A Dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology. By various writers. Ed. by William Smith. Illustrated by numerous engravings on wood.

XERXES. XERXES. 1305
hluman life and human labour to gratify the caprice sea forces amounted to 2,641,610 fighting men.
and magnify the power of an Eastern despot, than This does not include the attendants, the slaves,
simply a military force collected for the conquest the crews of the provision ships, &c., which accordof a formidable enemy. The cutting of the canal ing to the supposition of Herodotus were more ill
through Mount Athos has been rejected as a false- number than the fighting men; but supposing them
hood by numerous writers both ancient and modern. to have been equal, the total number of male
Juvenal speaks of it (x. 174) as a specimen of persons who accompanied Xerxes to Thermopylae
Greek mendacity, reach the astounding figure of 5,283,2! In
" creditur olimaddition to this, there were the eunus, concubines
modaxt land feimalcooks, of whom no one coulbtTiTnhe
Velificatus Athos, et quidquid Graecia mendax and female cooks, of whom no one -coultellthe
VAudet in historias, et" quidquid Graeciaamount, nor that of the beasts of burthen, cattle
aid Indian dogs. (Herod. vii. 184-187.)
and Niebuhr denies it most positively as a thing Such vast numbers seem incredible, and have led
quite incomprehensible. ( Vortriie ifiber alte Ges- many writers to impeach either the veracity or the
chichlte, vol. i. p. 403.) But since it is evident that good sense of the historian. They are rejected
Herodotus went in person over the whole ground altogether by Niebuhr in his Lectures on Ancient
traversed by the Persian army, the mere fact that History, who asserts that it is impossible that the
he gives a most minute description of this canal seventh book of Herodotus can be an historical
(vii. 37) ought to convince every one of its exist- relation, and considers it as founded on the epic
ence even without any further evidence, since he poem of Choerilus. On the other hand, Heeren is
certainly never said that he saw what he did not disposed to receive the numerical. totals of Herosee. There are, however, the most distinct traces dotus without question. The view which Mr. Grote
of it at the present day, as.is shown by Lieutenant takes is more cautious and is characterized by his
Wolfe, who has given an account of its present usual good sense- and critical acumen. As the
condition in the article " Athos" which he wrote subject has occasioned so much controversy, his
in the " Penny Cyclopaedia." remarks deserve to be quoted at length. " To
In the autumn of B. C. 481 Xerxes arrived at admit this overwhelming total, or anything near to
Sardis, and early in the spring of the following it, is obviously impossible: yet the disparaging
year commenced his march towards the Helles- remarks which it has drawn down upon Herodotus
pont. So great' was the number of the army are no way merited. He takes pains to distinguish
that it was seven days and seven nights in crossing that which informants told him, from that which
the bridges without a moment of intermission. The he merely guessed. His description of the review
march was continued through the Thracian Cher- at Doriscus is so detailed, that he had evidently
sonese till it reached the plain of Doriscus, which conversed with persons who were present at it,
is near the sea, and is traversed by the river and had learnt the separate totals promulgated by
Hebrus. The army was here joined by the fleet, the enumerators - infantry, cavalry, and ships of
which had not entered the Hellespont, but had war, great and small. As to the number of
sailed westward round the southernmost promon- triremes, his statement seems beneath the truth,
tory of the Thracian Chersonese. At this plain as we may judge from the contemporary authority
Xerxes resolved to number both his land and naval of Aeschylus, who in the " Persae " gives the exact
forces. The mode employed for numbering the number of 1207 Persian ships as having fought at
foot soldiers was remarkable. Ten thousand men Salamis: but between Doriscus and Salamis Herowere first numbered and packed together as closely dotus has himself enumerated 647 ships as lost or
as they could stand; a line was drawn and a wall destroyed, and only 120 as added. N/ exaggerabuilt round the place they had occupied, into which tion therefore can well be suspected in this stateall the soldiers entered successively, till the whole ment, which would imply about 276,000 as the
army was thus measured. There were found to number of the crews, though there is here a conbe a hundred and seventy of these divisions, thus fuson or omission in the narrative which we canmaking a total of 1,700,000 foot. Besides these not clear up. But the aggregate of 3000 smaller
there were 80,000 horse, and many war-chariots ships, and still more that of 1,700,000 infantry,
and camels, with about 20,000 men. Herodotus are far less trustworthy. There would be little or
has left us a most minute and interesting catalogue no motive for the enumerators to be exact, and
of the nations comprising this mighty army with every motive for them to exaggerate-an immense
their various military equipments and different nominal total would be no less pleasing to the
modes of fighting. The land forces contained army than to the monarch himself — so that the
forty-six nations. (Herod. vii. 61, foll.) The fleet military total of land-force and ships' crews which
consisted of 1207 triremes, and 3000 smaller vessels. Herodotus gives as 2,641,000 on the arrival at
Each trireme was manned by 200 rowers and 30 Thermopylae, may be dismissed as unwarrantable
fighting men; and each of the accompanying vessels and incredible.....Weighing the circumstances of
carried 80 men according to the calculation of the case well, and considering that this army was
Herodotus. Thus the naval force would amount the result of a maximum of effort throughout the
to 517,610. The whole armament, both military vast empire - that a great numerical total was the
and naval, which passed over from Asia to Doriscus, thing chiefly demanded.- and that prayers for
would accordingly amount to 2,317,610 men. Nor exemption were regarded by the great king as a
was this all. In his march from Doriscus to Ther- capital offence —and that provisions had been
mopylae, Xerxes received a still further accession collected for three years before along the line of
of strength. The Thracian tribes, the Macedonians, march - we may well believe that the numbers of
and the other nations in Europe whose territories Xerxes were greater than were ever assembled in
he traversed supplied 300,000 men, and 120 tri- ancient times, or perhaps at any known epoch of
remes containing an aggregate of 24,000 men. history. But it would be rash to pretend to guess
Thus when he reached Thermopylae the land and - at any positive number, in the entire absence of