The book could be split in three parts. The first
third does indeed cover Cyrus’ march
at the head of a mercenary force of approximately ten thousand men, collected mainly
from the Peloponnese, especially Arcadia and Achaea, who were driven by
poverty. Cyrus leaves from Sardes (today’s northwestern Turkey ), capital of Phrygia ,
a Persian satrapy. I find it quite exciting to follow his steps on a route that
Alexander was to use less than a century later.
Knowing Alexander, he must have
prepared for his march east with all possible means and this book definitely must
have been part of his baggage.
During the battle of Cunaxa (not far from Babylon Greece Tigris , they chose for the latest option knowing they
were an easy prey to the Persians. Somehow the remaining generals got organized
and after being victimized by Persian intrigues, the army accomplished the
impossible under the joint leadership of Xenophon
and Chirisophus eventually finding
their way to the shores of Black Sea . This
story is told in the other two-thirds of this book.
Of course, the story is not ending at the Black Sea and the army’s march west had not yet turned
into an easy one. They were out of reach of the Persians but had to face other
enemy tribes and the problem of provisions was a daily returning worry. The
Greek cities along the coast were not too keen on helping them either for they
saw no reason why they should feed such a large number of mercenaries, even if
they were Greek. After ambiguous negotiations they finally arrived in Thracia in
the summer of 400 BC where they offered their services to King Seuthes who failed to pay them, till a Spartan delegation
showed up willing to hire the mercenaries, now reduced to a mere six thousands,
for a newly planned attack of the Persian Empire. At this point Xenophon leaves the soldiers to return
to his beloved Athens
What strikes me in this book is the clear
overall organization of the army and even more so the democratic leadership. Xenophon delivers twenty speeches during
his march towards Greece
It is quite amazing to read that every single soldier had such a say, but maybe that was only the case for mercenaries and not for regular soldiers? Before every decision, either to move forward or to attack, Xenophon or other commanders made their offerings and asked the gods which decision was the right one. Religion must have played an important role in daily life, even among the soldiers.
An interesting detail is to read Xenophon's commanding the men to make bags filled with straw and hay in order to build a bridge across the river Tigris (Alexander used the same principal to cross the Danube and many other rivers on his way east). Another detail being that Artaxerxes is using 150 Scythian chariots to disarray the Greeks at Cunaxa – a tactic that was used again by Darius III against Alexander atGaugamela . Finally there is the matter of “camp
followers” that is clearly explained, equaling Alexander’s baggage train.
It is quite amazing to read that every single soldier had such a say, but maybe that was only the case for mercenaries and not for regular soldiers? Before every decision, either to move forward or to attack, Xenophon or other commanders made their offerings and asked the gods which decision was the right one. Religion must have played an important role in daily life, even among the soldiers.
An interesting detail is to read Xenophon's commanding the men to make bags filled with straw and hay in order to build a bridge across the river Tigris (Alexander used the same principal to cross the Danube and many other rivers on his way east). Another detail being that Artaxerxes is using 150 Scythian chariots to disarray the Greeks at Cunaxa – a tactic that was used again by Darius III against Alexander at
Enough facts and figures to keep anyone busy for a while, whether Alexander is in the picture or not.
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