Human Nature Laid Bare in Civil War

As reports from Iraq suggest that the country may be near the brink of civil war, I happened to read this account by Thucydides of another civil war 2500 years ago (427 BCE) on the island of Corcyra off the western coast of Greece.

In civil war with no law to restrain people, these kinds of results are inevitable. Everything possible must be done by the rational Iraqi leaders to prevent this from happening.

"At this point the Corcyrean democrats began to kill as many people in the opposing faction as possible. They then convinced fifty oligarchic supporters to be in a trial but were then sentenced to death. Others began to kill themselves in the temple, by hanging themselves and any way they could find. The Corcyreans went on killing people, some for reasons that had nothing to do with the war, such as private hatred, and for being in debt to others. Fathers killed their sons and people were dragged out of the temple to be killed and others died inside. Greece was in total upheaval, there were fights everywhere. The minds of these people at war are given violent impulses, unlike those at peace and prosperity, who don't have to do anything against their will. The people who hadn't been struck by the war, heard the stories of the earlier attacks and did even worse attacks and exceeded those before. It was like a competition and the war was getting worse.

The morals and characteristics begin to be reversed. Being bold in a dumb way was seen as loyal manliness and hesitating was seen as being a coward. Men were praised for committing an evil action before anyone else could.
Political ties became tighter than family ties and taking revenge was of higher value than never receiving injury. Piety was forgotten simplicity was laughed down and forgotten. The weakest minds had the greatest success and the more intelligent, who went unprotected were easily killed.

Most of the violence was first committed in Corcyra, such as the acts of revenge and the actions people took to escape poverty. Some attacked neighbors for their wealth, but others attacked the wealthy because of their desire for equality. Since life was pure confusion in the city, human nature took over the law. People wanted revenge on others so they destroyed the law first; although the law would be the only way anyone could be saved.

Corcyreans expressed their anger on their fellow citizens before anyone else. Eurymedon and the Athenians went back in their ships.Then refugees from Corcyra took control of Corcyrean territory opposite the island. They used this island as a base for ransacking Corcyra. They caused severe damage and a famine in the city. Meanwhile they sent ambassadors to Lacedaemon and Corinth to ask for help. They did not respond, so the refugees got boats and hired mercenary soldiers. 600 soldiers crossed into the island. When they got there they went to the highest peak (Mt. Istone) and built a fort. Then they were able to prey on the people and take over the land.

b. The end of the Corcyrean insurgents

(425) Eurymedon went back to Corcyra and attacked the fort. Oligarchs who were there surrendered only if they could be tried by the people of Athens. The Athenians said that the oligarchs had to be temporarily imprisoned on the island and were forbidden to try to escape.

The Corcyrean democrats did not want the Athenians to pardon the oligarchs, so they tricked some oligarchs by tempting them to escape. The Athenians caught them and thought the treaty had been broken. Therefore the captives were turned over to the Corcyreans.

When the Corcyreans took over the prisoners they were very violent. They beat, stabbed and whipped the prisoners. They also took some men from the building where they were at and killed them. When the other prisoners found out they refused to leave the building. The Corcyreans forced their way into the building and violence erupted. Many of the inmates killed themselves and this violence went on almost the entire night. They either killed themselves or were hit by roof tiles from above. In the morning, the Corcyreans threw the bodies on wagons and carried them out of the city. The women captured became slaves.

That was how the mountain occupants were destroyed by the democrats. The civil war also came to an end since there wasn’t anything left of the oligarchs."