Insane_Panda
Deity
I am only knowledgeable on the glory that is France!
Alternate History Thread III
- Thread starter Luckymoose
- Start date
das
Regeneration In Process
You didn't show all that much enthusiasm until now, so I kinda forgot as well.
Will do them one day...
The Strategos
Thanatos
- Joined
- Jul 21, 2002
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LittleBoots said:But I'm not whiningI wrote a paper the other day on how Cleisthenes essentially laid the foundation for true democracy in Athens, so that really was the smartest place to change things to have a more authoritarian Athens. Bravo!
That was only an unintended side effect of the PoD. According to Herodotus, the Spartan king previous to the "current" time of the alt-hist was Anaxandrides, the son of Leon. Now Anaxandrides had a beloved wife, who just happened to be his sister's daughter. Now this was fine, what wasn't fine was the fact that she was barren. So the Spartans wanted Anaxandrides to divorce her, and marry someone else so that he would have an heir. Well, he didn't want to do that, because he loved his wife so much. So instead, he agreed to marry another woman and breed on her. This woman bore him a son, named Cleomenes who was thought to be mad, but eventually became king. Now the irony is that his first wife also bore a son soon afterwards named Dorieos. Now Dorieos is highly praised by Herodotus, but he wasn't made king because he wasn't first born (In our timeline Dorieos, sick at having a fool king went into self-imposed exile where he died in battle).
Now in this timeline, Dorieos becomes king, either because he is born earlier, and is thus first born, or because Cleomenes dies, or because the Spartans go for merit instead of birth. Because of this, Sparta acts much more decisively, nipping this democratic nonsense in the bud by supporting their Athenian candidate with overwhelming force. With Athens in line, and flush with their victories, Sparta decides to help Aristagoras out with his revolt when he comes around begging for help.
The Strategos
Thanatos
- Joined
- Jul 21, 2002
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- 1,175
Part II (498-497 BCE)
Ah! It is my favorite friend, young Herodotus. I see your moneybag seems heavy. Why dont you allow the barkeeper to lighten it, as I tell you more of the history of the war between Hellas and Persia
While Aristagoras had been gone attempting to gain support from Hellas, Artaphernes had not been idle. For he had gathered together what men he had and assaulted Miletus, figuring that if it fell, the rebellion would fall apart, much as a snake dies when you cut off its head. So Artaphernes besieged Miletus with a large number of troops, hoping to end the war early.
It was at this time that Aristagoras returned to Ionia from Hellas, but not empty handed! With him came two thousand Spartan hoplites commanded by Thessalos, a close companion of the king, forty triremes from Athens, and ten triremes from Eretria, together with some number of lighter armed men from Sparta and Athens. These troops landed at Ephesus, while Aristagoras himself went on to Miletus to oversee the defense of his city, lest it surrender in his absence. Aristagoras left in Ephesus Charopinos, his brother, and one Hermophantos to command the Ionians. However, because of the reputation of the Lacadaemonians, and because Aristagoras did not want to offend his allies, it was Thessalos the Spartan who was given overall command.
Thessalos, then, determining that the majority of the Persian army was at Miletus, yet Miltetus itself was in no immediate danger of falling, decided to attack the Persian capital at Sardis, seeing it was but lightly defended. Therefore, he marched with his army with all speed, hoping to take Sardis before the Persians realized the danger. So they marched along by the river Caÿster, and then when they arrived after crossing the range of Tmolos, they took Sardis without any resistance, all except the citadel. The citadel, however, was occupied by Artaphernes himself, who had raced to Sardis from Miletus with a few men to prevent its fall. Thessalos, seeing that the citadel was strong, and realizing that he did not have the time to besiege it, for Persian reinforcements were quickly approaching, faked a retreat, hoping to lure Artaphernes out of his stronghold.
Thus, the Ionian army fled Sardis, in some disorder. Artaphernes, deciding that they were retreating because of the closeness of Persian reinforcements, and observing the disorder in their lines, decided to attack the Ionians, hoping that a defeat of the main Ionian land army would grievously hurt the rebellion. So, along with those in the citadel, he sallied outward to give battle. After having drawn Artaphernes out from Sardis a little ways, in order to make it difficult for Artaphernes to retreat back to Sardis, Thessalos ordered the Ionians form lines and prepare for battle. However, the Ephesians and many of the Ionians, either because they did not receive the order or because of cowardness or because they had been bribed by the Persians, continued their retreat.
For the battle, the Persians were comprised mostly of archers and lightly armed auxiliaries, for in his rush to beat the Ionians to Sardis, Artaphernes had taken only the fastest troops, leaving the more heavily armored units to keep up as best as they could. The Persians also had one hundred cavalry, commanded by Artaphernes himself, which they stationed on their left. The Ionians themselves barely outnumbered the Persians, for many Ionians continued running despite Thessalos order to form battle lines.
Thessalos, observing that the Persians were unsuited for close combat, but that their archers could inflict grievous harm if given the chance, ordered the entire line to charge, as fast as they could run, against the enemy line. This was done so energetically that the Persians were caught completely off guard, with only a few of the archers managing to fire at the enemy before they closed. This charge, had, however, opened up great gaps in the Ionian lines. However, the Persians were unable to exploit these gaps, for they were unsuited for the type of warfare the hoplites excelled in. Thus, the Persian army broke and fled, with Artaphernes and the cavalry retreating without even participating the battle, so quickly did it end. The Ionian army, themselves wearied from their charge, and unable to catch the quicker Persian archers, did not pursue, but retreated in good order to Ephesus.
Now at this time, some of the Ionians became discouraged, for they could not hold Sardis. Nevertheless, they were encouraged by the Lacadaemonians, who reminded them that they had defeated a Persian army and had forced the Persians to give up the siege of Miletus. They also proclaimed that the Lacadaemonians had never yet retreated from a war, and were still confident of victory. Encouraged by these words, and shamed that the Lacadaemonians were still willing to fight for the Ionians liberty, though the Ionians themselves proved reluctant, the Ionians were shamed into continuing the fight.
Now at this time, Thessalos gathered together all his commanders to take council about what they should do, whether they should give battle to the Persians outside the gates, or stay in Ephesus, where they could hold out for a long time because they could get supplies in from sea, which they controlled. Now the Ephesians were among those who had refused to form a battle line when commanded to by Thessalos at Sardis. Because of this, the men burned with shame, for their women heckled them, continually asking where their shields were. Therefore, eager to put away their shame with great deeds of valor, the Ephesians begged Thessalos to attack. This suggestion was met with the approval of the other commanders there, for they felt that it was better to fight on the battlefield like men than to hide behind walls like women.
Therefore Thessalos ordered his men in this manner: To the right, in the place of honor stood the Ephesians, in the centre stood the Ionians, while to the left were the Lacadaemonians. Now it so happened that the right wing of the army was the most number of troops, for, on account that they were defending their very homes, every Ephesian male able to carry a spear was there that day. Therefore, feeling it was better that the Ephesians stay together, where they would fight beside friends and families rather than strangers, Thessalos kept all of them together. Because of this, the Ionian right was longer than their Persian opposites while their left was shorter than their Persian opposites. Unlike the Battle of Sardis, here the Persian army was mostly comprised of sparabara, heavy Persian infantry armed with spears and wooden shields.
The battle started when the Persians archers started firing from behind the shield wall of the Persians. Now the Ionians suffered under this for a little while before the Ephesians, eager to expunge the memory of their previous failure, attacked, without orders. Seeing this, the rest of the line was forced to also attack, so as to prevent a gap in the lines which the Persians could exploit. Now the Ephesians charge was so great, that the Persians could not stand against it, and it appeared that the battle would soon be over. However, The Persians had stationed some cavalry nearby, who charged the Ephesian line while they were disorganized on account of their initial charge and the archers which had plagued them. At this charge, the Ephesian line broke, and it looked like they were going to flee back to the safety of the walls. However, an Ephesian, by name of Dionysophanes, a brave warrior refused to retreat, and called out the Ephesians not to shame themselves by being seen to flee from the enemy in front of their women. For on the walls of Ephesus the women watched the battle, to see what would become of their men. In this way heartened, the Ephesian line stabilized. Nevertheless, Dionysophanes himself was slain, and a great battle raged over his body. In this manner, the battle continued, for though the Ionians fought bravely, on account of their numbers, they were unable to completely rout them. Therefore, when darkness came, the Ionians retreated back to the walls, and the Persians to their camp, with neither side able to claim victory. For though the Ionians had killed a multitude of the enemy, the Persians still besieged Ephesus. Now the next day, the Ephesians begged Thessalos to again attack, but he, perceiving that the Persians had received reinforcements, but that he had not, refused to attack. Thus Ephesus continued to be besieged, though it was no great hardship on the Ionians, for they were able to be kept in supplies through the sea.
While this was going on, the Ionian navy had sailed to the Hellespont and brought under their power Byzantium and all the other cities which are in those parts; and then having sailed forth out of the Hellespont, they gained in addition the most part of Caria to be in alliance with them. The Cyprians too, excepting those of Amathus, were added voluntarily to their alliance; for these also had revolted from the Medes in the following manner: there was one Onesilos, younger brother of Gorgos king of Salamis. This man in former times too had been wont often to advise Gorgos to make revolt from the king, and at this time, when he heard that the Ionians had revolted, he pressed him very hard and endeavored to urge him to it. Since however he could not persuade Gorgos, Onesilos watched for a time when he had gone forth out of the city of Salamis, and then together with the men of his own faction he shut him out of the gates. Gorgos accordingly being robbed of the city went for refuge to the Medes, and Onesilos was ruler of Salamis and endeavored to persuade all the men of Cyprus to join him in revolt. The others then he persuaded; but since those of Amathus were not willing to do as he desired, he sat down before their city and besieged it.
Meanwhile, it was reported to king Darius that Ionia had revolted and that, together with Lacadaemon had defeated a Persian army, and that the leader of the rebels was the Milesian Aristagoras. It is said that upon hearing these things, he made no account of the Ionians, because he knew that they would not escape unpunished for their revolt, but inquired into who these Lacadaemonians were. Being informed, he asked for his bow, and having received it and placed an arrow upon the string, he discharged it towards heaven, and as he shot it into the air he said: Zeus, that it may be granted me to take vengeance up the Lacadaemonians![1] Having said this, he charged a slave, that whenever dinner was set before the king, he should say always three times: Master, remember the Lacadaemonians.
In the meantime, while the news about Sardis was going up to the king, during all that time the events were happening which here follow. As Onesilos of Salamis was besieging those of Amathus, it was reported to him that Artybius a Persian, bringing with him in ships a large Persian army, was to be expected shortly to arrive in Cyprus. Being informed of this, Onesilos sent heralds to different places in Ionia to summon the Ionians to his assistance; and they took counsel together and came without delay with a large force. Now the Ionians arrived in Cyprus just at the time when the Persians having crossed over in ships from Kilikia were proceeding by land to attack Salamis, while the Phoenicians with the ships were sailing round the headland which is called the "Keys of Cyprus." This being the case, the despots of Cyprus called together the commanders of the Ionians and said: "Ionians, we of Cyprus give you a choice which enemy you will rather fight with, the Persians or the Phoenicians: for if you would rather array yourselves on land and make trial of the Persians in fight, it is time now for you to disembark from your ships and array yourselves on the land, and for us to embark in your ships to contend against the Phoenicians; but if on the other hand you will rather make trial of the Phoenicians, whichever of these two you choose, you must endeavor that, so far as it rests with you, both Ionia and Cyprus shall be free." The Ionians, felt themselves unable to fight the Persians on land, for their best troops were with Thessalos, whose exploits we have already discussed, and they were more used to fighting at sea, having the Athenian and Eretrian triremes with them, in addition to their own ships. Thus it was agreed that the Cyprians should fight on land against the Persians, while the Ionians should fight against the Phoenicians on sea.
Thus, when the Persians had come to the plain of Salamis, the kings of the Cyprians set in order their array, choosing the best part of the troops of Salamis and of Soloi to be arrayed against the Persians and setting the other Cyprians against the rest of the enemy's troops, while Onesilos took up position against Artybius, the commander of the Persians, by his own free choice. Then the two land armies charged each other, and Onesilos, together with his shield-bearer, who was a warrior of some renown, sought out Artybius, who was on a horse. When they met, Onesilos shield-bearer threw his spear at Artybius horse, so that it fell down dead, trapping Artybius beneath him. Onesilos then struck at Artybius while he was down, killing him. When the Persians at that part of the field saw their commander dead, they faltered, and began to flee. However, though the Cyprians were wining there, at the other parts of the battle, they were not faring so well. For Stesenor the despot of Curion deserted the Cyprians, together with him a large force of men. Thus it appeared despite Onesilos own valor, the Cyprians would lose the battle.
However, at this time the Ionians had been fighting the Phoenicians at sea. They greatly distinguished themselves, defeating the Phoenicians. Though all the Ionians and their allies fought hard, among them the Samians were agreed to have fought the best. The Ionians, had indeed fought so hard, that the majority of the Phoenicians had quickly fled, some not even participating in the battle. At this time, seeing that the Cyprian army was hard pressed, for the sea battle had raged right beside the land battle, the Athenians landed some troops, hoping to help the Cyprians. For the Athenians had not, until now, participated in any battle, the Phoenicians having mostly retreated before they could engage, and were jealous of the accolades the Spartans had won, and that the Ionian fleet had just won, and wished to here match those deeds for the honor of Athens. Thus they landed the marines that fought on the ships, and proceeded to attack the Persians. The Persians were surprised by this, and could not defeat the Athenians, for the troops of Athens were fresh, and their charge spirited, for they did not want to depart from the battle without some share in the glory. The Athenians thus linked up with Onesilos own troops, and together they forced the Persians to flee. Now the sea battle had finished while it was still morning, but the land battle did not finish until dusk. It is because of this, that the majority of the Persian army was able to escape, fleeing under the cover of darkness. Onesilos then marched, together with his allies, to Amathus, where the city surrendered, being besieged by both land and sea, and seeing the troops that they thought would be victorious so suddenly defeated. The time it took for the Cyprians to gain complete freedom from the time Onesilos took control of Salamis until the battle of the plains of Salamis was one year.
[1]Dont complain to me about Darius praying to Zeus, talk to Herodotus.
Ah! It is my favorite friend, young Herodotus. I see your moneybag seems heavy. Why dont you allow the barkeeper to lighten it, as I tell you more of the history of the war between Hellas and Persia
While Aristagoras had been gone attempting to gain support from Hellas, Artaphernes had not been idle. For he had gathered together what men he had and assaulted Miletus, figuring that if it fell, the rebellion would fall apart, much as a snake dies when you cut off its head. So Artaphernes besieged Miletus with a large number of troops, hoping to end the war early.
It was at this time that Aristagoras returned to Ionia from Hellas, but not empty handed! With him came two thousand Spartan hoplites commanded by Thessalos, a close companion of the king, forty triremes from Athens, and ten triremes from Eretria, together with some number of lighter armed men from Sparta and Athens. These troops landed at Ephesus, while Aristagoras himself went on to Miletus to oversee the defense of his city, lest it surrender in his absence. Aristagoras left in Ephesus Charopinos, his brother, and one Hermophantos to command the Ionians. However, because of the reputation of the Lacadaemonians, and because Aristagoras did not want to offend his allies, it was Thessalos the Spartan who was given overall command.
Thessalos, then, determining that the majority of the Persian army was at Miletus, yet Miltetus itself was in no immediate danger of falling, decided to attack the Persian capital at Sardis, seeing it was but lightly defended. Therefore, he marched with his army with all speed, hoping to take Sardis before the Persians realized the danger. So they marched along by the river Caÿster, and then when they arrived after crossing the range of Tmolos, they took Sardis without any resistance, all except the citadel. The citadel, however, was occupied by Artaphernes himself, who had raced to Sardis from Miletus with a few men to prevent its fall. Thessalos, seeing that the citadel was strong, and realizing that he did not have the time to besiege it, for Persian reinforcements were quickly approaching, faked a retreat, hoping to lure Artaphernes out of his stronghold.
Thus, the Ionian army fled Sardis, in some disorder. Artaphernes, deciding that they were retreating because of the closeness of Persian reinforcements, and observing the disorder in their lines, decided to attack the Ionians, hoping that a defeat of the main Ionian land army would grievously hurt the rebellion. So, along with those in the citadel, he sallied outward to give battle. After having drawn Artaphernes out from Sardis a little ways, in order to make it difficult for Artaphernes to retreat back to Sardis, Thessalos ordered the Ionians form lines and prepare for battle. However, the Ephesians and many of the Ionians, either because they did not receive the order or because of cowardness or because they had been bribed by the Persians, continued their retreat.
For the battle, the Persians were comprised mostly of archers and lightly armed auxiliaries, for in his rush to beat the Ionians to Sardis, Artaphernes had taken only the fastest troops, leaving the more heavily armored units to keep up as best as they could. The Persians also had one hundred cavalry, commanded by Artaphernes himself, which they stationed on their left. The Ionians themselves barely outnumbered the Persians, for many Ionians continued running despite Thessalos order to form battle lines.
Thessalos, observing that the Persians were unsuited for close combat, but that their archers could inflict grievous harm if given the chance, ordered the entire line to charge, as fast as they could run, against the enemy line. This was done so energetically that the Persians were caught completely off guard, with only a few of the archers managing to fire at the enemy before they closed. This charge, had, however, opened up great gaps in the Ionian lines. However, the Persians were unable to exploit these gaps, for they were unsuited for the type of warfare the hoplites excelled in. Thus, the Persian army broke and fled, with Artaphernes and the cavalry retreating without even participating the battle, so quickly did it end. The Ionian army, themselves wearied from their charge, and unable to catch the quicker Persian archers, did not pursue, but retreated in good order to Ephesus.
Now at this time, some of the Ionians became discouraged, for they could not hold Sardis. Nevertheless, they were encouraged by the Lacadaemonians, who reminded them that they had defeated a Persian army and had forced the Persians to give up the siege of Miletus. They also proclaimed that the Lacadaemonians had never yet retreated from a war, and were still confident of victory. Encouraged by these words, and shamed that the Lacadaemonians were still willing to fight for the Ionians liberty, though the Ionians themselves proved reluctant, the Ionians were shamed into continuing the fight.
Now at this time, Thessalos gathered together all his commanders to take council about what they should do, whether they should give battle to the Persians outside the gates, or stay in Ephesus, where they could hold out for a long time because they could get supplies in from sea, which they controlled. Now the Ephesians were among those who had refused to form a battle line when commanded to by Thessalos at Sardis. Because of this, the men burned with shame, for their women heckled them, continually asking where their shields were. Therefore, eager to put away their shame with great deeds of valor, the Ephesians begged Thessalos to attack. This suggestion was met with the approval of the other commanders there, for they felt that it was better to fight on the battlefield like men than to hide behind walls like women.
Therefore Thessalos ordered his men in this manner: To the right, in the place of honor stood the Ephesians, in the centre stood the Ionians, while to the left were the Lacadaemonians. Now it so happened that the right wing of the army was the most number of troops, for, on account that they were defending their very homes, every Ephesian male able to carry a spear was there that day. Therefore, feeling it was better that the Ephesians stay together, where they would fight beside friends and families rather than strangers, Thessalos kept all of them together. Because of this, the Ionian right was longer than their Persian opposites while their left was shorter than their Persian opposites. Unlike the Battle of Sardis, here the Persian army was mostly comprised of sparabara, heavy Persian infantry armed with spears and wooden shields.
The battle started when the Persians archers started firing from behind the shield wall of the Persians. Now the Ionians suffered under this for a little while before the Ephesians, eager to expunge the memory of their previous failure, attacked, without orders. Seeing this, the rest of the line was forced to also attack, so as to prevent a gap in the lines which the Persians could exploit. Now the Ephesians charge was so great, that the Persians could not stand against it, and it appeared that the battle would soon be over. However, The Persians had stationed some cavalry nearby, who charged the Ephesian line while they were disorganized on account of their initial charge and the archers which had plagued them. At this charge, the Ephesian line broke, and it looked like they were going to flee back to the safety of the walls. However, an Ephesian, by name of Dionysophanes, a brave warrior refused to retreat, and called out the Ephesians not to shame themselves by being seen to flee from the enemy in front of their women. For on the walls of Ephesus the women watched the battle, to see what would become of their men. In this way heartened, the Ephesian line stabilized. Nevertheless, Dionysophanes himself was slain, and a great battle raged over his body. In this manner, the battle continued, for though the Ionians fought bravely, on account of their numbers, they were unable to completely rout them. Therefore, when darkness came, the Ionians retreated back to the walls, and the Persians to their camp, with neither side able to claim victory. For though the Ionians had killed a multitude of the enemy, the Persians still besieged Ephesus. Now the next day, the Ephesians begged Thessalos to again attack, but he, perceiving that the Persians had received reinforcements, but that he had not, refused to attack. Thus Ephesus continued to be besieged, though it was no great hardship on the Ionians, for they were able to be kept in supplies through the sea.
While this was going on, the Ionian navy had sailed to the Hellespont and brought under their power Byzantium and all the other cities which are in those parts; and then having sailed forth out of the Hellespont, they gained in addition the most part of Caria to be in alliance with them. The Cyprians too, excepting those of Amathus, were added voluntarily to their alliance; for these also had revolted from the Medes in the following manner: there was one Onesilos, younger brother of Gorgos king of Salamis. This man in former times too had been wont often to advise Gorgos to make revolt from the king, and at this time, when he heard that the Ionians had revolted, he pressed him very hard and endeavored to urge him to it. Since however he could not persuade Gorgos, Onesilos watched for a time when he had gone forth out of the city of Salamis, and then together with the men of his own faction he shut him out of the gates. Gorgos accordingly being robbed of the city went for refuge to the Medes, and Onesilos was ruler of Salamis and endeavored to persuade all the men of Cyprus to join him in revolt. The others then he persuaded; but since those of Amathus were not willing to do as he desired, he sat down before their city and besieged it.
Meanwhile, it was reported to king Darius that Ionia had revolted and that, together with Lacadaemon had defeated a Persian army, and that the leader of the rebels was the Milesian Aristagoras. It is said that upon hearing these things, he made no account of the Ionians, because he knew that they would not escape unpunished for their revolt, but inquired into who these Lacadaemonians were. Being informed, he asked for his bow, and having received it and placed an arrow upon the string, he discharged it towards heaven, and as he shot it into the air he said: Zeus, that it may be granted me to take vengeance up the Lacadaemonians![1] Having said this, he charged a slave, that whenever dinner was set before the king, he should say always three times: Master, remember the Lacadaemonians.
In the meantime, while the news about Sardis was going up to the king, during all that time the events were happening which here follow. As Onesilos of Salamis was besieging those of Amathus, it was reported to him that Artybius a Persian, bringing with him in ships a large Persian army, was to be expected shortly to arrive in Cyprus. Being informed of this, Onesilos sent heralds to different places in Ionia to summon the Ionians to his assistance; and they took counsel together and came without delay with a large force. Now the Ionians arrived in Cyprus just at the time when the Persians having crossed over in ships from Kilikia were proceeding by land to attack Salamis, while the Phoenicians with the ships were sailing round the headland which is called the "Keys of Cyprus." This being the case, the despots of Cyprus called together the commanders of the Ionians and said: "Ionians, we of Cyprus give you a choice which enemy you will rather fight with, the Persians or the Phoenicians: for if you would rather array yourselves on land and make trial of the Persians in fight, it is time now for you to disembark from your ships and array yourselves on the land, and for us to embark in your ships to contend against the Phoenicians; but if on the other hand you will rather make trial of the Phoenicians, whichever of these two you choose, you must endeavor that, so far as it rests with you, both Ionia and Cyprus shall be free." The Ionians, felt themselves unable to fight the Persians on land, for their best troops were with Thessalos, whose exploits we have already discussed, and they were more used to fighting at sea, having the Athenian and Eretrian triremes with them, in addition to their own ships. Thus it was agreed that the Cyprians should fight on land against the Persians, while the Ionians should fight against the Phoenicians on sea.
Thus, when the Persians had come to the plain of Salamis, the kings of the Cyprians set in order their array, choosing the best part of the troops of Salamis and of Soloi to be arrayed against the Persians and setting the other Cyprians against the rest of the enemy's troops, while Onesilos took up position against Artybius, the commander of the Persians, by his own free choice. Then the two land armies charged each other, and Onesilos, together with his shield-bearer, who was a warrior of some renown, sought out Artybius, who was on a horse. When they met, Onesilos shield-bearer threw his spear at Artybius horse, so that it fell down dead, trapping Artybius beneath him. Onesilos then struck at Artybius while he was down, killing him. When the Persians at that part of the field saw their commander dead, they faltered, and began to flee. However, though the Cyprians were wining there, at the other parts of the battle, they were not faring so well. For Stesenor the despot of Curion deserted the Cyprians, together with him a large force of men. Thus it appeared despite Onesilos own valor, the Cyprians would lose the battle.
However, at this time the Ionians had been fighting the Phoenicians at sea. They greatly distinguished themselves, defeating the Phoenicians. Though all the Ionians and their allies fought hard, among them the Samians were agreed to have fought the best. The Ionians, had indeed fought so hard, that the majority of the Phoenicians had quickly fled, some not even participating in the battle. At this time, seeing that the Cyprian army was hard pressed, for the sea battle had raged right beside the land battle, the Athenians landed some troops, hoping to help the Cyprians. For the Athenians had not, until now, participated in any battle, the Phoenicians having mostly retreated before they could engage, and were jealous of the accolades the Spartans had won, and that the Ionian fleet had just won, and wished to here match those deeds for the honor of Athens. Thus they landed the marines that fought on the ships, and proceeded to attack the Persians. The Persians were surprised by this, and could not defeat the Athenians, for the troops of Athens were fresh, and their charge spirited, for they did not want to depart from the battle without some share in the glory. The Athenians thus linked up with Onesilos own troops, and together they forced the Persians to flee. Now the sea battle had finished while it was still morning, but the land battle did not finish until dusk. It is because of this, that the majority of the Persian army was able to escape, fleeing under the cover of darkness. Onesilos then marched, together with his allies, to Amathus, where the city surrendered, being besieged by both land and sea, and seeing the troops that they thought would be victorious so suddenly defeated. The time it took for the Cyprians to gain complete freedom from the time Onesilos took control of Salamis until the battle of the plains of Salamis was one year.
[1]Dont complain to me about Darius praying to Zeus, talk to Herodotus.
das
Regeneration In Process
Nice. Though the "ancient Greek" style takes some time getting used to; still, it adds to the general feel.
The Strategos
Thanatos
- Joined
- Jul 21, 2002
- Messages
- 1,175
Part III (496-494 BCE)
Now until the time of the Ionians victory at Cyprus, Darius had considered the revolt as nothing. Seeing, however, that the Ionians were making a mockery of the might of the Persians, Darius commanded three Persian armies to defeat the rebellion, in addition to the armies that were already fighting in Ionia, while he himself stayed behind in his capital raising yet another army. For Darius, after defeating the revolt in his own lands, planned to invade Hellas also, in order to punish Sparta and Athens for supporting the rebellion. Now the three armies sent by Darius were these: Daurises, who was married to one of Darius daughters, marched north to the Hellespont, Hymaees, who was also a son-in-law of Darius, marched against Caria [1], while Otanes marched against Aeolis [2]. By this, the Persians hoped to strip from Ionia all of her allies in Asia. In addition to this was the Persian army commanded by Artaphrenes, who still campaigned in Ionia. However, he was no longer besieging Ephesus, for, because of the successes the Ionians had elsewhere, he was forced to break off the siege.
Now the first of these armies to meet the rebels was Hymaees, who fought against the Carians. Now the Carians before being informed of the approaching army, gathered together at the place which is called the "White Pillars" and at the river Marsyas, which flows from the region of Idrias and runs out into the Maiander. When the Carians had been gathered together there, among many other counsels which were given, was that of Pixodaros the son of Mausolos, a man of Kindye, who was married to the daughter of the king of the Kilikians, Syennesis. The opinion of this man was to the effect that the Carians should cross over the Maiander and engage battle with the Persians having the river at their backs, in order that the Carians, not being able to fly backwards and being compelled to remain where they were, might prove themselves even better men in fight than they naturally would. This opinion did not prevail; but they resolved that the Persians rather than themselves should have the Maiander at their backs, evidently in order that if there should be a flight of the Persians and they should be worsted in the battle, they might never return home, but might fall into the river. After this, when the Persians had come and had crossed the Maiander, the Carians engaged with the Persians on the river Marsyas and fought a battle which was obstinately contested and lasted long; but at length they were worsted by superior numbers: and of the Persians there fell as many as two thousand, but of the Carians ten thousand. Then those of them who escaped were shut up in Labraunda within the sanctuary of Zeus Stratios, which is a large sacred grove of plane-trees; now the Carians are the only men we know who offer sacrifices to Zeus Stratios. These men then, being shut up there, were taking counsel together about their safety, whether they would fare better if they delivered themselves over to the Persians or if they left Asia altogether. And while they were thus taking counsel, there came to their aid the Milesians and their allies. Then the Carians dismissed the plans which they were before considering and prepared to renew the war again from the beginning: and when the Persians came to attack them, they engaged with them and fought a battle, and they were worsted yet more completely than before; and while many were slain of all parties, the Milesians suffered most. Then afterwards the Carians repaired this loss and retrieved their defeat; for being informed that the Persians had set forth to march upon their cities, they laid an ambush on the road which is by Pedasos, and the Persians falling into it by night were destroyed both they and their commanders, namely Hymaees and Amorges and Sisimakes; and with them died also Myrsos the son of Gyges. Of this ambush the leader was Heracleides the son of Ibanollis, a man of Mylasa.
Meanwhile, Daurises marched to the Hellespont where he conquered all the Aiolians who occupy the district of Ilion, and also the Gergithes, who were left behind as a remnant of the ancient Teucrians. Nevertheless, he could not decisively defeat the Ionians in the land. For, owing to the fact that the Persians outnumbered them, they would never face the Persians directly in battle. Instead, using their superiority in the seas, they would wait until Daurises left a place with his main army, and would then return and kill the garrison the Persians would leave behind. In this manner, Daurises could not subjugate the region, for the city he had just finished conquering would be liberated by the Ionians as soon as he left. And Otanes had the same problems against Aeolis, for the Ionians had a great fleet operating out of Lesbos.
Therefore, seeing that they could do nothing against the Ionians on account of the Ionians having control of the sea, the Persians determined to gather together the remnants of their armies, together with the army under Artaphrenes, and attack Miletus, esteeming the other towns that still rebelled as nothing. Now in order to take Miletus, a large fleet was assembled, with the intention of seizing the control of the seas from the Ionians, who held it to this time.
Seeing that they were challenged on the sea, the Ionians manned their ships and came together at Lades, which was an island opposite of Miletus, and with them also those Aiolians who inhabit Lesbos; and they were drawn up in order thus:--the extremity of the line towards the East was held by the Milesians themselves, who furnished eighty ships; next to them were the Prienians with twelve ships and the men of Myus with three; next to those of Myus were the Teians with seventeen ships, and after the Teians the Chians with a hundred; after these were stationed the men of Erythrai and of Phocaia, the former furnishing eight ships and the latter three; next to the Phocaians were the Lesbians with seventy ships, then Samians with sixty ships; after them the Cyprians with one hundred; and last, holding the extremity of the line towards the West, were stationed those ships from Hellas, of Athens fifty and Eretria twenty (for though the Athenians and Eretrians had originally sent less ships, as the war continued, they continued to supply them with more ships). Of all these the total number proved to be five-hundred and twenty-three triremes. Now of the Barbarians there were six hundred ships, the best of which were from Phoenicia, but which was also made up of Kilikians and Egyptians. Now the Ionians were commanded by Aristagoras because it was Miletus itself which was threatened, but on account of the fact that he was not well acquainted with matters of the sea, the real command was handled by Melanthios the Athenian.
Now when the Persians too were come to the Milesian coast and their whole land-army was also there, then the commanders of the Persians, being informed of the number of the Ionian ships, were struck with fear lest they should be unable to overcome them, and thus on the one hand should not be able to conquer Miletus from not having command of the sea, and at the same time should run a risk of being punished by Darius. Reflecting upon these things they gathered together the despots of the Ionians who were exiles with the Medes, having been deposed from their governments by Aristagoras the Milesian, and sent them to their respective cities, to try to persuade their people to quit the fight, promising them riches and rewards if they did so. But the Ionians refused, believing the offer to come from desperation, and because they valued freedom over riches.
When the Ionians saw that the Persians were reluctant to attack them, Melanthios the Athenian decided to attack. For he did not trust the Ionians to long resist the promises of the Persians, nor did he trust them to remain united (for already, there were conflicts among certain of the commanders). When the Persians saw the Ionian fleet going out to give battle, they also were forced out, lest the Ionian fleet destroy them while they remained unprepared. Therefore, the two fleets met, each sailing in a single file. Now in the fight the first to break were the Egyptians, for they had previously lost their best crews at Cyprus, and were demoralized, not wishing to fight again. But despite this, the Persians were not quickly defeated, for the Phoenicians fought very bravely, and refused to play the coward. Because of this, the Samians were forced to flee, and after them the Lesbians. But the ships from Cyprus and Athens held out against the Phoenicians and did not flee, though a great slaughter arose on both sides. The Chians also fought bravely, and it is because of this that the Ionian line held, despite the fact that many ships had fled. It was then that the Milesians, after routing the Egyptians facing them, turned on the Phoenicians. Seeing that they were in danger of being surrounded, the Phoenicians fled with what remained of the Persian fleet.
Seeing that his fleet was defeated, Artaphrenes decided also to retreat. For because the Ionians held the sea, he could not successfully besiege Miletus, and he feared to assault the town because he had heard a Spartan army was in it. For Artaphrenes had great respect for the Spartans, having seen them fight outside of Sardis and again at Ephesus. But when Darius heard of the defeat, he became angry, for the Ionians continued to defy him. Therefore he sent word to Egypt, and to Phoenicia, to build a navy five times larger than the one he had just lost. In addition, he himself marched at the head of the army he had been gathering at Susa, in order to punish the rebels himself. But he sent a messenger ahead of him to Artaphrenes, with orders to kill him. For Darius laid all the blame of the defeats on him. And when the messenger arrived at the tent of Artaphrenes, he said I have a message from Darius. Whereupon he took out a knife and stabbed Artaphrenes until he was dead. Now at the death of Artaphrenes, Daurises, the son-in-law of Darius took command of the army. But he did nothing, waiting for Darius to come himself.
Meanwhile in Egypt, the Persian satrap Aryandes received Darius message to supply him with more troops. Now Aryandes had been ruling as satrap of Egypt for many years, and indeed some reckon him more Egyptian than Persian. Therefore, when he received Darius message, he realized that he could not fulfill the decree without ruining Egypt. Therefore he gathered together all his councilors, in order to get advice about what to do. Now after the defeat of the Persian navy at Miletus, Cypriot ships had ranged far to the south, threatening the towns of Phoenicia and Egypt. Because of this, many towns in Phoenicia were known to waver in their loyalty. Therefore, an Egyptian, by the name of Psammetichus counseled him to defy the order of Darius. For since Cambyses had conquered Egypt for the Persians, the Egyptians had seethed, rebelling at every opportunity. Therefore Aryandes refused to obey Darius decree, and sent messengers to Phoenicia to council them to act likewise, as well as sending messengers to Cyprus to talk of an alliance.
Now when the news reached Darius of Egypts revolt, and that Phoenicia may do likewise, he determined to move his army at once against Egypt, fearing it more than the Ionians. But one of his sons, Artobazanes, whom he bore by Gobryas, plotted against Darius. For Darius showed more favor to Xerxes, whom he bore by Atossa, who was the daughter of Cyrus and intended to make him king instead. Now Artobazanes was the firstborn of Darius, but Xerxes was the firstborn of Atossa and was the first born after Darius became king. Now when Artobazanes, saw the kingdom erupt in the flames of rebellion, he thought that Darius had lost control, and that there would never be a better opportunity to seize the throne for himself, so he determined to kill Darius and seize the throne for himself. So then, one night as Darius was preparing for bed, Artobazanes persuaded his guards to let him in the tent, where he killed Darius. After he did this deed, he fled north, raising an army. Seeing he did this, Xerxes, also raised an army, for he determined that he would be king over the Persians and not his brother. Now because Atossa was the daughter of Cyrus and was a great power, Xerxes has the support of the capital and most of the army. Notwithstanding, his army was greatly weakened, and not only because many went with Artobazanes. For when the rebellions started, and seeing as Darius was dead, many people in the army left to their own countries, preferring, if they died, to die with their countrymen rather than with those who they had no tie to, neither of kinship, nor friendship.
Now when Xerxes saw that Artobazanes rebelled, he took what remained of his army and went to attack him, both for revenge for the death of his father, and because he knew that his position would not be secure until Artobazanes was defeated. But Artobazanes, realizing that he would not defeat Xerxes without help, made a treaty with Egypt and Phoenicia, offering them a great sum of money and recognizing their independence in exchange for their help. He made this offer also to the Ionians, but they refused, thinking to themselves that they had already won their independence.
[1] South of Ionia, almost directly across from Rhodes
[2] Between Troad and Ionia in the area around Smyrna
Now until the time of the Ionians victory at Cyprus, Darius had considered the revolt as nothing. Seeing, however, that the Ionians were making a mockery of the might of the Persians, Darius commanded three Persian armies to defeat the rebellion, in addition to the armies that were already fighting in Ionia, while he himself stayed behind in his capital raising yet another army. For Darius, after defeating the revolt in his own lands, planned to invade Hellas also, in order to punish Sparta and Athens for supporting the rebellion. Now the three armies sent by Darius were these: Daurises, who was married to one of Darius daughters, marched north to the Hellespont, Hymaees, who was also a son-in-law of Darius, marched against Caria [1], while Otanes marched against Aeolis [2]. By this, the Persians hoped to strip from Ionia all of her allies in Asia. In addition to this was the Persian army commanded by Artaphrenes, who still campaigned in Ionia. However, he was no longer besieging Ephesus, for, because of the successes the Ionians had elsewhere, he was forced to break off the siege.
Now the first of these armies to meet the rebels was Hymaees, who fought against the Carians. Now the Carians before being informed of the approaching army, gathered together at the place which is called the "White Pillars" and at the river Marsyas, which flows from the region of Idrias and runs out into the Maiander. When the Carians had been gathered together there, among many other counsels which were given, was that of Pixodaros the son of Mausolos, a man of Kindye, who was married to the daughter of the king of the Kilikians, Syennesis. The opinion of this man was to the effect that the Carians should cross over the Maiander and engage battle with the Persians having the river at their backs, in order that the Carians, not being able to fly backwards and being compelled to remain where they were, might prove themselves even better men in fight than they naturally would. This opinion did not prevail; but they resolved that the Persians rather than themselves should have the Maiander at their backs, evidently in order that if there should be a flight of the Persians and they should be worsted in the battle, they might never return home, but might fall into the river. After this, when the Persians had come and had crossed the Maiander, the Carians engaged with the Persians on the river Marsyas and fought a battle which was obstinately contested and lasted long; but at length they were worsted by superior numbers: and of the Persians there fell as many as two thousand, but of the Carians ten thousand. Then those of them who escaped were shut up in Labraunda within the sanctuary of Zeus Stratios, which is a large sacred grove of plane-trees; now the Carians are the only men we know who offer sacrifices to Zeus Stratios. These men then, being shut up there, were taking counsel together about their safety, whether they would fare better if they delivered themselves over to the Persians or if they left Asia altogether. And while they were thus taking counsel, there came to their aid the Milesians and their allies. Then the Carians dismissed the plans which they were before considering and prepared to renew the war again from the beginning: and when the Persians came to attack them, they engaged with them and fought a battle, and they were worsted yet more completely than before; and while many were slain of all parties, the Milesians suffered most. Then afterwards the Carians repaired this loss and retrieved their defeat; for being informed that the Persians had set forth to march upon their cities, they laid an ambush on the road which is by Pedasos, and the Persians falling into it by night were destroyed both they and their commanders, namely Hymaees and Amorges and Sisimakes; and with them died also Myrsos the son of Gyges. Of this ambush the leader was Heracleides the son of Ibanollis, a man of Mylasa.
Meanwhile, Daurises marched to the Hellespont where he conquered all the Aiolians who occupy the district of Ilion, and also the Gergithes, who were left behind as a remnant of the ancient Teucrians. Nevertheless, he could not decisively defeat the Ionians in the land. For, owing to the fact that the Persians outnumbered them, they would never face the Persians directly in battle. Instead, using their superiority in the seas, they would wait until Daurises left a place with his main army, and would then return and kill the garrison the Persians would leave behind. In this manner, Daurises could not subjugate the region, for the city he had just finished conquering would be liberated by the Ionians as soon as he left. And Otanes had the same problems against Aeolis, for the Ionians had a great fleet operating out of Lesbos.
Therefore, seeing that they could do nothing against the Ionians on account of the Ionians having control of the sea, the Persians determined to gather together the remnants of their armies, together with the army under Artaphrenes, and attack Miletus, esteeming the other towns that still rebelled as nothing. Now in order to take Miletus, a large fleet was assembled, with the intention of seizing the control of the seas from the Ionians, who held it to this time.
Seeing that they were challenged on the sea, the Ionians manned their ships and came together at Lades, which was an island opposite of Miletus, and with them also those Aiolians who inhabit Lesbos; and they were drawn up in order thus:--the extremity of the line towards the East was held by the Milesians themselves, who furnished eighty ships; next to them were the Prienians with twelve ships and the men of Myus with three; next to those of Myus were the Teians with seventeen ships, and after the Teians the Chians with a hundred; after these were stationed the men of Erythrai and of Phocaia, the former furnishing eight ships and the latter three; next to the Phocaians were the Lesbians with seventy ships, then Samians with sixty ships; after them the Cyprians with one hundred; and last, holding the extremity of the line towards the West, were stationed those ships from Hellas, of Athens fifty and Eretria twenty (for though the Athenians and Eretrians had originally sent less ships, as the war continued, they continued to supply them with more ships). Of all these the total number proved to be five-hundred and twenty-three triremes. Now of the Barbarians there were six hundred ships, the best of which were from Phoenicia, but which was also made up of Kilikians and Egyptians. Now the Ionians were commanded by Aristagoras because it was Miletus itself which was threatened, but on account of the fact that he was not well acquainted with matters of the sea, the real command was handled by Melanthios the Athenian.
Now when the Persians too were come to the Milesian coast and their whole land-army was also there, then the commanders of the Persians, being informed of the number of the Ionian ships, were struck with fear lest they should be unable to overcome them, and thus on the one hand should not be able to conquer Miletus from not having command of the sea, and at the same time should run a risk of being punished by Darius. Reflecting upon these things they gathered together the despots of the Ionians who were exiles with the Medes, having been deposed from their governments by Aristagoras the Milesian, and sent them to their respective cities, to try to persuade their people to quit the fight, promising them riches and rewards if they did so. But the Ionians refused, believing the offer to come from desperation, and because they valued freedom over riches.
When the Ionians saw that the Persians were reluctant to attack them, Melanthios the Athenian decided to attack. For he did not trust the Ionians to long resist the promises of the Persians, nor did he trust them to remain united (for already, there were conflicts among certain of the commanders). When the Persians saw the Ionian fleet going out to give battle, they also were forced out, lest the Ionian fleet destroy them while they remained unprepared. Therefore, the two fleets met, each sailing in a single file. Now in the fight the first to break were the Egyptians, for they had previously lost their best crews at Cyprus, and were demoralized, not wishing to fight again. But despite this, the Persians were not quickly defeated, for the Phoenicians fought very bravely, and refused to play the coward. Because of this, the Samians were forced to flee, and after them the Lesbians. But the ships from Cyprus and Athens held out against the Phoenicians and did not flee, though a great slaughter arose on both sides. The Chians also fought bravely, and it is because of this that the Ionian line held, despite the fact that many ships had fled. It was then that the Milesians, after routing the Egyptians facing them, turned on the Phoenicians. Seeing that they were in danger of being surrounded, the Phoenicians fled with what remained of the Persian fleet.
Seeing that his fleet was defeated, Artaphrenes decided also to retreat. For because the Ionians held the sea, he could not successfully besiege Miletus, and he feared to assault the town because he had heard a Spartan army was in it. For Artaphrenes had great respect for the Spartans, having seen them fight outside of Sardis and again at Ephesus. But when Darius heard of the defeat, he became angry, for the Ionians continued to defy him. Therefore he sent word to Egypt, and to Phoenicia, to build a navy five times larger than the one he had just lost. In addition, he himself marched at the head of the army he had been gathering at Susa, in order to punish the rebels himself. But he sent a messenger ahead of him to Artaphrenes, with orders to kill him. For Darius laid all the blame of the defeats on him. And when the messenger arrived at the tent of Artaphrenes, he said I have a message from Darius. Whereupon he took out a knife and stabbed Artaphrenes until he was dead. Now at the death of Artaphrenes, Daurises, the son-in-law of Darius took command of the army. But he did nothing, waiting for Darius to come himself.
Meanwhile in Egypt, the Persian satrap Aryandes received Darius message to supply him with more troops. Now Aryandes had been ruling as satrap of Egypt for many years, and indeed some reckon him more Egyptian than Persian. Therefore, when he received Darius message, he realized that he could not fulfill the decree without ruining Egypt. Therefore he gathered together all his councilors, in order to get advice about what to do. Now after the defeat of the Persian navy at Miletus, Cypriot ships had ranged far to the south, threatening the towns of Phoenicia and Egypt. Because of this, many towns in Phoenicia were known to waver in their loyalty. Therefore, an Egyptian, by the name of Psammetichus counseled him to defy the order of Darius. For since Cambyses had conquered Egypt for the Persians, the Egyptians had seethed, rebelling at every opportunity. Therefore Aryandes refused to obey Darius decree, and sent messengers to Phoenicia to council them to act likewise, as well as sending messengers to Cyprus to talk of an alliance.
Now when the news reached Darius of Egypts revolt, and that Phoenicia may do likewise, he determined to move his army at once against Egypt, fearing it more than the Ionians. But one of his sons, Artobazanes, whom he bore by Gobryas, plotted against Darius. For Darius showed more favor to Xerxes, whom he bore by Atossa, who was the daughter of Cyrus and intended to make him king instead. Now Artobazanes was the firstborn of Darius, but Xerxes was the firstborn of Atossa and was the first born after Darius became king. Now when Artobazanes, saw the kingdom erupt in the flames of rebellion, he thought that Darius had lost control, and that there would never be a better opportunity to seize the throne for himself, so he determined to kill Darius and seize the throne for himself. So then, one night as Darius was preparing for bed, Artobazanes persuaded his guards to let him in the tent, where he killed Darius. After he did this deed, he fled north, raising an army. Seeing he did this, Xerxes, also raised an army, for he determined that he would be king over the Persians and not his brother. Now because Atossa was the daughter of Cyrus and was a great power, Xerxes has the support of the capital and most of the army. Notwithstanding, his army was greatly weakened, and not only because many went with Artobazanes. For when the rebellions started, and seeing as Darius was dead, many people in the army left to their own countries, preferring, if they died, to die with their countrymen rather than with those who they had no tie to, neither of kinship, nor friendship.
Now when Xerxes saw that Artobazanes rebelled, he took what remained of his army and went to attack him, both for revenge for the death of his father, and because he knew that his position would not be secure until Artobazanes was defeated. But Artobazanes, realizing that he would not defeat Xerxes without help, made a treaty with Egypt and Phoenicia, offering them a great sum of money and recognizing their independence in exchange for their help. He made this offer also to the Ionians, but they refused, thinking to themselves that they had already won their independence.
[1] South of Ionia, almost directly across from Rhodes
[2] Between Troad and Ionia in the area around Smyrna
das said:You didn't show all that much enthusiasm until now, so I kinda forgot as well.
Whatch you talkin' bout das?
I just didn't want to bug you about it since you had so much other stuff to do
Do them as you please, just know that I will open it as soon as they are made.
das
Regeneration In Process
Fascinating work as usual, Strategos. It was getting a bit slow-paced, but the final parts were worth it. On one hand, the Achaemenids are falling apart even earlier than in OTL, but on the other hand they're doing it by themselves as opposed to being conquered by Alexander, and also, in their shrunken realm, the Achaemenids might actually last longer (the usual "major defeat=>reform and reassesment (and probably a new political elite)=>general reinvigoration and revival").
You just had to say that, hadn't you? Now I'll probably wait until I have enough time to join before doing the stats, and that will take forever. J/k, don't worry.
Oh, and btw:
That could be a nice PoD, no? For some reason I think that LittleBoots would particularily like something like that.
You just had to say that, hadn't you?
Now I'll probably wait until I have enough time to join before doing the stats, and that will take forever. J/k, don't worry.Oh, and btw:
That could be a nice PoD, no?
For some reason I think that LittleBoots would particularily like something like that.
alex994
Hail Divine Emperor!
das
Regeneration In Process
Never said that it works flawlessly.
Incidentally, does anyone still remember my British Revolution TL? Because I AM working on it with renewed speed. Its just that writing about a world war, complete with tactical details and complex political maneuvers, takes time...
Incidentally, does anyone still remember my British Revolution TL? Because I AM working on it with renewed speed. Its just that writing about a world war, complete with tactical details and complex political maneuvers, takes time...
das
Regeneration In Process
Wait and see, but I'm pretty sure its tactical details (as well as operational ones, they're a must, but I decided to experiment with tactics this once as well).
Tactics FTW!
In other news, I sort of lost interest in writing the continuation of the Byzantine TL after the fourth section reached over forty pages in Word. Maybe I'll do something Hellenistic, since it seems as though nobody knows much about the Wars of the Diadochi.
In other news, I sort of lost interest in writing the continuation of the Byzantine TL after the fourth section reached over forty pages in Word. Maybe I'll do something Hellenistic, since it seems as though nobody knows much about the Wars of the Diadochi.
das
Regeneration In Process
Why not continue your Roman althist? It has promise.
carmen510
Deity
My Roman Althist? Pax Romana, credit for Vanadorn.
jeps
Arcadefire
There would have to be a reason. Some historical event that made the Roosevelts go to Russia instead of USA. Also, some georgian persecution could have gotten Stalin's ancestors to go to the states. why dictator of the states but PRESIDENT of the SOVIET UNION is beyond me. Communist president?
I do not see that happening unless some Very radical events shook the USA.
