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The Battle of Mytilene was a battle fought
in 406 between Athens and Sparta. The Spartans were victorious. Shortly after
the Battle of Notium, the Spartan
Callicratidas took
over command of the Peloponnesian fleet from
Lysander. Raiding Methymna
in Lesbos, he sent a message to the Athenian naval commander
Conon, declaring that he
would put an end to Conon's command of the sea. Soon thereafter, Callicratidas
caught Conon's fleet of seventy ships at sea and pursued him towards Mytilene
Harbor on Lesbos, where in the ensuing battle, Conon lost thirty ships. Conon
drew the remaining forty ships up onto the beach, but while blockading him from
sea, Callicratidas also surrounded him on land, having transported land forces
from Chios and gaining the aid of the Methymnaeans. Conon sent two ships to run
the Peloponnesian blockade, with one setting course for the Hellespont and the
other for the open sea. The Peloponnesians captured the later ship, but the
former escaped and notified Athens of Conon's plight. In the meantime
Callicratidas also captured an additional ten Athenian ships that had appeared
in the Straits of Mytilene to attempt to aid Conon. Upon hearing of Conon's
plight, Athens dispatched a fleet of one hundred and ten ships to Samos, where
the fleet picked up additional ships from the Samians and other allies,
bringing the size of the fleet to one hundred and fifty. Callicratidas sailed
with one hundred and twenty of his own ships to intercept the Athenians; this
led to the major battle of
Arginusae.
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