A Starving Army, a Flooded River, and a Rebel Who Couldn’t Be Beaten: The Cadusian Campaign, the Invasion of Egypt, and Datames’ Revolt

The Cadusian Campaign (c. 385 BC) and the Diplomatic Trick

The Persian King Artaxerxes II marched his huge army into the territory of the Cadusians, and it turned into a complete disaster. They got stuck in rough mountain country with no food and were facing starvation. According to the historian Plutarch, the army was saved not by a great battle, but by a clever lie. One of the king’s generals, a man named Tiribazus, went to the two Cadusian kings separately. He told each king that the other was secretly trying to make a deal with the Persians behind his back. Neither king wanted to be left out, so they both rushed to surrender. The army was saved by diplomacy and deception, not by fighting.

Find out about the first historical mentions of the Cadusian campaign of Artaxerxes II

The Achaemenid Invasion of Egypt (373 BC) and the Fatal Delay

This invasion should have worked. The Persian army had a Greek general, Iphicrates, who knew they had to attack Egypt quickly before the defenses were ready. But his Persian co-commander, Pharnabazus, was too cautious and wanted to wait. While they argued, the Nile river started its annual flood. Suddenly, the land was covered in water, and their window of opportunity was gone. The entire massive invasion force was defeated not by the Egyptian army, but by their own commanders’ indecision and the predictable rhythm of the river.

See the earliest records detailing the Achaemenid invasion of Egypt

Datames’ Revolt (c. 370–362 BC) and the Traitor’s Blade

Datames was a rebel general who was too smart to be beaten in a straight fight. The ancient writer Cornelius Nepos tells stories of how he would constantly trick his enemies, pretending to march one way and then attacking from a completely different direction. The king’s armies couldn’t pin him down. Since they couldn’t defeat him on the battlefield, they resorted to betrayal. A man named Mithridates pretended to be Datames’s friend and ally. He gained his trust, and then, when Datames wasn’t expecting it, he assassinated him.

Discover when Datames’ Revolt was first documented in ancient texts