Mardonios leading this army came to Kilikia, he embarked on board a
ship himself and proceeded together with the other ships, while other
leaders led the land-army to the Hellespont. Mardonios however sailing
along the coast of Asia came to Ionia: and here I shall relate a thing
which will be a great marvel to those of the Hellenes who do not
believe that to the seven men of the Persians Otanes declared as his
opinion that the Persians ought to have popular rule;[29] for
Mardonios deposed all the despots of the Ionians and established
popular governments in the cities. Having so done he hastened on to
the Hellespont; and when there was collected a vast number of ships
and a large land-army, they crossed over the Hellespont in the ships
and began to make their way through Europe, and their way was directed
against Eretria and Athens. 44. These, I say, furnished them the
pretence for the expedition, but they had it in their minds to subdue
as many as they could of the Hellenic cities; and in the first place
they subdued with their ships the Thasians, who did not even raise a
hand to defend themselves: then with the land-army they gained the
Macedonians to be their servants in addition to those whom they had
already; for all the nations on the East of the Macedonians[30] had
become subject to them already before this. Crossing over then from
Thasos to the opposite coast, they proceeded on their way near the
land as far as Acanthos, and then starting from Acanthos they
attempted to get round Mount Athos; but as they sailed round, there
fell upon them a violent North Wind, against which they could do
nothing, and handled them very roughly, casting away very many of
their ships on Mount Athos. It is said indeed that the number of the
ships destroyed was three hundred,[30a], and more than twenty thousand
men; for as this sea which is about Athos is very full of sea
monsters, some were seized by these and so perished, while others were
dashed against the rocks; and some of them did not know how to swim