After the failure of Persia to invade the Greeks under the rule of King Darius, there were plans to raise a greater army but he passed before they were ready to mobilize.[1] His son, King Xerxes, took over as king, including the plans to invade Greece again. During war-council, Xerxes’ uncle, Artabanus, had warned both Darius, his brother, and Xerxes himself to not attack Athens but he was ridiculed by Xerxes and the rest of the assembly. A decade after the Persian defeat, Xerxes’ army finally marched towards Greece during the summer of 480 BC. Many Greek cities offered things as an act of submission, but Athens and Sparta refused.
King Leonidas I was born around 540 BCE in Sparta. His father was King Anaxandrides of Sparta. Since Leonidas was the third son of the king, he spent his youth learning to be a Spartan warrior while his older half-brother, Cleomenes I, was to be the next king of Sparta.[2] As Leonidas was about to enter the military service as a hoplite warrior, the King passed and Cleomenes inherited the throne. By 490 BCE, things were not going well under Cleomenes’ rule. Over the years, Grecian city states were succumbing to the invading Persians.[3] This outraged the Spartan king and in 491 BCE, he tried to overthrow a neighbouring king who was about to concede to the Persians. When the public discovered this, the people were unhappy and Cleomenes fled.[4] Later on, the Spartans allowed him to return but believed him to be insane and chained him. The imprisoned king then committed suicide. The other half-brother, Dorieus, had no interest in the throne so he attempted to establish a colony in Africa. When he failed, he went to Sicily and died there. Therefore, Leonidas was next in line for the throne.
Xerxes gathered a massive force to ensure the defeat of Greece with 1207 warships and as many as 1,700,000 warriors.[5] On the other side, the Greeks were not united with over a hundred city-states, only 31 uniting to fight against the Persians. King Xerxes was confident he had the upper hand with his overwhelming superiority in numbers. His strategy was to keep his naval fleet and infantry close. By August 480 BC, Xerxes had overrun Macedonia and Thessaly.[6] His army arrived at Thermopylae, a narrow pass between Thessaly and the ocean.[7] Leonidas knew he couldn’t defeat the entire army but he believed he could inflict such a devastating blow that the Persians would consider withdrawing. Not everyone was convinced with Leonidas’ strategy, so they approached the oracle of Apollo at Delphi. He did not want to meet the Persian force on an open field so he intended to withdraw to the place where the Peloponnesian Peninsula joined the land of Attica.[8] It was a narrow strip of land just a mile and a half long. This was where he would set up a defensive wall behind which they would find against the Persians. The only problem with this plan was that Athens was left completely unprotected.
Against his judgement, Leonidas agreed to take a small force to Thermopylae and defend against the Persians at the narrowest point of the pass. Only 300 Spartan warriors were selected to defend Thermopylae and were to be led by the Spartan king himself. The 300 was significant as it was not only a manageable number for an elite taskforce but also had symbolic overtones in Sparta, including the fact that it was the fixed number of regular royal bodyguard. The guards had to be exceptionally brave, skillful and patriotic, but also had to have a living son. This ensured that the son could carry on the father’s name.[9] In addition to the 300 Spartans, Leonidas took around 4,000 Peloponnesians and a thousand non-combatant Helots.
After arriving at Thermopylae, the Spartans started repairing an existing wall to make it a more defensible location. When Xerxes arrived at the pass’ western end, it was reported that he sent a message to Leonidas for him to hand over his arms. The Spartan King replied “Molon Labe!”, meaning “Come and get them yourself!”.(Biographics) Simultaneously, a Persian advance reconnaissance reported to Xerxes that there was strange behaviour among the Spartans. They were supremely at ease rather than being anxious about the coming attack. They were bathing, braiding one another’s hair and dancing. The Persians thought this as signs of madness until a Greek traitor informed them that was not true but that they were preparing for their final stand.[10]
Xerxes first sent in the Medes. They were a force of about two thousand but they were no match for the Spartans. They did not wear helmets or greaves and their shields were made of wickerwork. The Medes suffered heavy losses and Xerxes was said to be appalled by the slaughter of his men. He then decided to send his elite royal bodyguard, ten thousand Immortals, under the command of Hydarnes. The attack was unsuccessful and only incurred serious casualties. At this point, some 20,000 Persians had fallen and it definitely put a dent in the morale of the Persian army. Incredibly frustrated, Xerxes decided not to attack again with his military superiority but by a traitor. A Greek named Ephialtes from Malis told the king of a mountain path that would allow them to bypass the Greek defensive position and offered to escort as many as 10,000 troops through. While the Spartans knew of this route, they were unaware that the Persians knew. Xerxes sent the Immortals to the path at nightfall and took the Greeks by surprise. [11]
"Leonidas at Thermopylae" by Jacques-Louis David resides at the Louvre.
It was the morning of the third day and the Persians had surrounded the Greeks. Understanding the reality of the situation, Leonidas ordered all the troops except the Spartans to escape as their cities would need them to fight another day. They all left except a group of about four hundred from Thesbes. When the king asked them why, they replied they would stay because the Spartans stayed. They would die with them. The Greeks made their last stand mostly outside the Middle Gate wall which enabled them to close directly with the oncoming enemy. The Persian losses at the beginning of Day 3 were reportedly heavier than those sustained on the previous two days. The Greeks even with their decreasing numbers, repeatedly drove the Persians back. Leonidas was said to have “fought and died like a man possessed.” (Biographics) How he died is not recorded but when he fell, the Persians tried to take his body several times, but the remaining Spartans formed a defensive circle around him. As their spears and lances were broken, the Spartans threw rocks at surrounding Persians. Finally, arrows launched and the last Spartans fell.
The Persians took Leonidas and decapitated and crucified his body. Xerxes tried to hide the true number of casualties his army suffered but the great defense by the Spartans could not be hidden.[12] The death of Leonidas and his Spartans lifted Greek morale. In addition, this period of Spartans holding the Persian advance gave Athens’ fleet enough time to wreak havoc on the Persian navy. While the Persians may have won the Battle of Thermopylae, the Greeks would successfully drive the Persians out, thus winning the war.
A similar battle happened over two centuries later, the Battle of Borodino. On June 24, 1812, the French emperor, Napoleon Bonaparte, invades Russia with his army.[13] At this time, Napoleon had major control of many countries in Europe whether through invasions, treaties, or alliances.[14] The French army was pushed by Napoleon quickly through Western Russia with minor encounters.[15] While the Russian army retreated, they burned the villages and crops to prevent the French from living off of the resources. This flustered the French as it was a tactic they effectively utilised in past invasions, known as La Maraude. The retreat continued for three months while the Russian nobility became more upset. Therefore the tsar, Alexander I, finally appointed an experienced Prince Mikhail Klutuzov to command the Russian Army.[16] On September 7th, the French met the Russians before a town called Borodino which was 70 miles west of Moscow.[17] It was the largest, bloodiest one-day battle in the Napoleonic Wars.[18] The French had won but had 70,000 casualties.[19]
"Battle of Borodino" by George Jones is part of the Tate collection.
Later on, Napoleon returned to Paris due to advice from his advisers to protect his position as emperor. There were food shortages, cold weather, and more problems that ultimately led to the Grande Armée leaving Russia in December 1812.[20] The French had originally arrived with 500,000 men but left with over 300,000 casualties. [21]
While the Battle of Borodino happened nearly 2,291 years after the Battle of Thermopylae, they have several similarities including aftermath. The forces were respectively led by royalty and nobility, the Greeks with King Leonidas I and the Russians with Prince Mkhail Klutuzov. Greek and Russian troops were essentially forced to defend their land due to the invading forces, Persia and France. Although Greece and Russia had lost their battles, Persia and France would soon meet their demise due to the lingering effects of damage from the battles. It is simply amazing to think about how overwhelmed and outnumbered the men were but to pull of such a feat and fight courageously for their country is purely astonishing. These events almost seem to be works of fiction yet they are the actions of true bravery.
Notes: [1] HistoryNet Staff, “Greco-Persian Wars: Xerxes' Invasion,” HistoryNet (HistoryNet, August 4, 2016), accessed November 10, 2020, https://www.historynet.com/greco-persian-wars-xerxes-invasion.htm. [2] “Leonidas I of Sparta Biography: Warrior King of the Greek City-State of Sparta,” Biographics, May 3, 2018, accessed November 10, 2020, https://biographics.org/leonidas-i-of-sparta-biography-lions-son/. [3] “Leonidas I of Sparta Biography: Warrior King of the Greek City-State of Sparta” [4] “Leonidas I of Sparta Biography" [5] F. Maurice, “The Size of the Army of Xerxes in the Invasion of Greece 480 B.C.”, The Journal of Hellenic Studies 50 (1930): 210-35, accessed November 10, 2020, doi:10.2307/626811. [6] "Leonidas I" [7] Staff, “Greco-Persian Wars: Xerxes' Invasion.” [8] "Leonidas I" [9] "Leonidas I" [10] "Leonidas I" [11] Maurice, “The Size of the Army of Xerxes in the Invasion of Greece 480 B.C.” [12] "Leonidas I" [13] National Geographic Society, “Napoleon Invades Russia,” National Geographic Society, October 25, 2013, accessed November 10, 2020, https://www.nationalgeographic.org/thisday/jun24/napoleon-invades-russia/. [14] John McLean, “History of Western Civilization II,” Invasion of Russia | History of Western Civilization II, accessed November 10, 2020, https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-hccc-worldhistory2/chapter/invasion-of-russia/. [15] McLean, “History of Western Civilization II.” [16] McLean, “History of Western Civilization II.” [17] Alexander Mikaberidze, The Battle of Borodino: Napoleon against Kutuzov (Barnsley: Pen & Sword Military, 2010). [18] McLean, “History of Western Civilization II.” [19] National Geographic Society, “Napoleon Invades Russia.” [20] Mikaberidze, The Battle of Borodino: Napoleon against Kutuzov. [21] National Geographic Society, “Napoleon Invades Russia.”
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Andrews, Evan. “5 Famous Pyrrhic Victories.” History.com. A&E Television Networks, August
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“Leonidas I of Sparta Biography: Warrior King of the Greek City-State of Sparta.”
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McLean, John. “History of Western Civilization II.” Invasion of Russia | History of Western
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hccc-worldhistory2/chapter/invasion-of-russia/.
Mikaberidze, Alexander. The Battle of Borodino: Napoleon against Kutuzov. Barnsley: Pen &
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National Geographic Society. “Napoleon Invades Russia.” National Geographic Society,
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https://www.nationalgeographic.org/thisday/jun24/napoleon-invades-russia/.
Staff, HistoryNet. “Greco-Persian Wars: Xerxes' Invasion.” HistoryNet. HistoryNet,
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