Dionysius the Phocaean

Who is Dionysius the Phocaean?

Dionysius the Phocaean or Dionysius of Phocaea was a Phocaean admiral of Ancient Greece during the Persian Wars of 5th century BC, and was the commander of the Ionian fleet at the Battle of Lade in 494 BC. Although commanding a formidable force, according to the Greek historian Herodotus, his men were worked so hard in preparing for battle that on the eve of the battle they refused to engage the Persian fleet.

Although little is known of his life, Dionysius was in command of the Ionian contingent gathered from the many islands throughout the Ionia which joined the main Greek naval force off of Miletus' port of Lade. Upon his arrival in the naval camp of Lade, he observed that his command displayed low morale and suffered from a lack of discipline. Believing his men were unprepared for the impending battle, he called a general assembly among the camp, he said in a speech to his men "Now for our affair's are on the razor's edge, men of Ionia, wither we are to be free or slaves ... so if you will bear hardships now, you will suffer temporarily but be able to overcome your enemies."