History of the Peloponnesian War

Having thus deliberated together in public assembly and encouraged one another, they went on with their preparations for war no less than before. And the envoys who had been sent to Samos by the Four Hundred, learning how matters stood after they had already reached Delos, remained there inactive.

About this time the Peloponnesian soldiers in the fleet at Miletus were clamouring among themselves, saying that their cause was being ruined by Astyochus and Tissaphernes; by the former because he was unwilling to fight, either before this while they themselves were still the stronger and the Athenian fleet was small, or now when the enemy were said to be rent with factions and their ships had not yet been brought together; nay, they kept waiting for the Phoenician ships which Tissaphernes was to furnish—a mere pretence and not a fact—and thus ran the risk of being worn out by delay; as for Tissaphernes, on the other hand, he was not only not producing these ships, but he was even doing harm to the fleet by not giving it maintenance regularly or in full. Therefore, they said, they ought to wait no longer but should fight to an issue. In all this it was the Syracusans who were most insistent.

Astyochus and the allies were aware of their murmuring, and it was determined after a council to fight a decisive battle; so when the disturbance at Samos was also reported to them, they put to sea with their entire fleet, one hundred and twelve in all, and bidding the Milesians proceed by land towards Mycale they sailed in the direction of Mycale themselves.

But the Athenians, with the eighty-two ships whose base was at Samos and which happened then to be lying at Glauce on the promontory of Mycale—where Samos is only a short distance from the mainland, in the direction of Mycale—when they saw the Peloponnesian ships sailing against them, retreated to Samos, not thinking themselves strong enough in point of numbers to hazard their all on a battle.

Besides, they had learned beforehand from Miletus that the enemy desired to fight, and they were expecting Strombichides to come to their aid from the Hellespont with the ships from Chios that had gone to Abydus;[*](cf. 8.62.2.) for a messenger had previously been sent to him. So they retired to Samos;

but the Peloponnesians sailed on to Mycale and encamped there, together with the Milesians and the troops of the neighbouring peoples that constituted the army on land.

The next day, when they were about to advance against Samos, word was brought to them that Strombichides had arrived with the ships from the Hellespont; so they sailed back at once to Miletus.