+7.+ In the battle with Attalus Philip had had destroyed a ten-banked,
a nine-banked, a seven-banked, and a six-banked ship, ten other
decked vessels, three _triemioliae_, twenty-five galleys and their
crews. In the battle with the Rhodians ten decked vessels and about
forty galleys. While two quadriremes and seven galleys with their
crews were captured. In the fleet of Attalus one _triemiolia_ and two
quinqueremes were sunk, while two quadriremes besides that of the king
were captured. Of the Rhodian fleet two quinqueremes and a trireme
were destroyed, but no ship was taken. Of men the Rhodians lost sixty,
Attalus seventy; while Philip lost three thousand Macedonians and six
thousand rowers. And of the Macedonians and their allies two thousand
were taken prisoners, and of their opponents six hundred.
[Sidenote: Philip vainly pretends that he won the battle.]
+8.+ Such was the end of the battle of Chios; in which Philip claimed
the victory on two pretexts. First, because he had driven Attalus
ashore and had captured his ship; and secondly, because, as he had
anchored at the promontory of Argennum, he had the credit of having
taken up his anchorage where the wrecks were floating. He acted in
accordance with this assertion next day by collecting the wrecks, and
causing the corpses which could be recognised to be picked up for
burial, all for the sake of strengthening this pretence. For that he
did not himself believe that he had won was shortly afterwards proved
by the Rhodians and Dionysodorus. For on that very next day, while he
was actually engaged on these operations, after communication with
each other they sailed out to attack him, but, on nobody putting out
to meet them, they returned to Chios. Philip indeed had never before
lost so many men either by land or sea at one time, and was extremely
mortified at what had happened and had lost much of his spirit for the
enterprise. To the outside world, however, he tried to conceal his real
sentiments: though this was forbidden by facts. Besides everything
else, what happened after the battle impressed all who saw it too
strongly. For the slaughter and destruction was so great that, on the
day of battle itself the whole strait was filled with corpses, blood,
arms, and wrecks; while on the subsequent days the strands might be
seen piled up with all these together in wild confusion. Hence the
extreme consternation of the king could not be confined to himself, but
was shared by all his Macedonians.
[Sidenote: Death of Theophiliscus.]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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