The Battle of Lechaeum (391 BC) was an Athenian victory in the Corinthian War. In the battle, the Athenian general Iphicrates took advantage of the fact that a Spartan hoplite regiment operating near Corinth was moving in the open without the protection of any missile throwing troops. He decided to ambush it with his force of spear throwers, or peltasts. By launching repeated hit-and-run attacks against the Spartan formation, Iphicrates and his men were able to wear the Spartans down, eventually routing them and killing just under half. This marked the first occasion in Greek military history on which a force entirely made up of peltasts had defeated a force of hoplites (heavy infantry). Combatants Sparta and Peloponnesian League Athens, Argos, Corinth, Thebes, and allies Commanders Agesilaus and others Numerous Strength Casualties {{{notes}}} The Corinthian War was an ancient conflict fought between 395 BC and 387 BC. In the course of it a number of Greek city states challenged the hegemony that Sparta had... Temple of Apollo at Corinth Corinth, or Korinth (Κόρινθος; see also List of traditional Greek place names) is a Greek city, on the Isthmus of Corinth, the narrow stretch of land that joins the Peloponnesus to the mainland of Greece. ... Athens (Greek: Αθήνα Athína IPA ) is the capital of Greece and one of the most famous cities in the world. ... Sparta (Σπάρτη) was a city in ancient Greece, whose territory included, in Classical times, all Laconia and Messenia, and which was the most powerful state of the Peloponnesus. ... Iphicrates (d. ... A peltast was a type of light infantry in Ancient Greece who often served as skirmishers. ... A hoplite armed with a spear. ... Combatants Sparta and Peloponnesian League Athens, Argos, Corinth, Thebes, and allies Commanders Agesilaus and others Numerous Strength Casualties {{{notes}}} The Corinthian War was an ancient conflict fought between 395 BC and 387 BC. In the course of it a number of Greek city states challenged the hegemony that Sparta had... Athens (Greek: Αθήνα Athína IPA ) is the capital of Greece and one of the most famous cities in the world. ... Iphicrates (d. ... Sparta (Σπάρτη) was a city in ancient Greece, whose territory included, in Classical times, all Laconia and Messenia, and which was the most powerful state of the Peloponnesus. ... A hoplite armed with a spear. ... Temple of Apollo at Corinth Corinth, or Korinth (Κόρινθος; see also List of traditional Greek place names) is a Greek city, on the Isthmus of Corinth, the narrow stretch of land that joins the Peloponnesus to the mainland of Greece. ... A peltast was a type of light infantry in Ancient Greece who often served as skirmishers. ...

Prelude

In 392 BC, a civil war had taken place at Corinth, in which a group of pro-Spartan oligarchs was defeated and exiled by anti-Spartan democrats. Those exiles cooperated with Spartan forces in the region to gain control of Corinth's port on the Corinthian Gulf, Lechaeum. They then beat off several attacks on the port by the democrats at Corinth and their Theban and Argive allies and secured their hold over the port.^[1] The Battle of Haliartus was fought in 395 BC between Sparta and Thebes. ... Combatants Sparta Thebes Argos Athens Corinth Commanders Aristodemus Unknown Strength 18,000 hopites 24,000 hoplites Casualties 1,100 dead or wounded 2,800 dead or wounded {{{notes}}} The Battle of Nemea (394 BC) was a battle in the Corinthian War, between Sparta and the allied cities of Argos, Athens... At the Battle of Cnidus (394 BC), the Persian fleet, led by the former Athenian admiral Conon, utterly destroyed the Spartan fleet of Peisander, ending Spartas brief bid for naval supremacy. ... At the Battle of Coronea (394 BC), Spartan forces under Agesilaus II defeated the Thebans. ... At the Battle of Naxos (376 BC) the Athenian fleet of Chabrias defeated the Spartans. ... Combatants Thebes Sparta Commanders Epaminondas Cleombrotus I † Strength 6,000–7,000 10,000–11,000 Casualties Unknown About 2,000 {{{notes}}} Leuctra was a vildlage of Boeotia in the territory of Thespiae, chiefly noticeable for the battle fought in its neighborhood in 371 BC between the Thebans and the... Combatants Thebes, Arcadia and Boeotia League Sparta, Elis, and Mantinea league Commanders Epaminondas† Agesilaus II Strength Casualties {{{notes}}} The Battle of Mantinea was fought in 362 BC between the Thebans, led by Epaminondas and supported by the Arcadians and the Boeotians, and the Spartans, led by King Agesilaus II and... Oligarchy is a political regime where most or all political power effectively rests with a small segment of society (typically the most powerful, whether by wealth, family, military strength, ruthlessness, or political influence). ... The Gulf of Corinth is the body of water separating Peloponnese from western mainland Greece. ... Lechaio (Greek Modern: Λέχαιο, Ancient/Katharevousa: -n), also: Lecheo or Leheo older form: Lechaion, Leheon, Lechaeum, Lekhaion is a community in the municipality of Assos-Lechaio in Corinthia. ... For the ancient capital of Upper Egypt, see Thebes, Egypt. ... Argos (Greek: Άργος, Árgos, IPA argos) is a city in Greece in the Peloponnese near Nafplio, which was its historic harbor, named for Nauplius. ...

The Athenians then sent out a force to assist in garrisoning Corinth, with Iphicrates commanding the peltasts. The Spartans and the exiles, meanwhile, raided Corinthian territory from Lechaeum, and in 391, Agesilaus brought a large Spartan army to the area and attacked a number of strong points, winning a number of successes. The Athenians and their allies were largely bottled up in Corinth, but eventually found an opportunity to take advantage of Spartan negligence.^[2]

The battle

While Agesilaus moved about Corinthian territory with the bulk of his army, he left a sizable force at Lechaeum to guard the port. Part of this force at Lechaeum was composed of men from the city of Amyclae, who traditionally returned home for a certain religious festival when on campaign. With this festival approaching, the Spartan commander at Lechaeum marched out with a force of hoplites and cavalry to escort the Amyclaeans past Corinth on their way home. After successfully leading his force well past the city, the commander ordered his hoplites to turn and return to Lechaeum, while the cavalry continued on with the Amyclaeans. Although he would be marching near the walls of the city with his force, he expected no trouble, believing that the men in the city were thoroughly cowed and unwilling to march out. // Historical population Amykles or Amikles (Greek: Αμύκλες, older form, polytonic: Ἀμύκλαι, monotonic: Αμύκλαι), older forms: Amyklai, Amykle, Amiklai and Amikle, Latin: Amyclae, is a village and an archaeological site located southwest of Sparta. ...

The Athenian commanders in the city, Iphicrates, who commanded the peltasts, and Callias, who commanded the hoplites, saw that an entire Spartan mora, or regiment, of 600 men was marching past the city unprotected by either peltasts or cavalry, and decided to take advantage of this fact. Accordingly, the Athenian hoplites drew up a little outside Corinth, while the peltasts went after the Spartan force in pursuit, flinging spears at the Spartan hoplites.

To stop this, the Spartan commander ordered some of his men to charge the Athenians, but the peltasts fell back, easily outrunning the hoplites, and then, when the Spartans turned to return to the regiment, the peltasts fell upon them, flinging spears at them as they fled, and killing a number. This process was repeated several times, with similar results. Even when a group of Spartan cavalrymen arrived, the Spartan commander made the curious decision that they should keep pace with the hoplites in pursuit, instead or racing ahead to ride down the fleeing peltasts. Unable to drive off the peltasts, and suffering losses all the while, the Spartans were driven back to a hilltop overlooking Lechaeum. The men in Lechaeum, seeing their predicament, sailed out in small boats to as close as to the hill as they could reach, about a half mile away. The Athenians, meanwhile, began to bring up their hoplites, and the Spartans, seeing these two developments, broke and ran for the boats, pursued by the peltasts all the way. All in all, in the fighting and pursuit, 250 of the 600 men in the regiment were killed.^[3]

Aftermath

This battle marked the first occasion in Greek history on which a hoplite force had been defeated by a force of peltasts.^[4] News of the Spartan defeat, accordingly, was a profound shock to Agesilaus, who soon returned home to Sparta.^[5] In the months following his departure, Iphicrates reversed many of the gains that the Spartans had made near Corinth, recapturing forts and strong points that the Spartans had previously seized and garrisoned. He also launched several successful raids against Spartan allies in the region. Although the Spartans and their oligarchic allies continued to hold Lechaeum for the duration of the war, they curtailed their operations around Corinth, and no further major fighting occurred in the region.^[6]

References

• Fine, John V.A. The Ancient Greeks: A critical history (Harvard University Press, 1983) ISBN 0674033140
• Xenophon, Hellenica

Xenophon (In Greek , c. ...

Footnotes