The battle of thermopylae is believed to have been fought in august 480 bc, during the persian wars 499 bc449 bc. Id wager almost as much time was spent on plateau, salamis and artemisium as thermopylae which seemed odd given the title. His name was raised to a heroic and legendary status as a result of the events in the battle of thermopylae. The battle of thermopylae is one of the most memorable battles fought during the persian wars. Battle of thermopylae ancient history encyclopedia. The greeks chose the narrow pass of thermopylae as the site of the battle in a brilliant strategic move and. The persian army was a force that vastly outnumbered the greeks. To defend greece against an invasion of the persian empire during the summer of 480 b. At thermopylae a king and three hundred of his soldiers set the standard for battle to the. 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 between persians and greeks in august 480 bce. Thespiae, a neighbor and rival of thebes, was determined to stop persia.
The passage between them was narrow for many miles along the shore, being narrowest at the ingress and egress. Despite being greatly inferior in numbers, the greeks held the narrow pass for three days with spartan king leonidas fighting a lastditch defence with a small force of spartans and other greek hoplites. He, with the remnants of the spartans, thespians, thebans, and, possibly, mycenaeans, fought to the last, except possibly the thebans, who are said to have. Leonidas actions have been the subject of much discussion. 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. At thermopylae in the late summer of 480 the spartan king leonidas held out for. Battle of thermopylae simple english wikipedia, the free.
One of the best known battles in western civilization is the battle of thermopylae in 480 bc between the greeks and the invading persians. This is a juxtaposition of various historical and legendary elements from the battle of thermopylae. The battle of thermopylae was fought in 279 bc between invading gallic armies and a combined army of greek aetolians, boeotians, athenians, and phocians at thermopylae. But the greeks, led by king leonidas and a small army of spartans, took the battle to the persians at thermopylae and halted their advance, almost. 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. 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. For centuries, students, scholars, historians and military strategists have studied it, and they continue to do so.
Battle of thermopylae in the persian wars thoughtco. Ernle bradford it is not just that the human spirit reacts directly and. The battle of thermopylae, on 2425 april 1941, was part of the german invasion of greece during world war ii. After careful preparations, the persian king xerxes decided to attack the yauna greeks in the summer of 480. On this day, xerxes ordered a large contingent of medes to attack the greeks at their position by the phocian wall the narrowest part of the pass. Many are familiar with the story of the battle of thermopylae in 480 bc, when spartas king leonidas and his 300 spartans, along with 700 thespians, 400 thebans, and perhaps a few hundred others, fought to the death against the millionman army of persian emperor xerxes. In the battle of thermopylae of 480 bc an alliance of greek citystates fought the. The battle of thermopylae is a battle in september 480 bc during the greekpersian war 480 479 bc. The battle was fought for over three days, at the same time as the naval battle of artemisium. Battle of thermopylae, the famous battle of the persian wars in 480 bc, in which an alliance of greek citystates of about 6,700 men fought the invading persian empire, which had an army of about 242,000 men, at the pass of thermopylae in central greece. The full spartan force was made up of approximately 300 spartans, 700 thespians, and 400 thebans. Leonidas intent was to delay the persians, sacrificing himself and his men. The encounter took place between greece and their allies thespians and thebans which were led by king leonidas, and the persian empire led by xerxes i.
Xerxes i makes extensive preparations to invade mainland greece by building depots, canals and a boat bridge across the hellespont. The length of the actual conflict was only seven days, with a four day stand off before three days of battle. 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. Leonidas, died 480 bc, thermopylae, locris greece, spartan king whose stand against the invading persian army at the pass of thermopylae in central greece is one of the enduring tales of greek heroism, invoked throughout western history as the epitome of bravery exhibited against overwhelming odds a member of the agiad house, leonidas succeeded his half brother, cleomenes i, as king. 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. The dirt of battle is probably still upon leonidas, and there is a dark purple. Others also reportedly remained, including up to 900 helots and 400 thebans. Thebans surrendered after some fighting and were captured by persians. The legacy of thermopylae i think you earthlings are crazy.
Battle of thermopylae, august 480 bc military history. However, a contingent of about 700 thespians, led by general demophilus, the son of diadromes, refused to leave with the other greeks, but cast their lot with the spartans. His commanders had warned him that great risks were involved. The battle the confrontation at thermopylae took place in the late summer of 480. The battle for impeachment, part ii against superior weaponry even the bravest persian immortals must fail, and when those better weapons were wielded by men spartans whose whole life had been nothing but a preparation for war, the outcome was inevitable. After three days resisting the much larger persian army of xerxes i, greek forces were betrayed by ephialtes and sent into retreat by their leader, leonidas, who died during a final stand.
It has also been the site of several battles in antiquity besides this most. Information and translations of battle of thermopylae in the most comprehensive dictionary definitions resource on the web. The battle of thermopylae aftermath legio i lynx fulminata. 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. The british title for this book, the year of thermopylae london, 1980, is much more descriptive since the book covers events leading up to and including thermopylae. The battle of plataea was the final land battle during the second persian invasion of greece. 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. Therefore, xerxes prepared himself well and built a very large army. Battle of thermopylae 480 bc myths vs reality total. Herodotus says that the theban contingents who remained with the spartans did so. The reason why he made a point of taking troops from thebes, and thebes only, was that the thebans were strongly suspected of being well inclined to the.
The pass of thermopylae was not a ravine among mountains, but a narrow space between mountains and the sea. The fifth day of the persian occupation at thermopylae would be the day the conflict began. The battle for the west is one of those greatly accessible, pleasantly reading, and yet academically meaty history books. The battle of thermopylae leonidas marched into thermopylae with about seven thousand men, a fairly small force. A military historian, bradford makes sense of the complicated maneuvers and does a very thorough background on all components of the battle, from the three rows of trireme rowers to an analysis of the less than. 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 spartans had pledged themselves to fight to the death, while the thebans were held as hostage against their will. 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. This battle was between a few greek citystates primarily sparta led by king leonidas and the persian empire led by xerxes. It is one of historys most acclaimed battles, one of.
It is commonly stated that the spartans were obeying the laws of sparta by not retreating, but it seems it was actually the failure to retreat from thermopylae that gave rise to the. Beyond thermopylae, i will also focus on many other famous encounters during the war of similar or equal importance, such as the battle of salamis 480 b. For the thespians, thermopylae was devastating to their citystate thespiae where 700 hoplites represented at least onethird of the fightingage male population. The battle of thermopylae is arguably the most famous battle before ce, certainly ranking up there with zama during the punic wars 2nd century bce and tours in 732 ce. The king himself remained in the pass with his 300 spartans and 400 thebans, along with 700 thespians who refused to leave. Fascinating history about the battle between the spartans and persians that changed the world 480 bc fascinating world history book 2 historyepisode 3. It was fought between an alliance of greek citystates, led by sparta, and the persian empire of xerxes i. Some modern accounts seem to know exactly on what dates the battle fell, because herodotus says 7. Third sacred war, fought mainly between the forces of the delphic amphictyonic league, principally represented by thebes. The battle of thermopylae is a battle fought at the strategic pass of thermopylae in greece. Responding, an alliance of greek citystates, led by athens and sparta, assembled a fleet and an army to oppose the invaders. The battle of thermopylae, 480 bc, was a battle in the second persian invasion of greece.
What marine recruits go through in boot camp earning the title making marines on parris island duration. The gauls under brennus were victorious, and advanced further into the greek peninsula where they attempted to sack delphi but were completely defeated. But for their dependence on the athenian fleet, the peloponnesians would have preferred to focus their defences on the peloponnesus. King leonidas of sparta and the battle at thermopylae. He is most well known for bravely leading a small force of greeks, including the famous 300 spartans, along with a few hundred thespians and thebans against the much larger persian army of xerxes, at the pass of thermopylae in 480 b. It took place in 479 bc near the city of plataea in boeotia, and was fought between an alliance of the greek citystates including sparta, athens, corinth and megara, and the persian empire of xerxes i allied with boeotians, thessalians, and macedonians. The romans were victorious, and as a result, antiochus was forced to. The tragedy for the town didnt stop there, as the persians razed it to the ground after the thebans convinced the persians that thespiae would never join their cause hdt. Initially during first 2 days of the battle there were 11,200 greek soldiers at thermopylae according to pausanias. Definition of battle of thermopylae in the dictionary. Sparta was a military citystate with two kings that claimed to be the descendent of the demigod hercules. It was the first major battle of the romanseleucid war.
Battle of thermopylae date, location, and facts britannica. Perhaps at this point the theban contingent may have surrendered although this is disputed amongst scholars. The battle of thermopylae was fought in central greece at the mountain pass of thermopylae in 480 bce during the persian wars. 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. 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.
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