Capua and Petelia
THE people of
Capua, in
Campania, becoming wealthy
Capua and Petelia, the contrast of their fortunes. |
through the fertility of their soil, degenerated into
luxury and extravagance surpassing even the common report about
Croton and
Sybaris. Being
then unable to support their burden of prosperity
they called in Hannibal; and were accordingly treated with great
severity by
Rome. But the people of Petelia maintained their
loyalty to
Rome and held out so obstinately, when besieged by
Hannibal, that after having eaten all the leather in the town, and
the bark of all the trees in it, and having stood the siege for
eleven months, as no one came to their relief, they surrendered
with the entire approval of the Romans. . . . But
Capua by its
influence drew over the other cities to the Carthaginians. . . .
After the plot against Hieronymus, King of
Syracuse,
Hieronymus succeeded his grandfather Hiero II. in B. C. 216. Under the influence of his uncles,
Zoippus and Andranodorus, members of the Council of 15 established by Hiero, Hieronymus opens communications with Hannibal. |
Thraso having departed, Zoippus and Andranodorus persuaded Hieronymus to lose no time in
sending ambassadors to Hannibal. He accordingly selected Polycleitus of
Cyrene and Philodemus of
Argos for the purpose, and sent them
into
Italy, with a commission to discuss the
subject of an alliance with the Carthaginians;
and at the same time he sent his brothers to
Alexandria. Hannibal received Polycleitus and
Philodemus with warmth; held out great prospects to the young king; and sent the ambassadors back without delay, accompanied by
the commander of his triremes, a Carthaginian also named
Hannibal, and the Syracusan Hippocrates and his younger
brother Epicydes. These men had been for some time
serving in Hannibal's army, being domiciled at
Carthage,
owing to their grandfather having been banished from
Syracuse
because he was believed to have assassinated Agatharchus,
one of the sons of Agathocles. On the arrival of these
commissioners at
Syracuse, Polycleitus and his colleague
reported the result of their embassy, and the Carthaginian
Commissioners sent to Carthage to formulate a treaty of alliance. |
delivered the message given by Hannibal: whereupon the king
without hesitation expressed his willingness to
make a treaty with the Carthaginians; and,
begging the Hannibal who had come to him
to go with all speed to
Carthage, promised that
he also would send commissioners from his own court, to
settle matters with the Carthaginians.
Meanwhile intelligence of this transaction had reached
The Roman praetor sends to remonstrate. scene with the king. |
the Roman praetor at
Lilybaeum, who immediately despatched legates to Hieronymus, to
renew the treaty which had been made with his
ancestors. Being thoroughly annoyed with this
embassy, Hieronymus said that "He was sorry
for the Romans that they had come to such utter and shameful
grief
1 in the battles
in
Italy at the hands of the Carthaginians." The legates were overpowered by the rudeness of
the answer: still they proceeded to ask him, "Who said
such things about them?" Whereupon the king pointed
to the Carthaginian envoys who were there, and said, "You
had better convict them, if they have really been telling
me lies?" The Roman legates answered that it was not
their habit to take the word of enemies: and advised him
to do nothing in violation of the existing treaty; for that
would be at once equitable and the best thing for himself.
To this the king answered that he would take time to consider
of it, and tell them his decision another time; but he proceeded
to ask them, "How it came about that before his grandfather's
death a squadron of fifty Roman ships had sailed as far as
Pachynus and then gone back again." The fact was that a short
time ago the Romans had heard that Hiero was dead; and being
much alarmed lest people in
Syracuse, despising the youth of
the grandson whom he left, should stir up a revolution, they
had made this cruise with the intention of being ready there
to assist his youthful weakness, and to help in maintaining his
authority; but being informed that his grandfather was still
alive, they sailed back again. When the ambassadors had
stated these facts, the young king answered again, "Then
please to allow me too now, O Romans, to maintain my
authority by 'sailing back' to see what I can get from
Carthage." The Roman legates perceiving the warmth
with which the king was engaging in his policy, said nothing
at the time; but returned and informed the praetor who had
sent them of what had been said. From that time forward,
therefore, the Romans kept a careful watch upon him as an enemy.
Hieronymus on his part selected Agatharchus, Onesimus,
and Hipposthenes to send with Hannibal to
Carthage, with instructions to make an alliance
on the following terms: "The Carthaginians to
assist him with land and sea forces, in expelling the Romans
from
Sicily, and then divide the island with him; so as to have
the river Himera, which divides
Sicily almost exactly in half, as
the boundary between the two provinces." The commissioners
arrived in
Carthage: and finding, on coming to a conference,
that the Carthaginians were prepared to meet them in every
point, they completed the arrangement. Meanwhile Hippocrates
got the young Hieronymus entirely into his hands: and at first
fired his imagination by telling him of Hannibal's marches
and pitched battles in
Italy; and afterwards by repeating to
him that no one had a better right to the government of all
Siceliots than he; in the first place as the son of Nereis
daughter of Pyrrhus, the only man whom all Siceliots alike
had accepted deliberately and with full assent as their leader
and king; and in the second place in virtue of his grandfather
Hiero's sovereign rights. At last he and his brother so won
upon the young man by their conversation, that he would
attend to no one else at all: partly from the natural feebleness
of his character, but still more from the ambitious feelings
which they had excited in him.
The king's pretensions rise, and a new arrangement is made with Carthage. |
And therefore, just when
Agatharchus and his colleagues were completing
the business on which they had been sent in
Carthage, he sent fresh ambassadors, saying that
all
Sicily belonged to him; and demanding that
the Carthaginians should help him to recover
Sicily: while he promised that he would assist the Carthaginians
in their Italian campaign. Though the Carthaginians now saw
perfectly well the whole extent of the young man's fickleness
and infatuation: yet thinking it to be in manifold ways to their
interests not to let Sicilian affairs out of their hands, they
assented to his demands; and having already prepared ships
and men, they set about arranging for the transport of their
forces into
Sicily.
Hieronymus Decides For War
When they heard of this, the Romans sent legates to him
The Romans again remonstrate. Another scene at the Council. |
again, protesting against his violation of the
treaty made with his forefathers. Hieronymus
thereupon summoned a meeting of his council
and consulted them as to what he was to do.
The native members of it kept silent, because
they feared the folly of their ruler. Aristomachus of
Corinth,
Damippus of
Sparta, Autonous of
Thessaly advised that he
should abide by the treaty with
Rome. Andranodorus alone
urged that he should not let the opportunity slip; and affirmed
that the present was the only chance of establishing his rule
over
Sicily. After the delivery of this speech, the king
asked Hippocrates and his brother what they thought, and
upon their answering, "The same as Andranodorus," the deliberation was concluded in that sense. Thus, then, war with
Rome had been decided upon: but while the king was anxious
to be thought to have given an adroit answer to the ambassadors, he committed himself to such an utter absurdity as
to make it certain that he would not only fail to conciliate the
Romans, but would inevitably offend them violently. For he
said that he would abide by the treaty, firstly, if the Romans
would repay all the gold they had received from his grandfather Hiero; and secondly, if they would return the corn and
other presents which they had received from him from the first
day of their intercourse with him; and thirdly, if they would
acknowledge all
Sicily east of the Himera to be Syracusan
territory.
War with Rome decided upon. |
At these propositions of course the
ambassadors and council separated; and from
that time forth Hieronymus began pushing on
his preparations for war with energy: collected and armed his
forces, and got ready the other necessary provisions. . . .
Description of Leontini
The city of Leontini taken as a whole faces north,
Description of Leontini, where Hieronymus was murdered. See Livy, 24.7. |
and is divided in half by a valley of level ground,
in which are the state buildings, the courthouses, and market-place. Along each side of
this valley run hills with steep banks all the way;
the flat tops of which, reached after crossing their
brows, are covered with houses and temples. The city has two
gates, one on the southern extremity of this valley leading to
Syracuse, the other at the northern leading on to the "Leontine
plains," and the arable district. Close under the westernmost
of the steep cliffs runs a river called
Lissus; parallel to which
are built continuous rows of houses, in great numbers, close
under the cliff, between which and the river runs the road I
have mentioned. . . .
Fall of Heronymus
Some of the historians who have described the fall of
Fall of Hieronymus, B. C. 214. |
Hieronymus have written at great length and in
terms of mysterious solemnity. They tell us of
prodigies preceding his coming to the throne,
and of the misfortunes of
Syracuse. They describe in dramatic
language the cruelty of his character and the impiety of his
actions; and crown all with the sudden and terrible nature of
the circumstances attending his fall. One would think from
their description that neither Phalaris, nor Apollodorus, nor
any other tyrant was ever fiercer than he. Yet he was a mere
boy when he succeeded to power, and only lived thirteen
months after. In this space of time it is possible that one or
two men may have been put to the rack, or certain of his
friends, or other Syracusan citizens, put to death; but it is improbable that his tyranny could have been extravagantly wicked,
or his impiety outrageous. It must be confessed that he was
reckless and unscrupulous in disposition; still we cannot
compare him with either of the tyrants I have named. The
fact is that those who write the histories of particular episodes,
having undertaken limited and narrow themes, appear to me to
be compelled from poverty of matter to exaggerate insignificant
incidents, and to speak at inordinate length on subjects that
scarcely deserve to be recorded at all. There are some, too,
who fall into a similar mistake from mere want of judgment.
With how much more reason might the space employed on
these descriptions,—which they use merely to fill up and spin
out their books,—have been devoted to Hiero and Gelo,
without mentioning Hieronymus at all! It would have given
greater pleasure to readers and more instruction to students.
Character of Hiero II
For, in the first place, Hiero gained the sovereignty of
Character of Hiero II., King of Syracuse, from B. C. 269 to B. C. 215. |
Syracuse and her allies by his own unaided
abilities without inheriting wealth, or reputation,
or any other advantage of fortune. And, in
the second place, was established king of
Syracuse without putting to death, banishing, or
harassing any one of the citizens,—which is the most astonishing circumstance of all. And what is quite as surprising as
the innocence of his acquisition of power is the fact that it did
not change his character. For during a reign of fifty-four
years he preserved peace for the country, maintained his own
power free from all hostile plots, and entirely escaped the envy
which generally follows greatness; for though he tried on
several occasions to lay down his power, he was prevented by
the common remonstrances of the citizens. And having
shown himself most beneficent to the Greeks, and most
anxious to earn their good opinion, he left behind him not
merely a great personal reputation but also a universal feeling of
goodwill towards the Syracusans. Again, though he passed his
life in the midst of the greatest wealth, luxury, and abundance,
he survived for more than ninety years, in full possession of
his senses and with all parts of his body unimpaired; which,
to my mind, is a decisive proof of a well-spent life. . . .
Gelo, his son, in a life of more than fifty years
Gelo, son of Hiero II.,
associated with his father in the kingdom, B. C. 216. See 5, 88, Livy, 23, 30 |
regarded it as the most honourable object
of ambition to obey his father, and to
regard neither wealth, nor sovereign power,
nor anything else as of higher value than love
and loyalty to his parents. . . .
Treaty Between Hannibal and King Philip V. of Macedon
This is a sworn treaty made between Hannibal, Mago,
Preamble of a treaty made between Philip and Hannibal, by envoys sent after the battle of Cannae. Ratified
subsequently to March 13. B. C. 215. See Livy, 23, 33-39. Ante 3, 2. |
Barmocarus, and such members of the Carthaginian Gerusia as were present, and all Carthaginians serving in his army, on the one part; and
Xenophanes, son of Cleomachus of
Athens,
sent to us by King Philip, as his ambassador,
on behalf of himself, the Macedonians, and their
allies, on the other part.
The oath is taken in the presence of Zeus,
Gods by whom the oath is taken on either side. |
Here, and Apollo: of the god of the Carthaginians, Hercules, and Iolaus: of Ares, Triton,
Poseidon: of the gods that accompany the
army, and of the sun, moon, and earth: of
rivers, harbours, waters: of all the gods who
rule
Carthage: of all the gods who rule
Macedonia and the rest
of
Greece: of all the gods of war that are witnesses to this oath.
Hannibal, general, and all the Carthaginian senators with
Declaration on the part of Hannibal of the objects of the treaty. |
him, and all Carthaginians serving in his army,
subject to our mutual consent, proposes to
make this sworn treaty of friendship and
honourable good-will. Let us be friends, close
allies, and brethren, on the conditions herein following:—
(1) Let the Carthaginians, as supreme, Hannibal their
1st article sworn to by Philip's representative. |
chief general and those serving with him, all
members of the Carthaginian dominion living
under the same laws, as well as the people of
Utica, and the cities and tribes subject to
Carthage, and their
soldiers and allies, and all cities and tribes in
Italy, Celt-land,
and
Liguria, with whom we have a compact of friendship, and
with whomsoever in this country we may hereafter form such
compact, be supported by King Philip and the Macedonians,
and all other Greeks in alliance with them.
(2) On their parts also King Philip and the Macedonians,
1st article sworn to by Hannibal |
and such other Greeks as are his allies, shall
be supported and protected by the Carthaginians
now in this army, and by the people of
Utica,
and by all cities and tribes subject to
Carthage,
both soldiers and allies, and by all allied cities and tribes in
Italy, Celt-land, and
Liguria, and by all others in
Italy as
shall hereafter become allies of the Carthaginians.
(3) We will not make plots against, nor lie in ambush for,
2d article sworn to by Philip's representative. |
each other; but in all sincerity and good-will,
without reserve or secret design, will be enemies
to the enemies of the Carthaginians, saving and
excepting those kings, cities, and ports with which we have
sworn agreements and friendships.
(4) And we, too, will be enemies to the enemies of
2d article sworn to by Hannibal. |
King Philip, saving and excepting those kings,
cities, and tribes, with which we have sworn
agreements and friendships.
(5) Ye shall be friends to us in the war in which we now
3d article sworn to by Philip's representative. |
are engaged against the Romans, till such time
as the gods give us and you the victory: and
ye shall assist us in all ways that be needful,
and in whatsoever way we may mutually determine.
(6) And when the gods have given us victory in our
3d article sworn to by Hannibal. |
war with the Romans and their allies, if Hannibal
shall deem it right to make terms with the
Romans, these terms shall include the same
friendship with you, made on these conditions: (1) the
Romans not to be allowed to make war on you; (2) not to
have power over
Corcyra,
Apollonia, Epidamnum, Pharos,
Dimale, Parthini, nor Atitania; (3) to restore to Demetrius of
Pharos all those of his friends now in the dominion of
Rome.
(7) If the Romans ever make war on you or on us we will
aid each other in such war, according to the
need of either.
(8) So also if any other nation whatever does so, always
excepting kings, cities, and tribes, with whom
we have sworn agreements and friendships.
(9) If we decide to take away from, or
3d joint article. Mutual consent required for an alteration. |
add to this sworn treaty, we will so take
away, or add thereto, only as we both
may agree. . . .
Messene and Philip V. in B. C. 215
Democracy being established at
Messene, and the men
of rank having been banished, while those who
had received allotments on their lands obtained
the chief influence in the government, those of
the old citizens who remained found it very hard to put up
with the equality which these men had obtained. . . .
Gorgus of
Messene, in wealth and extraction, was inferior
The character of the Messenian athlete and statesman Gorgus.
See ante. 5. 5. |
to no one in the town; and had been a famous
athlete in his time, far surpassing all rivals in
that pursuit. In fact he was not behind any
man of his day in physical beauty, or the
general dignity of his manner of life, or the
number of prizes he had won. Again, when he gave up
athletics and devoted himself to politics and the service of his
country, he gained no less reputation in this department than
in his former pursuit. For he was removed from the
Philistinism that usually characterises athletes, and was
looked upon as in the highest degree an able and clear-headed
politician. . . .
Philip Dissuaded from Taking Messene
Philip, king of the Macedonians, being desirous of
seizing the acropolis of
Messene, told the
leaders of the city that he wished to see it and
to sacrifice to Zeus, and accordingly walked up
thither with his attendants and joined in the
sacrifice. When, according to custom, the
entrails of the slaughtered victims were brought
to him, he took them in his hands, and, turning round a little
to one side, held them out to Aratus and asked him "what he
thought the sacrifices indicated? To quit the citadel or hold
it?" Thereupon Demetrius struck in on the spur of the
moment by saying, "If you have the heart of an augur,—to
quit it as quick as you can: but if of a gallant and wise king,
to keep it, lest if you quit it now you may never have so good
an opportunity again: for it is by thus holding the two horns
that you can alone keep the ox under your control." By the
"two horns" he meant
Ithome and the Acrocorinthus, and by
the "ox" the
Peloponnese. Thereupon Philip turned to
Aratus and said, "And do you give the same advice?"
Aratus not making any answer at once, he urged him to speak
his real opinion. After some hesitation he said, "If you can
get possession of this place without treachery to the Messenians, I advise you to do so; but if, by the act of occupying this
citadel with a guard, you shall ruin all the citadels, and the
guard wherewith the allies were protected when they came into
your hands from Antigonus" (meaning by that,
confidence),
"consider whether it is not better to take your men away and
leave the confidence there, and with it guard the Messenians,
and the other allies as well." As far as his own inclination was
concerned, Philip was ready enough to commit an act of treachery,
as his own subsequent conduct proved: but having been sharply
rebuked a little while before by the younger Aratus for his
destruction of human life; and seeing that, on the present
occasion, the elder spoke with boldness and authority, and
begged him not to neglect his advice, he gave in from sheer
shame, and taking the latter by his right hand, said, "Then let
us go back the same way we came."
Philip's Loss of Popularity
I wish here to stop in my narrative in order to speak
Deterioration in the character of Philip V. See 4. 77. |
briefly of the character of Philip, because this
was the beginning of the change and deterioration in it. For I think that no more telling
example can be proposed to practical statesmen
who wish to correct their ideas by a study of history. For
the splendour of his early career, and the brilliancy of his
genius, have caused the dispositions for good and evil displayed by this king to be more conspicuous and widely known
throughout
Greece than is the case with any other man; as
well as the contrast between the results accompanying the
display of those opposite tendencies.
Now that, upon his accession to the throne,
Thessaly,
Macedonia, and in fact all parts of his own kingdom were more
thoroughly loyal and well disposed to him, young as he was on
his succeeding to the government of
Macedonia, than they had
ever been to any of his predecessors, may be without difficulty
inferred from the following fact. Though he was with extreme
frequency forced to leave
Macedonia by the Aetolian and
Lacedaemonian wars, not only was there no disturbance in
these countries, but not a single one of the neighbouring
barbarians ventured to touch
Macedonia. It would be impossible, again, to speak in strong enough terms of the affection
of Alexander, Chrysogonus, and his other friends towards
him; or that of the Epirotes, Acarnanians, and all those on
whom he had within a short time conferred great benefits.
On the whole, if one may use a somewhat hyperbolical phrase,
I think it has been said of Philip with very great propriety,
that his beneficent policy had made him "The darling of all
Greece." And it is a conspicuous and striking proof of the
advantage of lofty principle and strict integrity, that the Cretans,
having at length come to an understanding with each other and
made a national alliance, selected Philip to arbitrate between
them; and that this settlement was completed without an
appeal to arms and without danger,—a thing for which it
would be difficult to find a precedent in similar circumstances.
From the time of his exploits at
Messene all this was utterly
changed. And it was natural that it should be so. For his
purposes being now entirely reversed, it inevitably followed
that men's opinions of him should be reversed also, as well as
the success of his various undertakings. This actually was the
case, as will become evident to attentive students from what
I am now about to relate. . . .
Philip Begins to Become a Tyrant
Aratus seeing that Philip was now openly engaging in
war with
Rome, and entirely changed in his policy toward his
allies, with difficulty diverted him from his intention by
suggesting numerous difficulties and scruples.
I wish now to remind my readers of what, in my fifth Book, I
put forward merely as a promise and unsupported statement, but
which has now been confirmed by facts; in order that I may
not leave any proposition of mine unproved or open to
question.
In the course of my history of the Aetolian war,
where I had to relate the violent proceedings of
Philip in destroying the colonnades and other
sacred objects at Thermus; and added that, in consideration of
his youth, the blame of these measures ought not to be referred
to Philip so much as to his advisers; I then remarked that
the life of Aratus sufficiently proved that he would not have
committed such an act of wickedness, but that such principles
exactly suited Demetrius of Pharos; and I promised to make this
clear from what I was next to narrate.
Recapitulation of the
substance of book 7, viz. the treacherous dealings of Philip with the Messenians, B.C. 215. |
I thereby designedly
postponed the demonstration of the truth of my assertion, till
I had come to the period of which I have just
been speaking; that, namely, in which with the
presence of Demetrius, and in the absence of
Aratus, who arrived a day too late, Philip made
the first step in his career of crime; and, as
though from the first taste of human blood and
murder and treason to his allies, was changed
not into a wolf from a man, as in the Arcadian fable
mentioned by Plato, but from a king into a
savage tyrant.
But a still more decisive proof
of the sentiments of these two men is furnished
by the plot against the citadel of
Messene, and may help us to
make up our minds which of the two were responsible for the
proceedings in the Aetolian war; and, when we are satisfied
on that point, it will be easy to form a judgment on the
differences of their principles.
Aratus a Moderating Influence on Philip
For as in this instance, under the influence of Aratus,
Philip refrained from actually breaking faith with the Messenians in regard to the citadel; and thus, to use a common
expression, poured a little balm into the wide wound which his
slaughters had caused: so in the Aetolian war, when under the
influence of Demetrius, he sinned against the gods by destroying the objects consecrated to them, and against man by
transgressing the laws of war; and entirely deserted his
original principles, by showing himself an implacable and
bitter foe to all who opposed him. The same remark
applies to the Cretan business.
2 As long as he employed
Aratus as his chief director, not only without doing injustice
to a single islander, but without even causing them any
vexation, he kept the whole Cretan people under control; and
led all the Greeks to regard him with favour, owing to the
greatness of character which he displayed. So again, when
under the guidance of Demetrius, he became the cause of the
misfortunes I have described to the Messenians, he at once
lost the good-will of the allies and his credit with the rest of
Greece. Such a decisive influence for good or evil in the
security of their government has the choice by youthful
sovereigns of the friends who are to surround them; though
it is a subject on which by some unaccountable carelessness
they take not the smallest care. . . .
The War of Antiochus with Achaeus
(See
5, 107)
Round
Sardis ceaseless and protracted skirmishes were
Siege of Sardis from the end of B. C. 216 to autumn of B. C. 215. |
taking place and fighting by night and day, both
armies inventing every possible kind of plot and
counterplot against each other: to describe
which in detail would be as useless as it would
be in the last degree wearisome. At last, when
the siege had already entered upon its second year, Lagoras
the Cretan came forward. He had had a considerable experience in war, and had learnt that as a rule cities fall into
the hands of their enemies most easily from some neglect on
the part of their inhabitants, when, trusting to the natural or
artificial strength of their defences, they neglect to keep proper
guard and become thoroughly careless. He had observed
too, that in such fortified cities captures were effected at
the points of greatest strength, which were believed to have
been despaired of by the enemy. So in the present instance,
when he saw that the prevailing notion of the strength of
Sardis caused the whole army to despair of taking it by storm,
and to believe that the one hope of getting it was by starving
it out, he gave all the closer attention to the subject; and
eagerly scanned every possible method of making an attempt to
capture the town. Having observed therefore that a portion
of the wall was unguarded, near a place called the Saw, which
unites the citadel and city, he conceived the hope and idea of
performing this exploit. He had discovered the carelessness
of the men guarding this wall from the following circumstance.
The place was extremely precipitous: and there was a deep
gully below, into which dead bodies from the city, and the
offal of horses and beasts of burden that died, were accustomed
to be thrown; and in this place therefore there was always a
great number of vultures and other birds collected. Having
observed, then, that when these creatures were gorged, they
always sat undisturbed upon the cliffs and the wall, he
concluded that the wall must necessarily be left unguarded and
deserted for the larger part of the day. Accordingly, under
cover of night, he went to the spot and carefully examined the
possibilities of approaching it and setting ladders; and finding
that this was possible at one particular rock, he communicated
the facts to the king.
Antiochus Takes Sardis
Antiochus encouraged the attempt and urged Lagoras
to carry it out. The latter promised to do his best, and
desired the king to join with him Theodotus the Aetolian, and
Dionysius the commander of his bodyguard, with orders to
devote them to assist him in carrying out the intended interprise. The king at once granted his request, and these officers
agreed to undertake it: and having held a consultation on the
whole subject, they waited for a night on which there should
be no moon just before daybreak. Such a night having
arrived, on the day on which they intended to act, an hour
before sunset, they selected from the whole army fifteen of
the strongest and most courageous men to carry the ladders,
and also to mount with them and share in the daring attempt.
After these they selected thirty others, to remain in reserve at
a certain distance; that, as soon as they had themselves climbed
over the walls, and come to the nearest gate, the thirty might
come up to it from the outside and try to knock off the hinges
and fastenings, while they on the inside cut the cross bar and
bolt pins.
3 They also selected two thousand men to follow
behind the thirty, who were to rush into the town with them
and seize the area of the theatre, which was a favourable position
to hold against those on the citadel, as well as those in the town.
To prevent suspicion of the truth getting about, owing to the
picking out of the men, the king gave out that the Aetolians
were about to throw themselves into the town through a certain
gully, and that it was necessary, in view of that information, to
take energetic measures to prevent them.
When Lagoras and his party had made all their
The town of Sardis entered and sacked. |
preparations, as soon as the moon set, they
came stealthily to the foot of the cliffs with
their scaling ladders, and ensconced themselves
under a certain overhanging rock. When day broke, and
the picket as usual broke up from that spot; and the king
in the ordinary way told off some men to take their usual
posts, and led the main body on to the hippodrome and
drew them up; at first no one suspected what was going on.
But when two ladders were fixed, and Dionysius led the way
up one, and Lagoras up the other, there was excitement and a
stir throughout the camp. For while the climbing party were
not visible to the people in the town, or to Achaeus in the
citadel, because of the beetling brow of the rock, their bold
and adventurous ascent was in full view of the camp; which
accordingly was divided in feeling between astonishment at
the strangeness of the spectacle, and a nervous horror of what
was going to happen next, all standing dumb with exulting
wonder. Observing the excitement in the camp, and wishing to
divert the attention both of his own men and of those in the
city from what was going on, the king ordered an advance; and
delivered an attack upon the gates on the other side of the
town, called the Persian gates. Seeing from the citadel the
unwonted stir in the camp, Achaeus was for some time at a
loss to know what to do, being puzzled to account for it, and
quite unable to see what was taking place. However he despatched a force to oppose the enemy at the gate; whose
assistance was slow in arriving, because they had to descend
from the citadel by a narrow and precipitous path. But
Aribazus, the commandant of the town, went unsuspiciously
to the gates on which he saw Antiochus advancing; and
caused some of his men to mount the wall, and sent
others out through the gate, with orders to hinder the
approaching enemies, and come to close quarters with them.
Sardis Destroyed
Meanwhile Lagoras, Theodotus, Dionysius, and their
men had climbed the rocks and had arrived at the gate
nearest them; and some of them were engaged in fighting the
troops sent from the citadel to oppose them, while others were
cutting through the bars; and at the same time the party outside
told off for that service were doing the same. The gates
having thus been quickly forced open, the two thousand entered
and occupied the area round the theatre. On this all the men
from the walls, and from the Persian gate, to which Aribazus
had already led a relieving force, rushed in hot haste to pass
the word to attack the enemy within the gates. The result
was that, the gate having been opened as they retreated, some
of the king's army rushed in along with the retiring garrison;
and, when they had thus taken possession of the gate, they were
followed by an unbroken stream of their comrades; some of
whom poured through the gate, while others employed themselves in bursting open other gates in the vicinity. Aribazus
and all the men in the city, after a brief struggle against the
enemy who had thus got within the walls, fled with all speed to
the citadel. After that, Theodotus and Lagoras and their party
remained on the ground near the theatre, determining with
great good sense and soldier-like prudence to form a reserve
until the whole operation was completed; while the main body
rushed in on every side and occupied the town. And now by
dint of some putting all they met to the sword, others setting
fire to the houses, others devoting themselves to plunder and
taking booty, the destruction and sacking of the town was
completed. Thus did Antiochus become master of Sardis. . . .