Was Themistocles really a traitor?

Themistocles died between the years 455-450 BC while he was tyrant of Magnesia, a Greek city in Ionia, Minor Asia. He was accused by all available ancient sources for collaboration with the Persians. However, this widely accepted story includes several discrepancies that deserve to be studied.

Themistocles was ostracized in 471-470 BC and left to Argos. We do not know how long he stayed there, but he was forced to abandon Argos when he was accused by the combined Spartans and Athenians for negotiations with Persia. Then he traveled mostly to the Western Greece until he finally escaped to Persia when Artaxerxes had become king (according to Thucydides) or Xerxes was still king (according to Diodorus). If we accept the first (more popular version), Themistocles arrived in Minor Asia after 464 BC.

This story fails to take into account the well-known fact that in 468 BC, Sparta was devastated by a terrible earthquake, which resulted in a ten-year war against the helots who revolted. Under these circumstances, it is hard to believe that the Spartans run after Themistocles while they were involved in a life-or-death war. Therefore, the only acceptable scenario is that Themistocles arrived in Minor Asia when Xerxes was still a king as Diodorus writes. This means that his traveling throughout Kerkyra, Epirus, Macedonia, and the Aegean took place in 4-6 months. This is a short time but not impossible. Therefore we have to assume that Themistocles had to negotiate with Xerxes himself. That would be a much tougher task than discussing with Artaxerxes. This story has another weak point: Xerxes was assassinated in 465-464 BC by his confidential advisor, Artapanus. Then Artapanus also convinced or helped Artaxerxes to kill his brother Darius, who was the legitimate heir to the throne. A civil war broke up in Persia and the turmoil lasted for about two years. No account of these facts is included in Themistocles’ story.

Another claim of the ancient historians raising questions is Themistocles’ appointment by the Persian king as satrap of Magnesia, Myus, and Lampsacus. Magnesia was a rich Ionian city. It is known that all Ionia joined the Delian League after the battle of Evrymedon (469 BC). If Themistocles was indeed a fugitive, he was in great danger to be captured when he was sent there. Even if it is accepted that Magnesia was under Persian rule as a city located upstream the river Meander, Myus was a harbor just a few kilometers away from Miletus in the bay of Meander. Moreover, Lampsacus was a city at the Asiatic coast of Hellespont. It is hard to believe that in the second half of the 60’s the Athenians would allow Persian presence in Hellespont. Therefore, Themistocles’ “satrapy” appeared to be inside the region controlled by the Delian League!

While being “satrap” of Magnesia, Themistocles issued coins with his head on the one side and his initials ΘΕ on the other. No sign of submission to the Persian king exists on these coins. Later, Persian satraps issued their own coinage, but this happened at the end of the 5^th century. At the time of Themistocles, the Daric was the only coin allowed in the Persian Empire.

When Themistocles died he was buried in a monument at the center of the agora of Magnesia and he was receiving a hero’s honors. It would be very peculiar for the Magnesians to honor a Persian satrap in that way! The monument remained in Magnesia at least until the Roman times. A local governor of the time of Antoninus Pius issued a series of medals or coins depicting the sculpture which was decorating the monument. On one of them Themistocles is presented in godlike nudity with a patera (bowl) in his hand and a slain bull at his feet. This sculpture was probably responsible for the legend that he committed suicide by drinking bull’s blood.

The legend that he fell in disfavor to the Persian king and committed suicide to avoid helping the Persians against Athens is in direct contradiction with the fact that he was succeeded in the throne of Magnesia by his son Archepolis. Archepolis also issued his own coinage.

Although Plutarch is not a trustworthy historical source, since he is more a novel writer than a historian, he is particularly detailed with respect to the personal lives of the personalities he wrote about. Plutarch gives the following information about Themistocles’ family condition: Themistocles left three sons by Archippe, daughter to Lysander of Alopece,- Archepolis, Poleuctus, and Cleophantus. Plato, the philosopher, mentions the last as a most excellent horseman, but otherwise insignificant person; of two sons yet older than these, Neocles and Diocles, Neocles died when he was young by the bite of a horse, and Diocles was adopted by his grandfather, Lysander. He had many daughters, of whom Mnesiptolema, whom he had by a second marriage, was wife to Archepolis, her brother by another mother; Italia was married to Panthoides, of the island of Chios; Sybaris to Nicomedes the Athenian. After the death of Themistocles, his nephew, Phrasicles, went to Magnesia, and married, with her brothers' consent, another daughter, Nicomache, and took charge of her sister Asia, the youngest of all the children. (Plutarch, Themistocles 32). It is clear that Themistocles was accompanied by his family in Magnesia and that some of his family members traveled back and forth to Athens. Moreover, none of the children married a Persian or even a Lydian.

Therefore, there are strong indications that Themistocles arrived in Minor Asia not as a fugitive but as an adventurer and he managed to take over the power in Magnesia. He was an independent ruler rather than a Persian satrap. If this is true, his trip to Susa is fictitious. Similarly, his alleged negotiations with the Persian king, either Xerxes or Artaxerxes, were fabricated. Such a possibility is not improbable considering that Themistocles had many enemies who would not hesitate to spread around false stories about him.

Reference

http://www.amazon.co.uk/507-450-B-C-years-which-Democracy-ebook/dp/B00EN0H1R8