Clearchus or Clearch (; 450 BC – 401 BC), also known as Clearchus the Lacedaemonian or Clearchus the son of Rhamphias, was a

Sparta Sparta was a prominent city-state in Laconia in ancient Greece. In antiquity, the city-state was known as Lacedaemon (), while the name Sparta referred to its main settlement in the Evrotas Valley, valley of Evrotas (river), Evrotas rive ...

n general and mercenary, noted for leading the Ten Thousand in battle against the Persian king.

Biography

Peloponnesian War

Born about the middle of the 5th century BC, Clearchus was sent with a Spartan fleet to the Hellespont in 412 BCDonald Kagan, ''The Peloponnesian Wars, The Fall of the Athenian Empire'', p. 37. and took over

Byzantium Byzantium () or Byzantion () was an ancient Greek city in classical antiquity that became known as Constantinople in late antiquity and Istanbul today. The Greek name ''Byzantion'' and its Latinization ''Byzantium'' continued to be used as a n ...

, in which he was made proxenos. He soon established a relationship with Pharnabazus II, the Persian

satrap A satrap () was a governor of the provinces of the ancient Median kingdom, Median and Achaemenid Empire, Persian (Achaemenid) Empires and in several of their successors, such as in the Sasanian Empire and the Hellenistic period, Hellenistic empi ...

Phrygia In classical antiquity, Phrygia ( ; , ''Phrygía'') was a kingdom in the west-central part of Anatolia, in what is now Asian Turkey, centered on the Sangarios River. Stories of the heroic age of Greek mythology tell of several legendary Ph ...

, and the two entered into a military alliance against the

Athenians 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 ...

. He commanded the Spartan land forces at the Battle of Cyzicus in 410 BC, but he and his Persian allies were defeated. The Athenians were able to establish a base on the opposite coast of Byzantium, and began a naval blockade of the city along with conducting raids. Clearchus was given command of fifteen

trireme A trireme ( ; ; cf. ) was an ancient navies and vessels, ancient vessel and a type of galley that was used by the ancient maritime civilizations of the Mediterranean Sea, especially the Phoenicians, ancient Greece, ancient Greeks and ancient R ...

s with the goal of breaking through the blockade, and after being engaged by the Athenian navy, he was able to reach Byzantium after losing three ships. Byzantium was besieged and he travelled to Asia-Minor seeking money and more support from Pharnabazus. His severity and rationing of food for his soldiers, however, made him unpopular, and in his absence the gates were opened to the Athenians under Alcibiades. When he returned to Sparta, Clearchus was put on trial and fined for this loss. He was present at the Battle of Arginusae and the Spartan commander Callicratidas claimed that if he died, Clearchus was most suited to take his place. After the final defeat of Athens, Clearchus returned to Sparta and appealed to the ephors, asking to be given a force to settle the political dissensions then rife at Byzantium and to protect the city and the neighboring Greek colonies from Thracian attacks. He was granted that force, but when the ephors learned that the citizens of Byzantium considered him a tyrant, they recalled him through a messenger that reached Clearchus while he was still in the Isthmus of Corinth. Clearchus ignored the messenger and proceeded to Byzantium, and thus he was instantly declared an outlaw by the ephors. He fought the Thracian tribes successfully, in the process gaining the unofficial support of the Greek cities that were thus relieved. Clearchus, counting on his successes to gain him back the Spartan ephors' good graces, was ultimately disappointed in this expectation. After taking control of Byzantium, he ordered the execution of the chief magistrates, and had some of the wealthiest citizens strangled while he seized all their property. Sparta commanded him to leave Byzantium, but after he refused to, they sent an army to drive him out. When

Cyrus Cyrus () is a Persian-language masculine given name. It is historically best known as the name of several List of monarchs of Iran, Persian kings, most notably including Cyrus the Great, who founded the Achaemenid Empire in 550 BC. It remains wid ...

learned that a Greek force in high fighting condition was so near Asia, he sent ambassadors with money (10,000 Persian darics) asking Clearchus to help him claim the throne from his brother, the Persian Emperor Artaxerxes II Mnemon. Clearchus accepted not because of the money but because he knew that sooner or later he would have to face his fellow Spartans since he was still considered an outlaw by the ephors. He left the command of the garrison of Byzantium to Helixus of Megara (see Coeratadas).

The Ten Thousand

In the "

Expedition of the Ten Thousand Expedition may refer to: * An exploration, journey, or voyage undertaken by a group of people especially for discovery and scientific research Places * Expedition Island, a park in Green River, Wyoming, US * Expedition Range, a mountain range in ...

" undertaken by Cyrus to dethrone his brother Artaxerxes, Clearchus led the Peloponnesian contingent of the Ten Thousand, who formed the right wing of Cyrus's army at the Battle of Cunaxa (401 BC). He was instructed to attack the enemy center, but instead moved forward and pushed back the enemy's left wing, leaving Cyrus' flank vulnerable. Cyrus charged the enemy center and was killed in battle. On Cyrus's death Clearchus assumed the overall command of the Ten Thousand and conducted the retreat of the army, aiming to fall back to the

Tigris The Tigris ( ; see #Etymology, below) is the eastern of the two great rivers that define Mesopotamia, the other being the Euphrates. The river flows south from the mountains of the Armenian Highlands through the Syrian Desert, Syrian and Arabia ...

river while parleying with the Persians. He was invited to a banquet by the

Lydia Lydia (; ) was an Iron Age Monarchy, kingdom situated in western Anatolia, in modern-day Turkey. Later, it became an important province of the Achaemenid Empire and then the Roman Empire. Its capital was Sardis. At some point before 800 BC, ...

and Ionia and general for Artaxerxes, Tissaphernes, but he and his party were arrested and sent to the royal court at Babylon, where he was executed on the orders of Queen Stateira.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Clearchus of Sparta Ancient Spartan generals Ancient Greek mercenaries 5th-century BC Spartans Year of birth uncertain 401 BC deaths Proxenoi Ancient Greek garrison commanders Spartan hegemony Ancient Greek tyrants Ten Thousand-ancient mercenaries People executed by the Achaemenid Empire Spartans of the Peloponnesian War 450s BC births