Siege of Rhodes (305-304 BC)

Siege of Rhodes (305-304 BC)

Part of: Diadoch Wars

date	Summer 305 to summer 304 BC Chr.
place	Rhodes
output	Siege canceled
consequences	Compromise peace between the Antigonids and Rhodes

Parties to the conflict
Antigonids	Rhodes supporters: Ptolemy Kassander Lysimachos Knossos
Commander
Demetrios Poliorketes	?
Troop strength
according to Diodor:40,000 men 200 warships 170 transport ships	according to Diodor:6,000 Rhodians 1,000 foreigners 2,000 Ptolemaic warriors 150 warriors from Knossos
losses
unknown	unknown

The siege of Rhodes was one from 305 to 304 BC. Chr. Ongoing military conflict on the island of Rhodes .

As a confrontation in the fourth Diadoch war , the siege is one of the historical events in the age of the Diadochs , which began on the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC. Followed. The far inferior Rhodians defended their city against an attack by Demetrios Poliorketes ("the city besiegers"). The failure to storm them despite the breach of their three walls gave them the opportunity to build the Colossus of Rhodes , one of the seven wonders of the world .

background

Since the death of Alexander in 323 BC Its generals, called "successors" (Diadochi), found themselves in a relentless struggle for supremacy in its world empire. The Macedonian royal dynasty was divided, the kings Philip III. Arrhidaios and Alexander IV. Aigos were mentally handicapped or underage and therefore incapable of governing . In these wars, characterized by manifold coalitions, which were only interrupted by short phases of peace, in their early phase the supporters of an Alexander Empire that was concerned with unity and preservation fought against the representatives of particularist interests who intended to divide the empire in their favor.

After three Diadoch Wars, by 311 BC. BC five Diadochi set up their own domains in the area of ​​the Alexander Empire, which they ruled as independent rulers after the extermination of the old royal family. These were Cassander in Macedonia , Ptolemy in Egypt , Lysimachus in Thrace , Seleucus in Mesopotamia and finally Antigonos Monophthalmos , who ruled the regions of Asia Minor , Syria and Palestine . Antigonus stood out among the Diadochi because he was the only one left who sought to preserve the Alexander Empire under his own royal rule. In the third Diadoch war Antigonus tried to enforce his claim against the other Diadochi, but failed after lengthy and fruitless fighting, which is why the warring parties in the so-called "Diadoch peace" in 311 BC. Agreed on a general ceasefire.

The peace, however, proved to be less stable than Ptolemy in particular from the year 309 BC. Was active in the Aegean region and attacked several coastal cities of Asia Minor that belonged to Antigonos. The result was the outbreak of the fourth Diadoch war, which was waged in the constellations of the third, i.e. Antigonus against all other Diadochs.

Rhodes and the Diadochi

Rhodes was originally under the influence of the Persian empire of the Achaemenids and their governors (satraps) of Caria had to pay tribute. At the beginning of the Alexanderzug in 334 BC As a result, the city and the island stood on the side of the Persian great king. But after the battle of Issus in 332 BC. When Alexander saw permanent rule over Asia Minor, the city sent ten warships to siege Tire as a sign of submission, which Alexander willingly accepted. The city had to take on a Macedonian garrison, which in fact meant a renunciation of independence and thus self-determination over its own trade income. On the news of Alexander's death in 323 BC The occupation was immediately driven out and the de facto independence from Rhodes established. At the same time one was careful not to get drawn into the Lamish war against Macedonia , despite alliance offers on the part of Athens , whereby the Rhodians were able to put themselves on good terms with the victor Antipater and at the same time maintain their independence.

Diodorus described Rhodes as the best-governed city in the Greek pole-ice world at that time, which achieved a high degree of economic prosperity through friendly relations with all rulers and a strong maritime commitment, especially in the fight against pirates. The Rhodians were particularly fond of the lucrative trade with the ruler of Egypt, Ptolemy. Indeed, since its independence, the city has had a policy of constant weaving within the Diadochi power struggles. Above all, care was taken to always be on good terms with the respective ruler of the province of Caria, the hinterland of Asia Minor ("Rhodian Peraia ") and at the same time the stepping stone to the island. After the first diadoch war, they were allied with the satrap Asandros against the faction of the “Perdiccans” and defended themselves in the late year 320 BC. From an attempted landing by the admiral Attalus , who was a brother-in-law of the slain regent Perdiccas . The "Perdiccans" managed to pass through Caria, in the Battle of Cretopolis in 319 BC. BC they were defeated by Antigonus Monophthalmos, however. For the following decade he became the central reference person for Rhodian foreign and economic policy.

At the beginning of the Third Diadoch War, Asandros was defeated by Antigonus, who thus subjected Caria as well as all of Asia Minor to his direct rule. He immediately sent envoys to the Aegean Islands and the Peloponnese to recruit allies to fight his enemies, including Rhodes. For the following war, Rhodes must in fact be regarded as allied with Antigonos, even if it was always careful not to take part directly in the fighting. But Antigonus had a large part of his fleet ordered in his shipyards, which had been in operation since 313 BC. Operated in the Aegean Sea and united its islands to form the Nesiotenbund , when their hegemon Antigonos now also took control of the Aegean Sea. Rhodes itself was not a member of this covenant, but with the increasing geostrategic power of Antigonus, so did his dependence on him. Only Ptolemaic Egypt could still be considered an alternative power, especially after it was founded in 313 BC. BC had taken over the rule of Cyprus . But for the time being one had to take into account the Antigonidic interests, which 312 BC. Chr. Resulted in a formal alliance contract ( symmachia ), in which Rhodes committed itself with ten fully equipped ships to participate in the procession for the "liberation of the Greeks" of the Antigonos nephew Ptolemy . The war ended as early as 311 BC. In the " Diadochian Peace ", in which the warring parties recognized each other in their positions of power.

Rhodes in conflict with Antigonos

Further reaching provisions of the treaty of 312 BC Chr. Are not handed down, but it is not unlikely that Antigonos did not regard the Rhodian armed aid for the Greek campaign as a one-off favor, but as a general obligation to give him armed aid. Rhodes, on the other hand, with the "Diadochic Peace" may have regarded the military pact with Antigonos as fulfilled and ended, otherwise the following conflicts with Antigonos could hardly be explained. In the years 310/309 BC Ptolemy of Egypt showed his fleet presence in the Aegean Sea and tried to gain his own positions there, which of course could only be achieved at the expense of Antigonus. During this time, the Antigonos nephew of the same name ran over to him with his entire naval and army power, whereupon the Antigonid position in Greece collapsed. When Ptolemy also launched a few attacks on coastal towns in Asia Minor, the fourth Diadoch War was under way. By sending his son Demetrios Poliorketes in 307 BC. BC Antigonus was able to regain his old property in Greece and increase it, especially through the entry of his son into Athens. In the spring of 306 BC He finally gave Demetrios the order to pull with all his naval might against Ptolemy, with Cyprus as the first target.

Coming from Caria, Demetrios docked with his fleet in the port of the Rhodians to get their material and personal support. But they refused to participate in the campaign and justified this with their generally neutral stance, to which they were obliged by their treaties with the Diadochi. Unsuccessful, Demetrios continued his journey and while he was still fighting the battle of Salamis Antigonus sent a delegation, which again called on the Rhodians to provide arms against Ptolemy, which was also rejected. The reasons for this refusal are not clear from the historical traditions. The treaties on which the Rhodians invoked probably meant the "Diadochian Peace", which included the autonomy of the Greek cities and which was understood by all contracting parties and the Pole as a comprehensive peace order. Right up to modern research, an economic dependence on Egypt was also stated to be decisive for the Rhodian motifs, although this cannot be substantiated by sources. In fact, Rhodes maintained excellent trade relations with the ports of the Syrian and Asia Minor coasts and of course with the Greek cities, areas that were ruled by the Antigonids. The island state found itself in the extraordinarily comfortable position of a main hub for the trade of goods between the Orient and the Occident , although it even held a monopoly position compared to Egypt and therefore, for Ptolemy in particular, there was virtually no alternative to its own economic potential. No serious threat was to be expected from this side, despite the political proximity to Antigonus. And against these, the island state might have taken an example from Byzantion , which in the third Diadoch War also steadfastly refused to give up its neutrality in favor of it, without any disadvantages arising from it.

So who ruled in Egypt could not be irrelevant for Rhodes from an economic point of view, only a victory of Antigonos and the associated formation of a great Asian empire, similar to the Persian-Achaemenid Empire, would inevitably have led to political dependence on him, which was ultimately decisive for the Resistance to denial might have been. The hope of still being able to escape a punitive expedition, like Byzantion before, turned out to be a miscalculation.

Outbreak of war and diplomatic struggle

After the victorious battle of Salamis, Antigonus and Demetrios set out to conquer Egypt in a combined land and sea operation. To prepare for this, Antigonos ordered a smaller fleet to Rhodes to block shipping traffic between the island and Egypt, undoubtedly to first harm Ptolemy but also to demonstrate his power over Rhodes. The Rhodians, however, repulsed this fleet in a short skirmish, which Antigonus viewed as an unjustified declaration of war and the actual beginning of his hostility to Rhodes. In spite of all of this, the differences between them were not yet regarded as irreconcilable. Probably after the failure of the Egyptian campaign in autumn 306 BC. BC Antigonos sent another delegation to the island to again demand their weapons aid, which probably happened as part of the preparation of a new campaign against Ptolemy for the coming year. Although the Rhodians congratulated Antigonus on his ascension to the king and he and his son were honored by the erection of two statues, the request was again rejected. Antigonus took this repeated snub as an occasion for a punitive expedition, whether he had a lengthy argument in mind is doubtful, since he would have given the fight against Ptolemy, who was more dangerous to him, a much higher priority.

In the summer of 305 BC BC Demetrios reached the Carian port of Loryma from Syria with a fleet of 200 warships and 170 transport ships, including 40,000 soldiers and siege machines . Attempts were still made to avoid a violent confrontation and this time the military demonstration did not fail to have its effect. By sending an embassy to Demetrios, the Rhodians signaled their readiness to give arms help for his father against Ptolemy. Demetrios, however, was not satisfied with this and also demanded the placement of 100 hostages from noble families and the acceptance of his fleet in Rhodian ports. It is unclear to what extent these additional conditions were established by prior agreement between father and son, but Rhodes immediately rejected them and Demetrios began to transfer his troops to the island. At this stage the Rhodians made diplomatic attempts to avert a siege, but Demetrios no longer had their messages answered, whereupon calls for help were sent to the courts of the other Diadochi.

The siege

Beginning

The topography of the island of Rhodes. The city of Rhodes is located on the northern tip of the island with its port on the east coast. Demetrios had probably set up his landing site and field camp in the Bay of Trianda southwest of the city.

Demetrios landed with his fleet near the city in the north of the island. Next to a port that he had to have specially built, he set up his camp in front of the city walls outside the range of the defenders. To do this, he had the forests cleared and the estates outside the wall destroyed, and he also sent pirates to plunder the island and the surrounding sea areas. The landing site and thus the location of the port and the field camp have not been specified in the records, but Demetrios probably used the Bay of Trianda (now Ialysos ) southwest of the city as a base of operations, which was ideally suited for the expansion of the port. On the other hand, the Rhodians occupied their walls with 6,000 local men and 1,000 foreign men willing to fight. In addition, slaves were ransomed from the state treasury so that they could take part in the defense. Furthermore, decrees were issued to honor the fallen and to provide social security for their survivors. Three ships were immediately dispatched against the pirates, several of which could be sunk and captured. The warring parties had agreed in advance the ransom rates for ransom the prisoners, one thousand drachmas for free men and five hundred for slaves.

Phase I - Battle for the Port

In the first, until the onset of the winter months in 305 BC. During the period of the siege, which lasted in the 3rd century BC, Demetrios concentrated mainly on the fight from the sea side against the harbor, while his land forces isolated the city from the rest of the island. As in Greece and Cyprus before, he gave free rein to his predilection for the design and construction of new and large siege engines, which should exceed the previous designs in terms of dimensions and impact and generally achieve new dimensions in ancient mechanical engineering. Of all the authors of antiquity, Plutarch in particular reported on Demetrios' real enthusiasm for the technical innovations and possibilities of his time, which he wanted to promote and help shape. With the inexhaustible wealth of resources in Asia and the intellectual horizon created by the fusion of Greek and Oriental knowledge, Demetrios had those prerequisites for his striving in the onset of Hellenism , which no Hellenic general in the pre-Alexandrian era had ever had.

First, two large roofed buildings were erected on each transport ship, which should serve as protection for the ballistae and catapults from enemy fire. Both ships were connected to a large floating body. Furthermore, two towers each four stories high were built, which were higher than the towers of the port and which both had to be erected on the decks of two interconnected ships. In front of the siege ships, a defense screen made of floating wood, which was provided with iron spurs, which were supposed to drill into the hulls of attacking ships and leaks into them, was laid out. The Rhodians tried to neutralize the towers by raising their harbor wall, but Demetrios had a specially armored ship manned by Cretan archers who could use their arrows to stop the construction work on the wall. For their part, the Rhodians responded by setting up catapults and ballistae on the pier , the narrow port entrance was blocked with cargo ships, on which guns were in turn placed.

Demetrios' first attack on the port was pushed back due to strong waves. After waiting for favorable weather conditions, he carried out a night attack on the pier head, which he successfully occupied with 400 men and secured by wall works. In the following days he had several guns set up here and the pier wall and the Rhodian equipment on it destroyed. After their resistance increased, he withdrew his machines from the pier again. In return, the Rhodians carried out an attack on the siege ships with fire boats, but these were intercepted by the defensive screen. The following day Demetrios had another attack carried out on the port and, for the first time, one from the land side on the city walls to unsettle the defenders. After eight days of fighting, Demetrios had captured the pier and some fortifications along the harbor wall and occupied them with artillery. After another week of repairing his damaged guns and ships, he began fire on the Rhodian ships anchored in port. Three of them immediately took off to ram the siege ships of Demetrios, who lost two of his machines, which fell overboard as a result of the impact. Demetrios, for his part, succeeded in ramming the three opposing ships with his own, whereupon a hand-to-hand combat was waged on the wedged hulls, which the warriors of Demetrios were finally able to decide for their side.

Demetrios compensated for the loss of his siege ships by building new ones. When he had these brought to the port, however, they were surprised by a storm breaking in from the south, in which the machines went overboard. At the same time, the Rhodians tried to use the storm to counter-attack the pier. Because Demetrios could not bring in reinforcements because of the storm, his men positioned there were on their own and could not withstand the attack for long. Over 400 men were taken prisoner, the pier and with it the harbor were again under control of the Rhodians. They knew how to use the success to bring support troops, 500 from Ptolemy from Egypt and 150 from Knossos , into the port.

These events continued until October 305 BC. Until the onset of winter storms, after which a continuation of the battle at sea was no longer possible. This ended the first phase of the siege and the fighting came to a standstill for the time being. Demetrios only managed to conquer the port entrance for a short time, but could not hold it permanently, which left the defenders with the most important connection and supply route open to his disadvantage. Taking into account the principles of ancient shipbuilding, it was not possible for Demetrios to erect a permanent sea blockade against the port of Rhodes, since the ships that were not suitable for the sea always had to anchor near the shore, especially at night, in order to avoid the high waves of the winter months. Particularly at night, an effective disruption of the entry and exit was out of the question. The problem was exacerbated by the anchorage, which was too far from the port, and was later not to be remedied even by the Turks (1480 and 1522) despite the overwhelming superiority of the sea.

Combat break - mechanical engineering

How both sides used the winter months to improve their situation is not known, as Diodorus in particular did not dedicate a line to this time in his notes. But Demetrios probably used the time to prepare the siege from the land, especially with the construction of the Helepolis ("city taker"), in whose construction 30,000 men were allegedly involved, which in view of the total of 40,000 men carried with them ultimately only in a longer break in the fighting was to be accomplished. The responsible Athenian architect Epimachos in his entourage was probably already responsible for the construction of the Helepolis of Salamis . Now, on a square floor plan, he built a tower tapering towards the top with a side length of 50 cubits (approx. 23 m) at the base and a height of more than 100 cubits (approx. 46 m). Eight wheels with a diameter of 2 cubits (approx. 1 m) formed the undercarriage, which was supported by rollers ( antistrepta ) which, in addition to moving forwards and backwards, also enabled the tower to be maneuvered to the sides. The tower was reinforced on three sides with metal plates to protect against fire arrows and larger projectiles. The tower tapered towards the top, while at its base it covered 4,300 square feet, the top floor measured 900. On a total of nine floors, which were accessible via two staircases, guns of all kinds were positioned, which opened their floors through closable, wool-insulated openings could fire. About 3,400 men were needed to operate the guns and maneuver the turret. The Helepolis of Rhodes was the largest siege engine of its kind ever built. Demetrios and later other generals, such as the Romans during the siege of Jerusalem (70 AD) , built other towers of this type, but they no longer reached the dimensions of those of Rhodes. In addition to the Helepolis Demetrios had two large movable screens to protect homes each for one battering ram of 120 Ellen build length, like the iron spikes Rammspornen ancient warships were provided. 1,000 men each had to be assigned to serve them. In addition, eight smaller mobile shelters were built to give the miners cover during their excavation work to undermine the city wall and to level the level in front of the walls for the large machines.

During his construction work, Demetrios may have had the opportunity to visit the famous painter Protogenes , who lived in his workshop outside the city walls. His astonishment as to why the artist continued to work on his paintings despite the fighting, explained that Demetrios was at war with the city and not with art. During this time, the most famous painting by Protogenes, the “sleeping satyr ”, was created, and Demetrios was later to place the work “ Ialysus ”, which was attached to the second city wall, under his protection.

On the other hand, the Rhodians tried to balance the balance of power with their own constructions. To do this, they dismissed their already proven architect Diognetos in favor of Callias von Arados. He came up with a construction of a crane, which was to be positioned on the city wall and from there grabbed enemy machines and swung over the wall. But after the Rhodians recognized the growing size of the Helepolis under construction, they immediately dismissed Callias from their duties and again employed Diognetus, who was now looking for other ways to shut down the Helepolis. At the same time, they erected a second one behind their wall, in the foresight that the first wall would not withstand Demetrios' machines. In addition to the stones from the houses that stood in the way, they also used those from their theater and temple. They also tried to disrupt Demetrios 'supplies with their few ships, including a quadrireme of Phila , Demetrios' first wife, coming from Cilicia , and thereby stealing his royal robes. They also hijacked several ships in the Aegean Sea and captured eleven well-known gun designers.

Despite the siege, the Rhodians refrained from destroying the statues that had once been erected in honor of Antigonus and Demetrios after a democratic vote. On the one hand, because they continued to honor the efforts of the Antigonids for the liberation of the Greek demos from Macedonian hegemony, and on the other hand as a conciliatory signal in the event that the city had to surrender to the besiegers one day.

Phase II - Storming the Walls

Sketch of ancient Rhodes from 1861. The information on the location of the port (Archandia Bay) and Demetrios' camp (E and F) are considered out of date.

In the spring of 304 BC The fighting flared up again after the defeat of the wall by betrayal of a defector to the Rhodians. It was only by chance that Demetrios escaped capture on this occasion. Demetrios initially postponed a first attack on his machines in order to enable an attempt to mediate by an embassy from Knidos , which probably took action at his instigation. When their talks ended unsuccessfully, he started the attack again. With the Helepolis in the center, flanked on both sides by four of the smaller shelters, his troops advanced against the wall. With the first attack he managed to capture their strongest defense tower and the destruction of the adjoining wall section. The Rhodians then gave up their first wall and withdrew behind the second, against which Demetrios now led his machines. Around this time a transport fleet of Ptolemy, consisting of approx. 75 ships with 300,000 Artaben grains, pulled up off Rhodes. Demetrios immediately sent his ships to intercept them. But since the wind conditions favored the Ptolemaic fleet, it was possible for her to enter the safe harbor before the interception squadron could reach her. Shortly afterwards, deliveries of cassander with 10,000 medimnen barley and from Lysimachos with 40,000 medimnen wheat on a total of around 30 ships were able to enter the port unmolested. These food deliveries gave the defenders an extension of their reserves of strength for a few months, and the besiegers registered their successful landing in the port with a correspondingly sobering feeling.

With support from the outside newly motivated, the Rhodians ventured a night attack on the machine and providing them with a veritable hail of throwing and incendiary spree. Where the iron cladding of the Helepolis broke open, they concentrated the fire with arrows and caused several fires on the machine. As with Salamis two years earlier, his Helepolis threatened to fall victim to the fire again, but Demetrios had learned his lessons from this and this time made foresight in the design by placing water reserves on all floors so that the sources of the fire can be extinguished relatively quickly could. Nevertheless, he had to pull his damaged machines back from the wall in order to be able to repair them in a time-consuming manner. The Rhodians knew how to use this to erect a third wall behind the most heavily damaged sections of the second, where a breakthrough was to be expected soon. To do this, they heaped up the remains of the already collapsed sections of the wall, which is why this third building was more like a wall than a wall. They dug the space in front of him into a trench, which was supposed to further hinder the attackers' progress. In addition, the Rhodians dispatched their ships from the port to attack Demetrios' ships along the Asian coast. In addition to another grain delivery from 300,000 Artaben, 1,500 men of Ptolemy arrived.

Before Demetrios began his attack on the third wall, at the beginning of summer 304 BC met. In his camp a delegation of delegations from fifty Greek cities led by Athens. After their unsuccessful attempt at mediation, they left again, although they must have urged Demetrios to return urgently to Greece, where Kassander had since become militarily active again.

Phase III - breakthrough

The theater of Rhodes, scene of the last battle.

Demetrios was now willing to break through the third wall in order to bring about the decision of the almost a year-long struggle. To this end, he ordered 1,500 of his elite warriors to position themselves at night unnoticed by the defenders in the trench directly in front of the wall. The Rhodians also decided their last defensive measures, which mainly concentrated on the elimination of the Helepolis. The architect Diognetos realized that, in the absence of technical means, only an unorthodox solution could have a chance of success for switching off the machine. In the section of the wall where the approach of the Helepolis was most likely, he had an opening made and a channel laid through it. To this end, he ordered that every private person as well as every public office holder and their relatives should dispense with as much water, sludge and feces as available, which was scattered over the channel on the apron of the wall section and thus transformed the area into a quagmire .

The next day Demetrios began the attack by storming his land and sea forces against all sections of the wall and the port of Rhodes at the same time. The outnumbered defenders were soon overwhelmed by this and were forced to position their forces thinned along the wall. Demetrios had only waited for this, who now ordered his elite warriors out of their hiding place. Those who climbed the weakly occupied third wall, were able to overcome it and take the theater behind it on the Acropolis and its surroundings. This represented the decisive breakthrough, with the theater as a bridgehead Demetrios now had open access to the city, through which he could now deal the fatal blow. Although the Rhodians concentrated their forces on the theater and after a long and hard struggle were able to repel the intruders in front of the wall, they realized that they could no longer withstand another attack.

cancellation

When Demetrios was preparing his last attack, with which he intended to finally take the city, he received a message from his father who advised him to conclude a contractual agreement with the Rhodians. A delegation from the Aitolian Federation , which arrived at the same time and was exposed to the increasing pressure from Kassander, agreed to this and made itself available as a mediator. Around the same time, the defenders had also received a message from Ptolemy, who, in addition to the assurance of new grain deliveries and 3,000 men, also advised them to conclude a compromise peace with Demetrios if possible.

The exact motives of Demetrios to forego the victory-bringing final blow, which had become very likely with the breakthrough through the third wall, is only vaguely answered in the ancient traditions. Both Diodor and Plutarch cited the Greeks' requests for help as the decisive motive, although a rapid attack on the city would certainly not have taken too long to be able to turn against Kassander in time. The aid to the city that Ptolemaios had promised would hardly have been of any consequence to Demetrios, since they would have arrived too late if they had been traveling from Alexandria for several days. In any case, shortly after the arrival of the Aetolian embassy, ​​Diodorus reported on the conclusion of a peace treaty between the Rhodians and Demetrios, which immediately had his troops on his ships and set sails for Greece.

Compromise and Consequences

Ultimately, however, neither Demetrios nor his father Antigonus could ever really have had a conquest and thus an impending fall of Rhodes in mind. This city with its shipyards was too important for its own maritime power position in the Aegean and the eastern Mediterranean to be sacrificed so carelessly. In addition to the economic damage that would have occurred in the event of destruction, the political and propagandistic effects that would have particularly strained the relationship between the Antigonids and their Greek allies must also be taken into account. Their engagement in the Aegean and in Greece was not least aimed at the liberation of the Poleis from the oligarchy and tyranny supported by Cassander in favor of the democratic movements , at least they used this propagandistically to justify their politics in Greece. Rhodes was ruled democratically and the effects of its conquest had unforeseeable consequences, including a decline in the reputation and power of the Antigonids in Greece.

Ultimately, Demetrios gave himself up in the summer of 304 BC. Chr. Satisfied with the conclusion of a treaty that kept the faces of both sides . In it, Rhodes was confirmed its political autonomy and released from the obligation to provide arms aid in the event that Antigonos would take to the field against Ptolemy. The city also did not have to accept any Antigonid occupation, but instead had to accept Demetrios' main demand for the position of one hundred selected hostages. The passage, not having to go along against Ptolemy, was often seen in older research as a recognition of the Rhodesian right of neutrality in conflicts between Antigonus and Ptolemy, but recently it was seen more as an exemption from the obligation of alliance in the event of a war of aggression against Ptolemy. But since Antigonus had a means of pressure with the one hundred hostages from the most distinguished Rhodian families, the definition of war of aggression or defensive war was ultimately with him and could dictate it to the Rhodians if necessary. Consequently, in the end, the treaty had favored the Antigonid side and thus given the siege some success. The position of power of Antigonos was consolidated vis-à-vis Rhodes, which continued his politics until his death in the Battle of Ipsos in 301 BC. According to his interests, even after 302 BC. His hostages housed in Ephesus had been freed by the troops of Cassander under Prepelaos .

Without a doubt, however, the very positive outcome of the siege for the Antigonids was in no relation to the effort made for it. Antigonus himself had from 314 to 313 BC. For over a year (fifteen months) the important Phoenician port city of Tire was successfully besieged ( Siege of Tire ) and this city was finally subjected to his direct rule, without being able to fall back on a reservoir of spectacular machines or an oversized fleet. It is true that Demetrios had also made the decisive breakthrough through the defensive structures, which in fact made the fall of the city inevitable, but in the end the political developments in Greece forced him to renounce the decisive blow. The question must therefore remain open, which possibilities would have opened up for him, saving time and human effort for mechanical engineering in favor of faster progress, even before the pressure from the other Diadochi, especially from Kassander, could have urged him to rethink.

The Colossus of Rhodes

The Colossus of Rhodes in an illustration from the 19th century

→ Main article : Colossus of Rhodes

For the Rhodians, who had already panicked after the fall of the third wall and saw the end coming, the failure to do so was mainly due to divine influence, and thanks to this kind of favor they saw themselves as true winners of the military conflict. Their traditional patron saint, the sun god Helios , they erected a colossal statue ( kolossos ) with a height of about 70 cubits near the harbor . There was plenty of building material for this mammoth project, because Demetrios had left his large machines made of solid wood and metal behind on the island - above all the Helepolis, the size and weight of which had become her undoing when she was actually killed by the last attack Defenders anticipated, was maneuvered into the prepared apron of the wall, got stuck in the mud and got stuck motionless. Corresponding honors were given to the architect Diognetos by his fellow citizens. It is doubtful whether Demetrios ever intended to take time to dismantle his machines and load them onto his ships for transport. Plutarch reported on the generous provision of several machines on the occasion of the conclusion of the contract with the Rhodians. Whether the "city besiegers" this between 292 and 280 BC. "Colossus of Rhodes", which was completed in the 3rd century BC, is unlikely to have ever seen.

Of course, the Rhodians also remembered their most earthly helpers, whom they honored by setting up statues for Lysimachus and Cassander, right next to those of Antigonos and Demetrios. For Ptolemy they sent a mission to an oracle of Amun in Libya (presumably that of Siwa ), which they asked to be allowed to worship him as a god. After the oracle had answered their request positively, they built a temple ("Ptolemaion") to Ptolemy in Rhodes, with a length of a stadium , in which, according to Pausanias , from then on they worshiped him as a saving god (" Soter ").

swell

The main source for the siege of Rhodes are the chapters 82 to 99 of the twentieth book of Diodor's universal history ( Bibliothéke historiké ). The sixteenth chapter of the tenth book on the architecture of Vitruvius ( de Architectura ) should also be mentioned on the mechanical engineering of Demetrios and the countermeasures of the Rhodians . Plutarch treated the events in his Vita on Demetrios in chapters 20 to 22 only very superficially.

literature

• Hans-Ulrich Wiemer : War, trade and piracy: Rhodos and Antigonos Monophthalmos , in: Klio Vol. 6 (2003), pp. 66–96
• P. van Dessel, Hans Hauben: Rhodes, Alexander and the Diadochi from 333/332 to 304 BC , in: Historia: Zeitschrift für Alte Geschichte Vol. 26 (1977), pp. 307–339
• AW Gomme: A Forgotten Factor of Greek Naval Strategy , in: The Journal of Hellenic Studies Vol. 53 (1933), pp. 16-24
• AW Gomme: The reliance of Greek navies on the land , in: Essays in Greek History and Literature (1937), pp. 190-203
• CM Harrison: Triremes at Rest: on the beach or in the water? , in: The Journal of Hellenic Studies Vol. 119 (1999), pp. 168-171

Footnotes

1. ↑ Arrian , Anabasis 2, 20, 2; Curtius Rufus 4, 5, 9; Justin 11, 11, 1.
2. ↑ Diodorus 20, 81, 1-4.
3. ↑ Arrian, Tà metà Aléxandron FGrHist 156 F11 §39.
4. ↑ Diodorus 19, 57, 4.
5. ↑ Diodorus 19, 77, 3.
6. ↑ Diodorus 20:46, 6.
7. ↑ See Wiemer pp. 95–96.
8. ↑ Diodorus 19, 77, 7; see Wiemer p. 81.
9. ↑ Historian fragment (probably Zenon of Rhodes ) on the "Year of Kings", P. Cologne VI 247 = FGrHist 523. The Rhodians welcomed the rise of Ptolemy as king in 305 BC. In reaction to that of Antigonus, because they saw in him a protective hegemon against an Antigonid great power. See also GA Lehmann: Das neue Kölner Historiker-Fragment (P. Cologne No. 247) and the χρονιϰὴ ϲύνταξιϲ of Zenon of Rhodes (FGrHist 523) , in: Zeitschrift für Papyrologie und Epigraphik Vol. 72 (1988), pp. 1– 17th
10. ^ Diodorus 20, 82, 2.
11. ↑ Diodorus 20, 82, 4.
12. ↑ Diodorus 20, 82, 3.
13. ↑ Diodorus 20, 84, 1.
14. ↑ Diodorus 20, 83, 3-4.
15. ↑ Diodorus 20, 84, 2-3.
16. ↑ Diodorus 20, 84, 5-6.
17. ↑ Plutarch, Demetrius 20, 3.
18. ↑ Diodorus 20, 85, 1-3.
19. ↑ Diodorus 20, 85, 4.
20. ↑ Diodorus 20, 86, 1-4.
21. ↑ Diodor 20, 88, 1-6.
22. ↑ Diodorus 20, 88, 7-9. The relationship with Knossos resulted from the time when Rhodes still owed tribute to the Persian satrap of Caria. About half a century earlier, Maussolos and Artemisia II had also sought and found the support of the Knossiers and honored them with proxenia for this ; see Jonas Crampa: Labraunda. Swedish excavations and researches. Volume 3, Part 2, Lund 1972, Inscription No. 40 (English).
23. ↑ See Gomme and Harrison and Wiemer, p. 90.
24. ↑ Diodorus 20, 91, 8.
25. ↑ Diodor 20, 91, 2. In Plutarch ( Demetrius 21, 1) the side length is given as 48 cubits and the height with 66 cubits. Vitruvius ( de Architectura 10, 16, 4) gave a side length of 60 feet , a height of 120 feet and also the weight of 360,000 pounds including the guns.
26. ↑ Diodorus 20, 91, 4. Diodorus probably made a typo in the measurements for the top floor (900 square feet).
27. ↑ Diodorus 20, 91, 5-7.
28. ↑ Diodorus 20, 95, 1.
29. ↑ Pliny , Naturalis historia 35, 36; Plutarch, Demetrius 22, 2.
30. ↑ Vitruvius, de Architectura 10, 16, 3-6.
31. ↑ Diodorus 20, 93, 1.
32. ↑ Diodorus 20, 93, 4-5. The number of ships the Rhodians had at their disposal is unknown - their fleet, however, may have been far inferior to that of Demetrios, as they did not dare to fight an open sea battle. And when they sent ships out to fight, it was never more than three at a time.
33. ↑ Diodorus 20, 93, 6-7.
34. ↑ Diodorus 20, 94, 1-5.
35. ↑ Diodorus 20, 95, 1-5.
36. ↑ Diodorus 20, 96, 1-3. One Ptolemaic-Egyptian Artabe = 39.39 liters; an Athenian medimne = 52.53 liters. See Wiemer p. 88, note 165.
37. ↑ Diodorus 20, 96, 4-7. The Rhodians consumed more than 800 incendiary arrows and 1,500 catapult projectiles that night (D 20, 97, 2).
38. ↑ Diodorus 20, 97, 5-7 and 98, 1.
39. ↑ Diodor 20, 98, 2-3; Plutarch, Demetrius 23, 1.
40. ↑ Diodorus 20, 98, 4-5.
41. ^ Vitruvius, de Architectura 10, 16, 7.
42. ↑ Diodorus 20, 98, 5-7.
43. ↑ Diodorus 20, 98, 9.
44. ↑ Diodorus 20, 99, 1-3.
45. ↑ Plutarch, Demetrius 23, 1. According to this, Demetrios set off from Rhodes with 340 ships, which, according to Diodorus, implies a loss of 30 ships at the beginning of the siege.
46. ↑ Diodorus 20, 99, 3.
47. ↑ See Wiemer on p. 91.
48. ↑ Pliny, Naturalis historia 34, 18.
49. ↑ Vitruvius, de Architectura 10, 16, 7-8.
50. ^ Plutarch, Demetrius 20, 5.
51. ↑ Diodorus 20, 100, 2-4; Pausanias, Helládos Periēgēsis 1, 8, 6. The bestowal of the epithet "Soter" or the honor of Ptolemy as the saving god by the Rhodians as passed down by Pausanias is controversial, especially since Diodorus mentions nothing about it and the epigram of the temple simply only mentions him as god designated. See RA Hazzard: Did Ptolemy I get his Surname from the Rhodians in 304? , in: Zeitschrift für Papyrologie und Epigraphik Vol. 93 (1992), pp. 52-56.