Battle Of Thermopylae Final Claim I believe that there were 350,000 Persian foot soldiers fighting. I have based this conclusion off of Document D, which included reliable evidence relating to the water resources and the realisticness of how many soldiers could be supported. To go more in depth, although Document C also makes a point regarding the water supply; Document D informs us of the man-made reservoirs that would’ve allowed more than 250,000 men to travel along the route. With over one million soldiers, “It would be physically impossible to march that many men along the roads available...” Furthermore, the author of Document D, Rupert Matthews, has written over 200 books on history, which proves that he is more knowledgeable in that…
In the Vth century, after the Persian wars, there were in Greece two major factions: Athenian Empire and Peloponnesian League, with Sparta in front. Athens and Sparta had some frictions, but largely no total war engagement…
They had fought for days and lost thousands of men but had not made any progress in their invasion. The Persian king brought out a prisoner (or it was a traitor who came on his own free will, the story is disputed) who was tortured and asked for information regarding the battle. The prisoner (or traitor) told the Persians about a small trail above Thermopylae that only the local farmers knew about. It would allow the Persians to sneak up on the Greeks from behind and corner them in the pass of Thermopylae. Sometime during the night, the Kings Guard (the Persian kings elite soldiers) followed the secret pass and ambushed the Greeks.…
The Persian wars occurred during 499–479. There are many factors including Greek colonization of Asia minor, the rise of the Persian empire, and the Ionian rebellion that all played a part in the conflicts started these wars. The end results however are the most important thing because they laid the groundwork for the golden age. During the 11th century the Greeks had flourishing colonies established in Asia minor.…
Greek Battles The Battle of Thermopylae, was a battle between the Greeks and the Persians. Thermopylae was a mountain pass which led to many Greek cities. It was a part of the second invasion of the Persian Empire. The Persians invaded Greek cities to control more land. The Persian Empire was led by Xerxes, he ordered the attack.…
The desire for Persian kings such as Darius and Xerxes on their expeditions into Europe could stem from a great number of factors. The desire for more luxurious goods may have played a large role in the campaigns as Xerxes is described as refusing Athenian dates until he can take them himself without paying. Another motivation could be derived from the military tradition of the Persians, as each ruler was expected to campaign and be skilled fighters, somewhat forcing the hands of the Persian kings to continuously campaign and expand their boundaries. This paper however will focus on what seems to be the most prominent factor playing into the Persians desire to campaign into Europe, the rebellious uprisings along western Anatolia. These uprisings brought attention to the Persian kings that the poisonous relationship that the Greeks played in their influence over those in Anatolia, thus causing the Persians to attempt cut out the problem at the source by directly attacking the source of the uprisings, which in turn were a catalyst for the Greco-Persian wars.…
Athens received much honour and glory for the Persian defeat dramatically increasing Athens reputation, especially with Sparta’s absence from the field. It was also an important moral victory for Greece as 10 000 Athenians and 1000 Boeotians defeated a Persian force almost three time larger of 25 000 infantry and 5000 cavalry. This showed the rest of Greece that victory against the much larger Achaemenid empire was far from impossible. The victory at Marathon can be largely attributed to Miltiades and the significant impact the battle had altered the course of the war leading to Greek victory. Themistocles is credited with founding Athens’ ascent to power and influence through his naval policy.…
Xerxes army would come to outnumber many Greek forces in the upcoming encounters. By 480 BCE northern Greece had been completely conquered. As soon as Xerxes was finished he started marching his army straight for Athens. On the way the Persians fought the Greeks at the Battle of Thermopylae. The Persians slaughtered the entire Greek force, with the help of a Greek traitor.…
Very old Greek warriors became the premier warriors of their classical world. Through intense internal war fighting, they perfected heavy infantry strategies, and when they were united, they were able to defeat a (sudden, unwanted entry into a place) by Persia, the super-power of their day. The heavily outnumbered Greek warriors, called hoplites, used superior strategies, training and arms to defeat two huge (sudden, unwanted entries into places). However, the Greeks returned to their constant war fighting once their common enemy was defeated. Philip of Hellenized Macedonia, king of what the Greeks thought about/believed a (dangerous, wild person) kingdom to their north, learned and even improved the Greek's group of (possibly armed) people…
Athens was an incredibly strong military power. For example, Athens successfully defended against Persian…
Their major downfall was attempting to turn their boats around. Being that the Persian ships were too large to maneuver, they were unable to flee due to other persian ships blocking the path. By trying to turn around they crashed into their own ships. They were blocked from all sides with nowhere to go. In the end, the Greeks won.…
During the Persian invasion mentioned before, Leonidas had to sacrifice himself for Greece. Persian negotiators gave Leonidas a warning that stated he shouldn’t defy the Persian empire, they did this by “asking for their weapons as a sign of submission, which Leonidas said the famous historical phrase Come and get them!”(Leonidas Greeka.com) Ironically “Xerxes waited 4 days before he attacked, believing that the Greeks would surrender,” oblivious to the fact that Leonidas most likely denied his advice to give up! A fun fact was that Xerxes had such an enormous army that, “according to legend, there were so many Persian fighters that their arrows hid the sun,” another was that his army possibly consisted of 80,000 slaves and soldiers!(Moulton 1 V3) One question is that if Xerxes’ force was so huge, then how didn’t it overwhelm Leonidas’ rag tag group of warriors?…
In early fifth century B.C.E, the Greeks constantly suffered from the threat of being conquered by the Persian Empire. Although Persian power vastly exceeded, the Greeks unexpectedly triumphed. Similar to the tale of David versus Goliath, the Greeks defeated the Persians due to divine support and Greek unity. The threat of the Persian Empire expansion into Greece and the imminent possibility that they would lose their freedom and become slaves to the Persians, so horrified the Greeks that they united together and risked their lives in order to preserve the one thing they all shared in common, their "Greekness".…
Athens, Sparta, and Thebes all failed to create a lasting “Greek Empire.” While each polis had its own strengths and weaknesses, the poleis all failed for similar reasons. The poleis failed mainly due to almost constant power struggles, arrogance, and involvement in conflicts they should not have been involved in. Athens, Sparta, and Thebes all failed in spite of various strengths and due to various weaknesses. Athens’ strengths included its large size, large trireme navy, wealth, and democratic government.…
The ancient Greek civilization is greatly intertwined with war-related conquests of expansion through the use of aggressive military policies. Hence, violence and military conflicts are…