It marked the beginning of several important Greek victories against the Persians and represented a morale shift among the Greeks. HistoryNet.com is brought to you by Historynet LLC, the world's largest publisher of history magazines. This would then allow them to concentrate their armies to defeat the Persian army, rather than keeping them defensively at home. What is the hink-pink for blue green moray? The date of the Battle of Thermopylae is in debate with two dates under contention. Each city-state zealously guarded its autonomy, desiring the freedom to live according to its own dictates, not another city-state’s, or more importantly, authoritarian regime’s, opinions. The second day ended up in the same vain as the first with Xerxes becoming furious as more men were sent to the slaughter, the day finished with Xerxes withdrawing his forces back to camp frustrated. The therefore blocked the pass at Thermopylai with a small fore to compel the Persian navy to attempt to turn the position by sea. Finally, a place was chosen for the first defence of Greece. The Persians however did not attack; they sent a volley of arrows and continued on their way to cut off the Greek force led by Leonidas. This battle is known as The Battle at Thermopylae. The Greeks retreated to the defensive position of a hill where they made their last stand until Persian archers sent volley after volley of arrows until the Greek soldiers were all dead. Americans can thank the Greeks, and especially the Spartans, for things they love and sometimes take for granted like the  Constitution, Chick-fil-a, and capitalism. The battle was between the defending Greek city-states led by Athenian General Themistocles, King Leonidas I of Sparta and Demophilus of Thespiae and the attacking Persian army of Xerxes I of Persia. The Persian army arrived at Thermopylae and the Greeks were there waiting. Of the men with Leonadis he stationed a four figure number of Phocians high in the mountains to protect a hidden goat trail so the armed forces could not be ambushed by the advancing Persian army. Whips were only for slaves, not free men; they were appropriate for a barbarian master to use on his slave subjects, but out of the question for the citizen soldiers of a free Greek polis.” If the Persians had won, the king would have whipped the Greeks to make them fight, rather than allowing the Greeks to decide on their own to defend the ideal of freedom. If the Persians had been victorious in the Greco-Persian Wars, the Persians might have created the first world empire and required Greek city-states to submit to the Persian monarchy, not allowing the ideas of democracy and freedom to flourish. This caused Xerxes to use his Elite troops called the Immortals on the second assault of the first day; these soldiers were feared because they were seen as men that couldn’t die. After securing the throne, Xerxes began to gather forces to invade Greece. Why did the Battle of Thermopylae happen? The rear-guard was annihilated and the Persians rolled on to occupy central Greece. Because the Olympic games were occurring at the same time as the expected Persian invasion, the Greek alliance sent only a small advance guard. The pass had also been fortified by the local Phokians who built a defensive wall running from the so-called Middle Gate down to the sea. First, the Greeks, who have had a tremendous influence in the formation of world culture, fought this battle to protect their very existence. Each city-state zealously guarded its autonomy, desiring the freedom to live … The Persian invasion was a delayed response to the defeat of the first Persian invasion of Greece, which had been ended by … With. Because it was so narrow, even with an army as large as the Persians had, … Before the Spartans and others died, however, they had slain twenty thousand Persians. Authoritarian monarchy would have been the norm, and it would have taken a group of people much like the Spartans to champion again values like protection, free will, and freedom over imperialism, coercion, and authoritarianism. For you are now attacking the most noble kingdom of all the Hellenes, and the best of men.”. This was not the case though as the Immortals also ended up suffering heavy losses. In fact, the Greeks might even change their understanding of key virtues like freedom since they would be treated like slaves. Margo Kidder, actress; best known for playing Lois Lane in four Superman movies between 1978 and 1987. Alan Jackson, country singer with over 60 million records sold worldwide; his many awards include 2 Grammys and 16 Country Music Association awards; "Where Were You (When the World Stopped Turning"; "Don't Rock the Jukebox.". The battle occurred because the forces of Xerxes I, King of Persia marched through Thrace and Macedon on their way to Greece. happened about one hundred years before the great philosopher and defender of freedom Aristotle was born, the Greeks still had a concept of defending the city-state, the polis. The Battle of Thermopylae took place in late summer or early fall of 480 B.C.E. How much does does a 100 dollar roblox gift card get you in robhx? Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. What is the rising action of faith love and dr lazaro? Arthur Miller, Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright (Death of a Salesman, A View from the Bridge). It derives its name from its hot sulphur springs. Many will know of the Battle of Thermopylae as it was made famous by the film 300 which depicts a small number of Greek forces under the leadership of Leonidas battling against thousands of Persian warriors. Your email address will not be published. As the Persians were coming down from the mountain Xerxes also sent his army for a frontal attack, in response the Greeks moved out into the wider part of the pass. 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. A plethora of poleis existed throughout Greece since about the eighth century B.C. nŸšÏ² ÉÒl6gE3yıÛyÊŞÈÉÏø÷d›n?v8øåìOÎŞsK;³(ÿ”'ø�°šÁÈ8K“(;L€µ÷Şõ^Ãz�…äò¡9jÍğH. How about receiving a customized one? As the Spartans marched on Thermopylae their numbers swelled to over 5,000 by gaining more soldiers from other Greek cities, as mentioned earlier in the article. It also tested the Greek strategy of using confined space to neutralise Persian numbers, a strategy that later proved devastatingly effective when the Greeks destroyed the Persian fleet in the narrow strait of … Thermopylae is a place in Greece where a narrow coastal passage existed in antiquity. When the Persians landed they sent their emissary, something common in the times prior to battle.