harm done to the king.
By this plea they saved their lives, and the Thessalians bore witness to their words. They were not, however, completely lucky. When the barbarians took hold of them as they approached, they killed some of them even as they drew near. Most of them were branded by Xerxes command with the kings marks, starting with the general Leontiades. His son Eurymachus long afterwardsIn 431; cp. Thuc. 2.2 ff. was murdered by the Plataeans when, as general of four hundred Thebans, he seized the town of Plataea [23.2667,38.2] (Perseus) Plataea.
This, then, is how the Greeks fought at +Thermopylae [22.5583,38.8] (Perseus) Thermopylae. Xerxes then sent for Demaratus and questioned him, saying first, “Demaratus you are a good man. I hold that proven by the plain truth, for things have turned out no differently than you foretold. Now, tell me this: how many Lacedaemonians are left, and how many of them are warriors like these? or is it so with them all?”
“My king,” said Demaratus, “the number of the Lacedaemonians is great, and so too the number of their cities. But what you would like to know, I will tell you: there is in Sparta [22.416,37.83] (inhabited place), Laconia, Peloponnese, Greece, Europe Lacedaemon a city called Sparta [22.4417,37.0667] (Perseus) Sparta, a city of about eight thousand men, all of them equal to those who have fought here; the rest of the Lacedaemonians are not equal to these, yet they are valiant men.”
“And how, Demaratus,” answered Xerxes, “can we overcome those men with the least trouble to ourselves? Come, disclose that to me, for you have been their king and know the plan and order of their counsels.”
“My king,” Demaratus replied, “if you in sincerity ask my counsel, it is but right that I should point out to you the best way. It is this, namely that you should send three hundred ships of your fleet to the Laconian land.
There is an island lying off their coasts called +Cerigo (island), Attica, Central Greece and Euboea, Greece, Europe Cythera. Chilon, a man of much wisdom among us, says about it that it would be better for the Spartans if +Cerigo (island), Attica, Central Greece and Euboea, Greece, Europe Cythera were beneath the sea rather than above it. This he said because he expected that it would provide an opportunity for attack just as I am suggesting—not that he had any foreknowledge of your force, but he dreaded all men's forces alike.
Let them then make that island their station and set out from there to strike fear into the Lacedaemonians. If these have a war of their own on their borders, you will have no cause to fear that they will send men to save the rest of Greece [22,39] (nation), EuropeHellas from being overrun by your armies; furthermore, the enslavement of the rest of Greece [22,39] (nation), EuropeHellas must weaken +Laconia [22.583,37] (department), Peloponnese, Greece, Europe Laconia if it is left to stand alone.
If, however, you do not do this, then expect what I will now tell you: a narrow isthmus leads to the +Peloponnese [22,37.5] (region), Greece, Europe Peloponnese; all the Peloponnesians will be banded together there against you, and you may expect battles more stubborn than those that you have fought already. But if you do as I have said, then you may have that isthmus and all their cities without striking a blow.”
Next spoke Achaemenes, Xerxes' brother and admiral of the fleet; it chanced that he was present during their conversation, and he feared that Xerxes would be persuaded to follow Demaratus' counsel. “O king,” he said, “I see that you are listening to a man who is jealous of your good fortune or is perhaps even a traitor to your cause. These are the ways that are dear to the hearts of all Greeks: they are jealous of success and they hate power.
No, if after the recent calamity which has wrecked four hundred of your ships you send away three hundred more from your fleet to sail round the +Peloponnese [22,37.5] (region), Greece, Europe Peloponnese, your enemies will be enough to do battle with you; while your fleet is united, however, it is invincible, and your enemies will not be so many as to be enough to fight; moreover, all your navy will be a help to your army and your army to your navy, both moving together. If you separate some of your fleet from yourself, you will be of no use to them, nor they to you.
My counsel is rather that you make your own plans well, and take no account of the business of your adversaries, what battlefields they will choose, what they will do, and how many they are. They are able enough to think for themselves, and we similarly for ourselves. As for the Lacedaemonians, if they meet the Persians in the field, they will in no way repair their most recent losses.”
“Achaemenes,” Xerxes answered, “I think that you speak well, and I will do as you counsel. Despite the fact that your advice is better than his, Demaratus does say what he supposes to be most serviceable to me,
for assuredly I will never believe that he is no friend to my cause. I believe this of him because of all that he has already said and by what is the truth, namely, that if one citizen prospers, another citizen is jealous of him and shows his enmity by silence, and no one, (except if he has attained the height of excellence; and such are seldom seen) if his own townsman asks for counsel, will give him what he thinks to be the best advice.
If one stranger prospers, however, another stranger is beyond all men his well-wisher and will, if he is asked, impart to him the best counsel he has. It is for this reason that I bid you all to refrain from maligning Demaratus, seeing that he is a stranger and a friend.”
Having spoken in this way, Xerxes passed over the place where the dead lay and hearing that Leonidas had been king and general of the Lacedaemonians, he gave orders to cut off his head and impale it.
It is plain to me by this piece of evidence among many others, that while Leonidas lived, king Xerxes was more incensed against him than against all others; otherwise he would never have dealt so outrageously with his dead body, for the Persians are beyond all men known in the habit of honoring valiant warriors. They, then, who received these orders did as I have said.
I return now to that place in my history where it earlier left off. Hdt. 7.220, where Herodotus mentioned the bare fact of the Spartans getting early intelligence of Xerxes' plans against Greece [22,39] (nation), EuropeGreece. Now he completes the story. The Lacedaemonians were the first to be informed that the king was equipping himself to attack Greece [22,39] (nation), EuropeHellas; with this knowledge it was that they sent to the oracle at Delphi [22.5167,38.4917] (Perseus) Delphi, where they received the answer about which I spoke a little while ago. Now the way in which they were informed of this was strange.
Demaratus son of Ariston, an exile among the Medes, was, as I suppose (reason being also my ally), no friend to the Lacedaemonians, and I leave it to be imagined whether what he did was done out of goodwill or spiteful triumph. When Xerxes was resolved to march against Greece [22,39] (nation), EuropeHellas, Demaratus, who was then at Shush [48.333,32.2] (inhabited place), Khuzestan, Iran, AsiaSusa and had knowledge of this, desired to send word of it to the Lacedaemonians.
He, however, feared detection and had no other way of informing them than this trick:—taking a double tablet, he scraped away the wax from it, and then wrote the king's plan on the wood. Next he melted the wax back again over the writing, so that the bearer of this seemingly blank tablet might not be troubled by the way-wardens.
When the tablet came to Sparta [22.416,37.83] (inhabited place), Laconia, Peloponnese, Greece, Europe Lacedaemon, the Lacedaemonians could not guess its meaning, until at last (as I have been told) Gorgo, Cleomenes' daughter and Leonidas' wife, discovered the trick herself and advised them to scrape the wax away so that they would find writing on the wood. When they did so, they found and read the message, and presently sent it to the rest of the Greeks. This is the story, as it is told.