Both ancient and modern writers have used the Battle of Thermopylae as an example of the power of a patriotic army defending its native soil. The performance of the defenders is also used as an example of the advantages of training, equipment, and good use of terrain as force multipliers and has become a symbol of courage against overwhelming odds.
Why was the Battle of Ypres so important?
Ypres is a memorial because so many men meaninglessly died there. The importance of The Ypres Salient during ww1 was the amount of events that were held there. So many men died and endured barely liveable conditions forendless months or years which represents the futility of war.
Why was the Battle of Bosworth so important?
These were:
- Northwest Europe (Germany versus Western Allies)
- Eastern Front: (Germany & Axis satellites vs. ...
- Mediterranean Theatre (Principally British Commonwealth with US support vs. ...
- Central Pacific (US vs. ...
- Southwest Pacific (US and Allies vs. ...
- Burma (British Empire vs. ...
- China (Chinese forces vs. ...
- Atlantic (UK/US and other naval forces vs. ...
Why was the Battle of Bunkerhill important?
10 Things You May Not Know About the Battle of Bunker Hill
- The Battle of Bunker Hill was not actually fought on Bunker Hill. ...
- The patriots sought to delay a British attack but instead provoked one. ...
- The British won the Battle of Bunker Hill. ...
- It was one of the bloodiest battles of the American Revolution. ...
- A future U.S. ...
- British soldiers killed at Bunker Hill are buried inside Old North Church. ...
Why was the Battle of the wilderness so important?
Battle of the Wilderness, (May 5–7, 1864), in the American Civil War, the first battle of Union General Ulysses S. Grant's "Overland Campaign," a relentless drive to defeat once and for all Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia and capture the South's capital at Richmond, Virginia.. In this manner, why is the Battle of the Wilderness important?
Why is Battle of Thermopylae important?
The Persian victory at Thermopylae allowed for Xerxes' passage into southern Greece, which expanded the Persian empire even further. Today the Battle of Thermopylae is celebrated as an example of heroic persistence against seemingly impossible odds.
Why was the Battle of 300 important?
Three hundred Spartans, joined by a small force of Greeks, defend the mountain pass of Thermopylae against the invading Persians. If the 300 Spartans had stayed home and if Persians had won the Greco-Persian Wars, the Western concept of freedom most likely would not exist.
What was the most important legacy of the Battle of Thermopylae?
' The Battle of Thermopylae is considered one of the most important turning points in the history of Greece. Although the battle itself led to a Greek defeat, it provided the opportunity to the Greek city-states to better organize their collective defense against the Asiatic invaders.
What are 3 interesting facts about the Battle of Thermopylae?
Here are 10 interesting facts about the causes, events and aftermath of the Battle of Thermopylae.#1 The major cause of the battle can be traced back to the Ionian revolt. ... #2 Persian Empire was the largest in ancient history and was ruled by Xerxes the Great. ... #3 The Persian army numbered probably in hundreds of thousands.More items...•
Why did the Battle of Thermopylae become legendary?
Unlike other battles, however, it was not a victory for the Greeks, but a defeat. Its fame is derived from being one of the most courageous last stands by the vastly outnumbered defending army of Greek city states led by King Leonidas of Sparta against the invading Persians under King Xerxes.
What happened in Battle of Thermopylae?
The Persian army had arrived at Thermopylae by late August or early September; the vastly outnumbered Greeks held them off for seven days (including three of direct battle) before their rear-guard was annihilated in one of history's most famous last stands.
What was the most important battle in Greek history?
The Battle of Thermopylae, 480 BC. In 2020, Greece celebrates the 2500th anniversary of the Battle of Thermopylae (Hot Gates), when a small force of Greeks stood their ground in one of history's most famous and important last stands, to delay the advance of the Persian army.
Which statement best describes the Battle of Thermopylae?
Which statement best describes the Battle of Thermopylae? Three hundred Athenians famously fought to the death.
What happened to Sparta after the Battle of Thermopylae?
After Thermopylae, the Greeks went on to achieve great victories at Salamis and Plataea where they decisively defeated the Persians. Leonidas and his men had reinforced the prestige of Sparta and raised the morale of all Greeks to continue fighting against Persia.
Where is Thermopylae today?
Thermopylae, Modern Greek Thermopýles, also spelled Thermopílai, narrow pass on the east coast of central Greece between the Kallídhromon massif and the Gulf of Maliakós, about 85 miles (136 km) northwest of Athens (Athína).
Why did only 300 Spartans fight?
The Spartans may have only sent 300, not because of the Olympics or Carneia, but because they didn't wish to defend so far north, although it does seem unusual they would have sent a King if so.
Who won the Battle of Thermopylae for kids?
Battle of Thermopylae The Greeks held off the Persians killing thousands, until the Persians found a way around the mountains and got behind the Greeks. King Leonidas told most of his troops to flee, but stayed behind with a small force including his 300 Spartans in order to allow the rest of the Greek army to escape.
What was the biggest response to the Battle of Thermopylae?
The heaviest-hitting response to the Battle of Thermopylae is of course Zac Snyder’s 2007’s hit-film ‘300’. It is in the top 25 highest grossing R-rated films ever made (the Motion Picture Association of America’s rating that requires under 17s to be accompanied by a parent or guardian). It has grossed just under half a billion dollars worldwide. Let that sink in.
Where was the Battle of Thermopylae fought?
2,499 years ago one of the most famous battles in antiquity, indeed one of the most famous battles in history, was fought at the Pass of Thermopylae in central Greece. King Leonidas, his 300 (or so) Spartans and their Hellenic allies fought off against King Xerxes' mighty Persian army for three days. We're joined by Paul Cartledge, a professor from the University of Cambridge and one of the world's leading experts on ancient Sparta, to sort the fact from the fiction about this iconic clash.
What did the Spartans do at Thermopylae?
But the ancient Spartans were consummate brand-managers, and the bravery and skill with which they fought at Thermopylae did much to consolidate the idea that the Spartans were warriors without peers in ancient Greece. Songs were composed to commemorate the dead, and vast monuments were set up, this all seemed to confirm the picture.
Why are Thermopylae images appropriated?
The problem is that within this modern imagination of Thermopylae sit seemingly harmless and wildly eulogising cultural responses to the battle, and that these images have been appropriated in order to legitimise a range of political groups (often on the further right).
Why are Spartans remembered today?
The ancient Spartans are often remembered today for the opposite reasons that the ancient Athenians are. Both cities vied for hegemony over the rest of Classical Greece, and both cities have left lasting legacies. My go to example for the legacy of Sparta in modern and contemporary life is always the Battle of Thermopylae.
What did the Spartans do before and after the Persian Wars?
The Persian army fought with many Greek cities on their side (most notably the Thebans), and the Spartans were famous for taking payments from eastern empires (including the Persians) both before and after the Persian Wars. But this is, of course, wilfully ignored by the groups that trade-in on the Spartan image, and the connotations of a Thermopylae-like ‘last-stand’.
What is the legacy of Sparta?
My go to example for the legacy of Sparta in modern and contemporary life is always the Battle of Thermopylae. Unlike Athens, Sparta had no Plato or Aristotle, and while Athenian art is still admired, Spartan art is largely overlooked (but yes, ancient Spartan art does indeed exist).
What was the importance of defending Thermopylae?
From a strategic point of view, by defending Thermopylae, the Greeks were making the best possible use of their forces. As long as they could prevent a further Persian advance into Greece, they had no need to seek a decisive battle and could , thus, remain on the defensive. Moreover, by defending two constricted passages (Thermopylae and Artemisium), the Greeks' inferior numbers became less of a factor. Conversely, for the Persians the problem of supplying such a large army meant they could not remain in the same place for very long. The Persians, therefore, had to retreat or advance, and advancing required forcing the pass of Thermopylae.
Who led the battle of Thermopylae?
The Battle of Thermopylae ( / θərˈmɒpɪliː / thər-MOP-i-lee; Greek: Μάχη τῶν Θερμοπυλῶν, Máchē tōn Thermopylōn) was fought between an alliance of Ancient Greek city-states, led by King Leonidas I of Sparta, and the Achaemenid Empire of Xerxes I.
How did Xerxes attack the Greeks?
First, he ordered 5,000 archers to shoot a barrage of arrows, but they were ineffective; they shot from at least 100 yards away, according to modern day scholars, and the Greeks' wooden shields (sometimes covered with a very thin layer of bronze) and bronze helmets deflected the arrows. After that, Xerxes sent a force of 10,000 Medes and Cissians to take the defenders prisoner and bring them before him. The Persians soon launched a frontal assault, in waves of around 10,000 men, on the Greek position. The Greeks fought in front of the Phocian wall, at the narrowest part of the pass, which enabled them to use as few soldiers as possible. Details of the tactics are scant; Diodorus says, "the men stood shoulder to shoulder", and the Greeks were "superior in valour and in the great size of their shields." This probably describes the standard Greek phalanx, in which the men formed a wall of overlapping shields and layered spear points protruding out from the sides of the shields, which would have been highly effective as long as it spanned the width of the pass. The weaker shields, and shorter spears and swords of the Persians prevented them from effectively engaging the Greek hoplites. Herodotus says that the units for each city were kept together; units were rotated in and out of the battle to prevent fatigue, which implies the Greeks had more men than necessary to block the pass. The Greeks killed so many Medes that Xerxes is said to have stood up three times from the seat from which he was watching the battle. According to Ctesias, the first wave was "cut to ribbons", with only two or three Spartans killed in return.
What was the pass at Thermopylae used for?
Tactically, the pass at Thermopylae was ideally suited to the Greek style of warfare. A hoplite phalanx could block the narrow pass with ease, with no risk of being outflanked by cavalry. Moreover, in the pass, the phalanx would have been very difficult to assault for the more lightly armed Persian infantry. The major weak point for the Greeks was the mountain track which led across the highland parallel to Thermopylae, that could allow their position to be outflanked. Although probably unsuitable for cavalry, this path could easily be traversed by the Persian infantry (many of whom were versed in mountain warfare ). Leonidas was made aware of this path by local people from Trachis, and he positioned a detachment of Phocian troops there in order to block this route.
How wide was the Pass of Thermopylae?
In fact, as noted below, the pass was 100 metres wide, probably wider than the Greeks could have held against the Persian masses. Herodotus reports that the Phocians had improved the defences of the pass by channelling the stream from the hot springs to create a marsh, and it was a causeway across this marsh which was only wide enough for a single chariot to traverse. In a later passage, describing a Gaulish attempt to force the pass, Pausanias states "The cavalry on both sides proved useless, as the ground at the Pass is not only narrow, but also smooth because of the natural rock, while most of it is slippery owing to its being covered with streams...the losses of the barbarians it was impossible to discover exactly. For the number of them that disappeared beneath the mud was great."
What are the two main sources of the Battle of Thermopylae?
On the Battle of Thermopylae itself, two principal sources, Herodotus' and Simonides ' accounts, survive. In fact, Herodotus' account of the battle, in Book VII of his Histories, is such an important source that Paul Cartledge wrote: "we either write a history of Thermopylae with [Herodotus], or not at all". Also surviving is an epitome of the account of Ctesias, by the eighth-century Byzantine Photios, though this is "almost worse than useless", missing key events in the battle such as the betrayal of Ephialtes, and the account of Diodorus Siculus in his Universal History. Diodorus' account seems to have been based on that of Ephorus and contains one significant deviation from Herodotus' account: a supposed night attack against the Persian camp, of which modern scholars have tended to be skeptical.
How many Spartans were there in the Battle of the Pass?
Furthermore, the numbers changed later on in the battle when most of the army retreated and only approximately 3,000 men remained (300 Spartans, 700 Thespians, 400 Thebans, possibly up to 900 helots, and 1,000 Phocians stationed above the pass, less the casualties sustained in the previous days).
What was the significance of the Battle of Thermopylae?
They became the archetype for the courageous last stand. It set an example for free men fighting for their freedom and that of their country.
Why is the Battle of Thermopylae so famous?
The Persians. One of the reasons the Battle of Thermopylae is so famous is because of the preparations the Persians took to fight it. After seeing his father defeated by a smaller Greek force at the Battle of Marathon, Xerxes was determined to not make the same mistake.
What did the Greeks do after Darius I defeated the Persians?
After defeating Darius I at the Battle of Marathon, the Greeks rejoiced but they did not relax. Anyone could see that the Persians would be back, and so most went about preparing for round two. The Athenians, who had led the fight against the Persians the first time around, began building a new fleet using silver they had recently discovered in the mountains of Attica. However, they knew it was unlikely they would be able to fend off the Persians on their own, so they called on the rest of the Greek world to come together and form an alliance to fight the Persians.
What was the name of the battle between the Persians and Greeks?
The Battle of Thermopylae was just one of many battles fought between the Greeks and the Persians in a conflict known as The Greco Persian Wars. Throughout the 6th century BCE, the Persians, under Cyrus the Great, had gone from being a relatively unknown tribe hidden away on the Iranian plateau to Western Asia’s superpower. The Persian Empire stretched from what is modern-day Turkey, down to Egypt and Libya, and all the way east almost to India, making it the second largest empire in the world at the time next to China. Here’s a map of the Persian Empire in 490 BCE.
How long did the Battle of Thermopylae last?
The Battle of Thermopylae lasted a total of seven days, but there was no fighting on the first four, as the Persians waited to see if the Greeks would surrender. The Greek army, despite being severely outnumbered, were able to fight back the Persians during two days of fighting.
Why are Spartans not famous?
The Spartans who fought at the Battle of Thermopylae had been trained at this school, but they are not famous because they were good soldiers.
Why did Xerxes send envoys to Greece?
The story goes that Xerxes, as he made his way into Greece, sent envoys to the still free Greek cities offering peace in exchange for tribute, which the Spartans of course refused. Herodotus – ancient Greek historian – writes that when Dienekes, a Spartan soldier, was informed that Persian arrows would be so numerous as “to block out the sun”, he retorted, “So much the better…then we shall fight our battle in the shade.” Such bravery doubtlessly helped to maintain morale.
Overview
The Battle of Thermopylae was fought in 480 BC between the Achaemenid Persian Empire under Xerxes I and an alliance of Greek city-states led by Sparta under Leonidas I. Lasting over the course of three days, it was one of the most prominent battles of both the second Persian invasion of Greece and the wider Greco-Persian Wars.
The engagement at Thermopylae occurred simultaneously with the Battle of Artemisium: betwee…
Sources
The primary source for the Greco-Persian Wars is the Greek historian Herodotus. The Sicilian historian Diodorus Siculus, writing in the 1st century BC in his Bibliotheca historica, also provides an account of the Greco-Persian wars, partially derived from the earlier Greek historian Ephorus. Diodorus is fairly consistent with Herodotus' writings. These wars are also described in less detail by a number of other ancient historians including Plutarch, Ctesias of Cnidus, and are referred to …
Background
The city-states of Athens and Eretria had aided the unsuccessful Ionian Revolt against the Persian Empire of Darius I in 499–494 BC. The Persian Empire was still relatively young and prone to revolts amongst its subject peoples. Darius, moreover, was a usurper and had spent considerable time extinguishing revolts against his rule.
The Ionian revolt threatened the integrity of his empire, and Darius thus vowed to punish those i…
Prelude
The Persian army seems to have made slow progress through Thrace and Macedon. News of the imminent Persian approach eventually reached Greece in August thanks to a Greek spy. At this time of the year, the Spartans, de facto military leaders of the alliance, were celebrating the festival of Carneia. During the Carneia, military activity was forbidden by Spartan law; the Spartans had arrived too late at the Battle of Marathon because of this requirement. It was also the time o…
Opposing forces
. Top rank: Persian, Median, Elamite, Parthian, Arian, Bactrian, Sogdian, Chorasmian, Zarangian, Sattagydian, Gandharan, Hindush (Indians), Scythian. Bottom rank: Scythian, Babylonian, Assyrian, Arabian, Egyptian, Armenian, Cappadocian, Lydian, Ionian, Scythian, Thracian, Macedonian, Libyan, Ethiopian.
The number of troops which Xerxes mustered for the second invasion of Greece has been the s…
Strategic and tactical considerations
From a strategic point of view, by defending Thermopylae, the Greeks were making the best possible use of their forces. As long as they could prevent a further Persian advance into Greece, they had no need to seek a decisive battle and could, thus, remain on the defensive. Moreover, by defending two constricted passages (Thermopylae and Artemisium), the Greeks' inferior numbers became less of a factor. Conversely, for the Persians the problem of supplying such a large arm…
Battle
On the fifth day after the Persian arrival at Thermopylae and the first day of the battle, Xerxes finally resolved to attack the Greeks. First, he ordered 5,000 archers to shoot a barrage of arrows, but they were ineffective; they shot from at least 100 yards away, according to modern day scholars, and the Greeks' wooden shields (sometimes covered with a very thin layer of bronze) and bronze helmets deflected the arrows. After that, Xerxes sent a force of 10,000 Medes and Cis…
Aftermath
When the Persians recovered Leonidas' body, Xerxes, in a rage, ordered that the body be decapitated and crucified. Herodotus observed that this was very uncommon for the Persians, as they traditionally treated "valiant warriors" with great honour (the example of Pytheas, captured off Skiathos before the Battle of Artemisium, strengthens this suggestion). However, Xerxes was known for his rage.
The Battle of Thermopylae: Fast Facts
Leading Up to The Battle
- The Battle of Thermopylae was just one of many battles fought between the Greeks and the Persians in a conflict known as The Greco Persian Wars. Throughout the 6th century BCE, the Persians, under Cyrus the Great, had gone from being a relatively unknown tribe hidden away on the Iranian plateau to Western Asia’s superpower. The Persian Empire stretched from what is m…
The Persians
- One of the reasons the Battle of Thermopylae is so famous is because of the preparations the Persians took to fight it. After seeing his father defeated by a smaller Greek force at the Battle of Marathon, Xerxes was determined to not make the same mistake. Xerxes drew upon his empire to build one of the largest armies the ancient world had ever see...
The Greeks
- After defeating Darius I at the Battle of Marathon, the Greeks rejoiced but they did not relax. Anyone could see that the Persians would be back, and so most went about preparing for round two. The Athenians, who had led the fight against the Persians the first time around, began building a new fleet using silver they had recently discovered in the mountains of Attica. Howeve…
The Battle of Thermopylae
- Source The Greek alliance originally wanted to confront the Persian forces in Thessaly, the region just to the south of Macedon, at the Vale of Tempe. The Battle of Marathon had shown that Greek forces would be able to defeat the Persians if they could force them into tight areas where their superior numbers no longer mattered. The Vale of Tempe provided them with this geographical …
Battle of Thermopylae Map
- Geography played an important role in the Battle of Thermopylae, as it does in nearly any military conflict. Below are maps that show not only what the Pass of Thermopylae looked like but also how the troops moved around throughout the three days of fighting.
The Aftermath
- After the Battle of Thermopylae, things did not look good for the Greeks. The Persian victory at Thermopylae allowed for Xerxes’ passage into southern Greece, which expanded the Persian empire even further. Xerxes marched his armies further south, ransacking much of the Euboean peninsula and eventually burning an evacuated Athens to the ground. Most of the Athenian popu…
Conclusion
- While the Battle of Thermopylae has gone down in history as one of the most famous battles in the history of the world, it was really just a small part of a much larger conflict. However, the impossible odds the Greeks faced going into the battle combined with the legends surrounding Leonidas and the three hundred Spartans has helped turn this battle and its famous last stand in…
Bibliography
- Carey, Brian Todd, Joshua Allfree, and John Cairns. Warfare in the Ancient World. Pen and Sword, 2006. Farrokh, Kaveh. Shadows in the Desert: Ancient Persia at War. New York: Osprey, 2007. Fields, Nic. Thermopylae 480 BC: Last stand of the 300. Vol. 188. Osprey Publishing, 2007. Flower, Michael A., and John Marincola, eds. Herodotus: Histories. Cambridge University Press, 2002. Fr…