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Thermopylae

Holly McBride (ID # 311895)
GRST 205 Lec 01
Submitted to G. Wrightson : Tutorial 06
Essay on Ancient Greece
Due October 27, 2005

Was the victory at Thermopylae a result of Spartan upbringing?

Thermopylae, the confrontation that allowed Athens to be evacuated during the Persian War, was a victory for the Greeks due to the fact that it saved the Athenian citizens from an almost certain fate. The Spartan King that led the small group of soldiers against the Persians is revered even now for his commitment to the cause of the Greek world. The age old question is possibly phrased most effectively by W.W. How and J. Wells, ¡§¡Kwhat was the purpose of Leonidas in clinging to his position at Thermopylae when it had apparently become untenable?¡¨1 There was several reasons for his sacrificial last stand, all pertaining to or considered a consequence of his Spartan upbringing. Aspects of his education that directly affected the battle of Thermopylae are the military training received as a youth, the value of honour in Greek society and the role that religion played in Sparta.
Thermopylae was a significant skirmish between a portion of the Peloponnesian army, led by Leonidas and the Persian army that was attempting to cross a mountainous pass near the Gulf of Malis. Originally, the Greeks were prepared to engage in a full confrontation with the Persians with an army of approximately 8000 soldiers from both the mainland and Peloponnese, but due to circumstances such as preparedness of the Persians and time of arrival, this did not occur at Thermopylae. The panicked Greeks realized that Athens would be lost soon after and this would greatly diminish Greece¡¦s chance of surviving to barrage of the Persians. To prevent this from happening, much of the army left. Leonidas, the Spartans, Thebans and Thespians remained to stall the Persians and allow the evacuation of Athens. The battle of Thermopylae consisted of a portion of the Persian army, numbers are not known as...