Megabates

A commander in the Persian military during the reign of Darius I, circa 500 BCE.

Megabates came to prominence when Darius needed a worthy commander to lead an assault on the Greek island of Naxos; the Persian administrator of the city of Miletus, Aristagoras, had suggested that Naxos would be an easy target for Darius and plans were put into motion to send a 200 ships to Naxos.

The fleet gathered near the island of Khios (Chios); when Megabates was making his inspection of the fleet, he found one of the ships unguarded; Megabates had the ship’s captain bound with his head protruding through an oar-hole; Aristagoras appealed for mercy but Megabates insisted on the humiliating punishment; Aristagoras deliberately disobeyed Megabates and freed the errant captain; Megabates’ fury outweighed his desire for conquest and he plotted to disgrace Aristagoras at any cost.

Megabates secretly sent a messenger to Naxos and warned the unsuspecting islanders of the impending invasion; the people of Naxos made hasty preparations and were ready when the Persians arrived; a siege of four months ensued and the Persians realized that they could not afford to continue because their war-chest was empty and the easy victory which Aristagoras had promised was not to be had.

The Persians withdrew from Naxos; Aristagoras was blamed for the fiasco and Megabates had his revenge.

• Histories, book 5, chapters 32 and 35