Aracus ( ; 409–369 BC) was a Spartan military commander and statesman. He served as

ephor The ephors were a board of five magistrates in ancient Sparta. They had an extensive range of judicial, religious, legislative, and military powers, and could shape Sparta's home and foreign affairs. The word "''ephors''" (Ancient Greek ''éph ...

in 409/8 BC, and seems to have been a supporter of the foreign policy championed by

Lysander Lysander (; ; 454 BC – 395 BC) was a Spartan military and political leader. He destroyed the Athenian fleet at the Battle of Aegospotami in 405 BC, forcing Athens to capitulate and bringing the Peloponnesian War to an end. He then played ...

during the

Peloponnesian War The Second Peloponnesian War (431–404 BC), often called simply the Peloponnesian War (), was an Ancient Greece, ancient Greek war fought between Classical Athens, Athens and Sparta and their respective allies for the hegemony of the Ancien ...

. In 406 BC, Aracus received the nominal command ( navarchy) of the Spartan fleet, with Lysander as his secretary ( ''epistoleus'') or deputy. Lysander held the actual command of the fleet, and had only been assigned a position subordinate to Aracus because Spartan law did not allow the same man to hold the office of navarch twice. In 398 BC, Aracus led a commission to inspect Sparta's conquests in

Asia Minor Anatolia (), also known as Asia Minor, is a peninsula in West Asia that makes up the majority of the land area of Turkey. It is the westernmost protrusion of Asia and is geographically bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the south, the Aegean ...

, to prolong the command of

Dercylidas Dercylidas (Greek: Δερκυλίδας) was a Spartan commander during the late 5th and early 4th century BCE. He was nicknamed Sisyphus for his cunning and inventiveness. In 411 BCE he was appointed harmost at Abydos in the Hellespont. In 399 ...

, and to negotiate with the Achaemenid king

Artaxerxes II Arses (; 445 – 359/8 BC), known by his regnal name Artaxerxes II ( ; ), was King of Kings of the Achaemenid Empire from 405/4 BC to 358 BC. He was the son and successor of Darius II () and his mother was Parysatis. Soon after his accession, Ar ...

, though his mission failed completely. In 369 BC, he was one of the ambassadors sent to

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

, at which he had greater success.

References

* * * {{authority control 5th-century BC Spartans 4th-century BC Spartans Ancient Spartan admirals Ephors Spartans of the Peloponnesian War