Aristides the Just vs Spitamenes

Aristides served as one of the ten Athenian generals at Marathon. He commanded his tribe's contingent and later supported Miltiades' strategy. The Athenian victory repelled the first Persian invasion of Greece.

Aristides was ostracized from Athens, reportedly because his reputation for justice made him unpopular. According to tradition, an illiterate citizen voted for his ostracism because he was tired of hearing Aristides called 'the Just'.

Aristides returned from exile to serve at Salamis. He led Athenian forces in capturing the island of Psyttaleia, eliminating a Persian garrison. The naval victory at Salamis was decisive in the Greco-Persian Wars.

Aristides was appointed to assess the initial contributions of member states to the Delian League, the anti-Persian alliance led by Athens. His fair assessment earned him the trust of the allies and established the League's financial structure.

Spitamenes ambushed and destroyed a Macedonian force under Pharnuches near the Polytimetus River. This was Alexander's first major defeat in Central Asia, killing over 2,000 soldiers and forcing Alexander to change his strategy.

Spitamenes besieged the Macedonian garrison at Maracanda (Samarkand). Alexander sent a relief force which Spitamenes defeated, but the siege was eventually lifted when Alexander approached with his main army.

Spitamenes led a sustained guerrilla campaign against Alexander's forces in Sogdiana and Bactria. He used hit-and-run tactics, cavalry raids, and local support to harass Macedonian supply lines and garrisons for over a year.

Spitamenes was betrayed by his own Sogdian and Massagetae allies, who cut off his head and sent it to Alexander as a peace offering. His death ended organized resistance in Sogdiana, allowing Alexander to consolidate control.