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Thermopylae

Thermopylae
Throughout history, there are few military engagements which match the legendary significance and symbolism than that of the battle of Thermopylae. Here it was told that 300 Spartan warriors gave their lives in an epic fight defending Greece against the largest land force ever assembled at the time. Although the tale has been exaggerated and misinterpreted through the centuries, the event nonetheless remains an extraordinary example of sacrifice and honor against overwhelming odds.
Before diving into the details of the battle itself, it is important to look at the surrounding incidents and situation of Greece as it entered into war with the "Great King" of Persia, Xerxes.
Sparta's era of expansionism had ended in the previous century, and it was now satisfied to dominate its southern Greek allies and maintain the status quo at home. Sparta maintained a more rigid social hierarchy than Athens and its minority of full citizens were permitted no other occupation than the profession of arms, or a permanently trained and mobilized military. Both states were fiercely independent and were looked to by other Greek cities for leadership.
When Persian envoys demanded submission from all Greeks, many cities dithered and others quietly offered surrender ("Medized" the Greeks called it) (Demand), but the Athenians and Spartans determined to resist, and their example Gave their fellow
Greeks an example and leader to emulate during the time preceding the inevitable siege by Xerxes' army.
In 490 B.C., King Darius of Persia set off on a conquest to capture all of the Peloponnese, however, his seaborne thrust in was stopped short soon after landing in Athenian territory, on the coastal plain of Marathon. For the first time, a major clash was fought between soldiers speaking Greek and soldiers speaking Persian. This conflict that was to last over a thousand years. In close combat, the heavy-armored Greek infantryman (hoplite), fighting in a dense...