Transcript The Persian War

The Persian War
Detail of Persian Campaigns
Difference Between Persia,
Greece
•
•
•
•
•
Persians
Absolute monarchy,
centered on Persian
“King of Kings”
Empire of conquered
people, fighting b/c their
king told them to
Small educated class
Land power w/ weak navy
Persian king wanted
everyone to be Persian
•
•
•
•
•
Greeks
Many different forms of
government
Free people fighting to
stay free
Large educated class
Strong navies, good
armies
Greeks wanted everyone
to think like Greeks
Causes of the First Persian War
• Ionian Greeks (living
along coast of Black Sea)
were being oppressed by
a client king of the
Persians
• In 499 BC, Ionian Greeks
rebelled against client
king and asked for help
from mainland Greeks;
Athens sent 20 warships
to assist them
First Persian War
• Persians reasserted control
by 495 BC; Darius decided
to punish Athens
• In 492 BC, he sent a large
fleet and army across
Aegean Sea, landing near
Athens
• Persian army approximately
30,000 troops; Athenian
army about 9,000
• Outnumbered Greeks met
the Persians at the
seashore
Battle of Marathon, 490 BC
• Persian camp was on
seashore
• Persian warships were
beached
• Greeks assembled for
battle
– Made center of phalanx
purposefully thinner
– Massed troops on ends of
lines
Battle of Marathon, 490 BC
Battle of Marathon, 490 BC
• . . . And performed a double envelopment of the Persian army
• Most of Persian navy launched without waiting for Persian
soldiers; many drowned or were speared in water
First Persian War Aftermath
• For the first time, all Greeks
were unified in face of
perceived threat to their way
of life, form Greek League
• Son, Xerxes, assumed
power, and prepared
massive invasion force for
return to Greece to avenge
father’s loss
vs.
Second Persian War (480-479 BC)
Second Persian War
• Xerxes invaded Greece
– Huge army drawn from all over
empire, brought together
– Accuracy of troop numbers:
Herodutus claimed up to 4
million!!
– Modern estimates, based on
supply limitations = 250,000
– Herodutus claimed Persians
had a fleet of over 1000 ships,
paralleling army
– Crossed Hellespont over bridge
of boats
Battle of Thermopylae
• Met Spartans in battle in
mountain pass at
Thermopylae, in central
Greece
• King Leonidas of Sparta
led 300 Spartans and
3700 other Greeks in a
desperate stand to slow
Persian advance
Hollywood’s Leonidas
Greece’s Leonidas
Battle of Thermopylae
• For three days, Leonidas held Persians off, killing
thousands of Persians; but a Greek traitor showed
Persians a way around the Spartan blockade; they were
attacked from rear and destroyed to the man
Fall of Athens and Salamis
• Persians marched on
Athens & destroyed the
abandoned city
• Xerxes brought fleet up to
destroy Athenian navy and
kill Athenians who took
refuge on island of Salamis
• Battle of Salamis ensued;
– Outnumbered Greeks
destroyed Persian navy
– Lured Persians into narrow
straits & negated their #s
Salamis
• Following defeat, Xerxes abandoned his army and
returned to Persia
Significance of Persian Wars
• Greek victory allowed Golden Age of
Greece to occur
• Western philosophy, art & culture came
into its own and spread throughout Europe
(and eventually to the US)
• Persian victory would have snuffed out
idea of democracy
• Persian victory would have changed our
world today