Though the defeat at Salamis deprived the Persians Perof all hope from farther maritime attack of Greece, they still anticipated success by land from the en- suing campaign of Mardonius. Their fleet, after ha- ving conveyed the monarch himself with his accompanying land-force across the Hellespont, re- tired to winter at Kymê and Samos: in the latter of which places large rewards were bestowed upon Theomêstor and Phylakus, two Samian captains who had distinguished themselves in the late engagement. Theomêstor was even nominated despot of Samos under Persian protection. Early in the spring they were reassembled, to the number of 400 sail, but without the Phœnicians, at the naval station of Samos, intending however only to maintain a watchful guard over Ionia, and hardly supposing that the Greek fleet would venture to attack them.

For a long time, the conduct of that fleet was such as to justify such belief in its enemies. Assembled at Ægina in the spring, to the number of 110 ships, under the Spartan king Leotychidês, it advanced as far as Delos, but not farther eastward : nor could all the persuasions of Chian and other thorities and to the fleet, and promising to revolt from Persia as soon as the Grecian fleet should appear, prevail upon Leotychidês to hazard any aggressive enterprise.