The Greeks, anchored by 300 Spartan hoplites, held off the Persians for several days, until a local traitor showed the Persians a footpath which circled around the Greek position. The Persian troops overwhelmed the rearguard and began to surround the Greeks.
Leonidas, a Spartan king and commander of the land army, sent the bulk of the army away, realizing the position was lost. He and his 300 Spartans, with a few allies, decided to delay the Persian army as long as they could and make a stand. The story has become richly romantic, with such anecdotes as Leonidas' 'Molon Labe' reply to Xerxes (told in the Sparta post) and the story of the Spartan named Dienekes. When asked if he wasn't frightened to be fighting the Persians, whose arrows were so thick they blocked the sun, Dienekes is said to have replied that this was good news, since he preferred to fight in the shade. (see Herodotus, book 7 for the best ancient account of the battle)
The modern freeway basically follows the route the Persians took in approaching Thermopylae. In antiquity, the ocean shore came much further inland, leaving only a small amount of room between the mountains and the sea.
Another view of the spot where the battle was contested. In the foreground, a modern monument to Leonidas and the Spartans. In the back, the plain that would have been underwater in 480 BC.
The hill where the surrounded Spartans made their final stand. Excavations turned up a large number of Persian/Eastern arrowheads, corroborating the site of the battle.
Herodotus recorded the epitaph on the Spartans' grave. Normally returned to their home for burial, these soldiers were left to guard the pass. This modern marker bears the inscription from Herodotus, translated as :
O Stranger, announce to the Spartans that here we lie, obedient to their laws.
2 comments:
That site looked amazing Dirk. I am really interested in Thermopylae since you gave me that Gates of Fire book when I was in junior high. Cool stuff
Post a Comment