A righte noble and pleasant history of the successors of Alexander surnamed the Great, taken out of Diodorus Siculus: and some of their lives written by the wise Plutarch. Translated out of French into Englysh. by Thomas Stocker

¶Antigone vanquisheth Eumenes and besiegeth the Citie of Nore.

The .xvij. Chapter.

WHen Antigone (as aforesaid) was nominated and appointed generall to go into Asie against Eume∣nes, and had gotten together his men of warre which lay in garrison, to winter, and made ready al things necessarie for warre, he tooke his iourney against Eumenes abiding in Cappadoce. It fortuned that season that Perdicas, one of Eumenes Captaynes, rebelled & led away .iij. thou∣sand footemen and .v. hundred horse, with whom he had en∣camped and enpalled in a strong place thrée dayes iourneis from him. Wherfore Eumenes sent against him an other of his Captaynes named Tenede a Phenician, to whome he deliuered foure thousande footemen of the best and most trained Souldiers he had, and two thousande horse: who with such diligēce sped him, that sodenly about midnight, when they were all at rest and a sléepe, he stole vppon the said rebelles, and tooke Perdicas and brought him backe to Eumenes, together the men of warre with him, who accor∣ding to the qualitie of the offence, punished the chiefe and principal procurers of that conspiracy, and deuided the rest by their bands, reconciling them with giftes and faire pro∣misses.

In this meane time had Antigone secretly sent to A∣pollonide generall of Eumenes, horse to betraie him, whom at last through large promisses he corrupted, promising y^t whensoeuer they came to battaill, he would retier to An∣tigone and reuolt from Eumenes. It happened that Eume∣nes encamped in the middest of a large and great playne

of Cappadoce, bycause he would be the better ayded and suc∣coured with his horse. And Antigone encamped at the foote of the hill ioyning vpon the saide playne. Nowe had Antigone in his hoste, about ten thousand footemē the bet∣ter halfe Macedonians, notable and valiaunt Souldiers, and in martiall factes greatly experimented, two thousand horse, and thirtie Elephauntes. But Eumenes had not many lesse than twentie thousand footemen, and as many horsemen. Anone, they ioyned battaill, and whiles they were in the chiefe fight, Apollonide with his horse reuol∣ted and turned to Antigone, who then wanne the victorie, so that there were slayne on Eumenes parte, about eight thousande Souldiers, besides the rifling and spoyling of the Camp, which was verie riche. Whereupon Eumenes his Souldiers that dyd escape, séeing (besides the losse of the fielde, their friendes and compaignions) that they had also lost their goodes, they became verie desperate and out of harte.

When Eumenes sée his Soldiers in this disorder, he de∣termined to flye towards Armenie, trusting to get certayn Soldiers there which would take his part and helpe him. Agayne, séeing the enimie sore distresse him, and the grea∣ter numbre of his Souldiers yeld to Antigone, he retired into a litle strong Towne called Nore,* 1.1 situate on a rocke, and not aboue two furlongs compasse. But by reason of the strength of the seat, and the fortification and strong buylding thereof, it was of maruelous strength and force, and had bene of long furnished with all things necessarie to abide a siege.

Into the same Towne retired Eumenes with fiue hun∣dred Souldiers, which dearly loued him, all determined to spill their blouds in his seruice. When Antigone sée his power waxe strong, by reason of Eumenes Souldiers, which daylie repaired to him, and that he had wonne his Countreys, and exacted on them great stoare of mo∣ney, he reuolued in his minde many notable and worthy

enterprises, séeing right well that none of the Satrapies nor Captaynes of Asie, were able to contend against him for the Principality. Notwithstanding, he all that while dissi∣muled the matter vntill he had well assured all his affay∣res with Antipater whome he serued and obeyed: but his meaning was, that after he had takē order & gone through with that businesse according to his promisse & allegeance, then neyther to be subiect to him or the Kings. But first he besieged Eumenes & his people within the towne of Nore, & enuironed it with a double wall, great ditches and déepe trenches. After that he parled with Eumenes, to whome he began to recompt the olde acquaintaunce and great ami∣tie betwéene them of long had: persuading him to ioyne with him in all his affaires & businesse. But Eumenes (all∣though he sée the sodayne chaunging and alteration of his fortune) demaunded greater and larger requests than the daunger or necessity of the place required or deserued. For first he asked pardon of all he had perpetrated and done: agayne he would that those Satrapies which he before held and enioyed, should be restored vnto him. Whom Antigo∣ne aunswered, that he would aduertise Antipater of those his demaundes. But after he sée he could not win him to be of his faction, he left behind him at the siege such a num∣bre of Souldiers as he thought would suffise, and him self went against Alcete and Attale. During whiche time Eu∣menes sent his Ambassadoures to Antipater, among whom Ierome (who writ y^e histories of the successours of Alex∣ander) was chiefest.* 1.2 And although Eumenes sée him selfe in this miserie and so distressed: yet would not his hart yeld, for he had experimēted so many chaunges of fortune, that still he hoped out of hande to sée an other chaunge to his great aduauncement and honour. For he considered that y^e Kings had no more but the title & name only, and y^e ma∣ny noble & mighty Princes which there gouerned, always cōsidered & regarded their priuate and singular honor and estate royall, for the vsurpation of the whole regiment and

principalitie. Wherefore he thought (& he was therin not deceyued) that many of those Princes shoulde haue great néed of him, bycause he was not only a man of great wise∣dome and vertue, and notably experimented in martiall pollicies, but also faithfull and constant. And as he thus lay attending the occasiō and oportunitie of time, and sée∣ing he could not exercise his horses by reason of y^e straight∣nesse of the place, he bethought him of a new kinde and fa∣shion of exercise, to the end they should not be vnbreathed with still lying. First, he caused their forepartes to be tied vp with yron chaynes so hye, that the horses (do what they could) were not able to touch the planks with the tippe of their houes before, whereupon they striuing to set their fore féete on the planchers, aswell as their hindre féete, la∣boured so sore, that they were dryuē into a watery sweat, by which deuise they were alwayes in breath, able to tra∣uail, and yet neuer come out of the stable. He also made such deuision of his victuals amongs the Souldiers, that euery man had as great portion as him selfe, or rather a greater, so that he still wanne their good wills and fauour. In this estate were Eumenes and his men.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Nore.
• * 1.2

  Ierome the Historian.