The Good Book_ A Secular Bible - A. C. Grayling [170]
13. The Thebans under the command of Leontiades remained with the Greeks, and fought against the barbarians only so long as necessity compelled them.
14. No sooner did they see victory inclining to the Persians, and the Greeks under Leonidas hurrying with all speed towards the hillock,
15. Than they moved away from their companions, and with hands upraised advanced towards the barbarians,
16. Exclaiming, as was indeed true, that they for their part wished well to the Persians, and had been among the first to give earth and water to the king;
17. Force alone had brought them to Thermopylae; and so they must not be blamed for the slaughter which had befallen the king’s army.
18. These words, the truth of which was attested by the Thessalians, sufficed to obtain the Thebans the grant of their lives.
19. However, their good fortune was not without some drawback; for several of them were slain by the barbarians on their first approach;
20. And the rest, who were the greater number, had the royal mark branded upon their bodies by the command of Xerxes; Leontiades, their captain, being the first to suffer.
21. Thus fought the Greeks at Thermopylae. And Xerxes, after the fight was over, called for Demaratus to question him; and began as follows:
22. ‘Demaratus, you are a worthy man; your truth-speaking proves it. All has happened as you warned. Now then, tell me,
23. ‘How many Lacedaemonians are there left, and of those left how many are such brave warriors as these? Or are they all alike?’
24. ‘King!’ replied the other, ‘the whole number of the Lacedaemonians is very great; and many are the cities which they inhabit.
25. ‘But what you really need to know is that there is a city of Lacedaemon called Sparta, which contains within it about eight thousand full-grown men.
26. ‘They are, one and all, equal to those who have fought here. The other Lacedaemonians are brave men, but not such warriors as these.’
27. ‘Tell me now, Demaratus,’ said Xerxes, ‘how we can subdue these Spartans with least loss to ourselves.
28. ‘You must know all the paths of their counsels, since you were once their king.’ Demaratus answered, ‘I advise this: send three hundred vessels from your fleet to attack the shores of Laconia.
29. ‘There is an island called Cythera in those parts, not far from the coast, concerning which Chilon, one of our wisest men, remarked,
30. ‘That Sparta would be better off if that island sank to the bottom of the sea, so constantly did he expect that it would give occasion to a project such as I now recommend.
31. ‘Send your ships to that island, and the Spartans will keep their troops at home, fearing an attack on their very gates.
32. ‘They will not then give any help to the rest of the Greeks. In this way all Greece can be subdued; and then Sparta, left to herself, will be powerless.
33. ‘But if you will not take this advice, I will tell you what will happen. When you reach the Peloponnese, you will find the Isthmus of Corinth, a narrow neck of land, where all the Peloponnesians will be gathered together;
34. ‘And there you will have to fight bloodier battles than any you have yet witnessed. If you follow my plan, the Isthmus and the cities of the Peloponnese will yield to you without a battle.’
Chapter 74
1. Achaeamenes, brother of Xerxes, and commander of the fleet, immediately spoke, fearing that Xerxes would do as Demaratus advised.
2. ‘Demaratus is wrong, and speaks from resentment of your success. We have lost four hundred vessels by shipwreck;
3. ‘If three hundred more are sent away, our enemies will become a match for us.
4. ‘Let us keep our whole fleet in one body, and it will be dangerous for them to venture an attack, as they will certainly be no match for us.
5. ‘Besides, while our sea and land forces together advance, the fleet and army can each help the other; but if they are parted, no aid will come from one to the other.
6. ‘Keep all together; if the Lacedaemonians come out against the Persians to battle,