The+Battle+of+Thermopylae

=Μολὼν λαβέ = by Stig = = =In 480 B.C. Persia and Greece were on the war path. King Xerxes of Persia was rapidly moving to Greece with a massive invasion force. King Leonidas of @Sparta recognized that Greek city-states would have little chance of survival. He decided to make a bold move and attempt to halt Xerxes invasion. He chose a narrow pass along the coast at Thermopylae to make his stand. However, @Sparta was celebrating a period of festivals during which no war could be waged. The only soldiers who were allowed to leave @Sparta were the King’s royal bodyguard of three hundred Spartan warriors. So the brave three hundred and their king made their way to Thermopylae. There they met a few thousand other Greeks who were willing to help Leonidas’ suicidal cause. The Greeks fought valiantly and mostly to the death. The Battle of Thermopylae was a major event in the Greco-Persian wars and is a quintessential example of what it means to die for ones country. (EDSITEment) = = = = = =Only estimations can be made about the sizes of the armies that fought at Thermopylae in 480 B.C. The only thing that is known for sure is that there were three hundred Spartans fighting for the Greeks. It is estimated that between 2,800 and 3,700 other Peloponnesians (Greeks from the south) fought alongside the Spartans. In addition, 2,100 other Hellenes from the North of Greece are said to have been present at the battle. Therefore, the total estimated Greek force numbered between 5,200 and 6,100 men. The Persian army had much greater numbers. The ancient historian Herodotus claimed that Xerxes’ invasion force consisted of 2.6 million soldiers and an equal number of support units. However, most modern historians deny that number. They claim that it would have been impossible to maintain an army of that size. Lack of food, water, and other supplies would have severely crippled a force of that size. For that reason they estimate that Xerxes’ army numbered between 150,000 and 300,000 men. (New World Encyclopedia) = = = = = =The battle did not start until the Persians had been at camp in Thermopylae for five days. On the fifth day Xerxes sent a frontal assault at the Greeks. The assault force was comprised of Medes and Cissians. The two sides met in front of the Phocian wall, which was the narrowest part of the pass. The first wave had almost no affect on the Greeks and was annihilated. Next Xerxes = = = =sent 10,000 of his highly elite soldiers, called immortals. However, the “immortals” were cut down just as fast as the first wave had been. After his second loss of the day, Xerxes withdrew his forces. On the second day Xerxes tried again to break the Greek lines with a frontal assault but failed. Later, a Greek traitor named Ephialtes came to Xerxes with the one fatal flaw in the Greek defensive position. He told Xerxes of a goat path that led through the otherwise impenetrable mountains. So Xerxes sent his immortals to the path. It was guarded by a small Greek force that the immortals simply walked past. Leonidas, the Spartan king, received news of the immortals approaching from their rear via a runner. He and the remainder of the Spartans and Thebans stayed on the third day to protect the retreat of the other Greek surrounded and hugely outnumbered. The defenders eventually withdrew from their forward position to a hilltop behind the Phocian Wall. There they were mercilessly bombarded by Persian arrows until none remained alive. (New World Encyclopedia) = = = = = =The Battle of Thermopylae was a huge event in the Greco-Persian wars. It stalled Xerxes’ advance for a full week and caused him more than 20,000 casualties. It also gave the already determined Greek defenders one more reason to fight fiercely for every inch of their land. While the Persians had been stuck at Thermopylae, the Greek navy got crucial time to prepare for the Battle of Salamis, in which the entire Persian navy was defeated. Most consider the battle to be a total Persian victory. The toll it would have taken on morale would have been great, however. Persian soldiers would be greatly disheartened after realizing that a make-shift militia and the Spartan King’s bodyguard had slain at least 20,000 of their comrades. Most of the Persian soldiers came from conquered nations and, therefore, had no willingness to fight from the beginning. Adding the losses at Thermopylae to the already low morale among those soldiers would have made desertion a very tempting option. (Livius) = = = = = =The Persian soldiers outnumbered the Greeks, but they were completely outclassed. The Spartans were equipped with sophisticated armor. They also utilized bronze shields, helmets, swords, and spears along with the rest of the Greeks. All of the Greek soldiers had been trained to fight and were skilled and disciplined. The Spartans were even more so. Spartans were brutally trained from the time they were seven years old. Soon after their seventh birthday they were taken from their homes and thrown into the rigorous Spartan training program. They were beaten constantly and taught to show no pain and know no fear. They sparred with weapons real and fake throughout their training. Many Spartans were killed during training. As cruel and inhumane as the training may sound, it produced incredible warriors. The Persian soldiers, on the other hand, were mostly equipped with thin wooden shields and wore little or no armor. Weaponry was no better in the Persian army. Their bows were made from cheap wood and their arrows bounced off of Spartan armor. Their spears were easily broken and their feeble short swords could do nothing against the Greek Phalanx. The only advantage the Persian military had was their cavalry, who were legendary. On the narrow pass of Thermopylae, however, their cavalry could not be used. (New World Encyclopedia) = = = = = =The terrain at Thermopylae was an essential part of the Greek’s strategy. In 480 B.C. the pass was only five meters wide at its narrowest point. On one side was a sheer cliff that led straight to the ocean. On the other was a tall, unscalable mountain face. King Leonidas knew that Thermopylae would be the perfect place to stop Xerxes. The narrow path would prevent his forces from being surrounded by the massive Persian army. Therefore, the few thousand soldiers at his disposal would stand a chance. He also knew of Xerxes legendary cavalry which would be unusable on such a slender battlefield. The cliffs could also be used to quickly dispatch large numbers of Persians. Greek soldiers did not have to take the time to fight and kill every Persian in an attacking wave because sometimes the Persians could be pushed over the edge and into the ocean. (Livius) = = = = = =Despite overwhelming odds, the Greeks at Thermopylae achieved a great victory. Though most were killed in the end and Xerxes was not stopped, they took thousand of Persians with them and gave the rest of Greece valuable time to prepare. They were outnumbered more than forty to one, but their superior strategy, training, and equipment helped even the odds. They earned an eternal place in history as some of the bravest warriors who ever lived. Many people today look at what happened at Thermopylae and feel a strong sense of pride. Even those who are not Greek get the feeling because Greece was really the beginning of all western civilization.\ =

Works Cited:

"300 Spartans at the Battle of Thermopylae: Herodotus' Real History | EDSITEment." //EDSITEment | The Best of the Humanities on the Web//. Web. 14 Dec. 2010. .

"Battle of Thermopylae - New World Encyclopedia." //Info:Main Page - New World Encyclopedia//. Web. 14 Dec. 2010. .

Lendering, Jona. "Thermopylae." //Livius. Articles on Ancient History//. 1995. Web. 14 Dec. 2010. .