Battle of Thermopylae

Background

Location Thermopylae

After a first position in the northern Greek Tempe Valley had been cleared without a fight, there were great differences of opinion within the Greek alliance about the defensive positions to be built against the approaching Persians. Some of the members of the Hellenic League apparently wanted to confront the Persians only at the Isthmus of Corinth. Since Herodotus avoids naming the members who voted for a defense at the Isthmus, only conjectures can be made about this. It is conceivable that some of Sparta's allies voted for a far-reaching surrender of Greece; Sparta herself, according to Plutarch's account, is said to have argued for defence at Thermopylae. Above all, this would have avoided the loss of important allies from central Greece, especially Athens. In addition, there were the topographical circumstances. Due to the narrow extent of the pass, it was not possible for the Persians to efficiently exploit their numerical superiority (see the following section). In addition, the proximity to home and the fact that it required a relatively small contingent to defend played a decisive role.

From this information it can be concluded that the League possessed sound knowledge of Thermopylae and therefore deliberately chose this location. However, the ignorance about the bypass path, through which the Persians later outmaneuvered the defenders, then seems surprising. Another research opinion follows the view that the local knowledge was perhaps not sufficient after all and the time for more intensive reconnaissance work was missing. Herodotus and Diodorus report that the League was so surprised by Xerxes' whereabouts in the meantime that their own troops were quickly sent to Thermopylae.

Troop Strengths

According to the account of Herodotus, the only source from the 5th century BC, Xerxes' army is said to have looked like this:

Fleet: 517,610, infantry: 1,700,000 (VII, 60), cavalry: 80,000 (VII, 87), Arabs and Libyans: 20,000 (VII, 184), Greek allies: 324,000.

Herodotus still assumes an equally large number of support troops and thus comes to over 5 million (VII, 186). Due to the military system and the logistical capabilities of the Persians, especially supply, but also due to the tendency of many ancient historians to exaggerate numbers, these figures are considered far exaggerated. In a low estimate, the military historian Hans Delbrück calculated the total number of fighting troops deployed by Xerxes in Greece at 40,000 to 50,000 soldiers. The military historian Hans-Joachim Diesner also estimated the Persian superiority at hardly more than 50,000 warriors, while the U.S. military historian Victor Davis Hanson makes a higher assumption of more than a quarter of a million soldiers.

On the side of the Hellenic alliance, according to Herodotus (VII, 202 f.), a hoplite army with the following contingents is said to have taken up position at the pass:

300 Spartan hoplites, 1000 Tegeates and Mantineans, 120 from Orchomenos, 1000 from the rest of Arcadia, 400 from Corinth, 200 from Phleius, 80 from Mycenae, 700 from Boeotia and Thespiai, 1000 from Phocis, an unknown (but probably rather small) number of men from Opuntian Lokris, and 400 Thebans.

This account offers some room for speculation, also because Herodotus contradicts himself within his narrative. This circumstance becomes particularly clear when looking at the Peloponnesian contingent. This is given by Herodotus as 3,100 men. This number includes 300 Spartans, who were taken by Leonidas. The tomb inscription handed down by him, however, counts 4,000 Peloponnesians. Either Herodotus forgot to mention 900 Helots, who went along as armour bearers etc., or 900 emancipated Helots equipped as hoplites. However, these are only literarily tangible in Thucydides for the year 424 BC. The most probable omission is 900 Perioeci.

Also the report of Diodorus does not provide clear information. In the course of his enumeration he reports 1,000 Lacedaimonians. It remains questionable whether this number must be added to the already existing 300 Spartiates or whether it was a total of 1,000 Lacedaimonians (300 Spartiates and 700 Perioeci). This statement is supported by the fact that Leonidas, according to Diodorus' account, decided to take 1,000 Lacedaimonians with him to Thermopylae. To these were added 3,000 more Peloponnesians, which would bring the number given in the tomb inscription. Marcus Iunianus Iustinus reports in this context of only 4,000 soldiers, which is why it can be assumed that he only enumerated the soldiers from the Peloponnesus.

While the polis Thebes more or less openly pursued a propersian policy, Thebans are said to have fought on the side of the Greek alliance - it remains unclear whether they were exiled opponents of the regime or a contingent forced by the Hellenic League. In Herodotus, the 400 Thebans are said to have been taken hostage by Leonidas, whereas Diodor's account suggests volunteers. It is also noteworthy that no Athenian hoplites joined the land contingent.

Due to the relatively small number of troops, an open field battle was not up for discussion; rather, the purpose of positioning the troops was to stop Xerxes' rapid advance. The reason for the small number of troops is given by Herodotus in religious festivities. However, the request of Leonidas for reinforcements seems to be unmistakable. If one follows Herodotus' tradition and there really were religious restrictions, then the request for reinforcements seems incomprehensible. Leonidas must have known that potential reinforcements could not be mobilized until the carnage was over, making his early request superfluous. It must therefore be assumed that it was not the religious festivals that were responsible for the low number of soldiers, but an overly optimistic assessment on the part of the Spartan king. For, according to Diodor's account, it seemed to be up to Leonidas how many troops should accompany him to Thermopylae.

Aftermath of the battle

Xerxes I could now march unhindered to Athens, which, however, had been evacuated in the meantime at the request of Themistocles. With the victorious battles at Salamis and Plataiai, the Greek states were able to successfully defend their independence against the Persian Empire.

This battle established the later fame of Sparta, that its soldiers would never yield in battle.