by John R. Hale
My travels and field surveys of sites in the Aegean and eastern Mediterranean have been supported by the American School of Classical Studies at Athens, the Association of Yale Alumni, Travel Dynamics, the trustees of the University of Louisville, my dear friends Bruce and Elizabeth Dunlevie, and VPRO Television Rotterdam, who flew me to Greece so that I could try out trireme-style rowing on a sheepskin pad at the Homilos Ereton rowing club in Zea Harbor. Welcome and enthusiastic traveling companions have been the Gunlicks of Virginia, the Regueiros of Pennsylvania, and the Ringboms of Finland. Muharrem Zeybek of Izmir provided indispensable guidance for my travels in Turkey, from the fast-flowing Eurymedon River in the south to the rainy coast of Cyzicus (modern Erdek) in the north. Where my own travels could not reach, Bob Brier and Pat Remler stepped in with vivid accounts of the Nile delta in Egypt. And to a kind invitation from the great archaeologist John Camp I owe my first glimpses of Halicarnassus, Miletus, Ephesus, Notium, Samos, Lesbos, the Hellespont, and other sites along the Athenian maritime empire’s eastern frontier.
Over the years of research into Greek naval matters I have been educated by the conversations, correspondence, and critical comments of many great scholars, among them Lucien Basch, Jack Cargill, Lionel Casson, John Coates, Philip de Souza, Victor Davis Hanson, Peter Krentz, Robert Littman, Sean McGrail, John Morrison, Bill Murray, Boris Rankov, Barry Strauss, Larry Tritle, Harry Tzalas, Hans van Wees, and H. T. Wallinga. Here at the University of Louisville I am indebted to my colleagues Bob Luginbill, who helped interpret the Greek text of Phormio’s stratagems as recorded by Polyaenus; Bob Kebric, who took an interest in ancient rowing techniques; and astronomer John Kielkopf, who helped determine the positions of celestial bodies in the night sky at the time of the battle of Salamis. In Finland, Ville Aaltonen enlightened me about modern competitors who depend for their speed, as did the ancient Athenians, on rowing pads and leg muscles.
Among underwater archaeologists I have learned much about ancient ships from Bridget Buxton, Deborah Carlson, Susan Katzev, Paraskevi Micha, and Katerina Delaporta, ephor of underwater antiquities during the time of my research in Greece. I salute my friends and colleagues in the Persian Wars Shipwreck Survey—Shelley Wachsmann, Bob Hohlfelder, Dan Davis, Alexis Catsambis, Dana Yoerger, and the crew and scientific team of the Greek research vessel Aegaeo. I owe my understanding of the Navy Yard and the life of the Athenian trireme on shore to the amphibious heroes of the Zea Harbor Project, including Bjørn Lovén, Mads Nielsen, artist Ioannis Nakas, as well as the generous souls who joined the American Friends of the Zea Harbor Project.
Donald Kagan provided the original inspiration for this book. Years later, he also provided its title. On a snowy night in February 2006 I was sitting at the table in the Kagans’ gleaming black-and-white kitchen. Myrna Kagan had already washed her hands of yet another obsessive discussion of the Athenian navy and retired to the upper regions. Don was staring at a long list of phrases, keywords, and rejected titles that had accumulated over half a decade in the quest to name the book. The only sound was the blizzard beating lightly on the windowpane. Suddenly Don raised his head, stared at me with a sort of visionary glow, and pronounced, in oracular tones, four words. I acknowledged at once that the phrase made a good title, and also had the benefit, if I remembered rightly, of being drawn from one of Pericles’ speeches.
“Are you sure? Not the Funeral Oration, anyway. Bring me the book.” In the Kagans’ house, a Greek text of Thucydides is never more than a few steps away from your chair. I fetched the nearest one. Don began to work his way through the last speech of Pericles, the defiant oration delivered after the plague had struck and the people had turned against their leader. As always, he held the page three inches away from his face and ran his finger along the lines, muttering as he read.
“If I did not see you discouraged . . . the world . . . land and sea . . .” The translating ceased. “Ha! It’s better than you remembered. Kyriôtatous! The Athenians rule as supreme lords—most lords. So!” Don clapped the book shut and handed it back across the table. “Let it be Lords of the Sea.”
INDEX
Page numbers in italics refer to illustrations and maps.
Abronichus
Abydos, battle of
Academy
Acarnania
Acharnians (Aristophanes)
Achilles
Achilles ROV
Acropolis
Erechtheum temple on
Persian siege of
Phidias’ statue of Athena on
rebuilding of
Actium, battle of
Adeimantus
Aegaeo RV
Aegina
Athenian feud with
Aegospotami (Goat Rivers), battle of
Athenian defeat in
Conon’s flight from
site of
spy ships in
Aegyptus
Aeschines
Aeschylus
Aesop
Afghanistan
Agamemnon
Agesilaus, king of Sparta
Agis, king of Sparta
Agora
Ahura Mazda
Ajax
Akademos
Alalia, battle of
Alcibiades
at Abydos
at Aegospotami
at Cyzicus
death of
Eupolis’ lampoon of
Notium fiasco and
at Potidaea
recovery of Athens and
in return to Athens
scandalous behavior of
in Sicilian expedition
Spartan sojourn of
Alexander the Great
Alexandria founded by
at Chaeronea
Alexander the Great (cont.)
death of
in Egypt
Exiles Decree of
at Gaugamela
at Granicus River
invasion of Greece and
at Miletus
Persia invaded by
successors of
Alyzia, battle of
Amazons
Ambracia
Ameinias
Ammonias
Amorgos, battle of
Amphipolis, battle of
Amphitrite
Amyntas, king of Macedon
Anabasis (Xenophon)
Anaxagoras
Androtion
Antigone (Sophocles)
Antiochus
Antipater
Aphrodite
Apollo
Archelaus, king of Macedon
Archippe
Areopagus (Hill of Ares)
Ares
Arginusae Islands, battle of
Athenian deployment in
Spartan deployment in
storm after
Thrasyllus’ dream and
Argo
Argonauts
Argos
Ariaramnes
Aristagoras of Miletus
Aristides
Aristocrates
Aristomenes
Aristophanes
Aristotle
death of
followers of
naval democracy opposed by
Nicomachean Ethics of
Artaxerxes I, king of Persia
Artaxerxes II, king of Persia
King’s Peace of
Artaxerxes III, king of Persia
Artemis
Artemisia, queen of Halicarnassus
Artemisium, battle of
Cilician naval losses in
Greek encampment and
Greek retreat from
Persian attack in
Persian flanking movement in
Themistocles’ strategy for
Aspasia
Assembly, Athenian
Alcibiades recalled by
appointment of generals by
colonization mission and
Corcyran alliance and
Demosthenes’ maiden
speech in
enfranchisement of slaves by
Long Walls proposal in
meeting protocols of
Pericles demoted by
Phormio reinstated by
Segesta delegation and
Sicilian expedition decided on
Themistocles’ naval proposal and
Themistocles ostracized by
Tolmides’ expedition supported by
trial of the generals and
and War with the Allies
western campaign and
“Assembly Women, The” (Ecclesiazusae ) (Aristophanes)
Astarte
Atalante
Athena
Atlantis myth and
Parthenon statue of
Phidias’ statue of
Athenian Empire
allied tribute districts of
Athenian Trireme, The: A Study of Nautical Archaeology (Cartault)
Athens:
Aegina’s conflict with
Alcibiades’ return to
Alexander’s successors and
Assembly of, see Assembly, Athenian
Attica building project of
barbers in
Black Sea expedition of
citizenship in
colonization mission of
commoners and aristocrats of
constitution of
cultural renaissance of
democracy in
Egyptian expedition of
and end of Golden Age
festivals in
Four Hundred’s rule in
government of
growth of
intellectual life in
Ionian revolt and
Laurium silver mines and
Lycurgan naval reforms of
Macedonian occupation of
medicine in
monument to war dead of
navalization of
Athens (cont.)
naval power and policy of
oligarchic coup in
peacetime naval expeditions of
Pericles’ reforms and
population growth of
reaction to Aegospotami’s outcome in
rebuilding of
in recovery from Sicilian expedition
rule by generals in
Samian War and
seafaring and
in Second Maritime League
sexual license in
slaves enfranchised in
standardized coinage and weights and measures in
thalassocracy of
theater in
Theseus cult in
thetes of
Thirty Tyrants’ rule in
urban development in
Zacynthus alliance and
see also Acropolis; Parthenon; Piraeus
Atlantis
Atlas
Attica
deforestation of
geography of
Augustus, emperor of Rome
Baal, cult of
Babylonia
Babylonians (Aristophanes)
Baptai (“The Dippers”) (Eupolis)
Barathron
Bendis
Ben-Hur (Wallace)
Black Sea
Boreas
Brasidas
Bucephalas
bull sacrifice, cult of
Byzantium
Cadmus
Callias
Callicratidas
Callistratus
Calynda, king of
Cantharus Harbor
Caria
Cartault, Augustin
Carthage
Casson, Lionel
Castor
Catana
Cecrops, king of Athens
Cecryphaleia, battle of
Cedon
Cephallenia
Cephisodotus
Chabrias
Chaeronea, battle of
Chaireas
Chalcedon
Characters (Theophrastus)
Chares
Charitimides
Charon
China
Chios
Chrysopolis (Golden City)
Churchill, Winston
Cilicia
Cimon
death of
democratic reforms opposed by
leadership of
Long Walls project and
navalization of Athens and
ostracism of
in Persian Wars
Sparta as model for
Theseus’ bones recovered by
Clazomenae
Cleinias
Cleisthenes
Cleito
Cleitus
Cleombrotus
Cleon
Aristophanes’ satirization of
death of
personality of
Sphacteria blockade and
cleruchies (klerouchoi)
Cnemus
Cnidus, battle of
Coates, John
Conon
at Aegospotami
at Cnidus
death of
military career of
Constitution of the Athenians (Xenophon)
Corcyra
Corinth
Athenian conflict with
battle of Sybota Islands and
Corcyra’s conflict with
triremes of
Coronea, battle of
Cos
Council of Five Hundred
Crannon, battle of
Cratinus
Crete
Critias
Critias (Plato)
Cronus
Ctesias
Cunaxa, battle of
Cybele
Cydonia
Cynossema
Cyprus
Cyrus the Younger, prince of Persia
Cyzicus, battle of
Alcibiades’ ruse in
fight at Kleroi in
Danaus
Darius I, king of Persia
Darius III, king of Persia
Delian League
Eion campaign and
founding of
growth of
tribute paid to
waning of
Delias
Delos
Delphic Oracle
Theseus’ bones prophecy of
Wooden Wall prophecy of
Demades
Demaratus, king of Sparta
Demeter
democracy
Demon
Demosthenes (general)
Demosthenes of Paiania (orator)
background of
in Byzantium mission
death of
maiden Assembly speech of
naval reform advocated by
Olynthiacs of
as orator
in overseas campaigns
Philippics of
Thucydides’ influence on
Description of Greece (Pausanias)
Desolation Angels (Kerouac)
diekplous
Diodorus Siculus
Diogenes Laertius
Diomedon
Dionysus
Diotimus
“Dippers, The” (Baptai), (Eupolis)
Dorieus
Ecclesiazusae (“The Assembly Women”) (Aristophanes)
Echinades Islands
eclipses
Egypt
Alexander’s conquest of
Athenian expedition to
in The Suppliants
Eirene
Electra (Euripides)
Eleusinian Mysteries
Eleven, the
Elis
Embata, battle of
Enquiry into Plants (Theophrastus)
Ephesus
Ephialtes (mercenary)
Ephialtes (mythical giant)
Ephialtes (reformer)
Ephorus of Cyme
Epidaurus
Erasinides
Erechtheum
Eretria, bat
tle of
Eros
Ethiopia
Euainetus
Euboea
Euetion
Eupolis
Euripides
death of
romantic tragedies of
Europa, Phoenician princess
Eurybiades
Eurymedon (divine hero)
Eurymedon (general)
Eurymedon River, battle of
Euryptolemus
Evagoras, King of Salamis
Exiles Decree
“Finest Story in the World, The” (Kipling)
First Philippic (Demosthenes)
Four Hundred
Frogs (Aristophanes)
action of
Frontinus
Furies
Gallipoli (Kallipolis)
Gaugamela, battle of
Gelon, tyrant of Syracuse
Goat Rivers, battle of, see Aegospotami, battle of
Granicus River, battle of
Great Pyramid
Greek Oared Ships (Morrison)
Gylippus
Halicarnassus
Hegeso
Helen (Euripides)
Helen of Troy
Helike
Helios
Hellanicus of Lesbos
Hellenica (Xenophon)
Hellenic League
Hellenic War (Lamian War)
Hellespont
Alexander’s crossing of
helots
hemlock
Hephaestus
Heracles
Hermes
Hermippus
Hermocrates
Hermolycus
Herodotus
Hill of Ares (Areopagus)
Hindu Kush
Hipparche
Hipparchus
Hippias
Hippocampe
Hippocrates of Cos
Hippodamian Agora
Hippodamus of Miletus
Hippodromia
Histories, The (Herodotus)
Hohlfelder, Robert
Homer
hoplites
horse carriers
Horsemen (Aristophanes)
House of Boats
hubris
Hymn to Poseidon (Aristophanes)
Iliad (Homer)
Imbros
“Immortals,”
Inarus, king of Libya and Egypt
India
Influence of Sea Power upon History, The (Mahan)
Io
Ion
Ionia
Ionian revolt
Ionian War
Iphicrates
in Corcyra operation
military innovations of
Iphigenia Among the Taurians (Euripides)
Iphigenia in Aulis (Euripides)
Isis
Isocrates
death of
letter to Philip II of
Issus, battle of
Isthmian Games
Italy
Jason
Jocasta, Queen
Kagan, Donald
Kallipolis (Gallipoli)
katabatic winds
Keos
