This [phrase] is employed against those who engage in unscrupulous and clever devising.[1] Thucydides relates that Phrynichus, general of the Athenians at Samos, when the soldiers were inclined to bring back Alcibiades, Phrynichus professed to the naval commander of the Lacedaimonians that he wanted to betray the army to him. After Alcibiades got the letter and sent it to the Athenians, Phrynichus, who came close to getting killed, writes again to the naval commander about what happened, beseeching him and claiming once again that he would betray the army to him if he were to invade. Having delivered that message he announced to the soldiers that a second letter denouncing him was going to come from Alcibiades and that they should guard against an invasion of enemies to come. When these things happened as he said -- the letter was delivered and the invasion took place -- the soldiers believed that everything, both the current situation and what happened earlier, was brought about by Alcibiades to discredit Phrynichus out of hatred.[2]
And elsewhere Aristophanes [writes]: "by Phrynichus' wrestling-moves,"[3] meaning strategems. For when he was general the Athenians were defeated and many were incensed at him on the grounds that he had betrayed the war effort. [He was a] comic poet, who introduced choruses that engaged in movement and wrestled.[4] He was a general of [the] Athenians; under him many of the tragic poets lost their citizenship-rights.[5] There were four Phrynichuses.