Well, I will have to sit down with my Thucydides again and read over the early stages of the Sicilian expedition, but I think that Thucydides says that the fleet could have actually sailed right into the harbor if they had struck quickly. The temporizing allowed the Syracusans to prepare, fortify the harbor and so on. But, as I said, I want to reread that bit before I specualte too far.

One bit of speculation I will toss out is that, had Alkibiades managed to form a strong league of the rest of Greek Sicily with the Sikels thrown in for good measure, he would very likely have drawn the attention of Carthage. That is what eventually brought down Syracuse half a century later.

It is true that by our standards many of the Greek elite come across as arrogant and self-serving. What drew the disapproval of his contemporaries was Alkibiades rather dissolute and flamboyant lifestyle. He was also condemned because, unlike many other prominent Athenians who went into exile with the enemies of Athens, he took an active role in aiding those enemies against his polis. (Themistokles springs foremost to mind). Lysander may not have always acted in Sparta’s best interests, but to say that he was motivated by greed is incorrect. Power, yes; but not greed. When he died his daughters lost all their suitors when it was discovered that they were poor. All the money that flowed through his hands never stuck or drifted into his pockets. He also always obeyed the laws of Sparta and the orders given to him by the ephors. None of that could be said for Alkibiades.