As part of his account of the rise of the Persian Empire, the Greek historian Herodotus (circa 480-420 BCE) in book four of his "Histories" recounts events in the region of what is now Ukraine and the southern Russian steppes. In doing so, he tells of two invasions of this territory: The first was practically effortless, being against a people who were of divided opinions about defending themselves, but the second--against a united front--was unsuccessful.
This historic lesson offers a glimpse into the 21st century for the same part of the world. Although outnumbered and outgunned, the united Ukrainian resolve in the face of the current Russian invasion bodes well for the eventual success of the land's defenders.
Herodotus says that the earlier invasion was the result of an undated westward migration of nomadic Scythians, threatening the Cimmerians, the ancient residents of the territory that is today Ukraine. The Cimmerian nobles, wanting to preserve their elite status, were in favor of fighting to repel the invaders, but the common people, Herodotus reports, had no interest in fighting, instead preferring to abandon the land to the Scythians.
The resulting Cimmerian civil war resulted in the death of the nobles, whom the people buried by the river Tyras; their graves still existed in Herodotus' time. Tyras was the ancient name for the Dniester River, which flows through southern Ukraine and Moldova. The general populace then abandoned the land, and the Scythians entered unopposed. A divided people cannot stand against an invader.
Invasion number two, in 513 BCE, saw a massive army of Persians storm the extensive territory of what is now southern Ukraine, with King Darius himself in command. The inhabitants of this territory, the Scythians, appealed to the neighboring peoples to help them against the invading superpower. "You absolutely must not stand idly by and watch us being destroyed." However, these tribes refused to help them, resulting in a united Scythian resistance without allies.
Being nomads, they had no cities to defend, so instead of fighting, the Scythians led the invaders on wild goose chases across the lands north of the Black Sea, in what is now southern Ukraine. The Scythian tactic was to burn and despoil the land into which the Persian attackers intended to march, leaving them without sufficient supplies. The tactic was effective in wearing the Persians down.
Eventually, Darius demanded that the Scythians give him earth and water as symbols of subservience, and invited the Scythians to meet him in battle. The Scythian king scorned these demands, and sent some "presents" to the Persian king: a bird, a mouse, a frog, and five arrows, which Darius interpreted as the Scythian version of earth and water. His adviser Gobryas, however, had another interpretation: "Listen, men of Persia: If you don't become birds and fly up into the sky, or mice and burrow into the ground, or frogs and jump into the lakes, you'll never return home, because you'll be shot down by these arrows."
The world recently saw a comparable symbolic act. Early in the war, the BBC posted a video of a Ukrainian woman offering native sunflower seeds to a heavily armed Russian soldier, saying, "Put these in your pocket so they grow when you die." This darkly portentous "gift warning" is reminiscent of the ancient enigmatic Scythian offerings to the Persian king.
When at last a pitched battle between them was to take place, the Scythian cavalry suddenly broke ranks to chase a hare that had run between the assembled armies, showing their contempt for their Persian opponents. The Persians had had enough of trying to fight these unpredictable and undaunted people. One night the Persian army abandoned their weaker companions in camp, and began the rough homeward journey over the same wasted landscape they had already traveled. They scarcely escaped with their lives.
(DROP CAP) Like Putin's Ukraine invasion, Darius' campaign against the same vast region was that of an acknowledged world power assaulting the land of a people who had desperately asked their neighbors for support against the attackers, and had unexpectedly presented the enemy with a cohesive and stubborn opposition.
The Scythians' defensive resolve--without the support of allied armies--eventually took its toll, and forced the invading Persians to retreat. Today, as the world watches, it is uncertain whether the united Ukrainian opposition to the Russian juggernaut will have the same result.
Professor Daniel Levine has taught Greek, Latin, and Classical Studies at the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, since 1980. His publications include articles on ancient Greek epic, lyric, tragic and comic poetry, ancient history, and modern literary reception of classical works.