ancient greece mediterranean ruler

Chapter 562 The Victory of Iphicrates

As a general, who doesn’t want to win? If Syracuse, the first Greek city-state in the Western Mediterranean, can be completely captured, this glorious record will not only win the attention of the people of Dionia, but also the whole of Greece. The world is amazed, who will make fun of his success because he was commanded by secret agents?

Antrapolis saw his thoughts, hesitated for a moment, and said, "Master Antonios, I hope... oh no, I suggest that the First Legion not go south for the time being and enter the territory of Syracuse."

"Oh?" Antonios glanced at him. Although these words made him unhappy in his excitement, he knew that Antrapolis, who had been rooted in Sicily for so long and could start such a huge riot, must be Knowing the situation here better than him, he still asked humbly: "Why?"

"The people of Syracuse have a characteristic. In times of peace and tranquility, they will reject any ambitious and powerful politicians and choose a mediocre democracy with many people; but once they encounter danger and face destruction, they will Voluntarily choosing a strongman and accepting dictatorship..." Antrapolis said with a serious expression: "Furthermore, Syracuse has been the largest Greek city-state in Sicily and even the entire Western Mediterranean for many years, and its citizens are often proud of this. It is very sensitive for the army to enter its territory! The officials of Syracuse, who were preparing to launch a riot, refused my and my men's request to enter the city and assist them, because they were afraid of being discovered by the people and causing their resentment. At the same time, They are also wary of us.

Lord Antonios, if the First Legion appears under the city of Syracuse, the rioting Syracuse people will not regard us as reinforcements, but most likely as enemies!If Dionysius' subordinates take the opportunity to provoke them, it is very likely that Dionysius' forces will regain power and deal with us together! …”

Antonios pondered for a long time: Before coming, he had a basic understanding of the situation in Syracuse. Syracuse is not a small town like Sikuli. It is said to be a huge city with a population of 40. If it is really like Ant Lapolis said that if thousands of his men went over and wanted to take advantage of the chaos to capture the city of Syracuse and end the war completely, not only was it impossible, but the entire army might even be annihilated!
Antonios looked at the soldiers who were chasing and defeating the enemy on the battlefield: From the time they landed in Sicily to now, they have been fighting for life and death for three consecutive days. It is not easy to achieve today's victory!As the legion commander, he wants to lead them to enjoy the glory of victory instead of falling into unknown dangers...

Thinking of this, Antonios said slowly: "Do you have any suggestions?"

Antrapolis was waiting for his words and hurriedly said: "It is best for the riots in Syracuse not to stop, let them kill each other, consume Syracuse's own strength, and damage us Dio It is good for other city-states in Sicily!" Antrapolis, who was once a Catanai, revealed his hatred for Syracuse at this time and said in a hateful voice: "While Syracuse is in civil strife, When the time comes, we should seize the time to let Sikuli, Catanai, Leontini, and——"

Antrapolis pointed to Taunis not far away: "Let these city-states restore order and recognize our status as the leader of Dionia. His Majesty mentioned in his last letter to me, 'Qatani The Sub-Plain is a broader and more fertile plain than the Subali Plain (mainly volcanic soil), and he hopes to let Dionia directly manage this area as much as possible'..."

After hearing this, Antonios took a breath: he was still focusing on how to defeat the powerful enemy, but Davos was already thinking about how to annex this land. Is this the gap between him and Davos? !
Looking at the shocked Antonios, Antrapolis felt equally uneasy.When he first saw the meaning revealed in Davos' letter, Antrapolis himself felt a little uncomfortable.After all, he was once a Catanai. What he had always hoped for was that Catanai could overthrow the puppet rule of Syracuse and the exiles could return to their homeland, but he never thought that Catanai would accept it again. The rule of another powerful power, although this power is now the country to which he belongs.

But along with the letter written by Davos came a letter from Aristiras.In the letter, his brother said: "Even if city-states such as Catanai and Leotini can gain independence in this war, they are too weak whether facing Syracuse or Carthage. It is inevitable that the same disaster will be encountered in the future. But once it is under the rule of Dionysia, the safety of Katana will be guaranteed, and with the current political system of Dionysia, the people of Qatar will not have to worry about being oppressed. There will also be more political rights...

My brother, more importantly, judging from the current progress of this war, Syracuse's defeat is certain. Although Dionia has paid a huge sacrifice, he will get a lot of land!The biggest headache for His Majesty in the future is not to get too many towns, but how to get more people to fill the vacant land of Great Greece. Therefore, it is impossible for the Catania Plain to have too many Dionian immigrants. The Catanai people will be the real owners of their hometown and will also occupy a certain position in the political arena of Dionia.

As a former Catanaite and now a citizen of Dionia, you have gained the recognition and respect of many exiles during your more than half a year of hiding in Sicily. If you want to enter politics after the war, you will inevitably be in Katanai plays a huge role in integrating into Dionia!And you will have a brighter future! …”

Antrapolis was quite tempted after reading the letter at the time. Now after being stimulated by Antonios, he felt for the first time that he was so eager to obtain the title of "Senator of Dioria", so he Not only did he not resist the "incorporation of Catanai into Dionia", but he was also determined to do his best to promote it!

"What about the city-states to the south?" Antonios asked slightly unwillingly.

"The city-states in the southeastern corner of Sicily have always been allies and have close relations with Syracuse. Even if they overthrow the tyrants raised by Dionysius, their friendly relations with Syracuse will not change significantly. , our rash entry will only push them closer to Syracuse!" Antrapolis told Antonios one by one the conclusions he reached after six months of careful analysis: "As for Elephant Gela and Agrigen, Thanks to these city-states on the south coast, His Majesty hopes to maintain friendly relations with them and has no intention of letting them join the Dionysian Alliance, so as not to arouse Carthage's vigilance and dissatisfaction..."

Antonios nodded thoughtfully: "It seems like we can let the brothers have a good rest."

.......................................

In the port of Lycaion in Corinth, as the occupiers, part of the Peloponnesian coalition led by Sparta had to return to their hometown to hold the Hyacinthus celebration according to custom.

Considering that these soldiers had to pass through the city of Corinth on their way back, for safety and to show that Sparta valued the Allies, Agesilaus, who was high-spirited at this moment, sent 300 Spartan hoplites to escort them back. Home.

When this escort force sent the Amicles to Sigion and then returned to the port casually, passing under the walls of Corinth, the Athenian general Iphicrates led his light infantry out of the city gate and launched an attack on them. attack.

Although the heavily armored Spartan infantry hurriedly responded to the battle, they were not timid because their numbers were too small. Instead, they believed that this was a great opportunity to annihilate the Corinth defenders, so they stepped forward to challenge.

However, the Athenian light infantry did not engage in close combat with them. Instead, they used their lightness to distance themselves from the Spartans, threw javelins, and carried out long-range attacks.

The Spartan soldiers charged many times, but they were unable to get close to the enemy. Instead, they exhausted their physical strength during the movement.And in the rain of javelins flying all over the sky, teammates kept being hit by javelins and fell to the ground...

This fighting method did not allow the Spartan soldiers to show their bravery at all, but made the soldiers suffer in the groans of their teammates.After fighting for an hour, the Spartans' fighting spirit dropped to the bottom. The Spartan warriors, who "see death in battle as an honor and escape as a shame", turned around and ran away.

However, how could they, who were wearing heavy armor, run faster than the light infantry, and were almost wiped out by the Athenians.

When the battle was over, even the Athenians themselves could not believe it was true, and Iphicrates and his troops gained confidence.

And when this victory quickly spread to the Anti-Spartan Alliance, the people who were shrouded in fear of failure erupted into enthusiastic cheers.Although this was only a small battle, the nearly 300 heavy infantry that could be wiped out were real Spartan citizens, and the entire Sparta was only three to four thousand strong citizens (not counting the Pythians and Helaus), the myth of the invincibility of the Spartans was broken, and all the shaken city-states regained their confidence in resistance. The previously unknown Iphicrates also became famous.

When the news reached the Spartan coalition, Agesilaus was receiving the peace envoys from Thebes with the arrogance of a victor and made very harsh demands.Upon receiving the news, his arrogance instantly turned to chagrin, and the entire army fell into sorrow.

After hearing the news, the Theban envoy quickly left the Spartan camp and never proposed peace again.

While Agesilaus was thinking hard about how to avenge the dead warriors and revive the prestige of the Spartan army, Iphicrates was not satisfied with this victory. After two days of preparation, He led the light infantry troops on the Athenian warships, bypassed the northern end of the isthmus, and raided Clonion, which was occupied by the Spartans. He still used the same tactics to severely defeat the defenders and recapture Clonion.

　Thanks to zxcvbnmqdgn, Zhan Billy, Yijian 68, Vanishing Maple, and book friends 160205211007938 for their rewards!Your support is my biggest motivation for writing! !

　　
　
(End of this chapter)