Although the battle ended in victory for the persians, the heroic resistance of leonidas 300 spartans as they fought to the death to defend their land captured the european imagination and continues to. Hellenes never layed down their weapons and fought until the end, they all died. Herodotus, who chronicled the battle of thermopylae, speculated that leonidas sent away the other greek forces because he cared about their safety and realized the other greeks didn t have the will to face near certain death. By and large, the battle of thermopylae from herodotus the histories was an extremely notable and remarkable battle for the history of the west, as well as the world. Battle of thermopylae is most famous for the last stand of 300 spartans though it is not known by many that it also involved 1100 warriors from other greek states. Demaratus replied that he could not say how many precisely there were in greece, but that there were eight thousand such in. Following the retreat of allied forces from the mountain passes at olympus and servia, british commonwealth forces began to set up defensive positions at the coastal pass at thermopylae, famous for the battle of. The first world empire and the battle for the west by tom holland instead. Other than the points already made in the other answers, the battle in the film also did a very poor job in capturing how both sides actually fought. Battle of thermopylae date, location, and facts britannica. Louis and organized the army of missouri, estimated at 12,000 men. The battle of thermopylae was fought between an alliance of greek citystates, led by king. Review written 01252019 this book is a history of the battle of thermopylae and the second greek and persian war.
The battle of thermopylae took place over a period of three days in midaugust 480 bc. From 2,000 to 3,000 guerrillas would aid the confederate force along with thousands of other proconfederate missourians. It took place in a narrow gorge, called thermopylae, where a group of 300 spartan hoplites died heroically, blocking a way to the persian army of the tsar xerxes i. Thermopylae is a mountain pass near the sea in northern greece which was the site of several battles in antiquity, the most famous being that. What were the battle tactics and strategies for greece. The greeks chose the narrow pass of thermopylae as the site of the battle in a brilliant strategic move and. Persians under xerxes had both a land and a sea force with which they attempted to defeat those greeks who wouldn t willingly accept persian domination, as many greek citystates had already done. The battle of thermopylae was fought between 300 spartans and the. It was fought for 3 days in the year 480 bc and was part of the second persian invasion of greece led by xerxes the great. The battle that changed the world by paul cartledge in one sentence. The battle of thermopylae was fought in central greece at the mountain pass of thermopylae in 480 bce during the persian wars. The battle that changed the world on your kindle in under a minute. The persian invasion was a delayed response to the defeat of the first persian invasion of greece, which had been ended by the athenian victory at the battle of marathon in 490 bc. In 490 the persian emperor darius had sent an invasion force across the aegean to punish eretria and athens for their support of the ionian revolt.
Battle of thermopylae simple english wikipedia, the free. Battle of thermopylae has been listed as one of the warfare good articles under the good article criteria. They were joined by other cities, totaling their forces to approximately 7,000. I will of course make a custom battle to replicate it at some point. The 300 spartans led by the spartan king leonidas met the persians by thermopylae, while the naval forces, which were under. The battle of thermopylae from herodotus the histories. So the battle of thermopylae included a land and sea component. The hoplites, warned by alexander i of macedon, vacated the pass. It was fought between an alliance of greek citystates, led by sparta, and the persian empire of xerxes i. The spartan victory at the battle of thermopylae opened the door for american staples, like constitution, chickfila, and capitalism the spartan victory at the. The spartan army of around 10,000 plus several thousand more allies as its i. The battle of thermopylae, 480 bc, was a battle in the second persian invasion of greece. The battle of thermopylae was fought in 191 bc between a roman army led by consul manius acilius glabrio and a seleucid force led by king antiochus iii the great. I can t blame you for summing it badly in a forum post i don t suppose this is the place for another spartarome debate though.
Thermopylae the battle at thermopylae was a long awaited battle, after both powers athens and persia submitted to a 10 year interwar period from 490bc to 480bc, in order to carefully prepare a second invasion from the persians, following the humiliating defeat of darius at marathon. Battle of thermopylae the rise of the achaemenid empire in the 6th century bc is shrouded in mist of antiquity. The battle of thermopylae is a battle in september 480 bc during the greekpersian war 480 479 bc. The battle of thermopylae is believed to have been fought in august 480 bc, during the persian wars 499 bc449 bc. How would the battle of thermopylae have played out if the. Battle of thermopylae ancient history encyclopedia. The fifth day of the persian occupation at thermopylae would be the day the conflict began. But while nothing in prices campaign reached the scale or importance of those previous battles, the pivotal engagement, at pilot knob, mo. It is said that on the eve of battle, he was told by a native of trachis that the persian archers were so numerous that, when they fired their volleys, the mass of arrows blocked out the sun. The battle of thermopylae august 480 bc is one of the most famous military defeats in history, and is best known for the fate of the 300 spartans, killed alongside 700 thespians on the final day of the battle grecopersian wars.
Greeces strategy was to stop the persians at thermopylae a narrow pass, in which persia couldn t use cavalry. He well uses both modern and ancient sources to tell the story not just of the battle of thermopylae, but also of the whole war in which it took place. Jul 480 bce xerxes i makes extensive preparations to invade mainland greece by building depots, canals and a boat bridge across the hellespont. The battle of thermopylae was the first between the persians and greeks during the persian invasion of 480479 bc. Tabs new secret units tournament reveals new best unit in totally accurate battle. Excluding the huge problems with the equipment for example spartans fighting with no armour or t. After three days of holding their own against the persian king xerxes i and his vast southwardadvancing army, the greeks were betrayed, and the persians were able to. Responding, an alliance of greek citystates, led by athens and sparta, assembled a fleet and an army to oppose the invaders. All of the material covered in thermopylae is covered in greater detail in persian fire.
The greek forces, mostly spartan, were led by leonidas. Why did greece and persia fight the battle of thermopylae. The battle of thermopylae pitted the greek citystates, led by king leonidas of sparta, against the mighty persian empire under xerxes i as xerxes army attempted to invade mainland greece. Battle of plataea 479 bc and battle of sphacteria 425 bc duration. Thermopylae is the only land route large enough to bear any significant traffic between lokris and thessaly. If it no longer meets these criteria, you can reassess it battle of thermopylae is part of the battles of the grecopersian wars series, a good topic. With the full spartan army present, this alternative battle of thermopylae would have been similar to both the original battle of thermopylae and the battle of plataea. All of this meant that xerxes and his army, although it didnt mobilize. In the movie 300, they added this scene of leonidas kicking the messenger, and i thought that would be a great addition to the story. The unsullied and the battle of thermopylae history. The spartan and thespian last stand has been immortalized in the works of herodotus and glorified in the 1962 movie the 300 spartans starring richard egan, along with many other mediums consisting of. Fascinating history about the battle between the spartans and persians that changed the world 480 bc fascinating world history book 2 historyepisode 3. Thermopylae in our time melvyn bragg discusses the battle of thermopylae, a defining clash between east and west, when king leonidas and his defeated spartans passed into legend.
It took place simultaneously with the naval battle at artemisium, in august or september 480 bc, at the narrow coastal pass of thermopylae the hot gates. The thermopylae pass was also the site of two other ancient battles. The battle of thermopylae as depicted in the movie 300 was one of the few times that a last stand worked. The battle of thermopylae 300 spartans vs persian army tabs duration. No doubt many people would be interested to visit the modern site of the battle of thermopylae after watching the movie 300 in 2007.
Three hundred of his fellow spartans stayed with him to fight to the end. Herodotus magnificent writing have vividly explained one of the most exceptional battles, in addition to showing the world the incredible greek society, and the ever so. The battle of thermopylae is one of the romanticized battles in history with more misinformation swirling around then actual concrete information. If youve seen the movie 300 youll know what im talking about. The romans were victorious, and as a result, antiochus was forced to. Test your understanding of the battle at thermopylae, a legendary episode in the ancient persiangreco wars, with an interactive quiz and printable. The persians, with their entire army, move through the mountain passes of northern greece, only to find a pocket of the spartan army the 300. Battle of thermopylae, 480 bce, battle in central greece at the mountain pass of thermopylae during the persian wars.
Dienekes, however, quite undaunted by this prospect, remarked with a laugh, good. But as the battle, it is the greeks who remained behind as a rearguard whose actions were most consequential in the immediacy of. The length of the actual conflict was only seven days, with a four day stand off before three days of battle. Xerxes actions were motivated by revenge and the urge to burn athens to the ground, just. I can t see that it would make for a particularly interesting battle. It sprang in the region encompassing present day southern iran and iraq. The battle of thermopylae in 254 was the successful defense of the pass of thermopylae by local greek militia under marianus, the roman proconsul of achaea, during an invasion of the balkans by the goths. Information and translations of battle of thermopylae in the most comprehensive dictionary definitions resource on the web. A disparate group of tribes of indoeuropean origin serving as vassals to the medes controlled the region east of tigris from their capital ecbatana near hamadan. Battle of thermopylae, august 480 bc military history. This was a slaughter, no question, and the persians killed the spartans to a man. Battle of thermopylae battle of thermopylae, 480 bce, battle in central greece at the mountain pass of thermopylae during the persian wars. Made famous by the 1998 comic book and 2006 sword and sandal epic 300, the battle of thermopylae was the original against all odds conflict.
This website is dedicated to king leonidas, the 300 spartans, 700 thespians and other greek warriors who fought to the death during the battle of thermopylae hot gates in august, 480 b. By mid1864 price had persuaded confederate authorities to attack st. Seven hundred thespians chose to stay, stating they wouldn t abandon leonidas and his men. Upon hearing this, xerxes sent the army through the sarantaporo strait, which was unguarded, and sidestepped them. After the battle of thermopylae was over, xerxes sent for demaratus, and inquired of him how many more such soldiers there were in greece as leonidas and his three hundred spartans. How did the historical battle of thermopylae differ from. Having been turned back at marathon in 490 bc, persian forces returned to greece ten years later to avenge their defeat and conquer the peninsula.
The allied greeks judged that the next strategic choke point where the persian army could be stopped was thermopylae. The battle of thermopylae is the war between the greek citystates and the persian empire in about 400 bc. The battle for the west is one of those greatly accessible, pleasantly reading, and yet academically meaty history books. The battle of thermopylae, on 2425 april 1941, was part of the german invasion of greece during world war ii. Its one of the millions of unique, usergenerated 3d experiences created on roblox. Definition of battle of thermopylae in the dictionary. Another common misconception is that there weren t just 300 spartans at the battle of thermopylae. During the first two days, the persians suffered many losses. Spartans and persians faced each other in a bloody battle. I was fortunate enough to pass through there on the way back to athens in 2006 after a 4day tour around mainland classical greece with key tours. It was the first major battle of the romanseleucid war. This passage from north to south along the east coast of the balkan peninsula requires use of the pass and for this reason thermopylae has been the site of several battles. This is identified as among the best series of articles produced by the wikipedia community.
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