Leocrates: The Man Who Fled Marathon
Leocrates slipped through the chaos of Marathon, boarded a ship, and ran for his life—straight out of Greece.
Salvator Rosa — "Self-Portrait" (ca. 1647), public domain
One Athenian vanished at Marathon.
As the Persians landed at Marathon, every able-bodied Athenian was called to the line. But not Leocrates. He slipped away in the confusion, boarded a ship, and sailed to Rhodes. The city watched as word spread—a man had deserted, right as fate hung in the balance.
Years later, Athens hunted him down.
Leocrates stayed gone for years. When he returned, Athens put him on trial in absentia. The charge? Not treason, but desertion—leaving his city when courage was needed most. They convicted him, making his name a byword for cowardice.
Running haunts more than falling.
In Greek memory, dying in battle was honorable—running lived on as a scar. Leocrates was remembered less for his crime, more for Athens’ refusal to forget.
While others became legends fighting the Persians, Leocrates chose exile over battle. Years later, Athens put his ghost on trial—for cowardice so infamous it echoed after the war.
