HI123 Lecture Notes - Lecture 3: Mardonius, Feigned Retreat, Medes
•
August 480 BC, Leonidas arrives in the middle gate
○
There's a mountain path around them and he tries to block it with
1000 phocian hoplites
•
Spartan morals were kept high
○
Combing their hair
○
Persian scout tells them to lay down their arms, Spartans respond
"come and take them"
○
Local Shepard says there'll be so many arrows it will block out the
sun. Leonidas says ' all the better, we'll fight in the shade'
•
Xerxes waits 4 days to see if they'll surrender
○
Sends out the Medes (they outnumbered the Greeks 2:1)
•
They try using arrows but they're ineffective, and use hand-to-hand-
Persians are failing
•
Sends troops from Susa, they still get crushed
•
The 'immortals' are mobalized
•
Spartans use a tactic of feigned retreat would pretend to flee, entice the
Persians into Pursuit, and turn around and cut them down
•
'immortals' were thrown back with heavy losses and Xerxes calls them off
for the day
•
It was said that the Persians were so scared of the Greeks they had to be
whipped into battle
•
Persians are worried about running out of supplies
•
Greek traitor, Epilates offers to lead the Persians to a path around the
Greeks
○
They march at night
•
The 1000 men on the path retreat to a hill and the Persians pin them
there with arrows as they pass
•
Leonidas orders other Greeks to retreat while the Spartans, Thebans,
Thespians and Mycenae stayed
•
The remaining Greeks retreat to 'last stand hill' by noon on the third day
the battle was over
Significance of Thermopylae
• Unquestionable Persian victory, Leonidas failed to hold the pass
• Greek fleet had to flee Artimisium
• Persian Army marches on Athens- they empty the city and bring
everyone to Salamis island
• Persians burned Athenian's temples
• Fleet of Greek allies attacked the Persian imperial fleet and scored a
defensive victory
○Xerxes withdraws from Greece, but leaves behind his best army
• 479 Mardonius begins to fight the Greeks at Plataea
○Avoids battle by using cavalry to get rid of their supplies so they'll
surrender
• He sends in an army too early and the Spartans send out 10,000 hoplites
and Persians are crushed
Thermopylae
Monday, July 2, 2018
10:55 AM
Document Summary
10:55 am: august 480 bc, leonidas arrives in the middle gate. There"s a mountain path around them and he tries to block it with. 1000 phocian hoplites: spartan morals were kept high. Persian scout tells them to lay down their arms, spartans respond. Local shepard says there"ll be so many arrows it will block out the sun. Leonidas says " all the better, we"ll fight in the shade: xerxes waits 4 days to see if they"ll surrender. Sends out the medes (they outnumbered the greeks 2:1: they try using arrows but they"re ineffective, and use hand-to-hand- Persians are failing: sends troops from susa, they still get crushed, the "immortals" are mobalized, spartans use a tactic of feigned retreat would pretend to flee, entice the. They march at night: the 1000 men on the path retreat to a hill and the persians pin them there with arrows as they pass, leonidas orders other greeks to retreat while the spartans, thebans,
