Gale - Science and Its Times Vol 01 (2000 BC to AD 699).pdf

which then decisively defeated the Athenians at
Aegospotami (405 B.C.). This quickly ended the
Peloponnesian War.
Cyrus was in attendance at his father’s death
in 404 B.C. When his older brother was crowned
Artaxerxes II, Tissaphernes accused Cyrus of
plotting the new king’s death. Parysatis interceded
on Cyrus’s behalf and persuaded Artaxerxes
to send him back to Asia Minor. Upon returning
to Sardis, in Lydia, Cyrus immediately commenced
preparations to seize the throne.
Impact
On the pretext of wishing to subdue the defiant
Pisidians, Cyrus assembled an army. Its core was
composed of approximately 14,000 Greek mercenaries.
Over 10,000 of these where hoplites—
heavily armored infantry, equipped with 6- to
10-ft (2- to 3-m) spears. The rest were peltasts—
lightly armed support troops. These were recruited
from all over Greece. Proxenus of Boeotia
alone recruited 1,500 hoplites and 500
peltasts. He also enlisted his friend Xenophon.
Cyrus appointed the Spartan exile Clearchus
commander-in-chief of the Greeks.
In March of 401 B.C. Cyrus marched from
Sardis with a mixed force that included his
Greek mercenaries, 2,600 cavalry, and an unspecified
number of Asiatics. The army headed
southeast toward Pisidia. By June, they had
marched well beyond the Pisidia and onto Syria.
The Greeks realized they had been deceived and
refused to advance further. Clearchus won them
over with Cyrus’s assurance that they would
campaign no further than the Euphrates. However,
in late July, when the army arrived at Thapsacus,
on the western banks of the Euphrates,
Cyrus announced his true intentions. Only the
promise of rich rewards convinced the Greeks to
follow him across the river and into Babylonia.
Keeping the Euphrates on their right, the
army eventually reached the Charboras (Araxes,
modern Khabur). Crossing this river, they continued
their march along the Euphrates through the
desert. Xenophon told of the strange beasts they
encountered there, including wild asses, ostriches,
bustards, and antelope. They next came upon
the Mascas river. In mid-stream was a large deserted
city that Xenophon referred to as Corsote.
As the army proceeded to Pylae, they were
increasingly harassed by forward elements of Artaxerxes’s
forces. The king had been forewarned
of the invasion by Tissaphernes and had hastily
assembled an army of 30,000 foot-soldiers and
6,000 cavalry. The opposing armies finally met
on the third of September at Cunaxa, about 100
miles (161 km) north of Babylon.
Clearchus, commanding the Greek center,
drew up his forces to take advantage of the Euphrates
on his right. Proxenus, with Xenophon at
his side, commanded those nearest the river.
Cyrus took the field further inland. Tissaphernes
led the Persians directly opposite Clearchus
while Artaxerxes held the center. The King’s right
wing stretched menacingly beyond Cyrus’s left.
The lightly-armed Persian infantry proved
no match for the Greek hoplites. While they
crushed Tissaphernes’s line, the left wing of
Cyrus was in danger of being enveloped. Realizing
a decisive blow was needed immediately,
Cyrus charged into the enemy center with a
squadron of 600 cavalry. He succeeded in reaching
Artaxerxes and wounding him, but was himself
slain. As Clearchus wheeled on Artaxerxes’s
center, Cyrus’s Asian mercenaries were fleeing
the field in disarray. However, the Greeks routed
what remained of the Persian hosts.
It was not until the next day that Xenophon
and the Hellenic commanders learned of Cyrus’s
death. Weeks of maneuvering ensued before
Clearchus satisfactorily negotiated with Artaxerxes
for safe passage back to Ionia. While being
“escorted” by Tissaphernes’s forces, they saw the
remains the Median Wall—the great Opis-Sippar
fortifications of Nebuchadnezzar (partially
preserved between Sippar and Nuseffiat, Iraq).
According to Xenophon, the wall was 20 feet (6
m) thick and a 100 feet (30.5 m) high and built
of bituminous sun-dried bricks.
After crossing the Tigris (south of Baghdad)
and proceeding north along its eastern bank to
the tributary Zapatas (Greater Zab), Clearchus,
Proxenus, and staff met with Tissaphernes to negotiate
further. During this meeting, the satrap
treacherously murdered them. Xenophon was
among the new commanders immediately elected
to lead the Greeks.
Though the hoplites had proven their worth
in pitched battle, they were slow and had limited
maneuverability. This made them vulnerable
to cavalry while on the march. Thus,
Xenophon’s suggestion was to cross the Zapatas
and withdraw northward as quickly as possible
to rougher terrain. This would neutralize Tissaphernes
cavalry, which were now openly harassing
them. They would then look to cross the
Tigris in hopes of making their way west to the
Aegean. If unsuccessful, they would head north
Exploration
& Discovery
2000 B.C.
to A.D. 699
S C I E N C E A N D I T S T I M E S V O L U M E 1
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