Battle of Lade

Part of the Ionian Revolt & Greco-Persian Wars

Map of Lade, Miletus, and the Mycale peninsula.

Date	494 BC
Location	Near the island of Lade, off the coast of Miletus
Result	Decisive Persian victory

Belligerents

Ionia

Persian Empire

Commanders and leaders

Dionysius of Phocaea

Datis (?)

Strength

Herodotus says 353 ships

Herodotus says 600 ships

Casualties and losses

246 ships

57 ships

For war between the navy of Rhodes and the navy of Macedon in 201 BC, see Battle of Lade (201 BC).

The Battle of Lade (Greek: Ναυμαχία τῆς Λάδης, Naumachia tēs Ladēs) was a naval battle which occurred during the Ionian Revolt, in 494 BC. It was fought between an alliance of the Ionian cities (joined by the Lesbians) and the Persian Empire of Darius the Great, and resulted in a decisive victory for the Persians which all but ended the revolt.

The Ionian Revolt was triggered by the dissatisfaction of the Greek cities of Asia Minor with the tyrants appointed by Persia to rule them. In 499 BC, the then-tyrant of Miletus, Aristagoras, launched a joint expedition with the Persian satrap Artaphernes to conquer Naxos, in an attempt to bolster his position in Miletus. The mission was a debacle, and sensing his imminent removal as tyrant, Aristagoras chose to incite the whole of Ionia into rebellion against the Persian king Darius the Great. Initially, in 498 BC, the Ionians went on the offensive, supported by troops from Athens and Eretria, capturing Sardis, before suffering defeat at the Battle of Ephesus. The revolt then spread to Caria and Cyprus. Three years of Persian campaigning across Asia Minor followed, with no decisive effect. By 494 BC the Persian army and navy had regrouped, and made straight for the epicentre of the rebellion at Miletus.

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