Great Naval Battles of the Ancient Greek World

242 Pages·2019·15.036 MB·English

by  Owen Rees

Great Naval Battles
of the Ancient
Greek World
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Great Naval Battles
of the Ancient
Greek World
By
Owen Rees
First published in Great Britain in 2018
by Pen & Sword Maritime
An imprint of
Pen & Sword Books Limited
Yorkshire - Philadelphia
Copyright © Owen Rees 2018
ISBN 978 1 47382 730 1
The right of Owen Rees to be identified as Author of this work has been
asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents
Act 1988.
A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
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Contents
Acknowledgements vii
Introduction ix
Glossary xxi
PART 1 THE PERSIAN CONFLICTS 1
Chapter 1 Battle of Lade (494 BC) 5
Chapter 2 The Battle of Artemisium (480 BC) 15
Chapter 3 The Battle of Salamis (480 BC) 27
PART 2 ARCHIDAMIAN WAR 37
Chapter 4 The Battle of Sybota (433 BC) 41
Chapter 5 The Battle of the Corinthian Gulf (429 BC) 53
Chapter 6 The Battle of Corcyra (427 BC) 65
PART 3 THE IONIAN WAR 75
Chapter 7 Battle of Erineus (413 BC) 79
Chapter 8 The Battle for the Great Harbour of Syracuse (413 BC) 89
Chapter 9 Battles of the Ionian Coast (412-411 BC) 105
Chapter 10 The Battle of Arginusae (406 BC) 119
Chapter 11 The Battle of Aegospotami (405 BC) 133
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vi Great Naval Battles of the Ancient Greek World
PART 4 TURNING OF THE TIDE 143
Chapter 12 Battle of Catane (396 BC) 145
Chapter 13 Battle of Cnidus (394 BC) 161
Conclusion 173
Endnotes 177
Select Bibliography 207
Index 216
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Acknowledgements
F
irst and foremost, thanks goes to my editor, Philip Sidnell. He has
dealt with my adapted time frames with support and good humour. His
meticulous readings of various drafts have offered useful suggestions
for refinement and more in-depth explanations. Indeed, if it was not for Phil,
this book would never have come to light. Originally this book began as a section
for my previous publication, Great Battles of the Classical Greek World, but
from the moment Phil saw that heading in my prospective chapter list he shot
me down. How could we waste an opportunity for a follow up book? I was
apprehensive at first, but Phil’s support encouraged me to jump in with both
feet, the result of which is this book.
I am indebted to the community of academics, historians, and historical
enthusiasts who I have used time and again to bounce ideas off, discuss
narratives with, or ultimately lean on for motivation when the need arose. In
particular, special thanks go to Dr Jason Crowley, who has put up with this
book consuming much of my attention!
I am greatly appreciative of the enthusiastic support of David Bowen, who
has vigilantly read over the drafts of this book and offered advice on edits.
While military history is a passion of mine, my nautical experience is just a
little more than zero. David’s vast knowledge base has certainly refined this
book accordingly. As always, any mistake and errors that are present here are
mine and mine alone.
Finally, and most importantly, my thanks as always go to my wife Carly, and
children Matilda and Henry. They have put up with me working from home to
finish this book and have offered me nothing but love and support.
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Introduction
T
he evocative and tranquil sight of the Mediterranean Sea is an
intoxicating tableau of serenity to all who have witnessed it. But
behind the calm, lapping waves and peaceful quiet, hides a story of
bloody warfare and inhumane carnage. While the blood-soaked battlefields of
the Greek mainland are so hard to ignore, the rouged-tint of the naval battle
is quickly washed away by human memory almost as fast as it is by the waters.
To the ancient Greeks, naval battle was ubiquitous in war. The creak of the
oars and the crack of a filling sail were as much noises of comfort and dread as
the sound of thousands of armed men on the march. For some, the blistered
hands of the rower was as much a mark of duty, and worthy of respect, as
any battle-scar. Yet modern commentary on Greek warfare often leaves this
vital part of the ancient Greek military ethos, and identity, on the side-lines,
replaced by the more-glamorous land battles. I defy most enthusiasts to name
as many sea battles from the Classical period as they can land battles. So the
aim of this work is to bring the multitude of naval engagements, which pervade
the ancient sources, into a broader modern awareness. By exploring the naval
narrative it can reveal that Greek armies rarely, if ever, acted alone, and if we
remove these naval narratives from our history we are removing a vital element
of Greek military practice.
Triremes
By the time our ancient sources provide adequate accounts of specific naval
battles (the earliest that is possible to reconstruct being Lade in 495 BC), there
was one ship which ruled the waves: the trieres or, in its more common Latin
form, the trireme. But the trireme was not an isolated invention, and must be
understood as part of a logical evolution from its predecessor, the penteconter.
The penteconter was a ship originally powered by fifty rowers on a single
rowing level, before it was adapted in the later eighth century BC to arrange
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