VI. In the mean time the disaster at Leuctra befel the Lacedaemonians; and that he might not march thither,179 though he was urged by many to go to the field, he refused to go, as if he had a presentiment concerning the event. But when Epaminondas attacked Sparta, and the city was without walls, he proved himself such a commander, that it was apparent to all on that occasion, that if it had not been for him, Sparta would have ceased to exist.180 In this time or danger, indeed, the celerity of his proceedings was the preservation of the whole people; for when a number of the young men, alarmed at the approach of the enemy, had determined on going over to the Thebans, and had taken a position on an eminence without the city, Agesilaus, who saw that it would have a most pernicious effect, if it were noticed that any were trying to desert to the enemy, went thither with some of his men, and, as if they had been acting with a good intention, commended their procedure in having taken possession of that spot, and said that he himself had also observed that this ought to be done. Thus, by his pretended commendation, he prevented the young men from deserting, and, after joining some of his followers with them, left the place quite safe; for when the number of those was increased who were unacquainted with the project,181 the conspirators were afraid to move, and retained their ground the more willingly as they thought that what they had meditated was still unknown.
VII. After the battle of Leuctra, it is certain, the Lacedaemonians never recovered themselves, or regained their former power, though, at that period, Agesilaus did not cease to assist his country by whatever means he could use. When the Lacedaemonians were greatly in want of money, he gave his support to all those 182 who had revolted from the king, and being presented by them with a large sum, he relieved his country with it. In his character, indeed, this point was particularly worthy of admiration, that, though great presents were given him by kings, princes, and states, he never took any portion of them into his own house, and never departed in the least from the usual diet and dress of the Spartans; he remained content with the same house which Eurysthenes, the progenitor of his family, had inhabited; and whoever entered it could see no indication of luxury or extravagance, but, on the contrary, many proofs of temperance and frugality, for it was furnished in such a manner that it differed in no respect from that of any poor or private person.
VIII. As this great man had found nature favourable in giving him excellent qualities of mind, so he found her unpropitious with regard to the formation of his body; for he was of low stature, small in person, and lame of one foot. These circumstances rendered his appearance the reverse of attractive, and strangers, when they looked at his person, felt only contempt for him, while those who knew his merits could not sufficiently admire him. Such fortune attended him, when, at the age of eighty, he went into Egypt to the aid of Tachos, and lay down with his men on the shore without any shelter, having merely such a couch that the ground was but covered with straw, and nothing more than a skin thrown upon it,183 while all his attendants lay in the same manner, in plain and well-worn attire, so that their equipments not only did not indicate that there was a king among them, but even raised a suspicion that he must be a man not very rich. The news of his arrival having reached the king’s officers, presents of every kind were soon brought him; but when the officers inquired for Agesilaus, they could scarcely be made to believe that he was one of those who were sitting before them. When they presented him what they had brought, with a message from the king, he accepted nothing but some veal, and such sorts of meat as his present circumstances required; the ointments, chaplets, and sweetmeats he distributed among the slaves, and the other things he directed to be carried back. Upon this, the barbarians looked upon him still more contemptuously, thinking that he had made choice of what he had taken from ignorance of what was valuable.
As he was returning from Egypt, after having been presented by King Nectanabis 184 with two hundred and twenty talents, in order that he might bestow them upon his countrymen, and had arrived at what is called the harbour of Menelaus,185 lying between Cyrenae 186 and Egypt, he fell ill and died. His friends, in order the more conveniently to convey him to Sparta, enveloped his body, as they had no honey, in wax, and so carried it home.
XVIII. EUMENES.
Eumenes is secretary to Philip and Alexander, and afterwards commander in the cavalry, I. After the death of Alexander he is allotted the province of Cappadocia, and is a steady friend to Perdiccas, II. His proceedings on behalf of Perdiccas, III. He defeats Craterus and Neoptolemus, IV. Is pursued by Antigonus; his stratagems and escape, V. His kindness to Olympias and Alexander’s children, VI. His continuance of hostilities against Antigonus; his device in his camp, VII. He defeats Antigonus; is controlled by Alexander’s veterans, VIII. He eludes Antigonus by a stratagem, IX. After again defeating Antigonus, he is betrayed by his own men, X. In his confinement he longs to die, XI. His death, XII. After his death the officers of Alexander assume the title of kings; his funeral, XIII.
I. EUMENES was a native of Cardia.187 If success equal to his abilities had been granted him, he would not, indeed, have been a greater man (for we estimate great men by merit, not by fortune), but he would have been much more renowned, and more honoured. As he happened to live, however, in the days in which the Macedonians flourished, it was a great disadvantage to him residing among them, that he was of a foreign country. Nor was anything wanting to him but a noble descent; for, though he was of a family of distinction in his native city, the Macedonians were nevertheless dissatisfied that he should ever be preferred to them. They were obliged to submit, however, for he excelled them all in caution, vigilance, endurance, and acuteness and activity of intellect.
When he was but a youth, he was received into favour by Philip, the son of Amyntas, and after a short time was admitted into intimate friendship with him; for, even then, when he was so young, there appeared to be great natural talent in him. He therefore kept him near himself in the office of secretary, which is much more honourable 188 among the Greeks than among the Romans; for with us, secretaries are regarded as hirelings, as in reality they are; but with them, on the contrary, no one is admitted to that office who is not of good family and of known integrity and ability, because he must of necessity be the confidant of all their political measures. This post of confidence he held for seven years under Philip, and after Philip was assassinated, he was in the same office for thirteen years under Alexander. During the latter portion of this time, also, he commanded one of the two divisions of the cavalry called Hetaeriae.189 With both these princes he always had a place in the council, and was admitted to a knowledge of all their proceedings.
II. After the death of Alexander at Babylon, when kingdoms were allotted to each of his friends, and the superintendence of affairs was committed to the hands 190 of Perdiccas, to whom Alexander, when dying, had given his ring (a circumstance from which every one conjectured that Alexander had entrusted his kingdom to him, until his children should come of age to take the government upon themselves; 191 for Craterus and Antipater, who seemed to have the precedence of him, were absent, and Hephaestion, for whom Alexander, as might easily be perceived, had had the highest esteem, was dead), at that time Cappadocia was given to Eumenes, or rather appointed for him, for it was then in the power of the enemy. Perdiccas had sought with great eagerness to attach Eumenes to him, for he saw in him great honour and ability,192 and did not doubt that, if he could gain him over to his side, he would be of great assistance to him in the projects which he was meditating, since he purposed (what all in great power generally covet) to seize and secure for himself the shares of all the rest. Nor did he alone, indeed, entertain such designs, but all the others, who had been friends of Alexander, formed similar intentions. Leonnatus,193 in the first place, had resolved to seize upon Macedonia, and had endeavoured, by liberal promises, to prevail upon Eumenes to desert Perdiccas, and form an alliance with himself. Being unable to make any impression upon him, he attempted to take his life, and would have effected his purpose
, had he not secretly escaped from his guards by night.
III. In the meantime those wars broke out, which, after the death of Alexander, were carried on to desperation;194 and all combined to ruin Perdiccas. Eumenes, though he saw that he was but weak, as he was obliged to stand alone against them all, yet did not forsake a friend, or show himself more desirous of safety than of honour. Perdiccas had set him over that part of Asia which lies between Mount Taurus and the Hellespont, and had opposed him alone to his European adversaries. 195 Perdiccas himself had marched against Ptolemy, to make an attack upon Egypt. Eumenes, as he had an army neither numerous nor strong, for it wanted exercise, and had not long been assembled, while Antipater and Craterus were said to be fast approaching, and to have passed the Hellespont, men who stood high in reputation and experience in war (and the Macedonian soldiers were then held in the same esteem in which the Romans are now held, for those have always been accounted the bravest who have attained the greatest power), Eumenes, I say, was aware, that if his troops should learn against whom they were being led, they would not only not proceed, but would disperse at the intelligence; and it was therefore a very clever stratagem of his, to lead his men through bye-roads, in which they could not hear the truth, and to make them believe that he was marching against some of the barbarians. In this artifice he successfully persevered, and drew out his army into the field, and joined battle, before the men were aware with whom, they were engaged. He succeeded, also, by an advantageous choice of ground, in fighting more with his cavalry, in which he had the superiority, than with his infantry, in which he was but weak.
IV. After they had continued the contest, with desperate efforts, through the greater part of the day, Craterus, the commander-in-chief, was killed, as well as Neoptolemus who held the second place in authority. With Eumenes Neoptolemus himself encountered, and as they grappled with one another, and fell from their horses to the ground (so that it might easily be seen that they fought with feelings of enmity, and warred more with their minds than with their bodies), they could not be separated till life left one of the two. Eumenes received some wounds from Neoptolemus, yet did not, on that account, retire from the field, but pressed more vigorously upon the enemy. The horse being routed, Craterus the general slain, and many, chiefly of high rank, being made prisoners, the infantry, as they were forced into a position from which they could not escape without the permission of Eumenes, begged peace of him. But when they had obtained it, they did not adhere to their word, but went off, as soon as they could, to Antipater. Eumenes endeavoured to save the life of Craterus, who was carried half dead from the field; but, not being able to succeed, he interred him, suitably to his dignity and their former friendship (for he had been intimate with him in Alexander’s life-time), with a magnificent funeral, and sent his bones into Macedonia to his wife and children.
V. During the course of these proceedings on the Hellespont, Perdiccas was killed by Seleucus and Antigonus 196 on the river Nile, and the chief command was conferred upon Antipater. Upon this, those who had deserted him were condemned to death in their absence, the army giving their suffrage to that effect; and among those condemned was Eumenes, who, though he was affected at this blow,197 did not sink under it, or conduct the war with the less vigour.
But a course of necessitous circumstances, though they could not subdue the energy of his spirit, had yet some effect in diminishing it. Antigonus, however, who pursued him, was often, though he had plenty of all kinds of troops, severely harassed by him on the march, nor could he ever come to an engagement with him except in places in which a few could resist many. But at last, when he could not be taken by manoeuvring, he was hemmed in by numbers; still he extricated himself, though with the loss of several men, and took refuge in a fortress of Phrygia, called Nora; where, being besieged, and fearing that, by remaining in one place, he should lose his war-horses, as there was no room for exercising them, he adopted an ingenious expedient,198 by which the animal might be warmed and exercised standing, so that it might take its food more freely, and not be deprived of the benefit of bodily motion. He tied up its head 199 so high with a halter, that it could not quite touch the ground with its fore-feet; he then forced it, by lashing it behind, to leap up and throw back its heels; which motions excited perspiration no less than if the animal had run in an open course. Hence it happened (what was a matter of astonishment to all), that he led out his horses from the fortress, though he had been several months under siege, equally as sleek as if he had been keeping them in open fields. During that siege, as often as he desired, he either set on fire or demolished the works and defences of Antigonus. He, however, kept himself in that one place as long as the winter lasted; but, as the fortress could have no relief from without, and the spring was coming on, he pretended to be desirous of surrendering, and, while he was treating about the terms, eluded the officers of Antigonus, and brought himself and all his men off safe.
VI. When Olympias, who was the mother of Alexander, sent letters and messengers into Asia to Eumenes, to consult him whether she should proceed to re-possess herself of Macedonia (for she was then living in Epirus), and take upon herself the government there, he advised her, “above all things, not to stir, but to wait till Alexander’s son should get the throne; yet, if she should be hurried into Macedonia by any irresistible longing, he recommended her to forget all injuries, and not to exercise too severe an authority over any one.” But with neither of these suggestions did she comply; for she both went to Macedonia, and acted there with the greatest cruelty. She then entreated Eumenes, while he was still at a distance, “not to allow the bitterest enemies of Philip’s house and family to extirpate his very race, but to give his support to the children of Alexander;” adding that, “if he would do her such a favour, he might raise troops as soon as possible, and bring them to her aid; and, in order that he might do so more easily, she had written to all the governors of the provinces that preserved their allegiance, to obey him, and follow his counsels.” Eumenes, moved with this communication, thought it better, if fortune should so order it, to perish in showing his gratitude to those who had deserved well of him, than to live ungrateful.
VII. He therefore assembled troops, and prepared for war against Antigonus. But as there were with him several noble Macedonians, amongst whom were Peucestes, who had been one of Alexander’s body-guard, and was then governor of Persia, and Antigenes, under whose command the Macedonian phalanx was, dreading envy (which, nevertheless, he could not escape), if he, being a foreigner, should have the chief authority rather than others of the Macedonians, of whom there was a great number there, he erected a pavilion at head quarters,200 in the name of Alexander, and caused a gold chair, with a sceptre and diadem, to be placed in it, directing that all should meet at it daily, that counsel might be taken there concerning matters of importance; for he thought that he should incur less envy if he appeared to manage the war under show of the authority, and with assumption of the name, of Alexander; and in this point he succeeded; for, as the meetings were held, not at the tent of Eumenes, but at that of the king, and measures concerted there, his superiority was in some degree concealed, though all was done by his agency alone.
VIII. He engaged with Antigonus in the country of the Paraetaci, not with his army in full array, but on the march, and forced him, after being severely handled, to return into Media to winter. He himself distributed his troops in winter-quarters through the neighbouring country of Persia, not as he chose, but as the will of his soldiers obliged him; for the phalanx of Alexander the Great, which had over-run Asia, and subdued the Persians, desired, in consequence of their established renown, and also through long-continued license, not to obey their officers but to command them, as our veterans now do. There is danger, therefore, lest ours should do what those did, and, by their insubordination and excessive licentiousness, ruin all, not less those whom they have supported than those whom they have opposed. And if any one reads the acts of those veterans, he will find the pr
oceedings of ours like theirs, and be of opinion that there is no other difference between them but that of time. But I return to those of Macedonia. They had fixed upon their winter-quarters, not from regard to convenience for warfare, but for luxurious indulgence; and had separated into parties at a great distance from one another. Antigonus, hearing of their dispersion, and being aware that he was not a match for his enemies when prepared to receive him, resolved that some new plan must be adopted. There were two ways by which he might march from the country of the Medes, where he was wintering, to the winter-quarters of his adversaries, of which the shorter lay through desert tracts, which nobody inhabited by reason of the scarcity of water, but was only about ten days’ march. The other, by which everybody travelled, presented a circuitous route of twice the length, but was well-supplied, and abounded with all necessaries. If he went by the latter, he felt sure that the enemy would know of his approach before he had accomplished the third part of the distance; but if he hurried through the deserts, he hoped that he might surprise his adversaries unawares. To effect his object, he ordered as many skins and sacks as possible to be got in readiness; and then forage and dressed provisions for ten days; desiring that as little fire as possible should be made in the camp. The route which he had in view he concealed from every one. Being thus provided, he set forward in the direction on which he had determined.
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