Name: Period: The Greco-Persian War The Ionian Revolt: In 499 BC the Athenians gathered to vote on whether to join the Ionian city-states in their revolt against the Persian Empire. Tradition held that the original Greek colonists in Asia Minor had been Athenian and a strong relationship existed between the Athenians and the Ionians. The citizens voted for war and sent its citizens, the same people who voted, to fight against the might of Persia. Despite some limited success, the Ionians and their Athenian allies lost their fight against the superpower. The city of Athens came out of the fight unscathed, however they had made themselves known to the Persians. The emperor Darius fixed his sights on the Greek peninsula.

Persian Invasion: The first Persian invasion of Greek territory ended badly for the Persians at Marathon. The Persian effort, however, amounted to little more than a scouting party. Although the Persians outnumbered the Athenians three to one the 30 thousand soldiers they had sent was nowhere close to what they could muster, a fact the Greeks would soon learn.

Darius of Persia died four years after the and a new emperor, Xerxes (zurk-sees), ascended the throne. Many of the areas ruled by the Persians, unhappy with the oppressive tribute they were forced to pay, rebelled against the new emperor. From 486 to 481 BC the Persians suppressed the rebellions within their empire. In 480 BC, having re-established control, Xerxes gathered an army larger than any the world had ever seen.

Thermopylae The Persians invaded Greece in 480 BC with their navy and an army 2 million men strong. The 2 million number comes from a Greek historian, , and many today think that he vastly exaggerated the total. But, imagine if it is half true; imagine if it is only a quarter true. Although we can’t be sure of the exact number, the Persian army that approached the Greek city states must have numbered in the hundreds of thousands. It is worth keeping in mind that there were only 10 thousand Athenians at the Battle of Marathon. A new ally would need to enter the fray if Athens stood any chance of surviving the Persian assault.

That ally was and in 480 BC the Athenians sent a messenger to ask the Spartans to commit their army, an army which could be considered a special forces unit in modern terms. Normally the special forces make up only a small portion of the military. The Spartans, however, were all highly trained killing machines. From the time they were seven they had trained to stay physically fit; from the time they were seven they had trained every day to fight; from the time they were seven every Spartan had though every single day about getting the chance to achieve the highest honor in their society: fighting and dying in battle.

There was only one thing that stood in the way of Sparta taking on the Persians, and that was religion. The Spartan festival of Carnea, a harvest festival, coincided with the Persian invasion. This was a problem because all military operations in Sparta were suspended during the celebration. It was imperative that the Spartans join the fight quickly; most of the Greek city-states had simply surrendered to the Persians as

they invaded.1 Athens was quickly running out of time and allies to help them in the fight. The Spartan king Leonidas knew that if the Spartans did not show up then the Persians would easily conquer Athens, and eventually Sparta. Leonidas got around the law prohibiting military action during Carnea by taking a walk. He took a walk north towards a place called Thermopylae and he brought 300 “bodyguards” with him.

Thermopylae means “hot gates” in Greek. It is a narrow passage on the eastern coast of Greece with the sea on one side and the mountains on the other. Leonidas marched into this narrow pass and positioned his 300 warriors at the narrowest part, which would funnel the advancing Persians towards him. There were also 7000 Athenians at Thermopylae, but many current fans of the Spartans and Hollywood film writers neglect to mention that fact. The Athenians would block all secondary routes and provide backup to the Spartans, who would be the first to meet Xerxes’ army head on.

The plan worked beautifully and the Persians funneled directly into Leonidas’ trap, with disastrous effects. For two days the Spartans slaughtered the Persians as they tried to press forward. The Persian army, largely made up of slaves from throughout the empire, had to be whipped by slave drivers before they would advance against the terrifyingly effective Spartans. On the third day, the situation changed drastically. According to historical sources, a Greek traitor showed the Persians a route through the mountains where they could get behind the Spartans. The Greeks realized this on the morning of the third day and Leonidas ordered his Greek allies to retreat. The Spartans, well Spartans don’t retreat, and they met the Persians in open battle one last time. The Persians killed every single Spartan at Thermopylae on the third day of the battle. Leonidas sacrificed himself to allow the other Greeks to escape and fight another day, which is exactly what they did.

Salamis and Plataea After Thermopylae the future looked grim for the Athenians. They were still facing a massive army despite the thousands the Spartans had butchered at the hot gates. This all changed after the . Salamis was a naval battle which pitted the Athenian navy against the Persian navy. Against all odds, the Athenians emerged victorious. Almost half of the Persians were killed, in part due to the fact that the slaves who worked the ships couldn’t swim. That meant that the Persian army was cut off from the navy. They could no longer be resupplied and needed to force a final land battle to ensure that the Greeks were defeated.

The final major battle of the Greco-Persian War happened at a place called Plataea (pla-tee-uh). After Thermopylae the Athenians had abandoned Athens and the Persians took it, burning the city to the ground and plundering its wealth. At that point, democracy was effectively dead. The Athenians were on the run and the Persian army, despite its supply problems, had control of the largest and most powerful of all the Greek city-states. The Spartan army, encouraged by the heroism of Leonidas, decided to join the fight.

1 As a side note, these cities joined Persia by making an offering of “earth and water” when the Persian diplomats ​ showed up. In 480 BC the Persians didn’t bother sending diplomats to Athens or Sparta, ten years earlier the Athenians had killed the diplomats when they demanded surrender. In Sparta they had actually given the Persian diplomats both earth and water… by throwing them down a well.

At Plataea the entire Spartan army of 10,000 men showed up, each one a hardened warrior eager to spill Persian blood. Remember, at Thermopylae - if historical sources can be believed - killed thousands (maybe tens of thousands) of Persians. When the battle at Plataea started the Spartans did something that they never did, they ran away. The Persians spotted this and couldn’t believe their eyes: the mighty Spartans were so afraid that they were running away! The Persian commanders saw their opportunity and charged after the fleeing Spartans. The Persians gained on the Spartans, who seemed to be running very slowly, perhaps due to their heavy hoplite armor. Then, right before the Persians caught them, the Spartans stopped and they turned around.

When the lightly armed Persians met the Greek line the slaughter began. The Persians realized too late that the Spartans had tricked them, they had only fled to draw the Persians out and make them vulnerable. The sound must truly have been tremendous: the sound of sword and spear striking shield and flesh, the sound of human beings being torn apart, and above it all the Greeks singing their battle song. The Persians were right to fear the Spartans, according to sources 100 Spartans died, but they took 30-40 thousand Persians with them.

Aftermath The Persian army, what was left of it after Plataea, fled Greece. The Persians would never again threaten the Greek city-states in any meaningful way. But, all was not well in Greece. The two major powers after the war, Athens and Sparta, did not see eye-to-eye on many matters. For nearly fifty years after the Persians fled the Athenians and Spartans engaged in a Cold War, not fighting directly but preparing for a war that they both knew was coming.

Questions to Consider: 1. What, if any, role do you think that democracy played in this war? Are democratic soldiers more effective than slaves? Why or why not?

2. Explain how this story is an example of history. Where do we see change over time here?

3. Based on the last two days, what can history teach you about bias? How much does how we tell a ​ ​ story ultimately affect what we believe? (again, where would you live, Persia or Greece?)