Mediterranean Hegemon of Ancient Greece Chapter 1149: Sparta in Peril

The helot village chiefs were already shedding tears of gratitude toward Daionia for their freedom. Now, learning they would also become high-ranking officials of this new city-state, they were overjoyed. With no further hesitation, they readily agreed to every suggestion from their Daionian compatriots. They even took the initiative to propose that the Committee of Generals be staffed entirely by the men from Daionia, recognizing their broader experience and superior knowledge in governing a state.

The men from Daionia naturally did not decline. Five generals were swiftly selected, with Senator Tisias of the Kingdom of Daunia taking the position of chief.

Ionicus watched all of this unfold from the sidelines. Though he noticed a few underlying motives, he dared not cause any trouble. Having witnessed Daionia's terrifyingly powerful naval and ground forces firsthand, along with their flawless military logistics, he truly recognized the fearsome might of this kingdom from the western Mediterranean.

To his surprise, Tisias soon approached him with a clear offer: as long as he was willing to join Messenia, the council would reserve a seat for him.

Ionicus deliberated for quite some time before finally agreeing. Although he had grown up in Elis, he wielded little influence in its council and had never held a vital position. The reason was an unspoken open secret: he was a Messenian immigrant.

However, he raised one condition: he wished to bring several close friends—fellow Messenian immigrants from Elis—to join this new city-state and become members of the council as well.

Tisias agreed.

Ionicus immediately requested a fast galley from the 1st Fleet and hurriedly sailed back to Elis.

The new Messenian government, led by Tisias, pushed forward a rapid succession of laws. Not only would all helots within Messenia's borders gain their freedom, but they would also become citizens of New Messenia and receive land allotments. With the assistance of the village chiefs, the council members from Daionia would confirm and register the population and land in every village to prepare for the upcoming distribution.

A Greek city-state also required a patron deity. The original patron god of the Messenians was Zeus, but Tisias and his colleagues easily convinced the village chiefs to abandon this faith. The Messenians had lost three successive wars in the past, proving that Zeus had never blessed them. Out of gratitude and trust toward Daionia, the citizens of New Messenia unanimously decided to seek the protection of Hades. At the same time, the council decided to erect statues and hold sacrifices honoring Aristodemus and Aristomenes, the heroes who had once led the people in rebellion against Sparta.

The council also decided to dispatch envoys to the city-states of the Peloponnese Peninsula, announcing Messenia's independence to gain their support. Sparta, naturally, was excluded from this...

...

While a joyous atmosphere filled the Messenian plains, a grim cloud of despair hung over the Spartan territory on the other side of Mount Taygetus. The shock of the Spartans' defeat at the Battle of Leuctra had yet to pass, and now an even greater catastrophe had suddenly struck—Messenia had been taken.

Messenia was extremely important to Sparta. Six-tenths of the city-state's agricultural output came from there, and half of the Spartan citizens' land allotments were located there. Furthermore, the bulk of Sparta's labor force was drawn from Messenia... Losing this territory slashed Sparta's strength by at least half.

Yet upon learning of its capture, the typically vengeful Spartans did not immediately muster an army to march on Messenia. Sparta was already teetering in the wind. They had previously resolved to launch an expedition against the Mantineia-led Arcadian League, but only a handful of their Peloponnesian allies had answered the call. Consequently, the Allied Forces meant to strike at the Arcadian League were still unformed, suffering from a severe shortage of rations and supplies. Under such abysmal circumstances, Sparta simply lacked the strength to confront the far more formidable Daionian Army.

In the Council of Elders, the ephors and elders fiercely cursed Daionia's treachery, but they remained helpless in the face of Sparta's current plight.

Agesilaus, who had attended the meeting despite his illness, also flew into a rage. He denounced their short-sightedness: they had known perfectly well that Daionia harbored long-standing hostility toward Sparta, yet they had ignored his repeated warnings and prematurely terminated the Friendship Agreement. As a result, Thebes had seized the opportunity to ally with Daionia, ensuring that the threat Davos had made against Sparta over a decade ago—the capture of Messenia—had now become a reality.

Several elders retorted, pointing out that Agesilaus had been an equally active proponent of Sparta seeking Persian support to swiftly end the war with Thebes. Therefore, he should understand that if Sparta had not severed its ties with Daionia, it could never have gained the King of Persia's trust. The Council of Elders had only made that final decision out of absolute necessity.

Aside from the ephors, the elders were all men of advanced age who would not waste their energy on endless, pointless bickering. It did not take long for everyone to calm down and tensely discuss how to resolve the colossal threat now facing Sparta.

As the city-state on the Greek Mainland with the most frequent dealings with Daionia, they had a fair understanding of the strength of that kingdom on the Italian Peninsula. Conceding that the current Sparta could not stand against them, they naturally turned their desperate gaze toward Persia for aid.

Thus, Datis, the Persian envoy still lingering in the city, was invited to the assembly hall.

Upon learning that Daionia had dispatched troops and captured Messenia, Datis grew anxious. Rather than displaying arrogance, he immediately adopted a proactive stance. He had come to Sparta bearing a crucial mission, yet he had not only failed to realize the plan for Sparta to unify the Greek city-states, but had inadvertently caused a premature Daionian invasion of the Peloponnese. This threatened to ruin the King of Persia's strategic vision. He had to work hard to salvage the situation.

Datis first consoled the Spartans, urging them not to be too nervous. He assured them that Persia's gift of provisions, supplies, and 50 talents of Daric gold coins was already en route. He then promised to submit a formal request to the King of Persia, pleading for him to sponsor Sparta with even more silver and gold, while permitting Sparta to recruit soldiers in Asia Minor. This would allow them to swiftly assemble a massive army to repel the advancing Daionian Army. (The Battle of Leuctra had shaken Sparta's hegemony, and with the formation of the Arcadian League, most of Sparta's allies no longer answered their call to arms as actively as before. Consequently, the Spartans had to seek recruits in regions like Macedonia, Thrace, Ionia, and Asia Minor, which obviously required money.)

This eased the minds of the ephors and elders slightly, but they soon confronted their greatest problem: recruiting soldiers and raising an army took time. Meanwhile, the Daionian Army was already on the western side of Mount Taygetus, poised to invade Spartan territory at any moment.

Agesilaus offered a serious analysis: if the Daionian Army wished to attack Sparta, they had three available routes. The first was the central path, crossing over Mount Taygetus. However, the mountain's terrain was steep, and their own forces controlled the passes, making it very difficult for the Daionian Army to pass through. The second was the northern route, invading Sparta by marching through the Arcadia Region. But the city-states in the Arcadia Region had never had prior dealings with Daionia, and having just formed a league, they would likely not easily permit a massive foreign army to pass through their territory. The final option was the southern route, loading their troops onto ships to sail into the Laconian Gulf and land on the Spartan coast. According to the intelligence gathered from the warriors who had retreated from Messenia, Daionia possessed a massive number of transport ships and executed their landings with great speed. This route posed the greatest threat to Sparta.

Everyone agreed that Agesilaus made sense. After a round of discussion, the Council of Elders reached a final resolution: they would temporarily suspend their military operations against the Arcadian League and dispatch envoys to express goodwill. At the same time, they initiated an emergency military mobilization across their territory, strengthening coastal defenses and rushing to construct anti-landing facilities. They would also draft the young perioikoi and helots within their borders into the army...

Furthermore, the Council of Elders passed a special resolution directed at the helots: any helot who performed exceptionally well in the war would be granted their freedom.

Agesilaus also made a request to the Persian envoy Datis, hoping that Persia could dispatch a fleet to help Sparta defend the Laconian Gulf.

Datis readily agreed, promising to forward Sparta's request to the King of Persia.

Additionally, the Council of Elders decided to send envoys into Messenia. Beyond using the opportunity to scout the Daionian Army's next moves, their main objective was to use the guise of negotiations to stall the Daionian attack as much as possible, buying Sparta time to assemble its army.

This critical meeting regarding Sparta's survival dragged on until the afternoon. Dragging his exhausted body back home, Agesilaus immediately summoned Xenophon, who had been waiting at the estate, and gave him a brief summary of the council's proceedings.

Xenophon had felt deeply unsettled after learning the news that "the Daionian Army has landed on the coast of Elis" at his home the previous night. He had ridden for Sparta at the crack of dawn. Unfortunately, his residence was quite far away. By the time he arrived at Agesilaus's estate, the Spartans had already received the news that "Daionia's massive fleet has invaded the Messenian Gulf." Before Sparta could even dispatch reinforcements, the Daionian Army had already landed on the shores of Messenia.