Re: Greek Tragedy
- Central Theatre - Battle of Priene:
Daurises leaves a small garrison at Ephesus and makes his army march to the sea, where it follows the coast to Marathesion, where it camps for the night. Next day the Persians leave the coast and turn to Malandros, which they reach in the afternoon. On the morning of the third day, Daurises' army marches southeast towards Priene to unite his army with the Carian force. In the afternoon, when the vanguard reaches Priene, the Carians already left the place. Daurises decides to camp in the city, while patrols try to find the Carian army. On the fourth day, his patrols report that the Carians are near the Panionium, the Ionian sanctuary dedicated to Poseidon. It is placed on Mount Mycone, 750 meters above the sea, an ideal place from where one can watch all sides of the Mycone peninsula. The Carian army itself, 10,000 men in total, block the path that leads to the sanctuary. It is obvious that the Carians are not willing to join the Persian forces.
Daurises calls his men to arms and soon his army is ready to decamp. Before he gives the signal to leave, a messenger from the garrison of Ephesus arrives:
"Noble strategos, the commander of your troops at Ephesos sends me. I have to report that at the evening of the second day after your departure a fleet of about 200 triremes appeared at the beach between Colophon and Ephesus and an Ionian army debarked. The enemy is about 15,000 soldiers strong, mainly hoplites. The commander of Ephesus expects the enemy to attack Ephesus next morning."
Daurises decides to clear the situation at Ephesos before he deals with Caria. The Persian army decamps immediately, marching back the route it came the day before. Only a strong rear guard is left behind to make sure that the Carians will not be able to disturb the Persian movement.
The columns are marching along a strip of beach between the ocean and the mountains, which smoothly grow at the northern side. Sometime they come as close as about 1 km to the sea, sometimes they leave deep valley.
After two and a half hour scouts report that there is a strong army right in front of the marching columns. Daurises rides to the front and sees that there are about 10,000 Ionian soldiers on the beach. It is obvious that they landed not long ago, as there are still the ships in the bay. There is no doubt that these are enemy. Finally the Persians will be able to fight them.
Daurises gives his men orders to take formation. He gives instructions to the commanders of the divisions and then he makes a speech to his men. Before the battle begins he receives the message that the rear guard is involved in combat with the Carians.
In the meantime, Aristogoras also notices the Persians. His men landed just a couple of hours ago and are now scarifying the God of the Ocean. Like his opponent, Aristogoras is eager for combat. He quickly calls his troops to arms. He deploys 9,000 hoplites in ranks of 8 men deep at a narrow place between the mountains and the sea. In their rear and at the flanks there are 400 archers, 300 slingers and 300 javelins. A reserve of 1,000 Miletesian hoplites under direct
command of Aristogoras stays behind.
Waiting for the enemy to open battle, Aristogoras held a speech:
Raise your spears, raise your shields, rise so no Greek may ever feel the Persian whip again! Sons of Greece, of Olympus, my brothers! I see in your eyes the same fear that would take the heart of me. A day may come when the courage of the Greeks fails, when we forsake our friends and break all bonds of fellowship, but it is not this day. An hour of woes and shattered shields, when Zeus’ wrath descends upon the sons of our sons and the age of men comes crashing down! But it is not this day! This day we fight! And if they ever tell my story, let them say I fought alongside giants. Men rise and fall like winter wheat, but your names will never die.
By all that you hold dear on this good Earth, I bid you fight, sons of Greece! For freedom! To death and ruin or victory and glory!!!
Finally, the sun is almost on top, the battle begins. The Persian infantry is approaching with almost 10,000 men, heavy infantry and archers. The Ionian hoplites are standing still, waiting for their opponents. The light troops open hostilities. Showers of arrows come down to the lines of the Ionians while the sparabaras begin awfully to howl. Aristogoras is getting uneasy. From his position, he is not able to see what is going on. But at least he sees that his men are still holding the position.
The Persian archers keep on peppering the Ionian formation and soon the first hoplites fell wounded or dead. This causes some disorder in the ranks. Finally, the sparabaras begin to advance slowly. The hoplites begin to move also to decrease the distance to the enemy and to get out of the arrow fire. Soon the two battle line clash against each others. At the same time, the Persian cavalry appears from the hang of the next hill and storms against the right wing of the Ionians and the back of the frontline. Aristogoras sees this threat and leads his reserve to the right flank to fight this danger. 3,000 Persian horsemen rapidly blow away the slingers and javelins which should cover the Ionian flank and throw their javelins into the ranks of the hoplites. Attacked by the heavy infantry frontal and peppered by Persian cavalry by side and rear, the Ionian hoplites begin to give up their formation. First hoplites throw away their shields and try to leave the battlefield. Aristogoras makes his men run, although this is very exhausting with the heavy arms in the midday heat. He knows there is no time to waste but 500 Persian riders attack him and his men and force him into a defensive formation again. Caught in a shower of javelins he sees that his right wing dissolves, but that his left wing and the centre wins upper hand.
All over sudden, the Persian cavalry stops the assault, turns around and disappears in the hills.
Aristogoras climbs on top of the next hill to see what is going on. He notices that the sparabaras are retreating. The Ionian left wing is advancing, the centre is holding the fort and the right wing is still in disorder. Aristogoras realizes that his men repelled a assault of about two third of the enemies army. Nevertheless, the threat is not over and he sends messengers to the left wing and the centre to stand at the original line. He himself goes to the right wing to reinstall order here.
The Ionian lines are still under constant attacks from the Persian archers and casualties are increasing. Yet, Aristogoras holds his men back. His own light troops are answering, but the superiority of the Persian archers in overwhelming.
After about an hour after the first assault, Ionian reinforcements arrive from the mountains. For a moment Aristogoras wonders if it is time to drive the archers away, but then he decides to order the reinforcements to hide in the hills and so to strengthen his right wing.
Soon after this, the Persians try another one assault. The tactic is very similar to the first, archers and sparabaras are trying to assault the Ionians frontal. Once again Persian cavalry appears in the hills, this time supported by thousands of takabaras and archers.
However, the sparabaras attack is only halfhearted, they stop several yards in front of the tips of the Ionian lances while the archers are still shooting at the hoplites. Once again the main strike comes from the hills. The hoplites there, almost 4,000 men under the command of an Athenian strategos, find themselves attacked by 4,000 riders, 7,000 takabaras and 500 archers, led by Dareios himself. The Athenian commander does not have enough men to cover the complete line, so he tries to concentrate his men in a dense formation, which is soon surrounded and peppered from all sides. Fortunately for the defenders, Aristogoras leads the reserve once again to the threatened right flank. The Persians are not getting into the range of the lances, but the hoplites are under constant missile and arrow fire from all sides. Also the main line of the Ionian, being under a permanent shower of arrows and seeing the threat at the flank is getting more and more uneasy. Nevertheless, they hold the fort.
Aristogoras observes that Persian cavalry is bypassing his position to get into the rear of the main line. He sends a messenger to tell the commanders there to reduce the ranks to 6 and to use the spared men to repel the threat from behind. Then he calls the Athenian commander to retreat slowly. At this time, the takabaras begins to take their swords and to assault. The Persians which attack frontal are killed rapidly, but others come from the right side and the rear and break through the line of the hoplites. There, in close combat, the Ionianas cannot use their lances any longer.
While Aristogoras and the Athenian commander are fighting for their lives, the main line of the Ionian could repel the Persians in their rear. While those are running back into the hills, a signal horn tells the combatants that the Carian army is close. The main line of the Ionian advances and drives the Persian sparabaras backwards. As the right wing is still pinned down by the Persians, the advance turns into a turning maneuver, where the right wing is the axle. The Persians give up the fight and when the Carians appear on the battleground, all there is left to do is to kill the wounded Persian soldiers and to follow the dispersed Persian forces into the mountains.
Reply With Quote
Originally Posted by Franconicus
That, of course, would be a pitty. So let's have a cup of tea, first!
Bookmarks