History of the Peloponnesian War

an earthquake. Also the citizens of Mytilene and of the other cities of Lesbos who were in exile, the majority of them setting out from the mainland, hired some mercenaries from the Peloponnesus, gathered still others on the spot, and took Rhoeteum; but they restored it again without having done any damage, on receiving two thousand

Phocaean staters.[*]("The Phocaean stater was notorious for the badness of the gold (or rather electron); cf. Dem. xi. 36. It was worth about twenty-three silver drachmas. See Hultsch, Gr. und röm. Metrologie, 184.) After this they made an expedition against Antandros and took the city through treachery on the part of the inhabitants. It was, in fact, their plan to free the rest of the cities known as the Actaean cities,[*](ie. of the ἀκτή or promontory of the mainland north of Lesbos. These had been taken from Mytilene by paches (cf. 3.50.3). They are mentioned also C.I.A. i. 37.) which had hitherto been in the possession of the Athenians, though inhabited by Mytilenaeans, and above all Antandros. Having strengthened this place, where there was every facility for building ships—timber being available on the spot and Ida being near at hand —as well as for providing other equipments of war, they could easily, making it the base of their operations, not only ravage Lesbos, which was near, but also master the Aeolic towns on the mainland. Such were the plans upon which they were preparing to embark.

During the same summer the Athenians with sixty ships, two thousand hoplites, and a small detachment of cavalry, taking with them also some Milesians and others of their allies, made an expedition against Cythera. In command of the expedition were Nicias son of Niceratus, Nicostratus son of Dieitrephes, and Autocles son of Tolmaeus.

Now Cythera is an island adjacent to Laconia, lying off Malea; its inhabitants are Lacedaemonians of the class of the Perioeci, and an official called the Bailiff of Cythera used to cross over thither once a year from Sparta; they also used regularly to send over a garrison of hoplites and paid much attention to the place.

For it served them as a port of call for merchant ships from Egypt and Libya, and, moreover, pirates would be less likely to annoy Laconia from the sea,[*](ie. if Cythera were well guarded.) on which side alone it could be harmed; for the whole coast runs out towards the Sicilian and the Cretan seas.[*](Others take πᾶσα of the island, which forms as it were a bastion “running out into the Sicilian and Cretan seas.”)

So then the Athenians, putting in at Cythera with their armament, consisting of ten ships and two thousand Milesian hoplites,[*](An incredibly large number. In 8.25.2, where they are in their own land, the Milesians can oppose to the enemy only 800 hoplites. Nor would ten ships suffice for so many epibatae. Perhaps there is a confusion in the numerical sign, due to a copyist.) took the city by the sea called Scandeia[*](The heaven of Cythera, some ten stadia distant from that city.); then, with the rest of their forces landing on the part of the island which looks toward Malea, they advanced against the city of Cythera which is away from the sea,[*](It seems necessary to adopt Stahl's conjecture ἀπὸ θαλάσσης, or deleted ἐπὶ θαλάσσῃ. “One division of the Athenian force landed at Scandeia, another, disembarking on the N.E coast, marched on the capital. The second force found the Cytherians prepared to meet them; in the battle which ensued the Cytherians were routed, and fled to the upper city, ie. the capital. This explanation is borne out by existing remains. See Frazer's Pausanias, iii. 385, 386; also Weil in Mittheil. d. Arch. Inst. in Athen. v. 224-243.” (Spratt.)) where they found that all the inhabitants had immediately established themselves in camp.