The Battle of Pharsalus was fought at Pharsalus, Thessaly in 430 BC during the Peloponnesian War. The Spartan army of Brasidas marched west from Pherae to recapture the lost town of Pharsalus from Basileus Lykortas of Byzantion, whose army had sailed from Thrace to reinforce the Thessalian League against the Spartan threat. The ensuing battle saw the Spartans win a decisive victory over the Byzantines, annihilating their army, slaying their leader, and recapturing Pharsalus.
Background[]
The Thessalian League was a powerful force in northern Greece by the start of the Peloponnesian War in 432 BC. Ruling over Thessaly from Larissa, the League expanded westwards at the expense of Epirus, forged friendly relations with the Athenian-led Delian League, and rejected Spartan overtures of friendship. Relations between the Thessalians and the Spartans deteriorated when, in 432 BC, a Spartan army under Brasidas infringed on their territorial rights by marching through their lands along the coast of the Malian Gulf while en route to attack the Athenian town of Oreoi on Euboea. By 431 BC, Athens had been cut off by the Peloponnesian League, with Thebes in Boeotia to the west, Corinth at Chalcis in the north, and Sparta at Laurion to the south threatening to attack the city-state at any time. However, Athens' only hope lay in its maritime empire to the east and northeast. With this in mind, Brasidas prepared for a campaign against the Athenians in Macedonia and Thrace, but he worried that the Thessalian League - now allied to Athens - might use this opportunity to capture the Spartan-held town of Lamia in Boeotia or threaten Oreoi. As a result, Brasidas was determined to subdue the Thessalian League and march overland into Macedonia.
His initial attack moved along swiftly, with Pharsalus falling after a quick assault in 431 BC and Pherae falling a year later. He oversaw the construction of administrative buildings to keep public order high, and he aimed to garrison the cities with his army until they grew accustomed to Spartan occupation. Thessaly was unable to immediately mobilize and respond, as it had no major armies in its home region; its main forces were concentrated in the west for the war against Epirus. The main threat to Sparta, hoowever, came from the Greek city-state of Byzantion in Thrace. Basileus Lykortas of Byzantion led a 2,500-strong army from the Chalcidice peninsula and into Thessaly, landing near Pherae and advancing on the undefended town of Pharsalus in 430 BC. Sophokles' Spartan garrison was easily overwhelmed and defeated, and Pharsalus fell into Byzantine hands. Brasidas responded by marching his 2,500-strong Spartan army back from Pherae to attack the Byzantines, meeting them at Pharsalus.
Battle[]
The Spartan ranks at Pharsalus
The Spartan army deployed in a multi-tiered battle line at the entrance of the town, hoping to bottleneck the Byzantine army. Their hoplites were deployed in a long line covering the entire entrance of the town, with their cavalry being positioned on the flanks in order to pursue any retreating Byzantine troops; their infantry were screened by skirmishers. The Byzantines brought out a militia phalanx to confront them, but this phalanx was utterly wiped out by hails of missile fire. The Byzantines then sent in their Ionian cavalry, who also held their position rather than attack; they also fell victim to Spartan missile fire. As the Byzantines sent more and more units to their deaths, the Spartans moved closer to the city until the pathways became so narrow that they had to change positions. At the entrance to the town, they deployed in four ranks, with the first two lines being held by three spear-wall phalanx formations each; the third line was held by peltasts and other missile troops (most of whom had used up their missiles and were now being used as reserve melee infantry); the fourth line was held by Spartan cavalry. The Spartans moved this formation into the city until the Byzantines attempted to assault it from the center. The Spartans exploited this by sending their second line of phalanxes to flank the Byzantines, destroying the bulk of their army. Meanwhile, the Spartan cavalry routed the Byzantine missile units from the battlefield and then charged the rear of the Byzantine hoplites, slaughtering them from behind. With the Byzantine army destroyed, the Spartan army then charged into the town center and encircled Basileus Lykortas' bodyguard unit. Lykortas and his men fought to the death, inflicting heavy casualties in the process. Ultimately, the Spartans took the town at the cost of 866 dead, while the Byzantines lost 2,043 killed and 241 captured. Pharsalus returned to Spartan control, while Byzantion was forced to lick its wounds and gradually prepare more forces to retaliate.