The Battle of Thermopylae sketches the celebrated stand of King Leonidas and his 300 Spartan warriors against the overwhelming might of King Xerxes I’s Perisa Army.

The recent movie called “The 300” is a celebrated story of Spartan military prowess. The Spartans were the most elite infantry fighting force among all the Greek hoplite fighting men of antiquity. This motion picture sketches an inspirational stand by 300 Spartan Greek soldiers against the greatest Persian Army in the ancient world. The movie successfully captured the spirit of that ancient battle for the liberation of Greece from Persian domination, but the real story is far more interesting than any motion picture or graphic novel.

The Battle of Thermopylae began in 480 BC. This battle involved the unified Greek city states with 10,000 warriors against the vast Persian Empire with 250,000 warriors in the area of Thermopylae, in northern Greece. This was a major battle fought during the invasion of Greece that the Persian king, Xerxes I, led from 480 and 479 BC. While this conflict ended in victory for the Persian Army, the battle is remember primarily for the bravery shown by the Greeks led by their celebrated Spartan king, Leonidas I. According to Greek Historian Herodotus of 475 BC, Leonida’s was a fiery and aggressive Spartan leader who led his men with relentless determination.

THERMOPYLAE BATTLEFIELD ANALYSIS

The battle occurred over three days. The first attacks upon the Greek position came from the Cissians and the Medes of the Persian Army. Their aggressive attacks were easily repelled by the violent strategy and vicious tactics employed by the Greeks hoplites. Later, King Xerxes replaced his light infantry units with his Immortals under the command of Hydarnes. However, their greater numbers were of no advantage in the cramped space of the pass and their shorter spears made them unable to engage the Greeks at close quarters because the Greek armies wore heavier and thicker body armor, the Greek warriors used stronger and longer spears, and the Greek swords were more effective at killing the enemy. Additionally, the Persian Army could not employ their maneuver tactics in these confined areas, which resulted in a stalemate.

This stalemate was eventually broken on the second day, when a Greek traitor, named Ephialtes, inform Xerxes that by following a mountain passageway the Persian Army could outflank the Greek force. Later, the Immortals, numbering about 10,000 soldiers, commence moving at night under the command of Hydarnes. While the immortals were on their way, they encountered 1000 Phocian Greek warriors that Leonidas had previously dispatched to defend the passageway. Assuming that they were the sole object of the Persian advance, some Phocians retreated to high ground and others returned home to defend their families, and others prepared to die in battle. The Persian Army simply passed by.

When Leonidas and the remaining Greek forces discovered they were outflanked, many of the allies decided to retreat from the battle, but Leonidas and the Spartans, refused to move because their military training, doctrine, and philosophy made no provisions for retreat. The remaining Greek forces were only 300 Spartans, 700 Thespians, and 400 Thebans. King Leonidas along with his Spartan warriors were subsequently killed after heavy fighting in the pass and by hail of Persian arrows. The remaining Greeks retreated to a small hill, where they fought courageously before being massacred by the Persians. The bow-n-arrow was the most capable weapon system in the Persian Army and military historians believe that Xerxes should have employed this weapon earlier, but both the Persians and the Greeks believe that arrows were a cowardly weapon system; therefore, Xerxes decided to employ force on force combat for the first two days of the battle.

LEONIDAS BATTLEFIELD DECISION

The reason Leonidas made his final stand remains unknown to historians, but there are several possible explanations. First, Leonidas probably remained on the battle field for strategic purposes because he wanted to hold the Persian forces back long enough to allow the other Greeks to retreat to safety. Second, Leonidas probably continued fighting because this was the Spartan military philosophy, whi

ch says a Spartan warrior must never retreat from battle no matter how un-winnable the engagement. Third, Leonidas was probably seeking personal glory since martyrdom in battle was the highest honor any Spartan warrior could ever achieve. Fourth, Leonidas was a deeply religious man and he believed in the prophecy foretold by the oracle of Delphi saying that either the city of Sparta would pass away or one of her kings would perish. Thus, by his death, Leonidas was probably trying to save his city. The sacrifice of Leonidas and his Spartan warriors made deep impressions on Western military history for generations.

RELATED SOURCES: Holmes, Richard; Battlefield Decisive Conflicts In History; Oxford University Press: New York, NY, 2006. Nelson, Ph.D., Eric D and Susan K. Allard-Nelson, Ph.D.; Ancient Greece; Alpha Books: Penguin Group: New York, NY, 2004.