Marathon and Thermopylae

It has always fascinated me how the Greeks stood up to the Persian's many times over yet and that the basics of these two main battles is known by most modern children.

Persia had become so confident of victory over Greece under Darius. They even had many reasons to be in taking the Asia Minor Colonies. At the Battle of Marathon Darius was so confident of victory that he did not see the strategy of Miletus until it was too late. Not only did the Greeks attack at dawn but they pulled the Persian army into a trap by allowing the Persians to believe their center weak and broken. Miletus placed his trust and strength in the flanks which ultimately won him this victory. However Miletus had planned ahead and knew that Darius would still try to take Athens no matter the outcome at Marathon. He made his plans and used the rouse that Athens was fully defended even with the Army absent. When the greek army returned home to Athens the Persians returned home licking their wounds. But Greece knew better and started planning for the eventual return of Persia.

When Xerxes returned to Greece with the intent to conquer and return honor to his father he was met by a well prepared Greece. However Xerxes used treachory and tactic to deafeat the strong hearted Greeks who met him at Thermoylae. While Xerxes Navy easily defeated the navy of Athens his men were met by a small but couragous army inland. While it took several days to defeat this force he ultimately did and created a legend that gave the rest of Greece the morale to defeat his navy and eventually his army. Thermopylae and the story of the 300 Spartans is still used as a story of courage and sacrifice for the greater good of man. However Greece lost more than the few thousand that stood at Thermopylae, they watched their beloved city of Athens burn as Xerxes pursued them across the Gulf of Cornith. As the Greek Navy lured the Persians into the waters near Salamis Xerxes and his navy fell to pride while the Greeks showed great skill in Naval tactics.

To me the greater story of these battles is not the minor losses incurred at Marathon or the Courage of the men at Thermopylae but the great skill used at Salamis. The beginning of of true naval warefare was shown in the tactics used by the Greeks and on more than one occassion Greece showed the world that with skill the few can defeat the many.