The Anabasis of Alexander/Book II/Chapter I

by Arrian

Layout 2

BOOK II.

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CHAPTER I.

Capture of Mitylene by the Persians.—Death of Memnon.

Soon after this, Memnon, whom King Darius had appointed commander of the whole fleet and of the entire sea-coast, with the design of moving the seat of war into Macedonia and Greece, acquired possession of Chios, which was surrendered to him by treachery. Thence he sailed to Lesbos and brought over to his side all the cities of the island,^[1] except Mitylene, the inhabitants of which did not submit to him. When he had gained these cities over, he turned his attention to Mitylene; and walling off the city from the rest of the island by constructing a double stockade from sea to sea, he easily got the mastery on the land side by building five camps. A part of his fleet guarded their harbour, and, intercepting the ships passing by, he kept the rest of his fleet as a guard off Sigrium,^[2] the headland of Lesbos, where is the best landing-place for trading vessels from Chios, Geraestus,^[3] and Malea.^[4] By this means he deprived the Mitylenaeans of all hope of succour by sea. But time be himself fell ill and died, and his death at that crisis, was exceedingly injurious to the king's interests. Nevertheless Autophradates, and Pharnabazns, son of Artabazus, prosecuted the siege with vigour. To the latter indeed, Memnon, when dying, had entrusted his command, as he was his sister's son, till Darius should come to some decision on the matter. The Mitylenaeans, therefore, being excluded from the land, and being blockaded on the sea by many ships lying at anchor, sent to Pharnabazus and came to the following agreement:—That the auxiliary troops which had come to their aid from Alexander should depart, that the citizens should demolish the pillars on which the treaty made by them with Alexander was inscribed,^[5] that they should become allies of Darius on the terms of the peace which was made with King Darius in the time of Antalcidas,^[6] and that their exiles should return from banishment on condition of receiving back half the property which they possessed when they were banished. Upon these terms the compact was made between the Mitylenaeans and the Persians. But as soon as Pharnabazus and Autophradates once got within the city, they introduced a garrison with Lycomedes, a Rhodian, as its commandant. They also appointed Diogenes, one of the exiles, to be despot of the city, and exacted money from the Mitylenaeans, taking part of it by violence for themselves from the wealthy citizens, and laying the rest as a tax upon the community.

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1. The other cities of Lesbos were Methymna, Antissa, Eresus, and Pyrrha.
2. Now called Cape Sigri, the west point of the island.
3. The southern point of Euboea, now called Cape Mandili. Cf. Homer (Odyss., iii. 177).
4. The south-eastern point of Laconia, now called Cape Malia di St. Angelo. It was dreaded by ancient mariners: see Homer (Odyssey, ix. 80); Ovid (Armores, ii. 16, 24); Vergil (Aeneid, v. 193). There was a saying;—Μαλέας δέ Κάμψας των οίκαδε (Strabo viii. p. 250).
5. In accordance with the convention of Corinth. Compare next chapter. For the pillars compare Herodotus (ii. 102, 106); Thucydides v. 18, 47, 56); Aristophanes (Acharnians, 727; Lysistrata, 513).
6. This treaty was concluded by the Spartans with the king of Persia, B.C. 387. It was designed to break up the Athenian supremacy. It stipulated that all the Grecian colonies in Asia were to be given to the Persian king; the Athenians were to retain only Imbros, Lesbos, and Scyros; and all the other Grecian cities were to be autonomous. See Xenophon (Hellenics, iv. 8; v.1).