Today's Passage
This passage describes the Battle of Idomene (426 BCE), a decisive engagement during the Peloponnesian War's northwestern Greek campaigns.
Crawley Translation (1910)
Meanwhile the Ambraciots from the city arrived at Idomene. Idomene consists of two lofty hills, the higher of which the troops sent on by Demosthenes succeeded in occupying after nightfall, unobserved by the Ambraciots, who had meanwhile ascended the smaller and bivouacked under it. After supper Demosthenes set out with the rest of the army, as soon as it was evening; himself with half his force making for the pass, and the remainder going by the Amphilochian hills. At dawn he fell upon the Ambraciots while they were still abed, ignorant of what had passed, and fully thinking that it was their own countrymen—Demosthenes having purposely put the Messenians in front with orders to address them in the Doric dialect, and thus to inspire confidence in the sentinels, who would not be able to see them as it was still night. In this way he routed their army as soon as he attacked it, slaying most of them where they were, the rest breaking away in flight over the hills. The roads, however, were already occupied, and while the Amphilochians knew their own country, the Ambraciots were ignorant of it and could not tell which way to turn, and had also heavy armour as against a light-armed enemy, and so fell into ravines and into the ambushes which had been set for them, and perished there. In their manifold efforts to escape some even turned to the sea, which was not far off, and seeing the Athenian ships coasting alongshore just while the action was going on, swam off to them, thinking it better in the panic they were in, to perish, if perish they must, by the hands of the Athenians, than by those of the barbarous and detested Amphilochians. Of the large Ambraciot force destroyed in this manner, a few only reached the city in safety; while the Acarnanians, after stripping the dead and setting up a trophy, returned to Argos.
Modern Translation
Meanwhile, the Ambraciot forces from the city had reached Idomene. This place consists of two high hills. The troops that Demosthenes had sent ahead managed to occupy the higher hill after dark without being detected by the Ambraciots, who had climbed the lower hill and made camp there. After the evening meal, Demosthenes moved out with the rest of his army as darkness fell. He personally led half the force toward the mountain pass, while the other half advanced through the Amphilochian hills. At daybreak, he attacked the Ambraciots while they were still sleeping, completely unaware of what had happened and convinced that the approaching troops were their own allies. Demosthenes had deliberately placed the Messenians at the front of his force, ordering them to speak in the Doric dialect to reassure the enemy sentries, who couldn't see clearly in the darkness. This strategy allowed him to overwhelm their army immediately upon contact, killing most of them where they lay while the survivors fled into the hills. However, the escape routes were already blocked. The Amphilochians knew their homeland well, but the Ambraciots were unfamiliar with the terrain and couldn't determine which direction to flee. Weighed down by heavy armor while facing light-armed enemies, they stumbled into ravines and pre-positioned ambushes where they met their deaths. In desperate attempts to escape, some even ran toward the sea nearby. Seeing Athenian ships sailing along the coast during the battle, they swam out to them, preferring in their terror to die at Athenian hands rather than those of the savage and hated Amphilochians. From this massive Ambraciot force that was destroyed, only a handful managed to reach their city safely. The Acarnanians stripped the dead bodies, erected a victory monument, and returned to Argos.
Historical Context
This passage describes the Battle of Idomene (426 BCE), a decisive engagement during the Peloponnesian War's northwestern Greek campaigns. The Athenian general Demosthenes, allied with the Acarnanians and Amphilochians, ambushed an Ambraciot army attempting to reinforce their compatriots. The battle showcases Demosthenes' tactical brilliance through deception and terrain exploitation. He used Messenian troops speaking the Doric dialect to confuse Ambraciot sentries in darkness, achieving complete surprise. This victory effectively ended Ambraciot expansion in the region and demonstrated Athens' ability to project power through local alliances rather than direct imperial force. The massacre's brutality reflects the intense regional hatreds that characterized much of the Peloponnesian War's peripheral conflicts.
Key Themes
Annotations & References
Doric Dialect Deception
The Doric dialect was spoken by Peloponnesians, including Messenians and Ambraciots. Demosthenes exploited this linguistic similarity for military deception, having Messenian allies pose as friendly forces. This tactic demonstrates how shared Greek dialects could be weaponized in warfare between poleis.
Learn more →Hoplite Warfare Limitations
The passage illustrates the vulnerability of heavily-armed hoplites in rough terrain against light-armed troops. The Ambraciots' heavy armor, typically advantageous in pitched battles, became a fatal liability when fleeing through unfamiliar mountainous territory.
Learn more →Amphilochian Argos
Amphilochian Argos was a strategic city in northwestern Greece, distinct from the more famous Argos in the Peloponnese. Control of this region was contested between Corinthian colonies like Ambracia and local peoples allied with Athens.
Learn more →Parallel Ancient Sources
Diodorus Siculus: Library of History (Book 12.60)
Diodorus provides a briefer account of Demosthenes' Acarnanian campaigns, emphasizing the strategic importance of preventing Peloponnesian influence in northwestern Greece.
Read passage →Xenophon: Hellenica (Book 1.2.18)
Xenophon describes a similar night attack using password deception during the later stages of the Peloponnesian War, showing the continued use of such tactics.
Read passage →Polybius: Histories (Book 4.57-58)
Polybius narrates night attacks in rough terrain during the Social War, emphasizing similar themes of local knowledge advantage and the vulnerability of heavy infantry.
Read passage →Discussion Questions
- How does Demosthenes' use of deception and linguistic manipulation reflect broader themes about the nature of Greek identity during the Peloponnesian War?
- What does the Ambraciots' desperate flight to Athenian ships reveal about the hierarchy of enmities in Greek interstate relations?
- How does this passage illustrate the importance of local knowledge and alliances in ancient warfare?
- To what extent does Thucydides present this massacre sympathetically or critically? What does this suggest about his historical methodology?