Diodorus Siculus

BOOK XVIII - The Library of History



Page 580

CHAP. II.


Ptolemy gains Aegypt. Leagues with Antipater. Lysimachus enters Thrace. Leonatus comes to relieve Antipater, and is routed. The Grecians beaten at Sea. Perdiccas conquers Ariarathes Prince of Cappadocia; Crucifies him; Delivers the Province to Eumenes. The Grecians quite routed by Craterus and Antipater The Athenians at length submit after all the rest but the Aetolians. The End of the Lamian War. The War in Cyrene by Thimbro. Ophellas routs Thimbro. Cyrene gain'd by Ptolemy. Larinda Sack'd. The Destruction of the Isaurians by themselves. Perdiccas affects the Kingdom of Macedon; is oppos'd by Antigonus. The Aetolians block'd up by Craterus and Antipater. Antigonus discovers Perdiccas his Design. Peace made with the Aetolians. Perdiccas marches against Ptolemy into Aegypt.


IN Asia, Ptolemy, one of them that had a share in the Division of the Provinces, without any difficulty possess'd himself of Aegypt, and carry'd himself with great Mildness and winning Behaviour towards the People; and having a Treasure of Eight thousand Talents, rais'd an Army of Mercenaries: And many out of love flock'd to him upon the account of the Goodness of his Disposition.

He enter'd into League with Antipater, when he was assur'd that Perdiccas design'd to dispossess him of Aegypt.

At that time Lysmachus broke into some parts of Thrace, and found Seuthas, the King, Encamp'd with Twenty thousand Foot, and Eight thousand Horse. But Lysimachus (though he had not above Four thousand Foot, and only Two thousand Horse) was not affrighted with the Multitude of the Enemy: And though he was so much inferior in number, yet his Valour was such, that he enter'd into a hot and sharp Engagement, and after the loss of a great number of his Men (but many more of the Enemy's) he return'd to his Camp almost Victorious. Upon which, both Armies drew off the Field, and each made greater Preparations, in order to decide the Controversie by the Sword.

As for Leonatus, he promis'd speedy Aid to Antipater and the Macedonians, being sollicited by Hecateus, who was sent to him for that purpose. Landing therefore in Europe, as soon as he came into Macedonia, he rais'd a great number of Soldiers there, and having got together an Army of above Twenty thousand Foot, and Two thousand and Five hundred Horse, he march'd through Thessaly against the Enemy.

Hereupon, the Grecians drew off from the Siege and burnt their Tents, and sent away all their sick Men and heavy Baggage to Melitea: And with the rest of the Army (ready and prepar'd for Battel) march'd straight away, and met Leonatus his forces before Antipater had join'd him, and their two Armies were come up together. The Grecians in the whole were Two and twenty thousand Foot, (for the Aeolians were return'd home some time before, and many other of the Grecians were gone into their own Country) and as to their Horse (which were above Three thousand Five hundred) they fought together in one Body; amongst whom were Two thousand Thessalians, (Brave and Valiant Men) upon whom they most rely'd for the obtaining of the Victory. The Horse on both sides fought stoutly a long time, where the Thessalians by their extraordinary Valour at length prevailing, Leonatus, (though he fought with great Courage and Resolution) was driven and penn'd up within a Morass, and over-loaden with his Arms (after he had receiv'd many wounds) was there slain, and carry'd off dead by his own Men to the Carriages. The Greeks having now gain'd so famous a Victory (in which Menon the Thessalian commanded the Horse) the Macedonian Phalanx to avoid the Horse, withdrew out of the plain and open Field, and betook themselves to the steep and rocky Hills, and by the strength of the Places there, defended themselves.

However, the Thessalian Horse attempted to break in upon them, but through the Disadvantage of the Places, were not able to do any thing. The Grecians therefore being Masters of the Field, set up a Trophy, and left off all further pursuit. The next day, as soon as Antipater came up with his Troops, he join'd himself to the broken Army, and so all the Macedonians making one Camp, he took upon him the Management of the whole.


Previous Forward

Bibliotheca Historica


The first five books

The last ten books

Contents



Free Books


The Histories of Herodotus written in 440 BC is considered to be the founding work of history in Western literature. His history included stories and fables but he claimed to have traveled extensively and learned about many countries through direct observation.



The thesis of Stolen Legacy is that the Egyptians created what is wrongly called Greek philosophy. Dr. James argues that the African origin of Greek Philosophy is well known but rarely discussed. Ancient Greek historians such as Herodotus and Diodorus the Sicilian wrote in significant detail about the contributions of Egypt. Egyptian technology and libraries were unmatched and Greek philosophers such as Pythagoras and Plato studied there. The contribution of Africa to the intellectual foundation of modern knowledge is tremendous but unacknowledged.





The Library of History by Diodorus the Sicilian is one of the most highly regarded universal histories in antiquities. His work includes the history of Egypt, Asia, Africa, Greece and Europe. His book is a must read for research of ancient history.


Bible Study The King James Bible (kjv), World English Bible (web) and Bible in Basic English (bbe) are all examples of public domain books. The King James Bible (kjv) online uses the content from these books and open source software to enhance Bible study capabilities. The site includes the verse of the day, search tools, christian literature and links to related content. It demonstrates the use of open source to create a valuable service.