Clearchus of Sparta

Clearchus was a Spartan general and mercenary commander who led the Greek contingent (the Ten Thousand) in the service of Cyrus the Younger against the Persian king Artaxerxes II. At the Battle of Cunaxa in 401 BCE, the Greek mercenaries under Clearchus routed the Persian troops facing them, but Cyrus was killed, rendering the Greek victory pointless. After the battle, Clearchus was lured to negotiations with Tissaphernes under a flag of truce, captured, and later executed at the Persian court — an act of treachery described vividly by Xenophon in the Anabasis.

• Nationality: spartan
• Roles: general