300 Spartans

For the 1962 film about the Battle of Thermopylae, see The 300 Spartans.

The 300 Spartans were a band of Spartan Warriors handpicked by Leonidas, King of Sparta, during the invasion of Xerxes during the Greco-Persian Wars. The 300 fought their only battle at Thermopylae. The 300 were a "sire only" unit, meaning that each soldier had already sired a son. A "sire only" unit in Sparta meant a suicide unit, as each soldier was expected to die in his mission. The 300 Spartans' mission was to slow down the Persian invasion.

According to the History written by Herodotus, Leonidas was motivated by a prophecy, given by the Oracle of Delphi, that for Sparta to survive the Persian invasion, one of her two kings must die in battle. Whether or not this is true, Leonidas had solid tactical reasons for undertaking the mission.

The combined Greek forces had been attempting to block the Persians' land advance at the narrow Pass of Thermopylae, at the same time as a naval engagement at Artemisium took on the Persian fleet. Unfortunately, Ephialtes, from Malis, revealed the existence of the Anopaean path to the Persians, who under Hydarnes were able to get around the pass and the Greek forces. The 1,000 Phocian soldiers who had been stationed there to protect the Greek rear fled.

After a council of war, Leonidas ordered the Greek allies to retreat, with the exception of 700 Thespians, 400 Thebans, and his own force of 300 Spartans. These forces engaged the Persians. The Thebans surrendered before the final assault by the Persians, while the Thespians and Spartans were annihilated to a man.

This left all of central Greece undefended. The next line of land defence was at the Isthmus of Corinth.

See also

*300 (comics)
*300 (film)
*The 300 Spartans