Socrates ( grc, Σωκράτης) (c. 436 BC – 401 BC) was a Greek mercenary general from

Achaea Achaea () or Achaia (), sometimes transliterated from Greek as Akhaia (, ''Akhaïa'' ), is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the region of Western Greece and is situated in the northwestern part of the Peloponnese peninsula. The ...

who traveled to

Persia Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

to fight at the

Battle of Cunaxa The Battle of Cunaxa was fought in the late summer of 401 BC between the Persian king Artaxerxes II and his brother Cyrus the Younger for control of the Achaemenid throne. The great battle of the revolt of Cyrus took place 70 km north of Baby ...

Xenophon Xenophon of Athens (; grc, wikt:Ξενοφῶν, Ξενοφῶν ; – probably 355 or 354 BC) was a Greek military leader, philosopher, and historian, born in Athens. At the age of 30, Xenophon was elected commander of one of the biggest Anci ...

describes him as brave in war and a reliable friend. Socrates was summoned by

Cyrus Cyrus (Persian: کوروش) is a male given name. It is the given name of a number of Persian kings. Most notably it refers to Cyrus the Great ( BC). Cyrus is also the name of Cyrus I of Anshan ( BC), King of Persia and the grandfather of Cyrus t ...

, with whom he was already connected, to bring as many troops as he could muster under the pretense that Cyrus intended to attack

Tissaphernes Tissaphernes ( peo, *Ciçafarnāʰ; grc-gre, Τισσαφέρνης; xlc, 𐊋𐊆𐊈𐊈𐊀𐊓𐊕𐊑𐊏𐊀 , ; 445395 BC) was a Persian soldier and statesman, Satrap of Lydia and Ionia. His life is mostly known from the works of Thucy ...

. Socrates had previously been besieging

Miletus Miletus (; gr, Μῑ́λητος, Mī́lētos; Hittite transcription ''Millawanda'' or ''Milawata'' (exonyms); la, Mīlētus; tr, Milet) was an ancient Greek city on the western coast of Anatolia, near the mouth of the Maeander River in a ...

alongside Pasion the Megarian. Socrates brought Cyrus about 500

hoplite Hoplites ( ) ( grc, ὁπλίτης : hoplítēs) were citizen-soldiers of Ancient Greece, Ancient Greek Polis, city-states who were primarily armed with spears and shields. Hoplite soldiers used the phalanx formation to be effective in war with ...

s.Xenophon, ''Anabasis'' 1.2.3 Socrates and the other troops were only later told that Cyrus intended to seize the Persian throne from his brother Artaxerxes. Socrates fought at the Battle of Cunaxa and the Greek forces were able to drive the Persians into retreat, but Cyrus and his force faced heavy casualties and Cyrus himself was killed in battle. With Cyrus dead, the Greek troops were left in limbo, trying to make arrangements to return home first with

Ariaeus Ariaeus (floruit, fl. 401–394 BC) was a Achaemenid Empire, Persian general who fought alongside Cyrus the Younger at the Battle of Cunaxa and later was involved in the assassination of Tissaphernes. Life Ariaeus appears in historic records in ...

(Cyrus' good friend and second in command at the battle) and then with Tissaphernes (one of the Persian generals at the battle). Eventually Socrates and several other Greek generals were betrayed by Tissaphernes and Ariaeus. Socrates, along with

Clearchus The name Clearchus or Clearch may refer to: * Clearchus of Athens, Greek comic poet * Clearchus of Heraclea (c. 401 BCE – 353 BCE), Greek tyrant of Heraclea Pontica * Clearchus of Rhegium, Greek sculptor, pupil of Eucheirus, teacher of Pythagoras ...

, Agis of Arcadia, Menon of Thessaly and Proxenus of Boeotia were summoned for a cordial meeting in the tent of Tissaphernes. They were seized and taken to Artaxerxes, where they were beheaded.

References

External links

Dakyns' translation of Xenophon's Anabasis
430s BC births 401 BC deaths 5th-century BC Greek people Ancient Greek generals Executed ancient Greek people Ancient Achaeans Ancient Greek mercenaries Ten Thousand-ancient mercenaries 5th-century BC executions Executed Greek people People executed by Iran by decapitation People executed by the Achaemenid Empire Year of birth unknown {{AncientGreece-bio-stub