go home. Aristagoras begged them to stay, but they paid no heed to his request, and hastening to the shore they embarked and set sail for Athens. Nor did the Athenians take any further share in the Ionic revolt.
But they had already done enough to rouse the anger of Darius. The great king knew that it would be easy to punish Aristagoras and the Ionians. As for the strangers who had burned Sardis, one of his capital towns, they, whoever they were, should suffer most heavily. He was told that the strangers were the Athenians.
'The Athenians—who are they?' he demanded haughtily. And when he had been told he sent for a bow and shot an arrow high into the air, saying as he did so, 'O Zeus, suffer me to avenge myself on the Athenians.' He then bade one of his slaves say to him three times each day as he sat at dinner, 'O king, remember the Athenians.'
Meanwhile Aristagoras saw that there was little chance of the revolt being successful against the forces of Darius. So, like a coward rather than like a brave leader, he deserted those whom he had encouraged to rebel and fled to Thrace. Here, while besieging a town, he was slain.
