Page "Milo of Croton" Paragraph 7

About 510 BC, hostilities arose between Croton and nearby Sybaris when Telys, a Sybarite tyrant, banished the 500 wealthiest citizens of Sybaris after seizing their property.

When the displaced Sybarites sought refuge at Croton and Telys demanded their return, an opportunity for the Crotoniates to destroy a powerful neighbor presented itself.

In an account that appeared five hundred years after the event, Diodorus Siculus wrote that the philosopher Pythagoras, who spent much of his life at Croton, urged the Croton assembly to protect the banished citizens of Sybaris.

When the decision to do so was made, the dispute between the two cities was aggravated, each took up arms, and Milo led the charge against Sybaris.