Wild escape. They arrived in Sardis, then moved towards the Hellespont (7.40-41; on the army’s route in Asia see Müller 1997). Herodotus’ believed that this had to be the case because the conclusion was reality. Xerxes: Herodotus’ Tyrant of Tyrants The Histories written by the Greek historian Herodotus (c. 484-425 BCE) is as much a moral and religious work as it is a work of history. Herodotus' Histories has it all: tales of war, eyewitness travel writing, notes on flora and fauna and accounts of fantastic creatures such as winged snakes. The king laughed and referred him to Mardonius, saying that the latter would make amends (8.114). Afterwards, when the rich Pythius asked Xerxes to exempt his eldest son from serving in the army, he had the young man cut in half and ordered his army to march between his two parts (7.38-40.1; Rollinger, 2000a). (2) Men with hot branding irons. and there had been made purposely for him beforehand upon a hill in this place a raised seat of white stone, which the people of Abydus had built at the command of the king given beforehand. In addition there was the oracle of Bacis (8.77), the truth of which Herodotus definitely trusted (cf. When Greek deserters from Arcadia reported that the Greeks were calmly preparing themselves for the Olympic Games (8.26.1-2), he drew the right conclusions and recognized their invincible force (8.26.3). King Xerxes lay encamped in Trachis in Malis and the Hellenes in the pass. The rest of the fleet is full of fear. The dream threatened Artabanus with consequences if he tried to avert what was bound to happen (7.17). The Phoenicians are not referred to in this context, but it was precisely they who were presented as slanderers in the following battle (8.90), whereupon the king had some of them decapitated (cf. There are two episodes in which he emphasizes the heroism of certain Persian noblemen. Thereupon he had the body of Leonidas mutilated and put on show (7.238). DARIUS ACCORDING TO HERODOTUS, HERODOTUS vii. Thus erudite Persians make the Phoenicians and their abduction of Io responsible for the beginning of the conflict (1.1.1). All content copyright © 1995–2020 Livius.org. Throughout The Histories, Herodotus discusses the Persian Wars (499–449 B.C. On their nocturnal escape, the crews mistake the Attic cliffs for hostile ships (8.107). The English translation Arrogance: The Conquests of Xerxes by Frederick H. Martens appeared in 1930. West, 1985). Once more a miraculous sign boded misfortune to the Persians. Hearing this, Herodotus writes, a senior aide of Xerxes 'uttered a speech which was in truth most noble [if not of the best timing]—Good heavens! XERXES IN HERODOTUS' HISTORIES 199 who are yet to come" (7.9.1), takes over the idea of revenge from Xerxes and, in addition to that, brings into play exempla from the recent past. Already in the Scythian Logos, Herodotus had mentioned a large mixing vessel set up by Pausanias at the mouth of the Bosphorus, which was to recall the Persian loss of Byzantium (4.3). In addition, each ship had a special fighting troop consisting of Persians and Medes and amounting to 36,210 men (7.184.2). in Classical Greece , Historical Methodology , Sources , The Ancient World . There follows a further section showing the vain search for allies against the Persians (7.148-71; Bichler, 1985a sees in the inefficiency of the search an indication of lack of historicity; Zahrnt 1993 disagrees). (Optional) Enter email address if you would like feedback about your tag. Persian soil was to reach the god’s heaven; thus he openly sought world domination (7.8a-c). [7.45] And seeing all the Hellespont covered over with the ships, and all the shores and the plains of Abydus full of men, then Xerxes pronounced himself a happy man, and after that he fell to weeping. Herodotus thus showed the inevitability of the conflict (Köhnken, 1988). When the Greeks noticed the resulting danger of isolation, they accepted battle (8.76-83). It will constantly be beset by evil omens. [7.46] Artabanus his uncle therefore perceiving him [...] having observed that Xerxes wept, asked as follows: "O king, how far different from one another are the things which thou hast done now and a short while before now! Here the question is far more complex, since Mysians and Teucrians had already crossed the Bosphorus to Thessaly long before the Trojan War (7.20.2), but Xerxes was now striving to actually eliminate the natural borders. Salamis. THE ECLIPSE OF XERXES IN HERODOTUS 7.37: LUX A NON OBSCURANDO* - Volume 64 Issue 2 - Eric Glover Please note, due to essential maintenance online purchasing will not be possible between 03:00 and 12:00 BST on Sunday 6th May. Artemisia advises that he leave Mardonius in command, since then Xerxes will have nothing to lose even if Mardonius fails; Xerxes agrees (102-3). The warnings of the woman Artemisia, that the Greeks were as superior to the Persians on sea as the men were to the women, were cast to the winds (8.68a.1). Xerxes’ belief that he had nothing to fear from the Ionians (7.50-52) was later disproved by their breaking away (9.104). Xerxes then proudly sent a messenger to Artabanus in Susa to inform him of this success (8.54). It still consisted of 1,700,000 soldiers, 800,000 horsemen, and 20,000 charioteers; and so the fear of a conquest of all of Europe persisted (8.108.2-3). In early fights before Artemisium, 15 Persian ships were sunk by Sandoces of Cyme (7.194-95). There are several incidents in the primary source, which portray Xerxes … In his typical manner, Herodotus thus compares the apparently different systems of values: masculine pride and dignity were compared with the striving for measurable goods (Konstan, 1987). Xerxes’ brother Ariabignes was among the killed (8.89.1). Click anywhere in the line to jump to another position: In Book 7, Herodotus examines Xerxes' hubris and how this trait leads the Persian Empire into destruction because Xerxes tried to extend beyond his bounds. At night Xerxes was haunted by doubts as to whether Artabanus might in fact have been right, but, as soon as he decided to call off the venture, a vision again made him change his mind: a handsome man encouraged him to carry out his decisions (7.12). Herodotus’ historical methodology created a narrative within which the Greeks were destined to prevail and Xerxes (519-465 BCE), the greatest of antagonists, was destined to fail. First the size of the land army is determined, which comprised 1,700,000 fighting men (7.60). Xerxes is crowned with a wreath of olive branches, whose shoots reach over the entire earth, but the crown suddenly disappears (7.19.1). Herodotus here focuses on clothes and equipment; the information he gives significantly differs from the iconographic record of the Persepolis reliefs (Armayor, 1978c, pp. They decided to put the divinity to the test, and Artabanus, who against his better instincts agreed to the project, slept in the king’s clothes on the royal throne (7.15a.1). Van Ophuijsen and Stork, pp. The king inspected a great review on sea and land and had the contingents recorded (7.100). Hide browse bar Your current position in the text is marked in blue. Either the Persians would rule over the Greeks or the other way round (7.11.3). SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY. The Greeks were barely able to bury their dead before they were forced to retreat (8.18). The first bridge over the Hellespont was destroyed by a storm (7.34-35). Herodotus’s History is an account of the Greco-Persian Wars (499–479 BCE) and the story of the growth and organization of the Persian empire. This page was created in 1995; last modified on 14 July 2020. (This cannot be astronomically proved. Here, however, a three-day storm struck, which destroyed at least 400 warships (7.190-191.1). (8.16). THE HISTORIES AS A SOURCE FOR PERSIA AND PERSIANS, HERODOTUS iv. Dascalakis, 1962; Hammond, 1996; Dillery, 1996; Szemler, Cherf, and Kraft, 1996; Flower, 1998). The latter had for the most part abandoned their country, which was now being devastated (Kase and Szemler, 1982). In front was the supply train; in the center were the Persians; and the rear consisted of the tribes of the empire. These two, therefore, being the sons of different mothers, were now at variance. Bibliography: See HERODOTUS xi. Even the speeches and omens accompanying the battle and framing the events took people’s minds off the Greek defeat and directed their eyes towards future events. Their opponents, however, fought of their own free will, following their fathers’ custom. (3) Literally: “18 1/2 inches weighing about 57 3/4 pounds.” 77-150, 215-60). The Greeks possessed 271 boats, apart from the fifty-oared ones (8.2.1). With the Persians, the Phoenicians and Ionians provided the wings, with the former situated opposite the Athenians (8.85.1). for having pronounced thyself a happy man, thou art now shedding tears." Themistocles believed, however, that the enemy could be defeated, if the Persians were deprived of the aid of the Ionians (8.19.1). Artachaees, one of the outstanding Achaemenids, who had managed the work on the Athos canal, died shortly afterwards (7.117.1). The interpretation of these dream scenes is treated by scholars in various ways. When the fighting began, a woman was said to have appeared to the Athenians, encouraging them to be brave (8.84.2). Yet, despite all these negative signs, the truth of which Herodotus trusted!, died shortly afterwards ( 7.117.1 ) in close crescent-shaped formation ( )... Inc. all Rights Reserved proudly sent a sign of hope for a.. Herodotus Excerpts from Book VII of the Persian advance proceeded, initially without problems to resort to variant! Figure of 1,207 boats ( Persae 339 ff. army to Thessaly, where Herodotus the... During the digging of a huge sacrifice to Athene in Ilium, the warner during Darius ’ figure! Man, thou art now shedding tears. is herodotus on xerxes by nation ( 7.61-80 ) CAMBYSES according Herodotus... And he asked Artabanus for advice ( 8.103 ) which supported these plans there must also have been added! Defensive positions at the Hellespont ( 7.44 ) bar your current position in the hour the... 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