Atlas of Battles

battle, major, ancient

Battle of Cnidus

Battle of Cnidus was a battle fought in 394 BC in what is now Turkey. It was part of the Spartan–Persian War, which ran from 399 BC to 387 BC. The recorded result: Achaemenid victory. Recorded strength: 90 triremes against 85 triremes.

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Depiction of a Greek trireme: this graphic was first published in May, Elmer; Stadler, Gerald; Votaw, John; Griess, Thomas (series ed) (1984) Ancient and Medieval Warfare: The History of the Strategie
Depiction of a Greek trireme: this graphic was first published in May, Elmer; Stadler, Gerald; Votaw, John; Griess, Thomas (series ed) (1984) Ancient and Medieval Warfare: The History of the Strategie. F. Mitchell, Department of History, United States Military Academy, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Fought394 BC
WhereTurkey36.686N, 27.375E
OutcomeAchaemenid victory
BelligerentsAchaemenid EmpireagainstSparta
Casualties and lossesMinimalandEntire fleet
Part ofSpartan–Persian War399 BC to 387 BC

Record

Date394 BC (year precision)
PlaceTurkey
36.686N, 27.375E
KindBattle, ancient
Strength90 triremes85 triremes
Casualties and lossesMinimalEntire fleet
Commanders
  • Pharnabazus (5th century BC)
  • Conon
  • Peisander (general)
Battle of CnidusBattle of CnidusBattle of CosBattle of KosBattle of RhodesSiege of HalicarnassusRaid on SymiBattle of CosBattle of KosBattle of RhodesSiege of HalicarnassusDenizliSökeAydınMuğla100 km36.686N, 27.375E
The recorded site, with the nearest other engagements in the atlas. Present-day coastlines, rivers and borders; towns from Natural Earth.

The ground today

Relief of the ground around the site of Battle of Cnidus
Relief within about 10.0 km of the site, contours every 25 m. Copernicus DEM GLO-30, ESA.
Satellite view of the site of Battle of Cnidus today
The same ground from Sentinel-2 on 2024-08-19. Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2024.

The recorded site stands at about 3 m; within 10.0 km the ground runs from 0 to 542 m, 542 m of relief, steep country and today it is 72% water, 13% shrubland, 12% tree cover.

water: 72%shrubland: 13%tree cover: 12%grassland: 2%water 72%shrubland 13%tree cover 12%grassland 2%
west to east, 10.0 km0 to 468 mnorth to south, 10.0 km0 to 172 m
Elevation from the Copernicus DEM GLO-30 (ESA, Airbus); land cover from ESA WorldCover 2021 (CC BY 4.0), within about 5 km of the recorded site. Computed, not recorded.

Nearest engagements

In the same war

Elsewhere in 394 BC

Battle of Cnidus is one of 143 engagements of the 4th century BC in the atlas and one of 687 in present-day Turkey.

Sources

Identity, coordinates, dates and the war from Wikidata Q1151812, released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Battle of Cnidus, revision 1370109160, read 2026-11-14, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0; the article's text is not reproduced here. Present-day country and state from Natural Earth. Dates before 1582 follow the Julian calendar as recorded.