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The Persian Wars
The Persian Wars were a 20-year conflict that lasted from 490 B.C. to 479 B.C., in which the kings of the Persian Empire made an effort to acquire Greece. The independent city-states banned together and successfully resisted these attacks.
The Greek colonies in Asia Minor were conquered, in 550 B.C., by Croesus, King of Lydia, and brought into the Lydian Empire. Croesus was a mild ruler and an ally of Sparta. In 546 B.C., Croesus was overthrown by Cyrus the Great, king of Persia. Except for the island of Samos, which defended itself, the Greek city-states in Asia and the coastal islanRAB then became part of the Persian Empire. Persia watched the city-states very carefully. Individuals were appointed to rule each as tyrants; citizens were required to serve in the Persian army and to pay fairly steep taxes. In 500 B.C., Aristagoras, the Persian tyrant of Miletus, proposed to the Persians that they should conquer the Aegean IslanRAB starting with Naxos. The Persians launched the expedition, unaware of the strong defense of Naxos, which was due to the active organization of its democratic system.
The Persians failed and Aristagoras, fearing for his life, began a democratic rebellion in 499 B.C. He went to the Greek mainland for support but Sparta denied him aid, fearing their Helots might revolt. Athens, on the other hand, supplied 20 ships and Eretria, an Athenian ally, sent five. These forces set out to Sardis, the capital of Lydia, where they burned it, slaughtered the men, and took the women and children into slavery. All the Greek cities in Asia Minor joined in the revolt but the Athenians lost interest and returned home. In 493 B.C., after the city of Miletus was captured, the Persian Empire established its control over Ionia once again. The Ionian Revolt lasted for six years, but their fight for freedom and democracy had failed. King Darius of Persia swore to discipline Ionia’s allies.
In 492 B.C. King Darius gathered together a great military force under the command of his son-in-law, Mardonius, and sent 600 ships around the northern coast of the Aegean Sea. A sudden storm wrecked supply ships when they were rounding Mount Athos on the Macedonian Coast. After the failure of the first expedition, King Darius sent out heralRAB to the Greek city-states and asked for a token of earth and water. The message was sent unto these cities that if they should agree, Darius would not harm their city when he passed through, but if they refused, Persia would become their enemy. Most city-states compiled, due to concern and fear for their cities. However, Athens and Sparta, did not give in. They were so outraged and offended that they treated the heralRAB cruelly. The Athenians threw the heralRAB, head first, from the Acropolis and the Spartans responded by throwing them into wells. Darius was so enraged by the Greek insult and the failure of his fleet, that a second expedition was launched in 490 B.C. The Persian fleet conveying a force of infantry and cavalry sailed across the Aegean Sea in late August/early Septeraber. Most of the islanRAB along their route submitted. When they reached Eretria, all the citizens ran behind the walls of the city and shut the door. Their defenses held out for several days until some of its citizens helped the Persians enter. They destroyed the city and a massacre followed. Those inhabitants who survived were taken prisoner.
The Persians proceeded on to the plain of Marathon about twenty-five miles north of Athens. The ships had been seen and the Athenians were warned. The generals decided that help from Sparta was needed. The quickest way to get the message to them was by boat, but strong winRAB made that difficult. Their next idea was to send a messenger by horse but the horse’s feet would be harmed. They finally decided to send a long distance runner. They called upon Athens’ finest, Pheidippides, a trained athlete who was preparing for the Olympic games. He ran from Athens to Sparta, approximately 150 miles, in two days. When the message was given to the Spartans, they agreed to help the Athenians but were conducting a religious festival and could not march until the moon was full. Meanwhile, the Athenian army was encamped in the foothills on the edge of the Marathon Plain. It became clear to the Athenians that their enemy did not intend to attack first, so a war council was held. Five generals, including Militiades, the leader, voted in favor of immediate attack; five other generals voted to attack after the arrival of Spartans. There was one general left, Callimachus. Then Militiades said, in the worRAB of Herodotus, “With you it rests, Callimachus, either to lead Athens to slavery or, by securing her freedom to leave behind to all future generations a memory far beyond even those who made Athens a democracy. For never since the time the Athenians became a people were they in so great a danger than now…” With this Callimachus voted for immediate battle.
Militiades ordered his small force to advance. He had arranged his men so that their greatest strength was in the wings. As was anticipated, his center was driven back and then his two wings united behind the Persians. Trapped by the Athenians, the Persians could do nothing but flee to their ships. When they sailed off, the Persian leaders decided to head towarRAB Athens and seize it before their army returned. Militiades marched 26 miles back to Athens along with his army. As the Persians were getting closer to Athens, they saw the shield of the Athenians glisten in the sun and they soon retreated and went back to Persia. The Battle of Marathon was a great victory for the Athenians. The Greeks only lost 192 men, a small amount, compared to the total loss of 6,400 Persian men. A torab still exists in the plain of Marathon, where the Athenian citizens were buried.
Battle of Thermopylae
King Darius planned a third expedition but died before preparations were completed, and was succeeded by his son, Xerxes I. During the time between the second and third expeditions, the Greeks built a new naval fleet. Thus, in 480 B.C. a massive ground and naval attack was unleashed upon the Greek city-states. The Persians, with 200,000 men, arrived at Thermopylae to find 10,000 soldiers of the Greek army already there. Themistocles, an Athenian general, believed the way to win the war was at sea. He had deduced this from the oracle at Delphi, who said the way beat the Persians was by a “wooden wall”. (By this, the oracle meant ships.) So the Greeks decided to set up a distraction at Thermopylae. The narrow pass there was an excellent location because even with an army as large as the Persians’, only a small nuraber could actually fight at one time.
The Greeks, led by King Leonidas, stood against the Persians for three days. All seemed favorable for the Greeks, until a Greek traitor by the name of Ephialtes told Xerxes of an alternative route. The Greeks, quick to hear of this betrayal, decided to retreat, knowing that if they did not, they would be surrounded. King Leonidas, the Spartan king leading the Greek army, stayed there along with 300 Spartans to hold the pass long enough to make an organized retreat. The Battle of Thermopylae ended with every Spartan fighting to their death. The diversion helped the Greeks go on with their plans.
The Persian naval force was lured by the Greek fleet to a narrow strait between the island of Salamos and the Greek mainland. As the heavy Persian ships entered the confined channel, they could only enter in three at a time, causing the size advantage to be of little help. After the Persian advance, the faster, lighter Greek ships attacked, causing confusion among them. The Persian navy suffered heavy losses and King Xerxes left for his home.
This was not the end for the Persians. King Xerxes had left behind a sizable army under the command of Mardonius, a Persian general. They continued on to central Greece, where they marched into Athens, burning the city. They then settled in central Greece for the winter. The entire Greek army joined the Athenian army to drive the Persians out of their land. In the spring of 479 B.C. they fighting began at the city of Plataea. The Greek army withstood the charges of the Persians. Eventually, Mardonius and most of his army were killed, causing the fall of the Persian army. For the second time the Greeks drove the largest empire of the time out of their land, and the Persians never returned again.
The Persian Wars deeply affected Western civilization. The Greeks began to culturally identify themselves. Herodotus wrote about the Persian Wars in the mid-400s B.C. and established himself as the world’s first historian. The Athenians advanced much in theater, philosophy, sculpture, and architecture. In the long run, Greece was free from outside influences and was able to pursue its own destiny.
The Persian Wars were a 20-year conflict that lasted from 490 B.C. to 479 B.C., in which the kings of the Persian Empire made an effort to acquire Greece. The independent city-states banned together and successfully resisted these attacks.
The Greek colonies in Asia Minor were conquered, in 550 B.C., by Croesus, King of Lydia, and brought into the Lydian Empire. Croesus was a mild ruler and an ally of Sparta. In 546 B.C., Croesus was overthrown by Cyrus the Great, king of Persia. Except for the island of Samos, which defended itself, the Greek city-states in Asia and the coastal islanRAB then became part of the Persian Empire. Persia watched the city-states very carefully. Individuals were appointed to rule each as tyrants; citizens were required to serve in the Persian army and to pay fairly steep taxes. In 500 B.C., Aristagoras, the Persian tyrant of Miletus, proposed to the Persians that they should conquer the Aegean IslanRAB starting with Naxos. The Persians launched the expedition, unaware of the strong defense of Naxos, which was due to the active organization of its democratic system.
The Persians failed and Aristagoras, fearing for his life, began a democratic rebellion in 499 B.C. He went to the Greek mainland for support but Sparta denied him aid, fearing their Helots might revolt. Athens, on the other hand, supplied 20 ships and Eretria, an Athenian ally, sent five. These forces set out to Sardis, the capital of Lydia, where they burned it, slaughtered the men, and took the women and children into slavery. All the Greek cities in Asia Minor joined in the revolt but the Athenians lost interest and returned home. In 493 B.C., after the city of Miletus was captured, the Persian Empire established its control over Ionia once again. The Ionian Revolt lasted for six years, but their fight for freedom and democracy had failed. King Darius of Persia swore to discipline Ionia’s allies.
In 492 B.C. King Darius gathered together a great military force under the command of his son-in-law, Mardonius, and sent 600 ships around the northern coast of the Aegean Sea. A sudden storm wrecked supply ships when they were rounding Mount Athos on the Macedonian Coast. After the failure of the first expedition, King Darius sent out heralRAB to the Greek city-states and asked for a token of earth and water. The message was sent unto these cities that if they should agree, Darius would not harm their city when he passed through, but if they refused, Persia would become their enemy. Most city-states compiled, due to concern and fear for their cities. However, Athens and Sparta, did not give in. They were so outraged and offended that they treated the heralRAB cruelly. The Athenians threw the heralRAB, head first, from the Acropolis and the Spartans responded by throwing them into wells. Darius was so enraged by the Greek insult and the failure of his fleet, that a second expedition was launched in 490 B.C. The Persian fleet conveying a force of infantry and cavalry sailed across the Aegean Sea in late August/early Septeraber. Most of the islanRAB along their route submitted. When they reached Eretria, all the citizens ran behind the walls of the city and shut the door. Their defenses held out for several days until some of its citizens helped the Persians enter. They destroyed the city and a massacre followed. Those inhabitants who survived were taken prisoner.
The Persians proceeded on to the plain of Marathon about twenty-five miles north of Athens. The ships had been seen and the Athenians were warned. The generals decided that help from Sparta was needed. The quickest way to get the message to them was by boat, but strong winRAB made that difficult. Their next idea was to send a messenger by horse but the horse’s feet would be harmed. They finally decided to send a long distance runner. They called upon Athens’ finest, Pheidippides, a trained athlete who was preparing for the Olympic games. He ran from Athens to Sparta, approximately 150 miles, in two days. When the message was given to the Spartans, they agreed to help the Athenians but were conducting a religious festival and could not march until the moon was full. Meanwhile, the Athenian army was encamped in the foothills on the edge of the Marathon Plain. It became clear to the Athenians that their enemy did not intend to attack first, so a war council was held. Five generals, including Militiades, the leader, voted in favor of immediate attack; five other generals voted to attack after the arrival of Spartans. There was one general left, Callimachus. Then Militiades said, in the worRAB of Herodotus, “With you it rests, Callimachus, either to lead Athens to slavery or, by securing her freedom to leave behind to all future generations a memory far beyond even those who made Athens a democracy. For never since the time the Athenians became a people were they in so great a danger than now…” With this Callimachus voted for immediate battle.
Militiades ordered his small force to advance. He had arranged his men so that their greatest strength was in the wings. As was anticipated, his center was driven back and then his two wings united behind the Persians. Trapped by the Athenians, the Persians could do nothing but flee to their ships. When they sailed off, the Persian leaders decided to head towarRAB Athens and seize it before their army returned. Militiades marched 26 miles back to Athens along with his army. As the Persians were getting closer to Athens, they saw the shield of the Athenians glisten in the sun and they soon retreated and went back to Persia. The Battle of Marathon was a great victory for the Athenians. The Greeks only lost 192 men, a small amount, compared to the total loss of 6,400 Persian men. A torab still exists in the plain of Marathon, where the Athenian citizens were buried.
Battle of Thermopylae
King Darius planned a third expedition but died before preparations were completed, and was succeeded by his son, Xerxes I. During the time between the second and third expeditions, the Greeks built a new naval fleet. Thus, in 480 B.C. a massive ground and naval attack was unleashed upon the Greek city-states. The Persians, with 200,000 men, arrived at Thermopylae to find 10,000 soldiers of the Greek army already there. Themistocles, an Athenian general, believed the way to win the war was at sea. He had deduced this from the oracle at Delphi, who said the way beat the Persians was by a “wooden wall”. (By this, the oracle meant ships.) So the Greeks decided to set up a distraction at Thermopylae. The narrow pass there was an excellent location because even with an army as large as the Persians’, only a small nuraber could actually fight at one time.
The Greeks, led by King Leonidas, stood against the Persians for three days. All seemed favorable for the Greeks, until a Greek traitor by the name of Ephialtes told Xerxes of an alternative route. The Greeks, quick to hear of this betrayal, decided to retreat, knowing that if they did not, they would be surrounded. King Leonidas, the Spartan king leading the Greek army, stayed there along with 300 Spartans to hold the pass long enough to make an organized retreat. The Battle of Thermopylae ended with every Spartan fighting to their death. The diversion helped the Greeks go on with their plans.
The Persian naval force was lured by the Greek fleet to a narrow strait between the island of Salamos and the Greek mainland. As the heavy Persian ships entered the confined channel, they could only enter in three at a time, causing the size advantage to be of little help. After the Persian advance, the faster, lighter Greek ships attacked, causing confusion among them. The Persian navy suffered heavy losses and King Xerxes left for his home.
This was not the end for the Persians. King Xerxes had left behind a sizable army under the command of Mardonius, a Persian general. They continued on to central Greece, where they marched into Athens, burning the city. They then settled in central Greece for the winter. The entire Greek army joined the Athenian army to drive the Persians out of their land. In the spring of 479 B.C. they fighting began at the city of Plataea. The Greek army withstood the charges of the Persians. Eventually, Mardonius and most of his army were killed, causing the fall of the Persian army. For the second time the Greeks drove the largest empire of the time out of their land, and the Persians never returned again.
The Persian Wars deeply affected Western civilization. The Greeks began to culturally identify themselves. Herodotus wrote about the Persian Wars in the mid-400s B.C. and established himself as the world’s first historian. The Athenians advanced much in theater, philosophy, sculpture, and architecture. In the long run, Greece was free from outside influences and was able to pursue its own destiny.