Great Naval Battles of the Ancient Greek World by Owen Rees

Author:Owen Rees
Language: eng
Format: epub, pdf
Publisher: Pen and Sword
Published: 2018-12-31T00:00:00+00:00

Map 10: Final battle of the Great Harbour of Syracuse

Aftermath

The loss of life and of ships for both sides was substantial. So shocking and categorical was this defeat that the Athenians even forgot to request the return of their war dead, breaking all military and religious protocol. Numerically, the Athenian fleet still held the advantage. Demosthenes pointed this out to Nicias, they had sixty triremes to the Syracusan’s fifty, and could try to contest the harbour once again. Nicias agreed and ordered a new assault, but the crews refused. They were so overcome with their defeat they did not believe success could ever be possible.

The Athenian commanders had to plan a different escape, this time over land. But Gylippus was prepared and left road blocks and ambushes to cut off the Athenians. The orderly retreat turned into a panicked rout and massacre. The Athenian army could not escape the Syracusan pursuit and, having lost more men in this single action than they had in the entire expedition to date, they were forced to surrender. The captives were taken to the quarries outside of Syracuse and held as prisoners, but Nicias and Demosthenes, as the Athenian commanders, were butchered, against the will of Gylippus.

For Athens, the defeat in Sicily was an unmitigated disaster. They had lost over 10,000 men, and hundreds of ships, as well as two of their best commanders. The defeat had revealed an innate weakness in Athenian naval tactics, one that could now be exploited by anybody. Back at home, they had dwindling resources, and no fleet capable of defending them indefinitely. To make matters even worse, the expedition had given rise to a renewed war with Sparta, who now held a fortified position in Attica. They did not have time to mourn their losses, they had a war that they needed to win, or at least try to survive.

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