Tom Holland

Athens is dependent for its food supply on grain from the Chersonese and also from the Crimea, so the Black Sea.

But I think he's also done it because he's a bit of a lone wolf.

He enjoys the exercise of power.

And this is why he rules the Chersonese not as...

Democrat or anything like that.

But as an out and out strong man, he has a 500 strong bodyguard.

He's married into the local aristocracy.

He's been busy throwing his weight around.

And that's why he's infuriated that Darius has turned up, made him submit and kind of ruined his fun to an extent.

And so he comes up with this cunning plan.

Why don't we just cut the pontoon bridge and leave the Persians stranded on the northern bank?

You know, it's a kind of brilliant idea.

Well, no, because...

And to quote Herodotus, there was not one of them, but he owed his position as Tyrannos to Darius.

So in other words, they are, you know, they're the kind of the Vichy type rulers of the Greeks.

You don't want to go attacking your sponsor.

And there's one guy in particular, one Ionian Tyrannos, who particularly presses this.

And this is a man called Histies.

And Hysteus is the ruler of the most powerful of all the various Ionian cities.

It's the largest, it's the richest, it's the most sophisticated of the Ionian cities.