Although the Persians won at Thermopylae and conquered central Greece, they suffered considerable losses in the battle, and most of the Greek troops and ships were able to escape to the Isthmus of Corinth to rejoin the main Greek forces. Holding the pass could block an invader and even turn him back, though on all three of the famous occasions the defense of the pass failed. This battle became celebrated in history and literature as an example of heroic resistance against great odds. In antiquity its cliffs were by the sea, but silting has widened the distance to more than a mile. In Greece, the occasion has been commemorated with a new set of stamps and coins (all very official). The pass of Thermopylae, located 150 km north of Athens was an excellent choice for defence with steep mountains running down into the sea leaving only a narrow marshy area along the coast. No doubt many people would be interested to visit the modern site of the Battle of Thermopylae after watching the movie "300" in 2007. It's enough there for 30 minutes perhaps and it's somewhat out of the way. The pass had also been fortified by the local Phokians who built a defensive wall running from the so-called Middle Gate down to the sea. At a certain point, this route necessarily goes through a narrow pass, named Thermopylae. Game watch Follow. Thousands of years ago, Herodotus and Plutarch immortalized Spartan society in their histories; but today, little is left of the ancient city or the social structure of this momentous culture. Its name, meaning “hot gates,” is derived from its hot sulfur springs. Thermopylae is located in eastern central Greece on the only land route large enough to bear any significant traffic between Lokrisand Thessaly. was scarcely 100 yards wide, a visitor to the battlefield today would find the ocean more than a mile away. Today the pass at Thermopylae is far inland, up to 6 km from the sea, because of sediment infill in the Gulf of Malia, largely from the Sperchios River, and from local hot springs deposits (Plate R2). A Greek force of approximately 7,000 men marched north to block the pass in the middle of 480 BC. An alliance of Greek city-states of about 6,700 men fought the invading Persian Empire, which had an army of about 242,000 men, at the pass of Thermopylae in … The Battlefield and Memorial at Thermopylae Today - YouTube In 480 B.C., a huge Persian army, led by the inimitable King Xerxes, entered the mountain pass of Thermopylae to march on Greece, intending to conquer the land with little difficulty. In ancient times its cliffs were by the sea, but silting has widened the distance to more than a mile. One in particular pays tribute to the last stand of the Spartans and their Thespian allies on Kolonos Hill, the probable spot where they fell. The sea has receded over the years and it's now several kilometres away. This was refused. Photo: KW. However, there are numerous modern recreations. There was also a double fountain dedicated to Persephone - the Skylia fountain, at the foot of the ravine, next to the Middle Gate, the narrowest part of the Thermopylae. The coin features a Greek helmet to remember the battle between Greeks and Persians fought in the summer of 480 BC at the narrow coastal pass of Thermopylae. The battle was fought for over three days, at the same time as the naval Battle of Artemisium on 20 August or 8–10 September, 480 BC. The mountains of Thermopylae as they appear today. Be on the lookout for your Britannica newsletter to get trusted stories delivered right to your inbox. 5Days Grand Private Tour from Athens (From $2,072.79) Delphi & Meteora Two Days Tour from Athens (From $223.79) Proud Thermopylae & Famous … The Battle of Thermopylae was fought in central Greece at the mountain pass of Thermopylae in 480 BCE during the Persian Wars. A Fallen King. The Persian army, alleged by the ancient sources to have numbered over one million, but today considered to have been much smaller (various figures are given by scholars, ranging between about 100,000 and 150,000) arrived at the pass in late August or early September. By itself, I am not so sure. The Battle of Thermopylae, 480 BC, was a battle in the second Persian invasion of Greece. The Hot Gates is "the place of hot springs" and in Greek mythology it is the cavernous entrances to Hades. The army rolled south unopposed, until it met a small Greek force at the pass of Thermopylae in central Greece. No doubt many people would be interested to visit the modern site of the Battle of Thermopylae after watching the movie "300" in 2007. An alliance of Greek city-states of about 6,700 men fought the invading Persian Empire, which had an army of about 242,000 men, at the pass of Thermopylae in … 2020 marks the 2,500th anniversary of the Battle of Thermopylae in 480 BCE (technically it is the 2,499th). Great piles of Persian dead choked the pass by the end of the 9th, but nothing that Xerxes could throw at … For the ancient Greeks this place was sacred. Today. There, in August 480 bce, during the second Persian invasion of Greece, a small Greek force under the Spartan king Leonidas defended Attica and Boeotia against the southward advance of Xerxes’ Persian army while Greek fleets at nearby Cape Artemesium fought off the attacking Persian navy. It derives its name from its hot sulphur springs. Clearly Thermopylae was a location of great strategic importance, because it commands the pass through which one goes after traveling south from Thessaly through Lokris and into Boeotia. Because much of Greece is mountainous, the invading Persians were forced to take a fairly non-linear approach to the Greek heartland, one that wound its way along the coast. 2020 marks the 2,500th anniversary of the Battle of Thermopylae in 480 BCE (technically it is the 2,499th). Also consider visiting the National Archoelogical Muesum in Athens. The pass, some 4 miles (6 km) in length, has figured in numerous invasions. In the seventh book of his Histories, Herodotus offers a description of the topography of the battlefield of Thermopylae. Follow Profile. Browse Addons. Thermopylae is world-famous for the battle that took place there between the Greek forces and the invading Persian forces, commemorated by Simonides in the famous epitaph, "Go tell the Spartans, stranger passing by, That here obedient to their laws we lie." The Battle of Thermopylae is believed to have been fought in August 480 BC, during the Persian Wars (499 BC-449 BC). No doubt many people would be interested to visit the modern site of the Battle of Thermopylae after watching the movie "300" in 2007. The modern day highway you see in my picture is approximately where the coast was with the mountain range formed one side of the cliff.There is a modern monument dedicated to Leonidas and his brave 300 followers on one side of the highway. Thermopylae is a place in Greece where a narrow coastal passage existed in antiquity. After three days resisting the much larger Persian army of Xerxes I, Greek forces were betrayed by Ephialtes and sent into retreat by their leader, Leonidas, who died during a … Xerxes had amassed one of the largest armies yet known to man, while Leonidas’s troops, a group of united Spartans, Thespians, Thebans, and others, including slaves, were a small fraction of the Persian horde. But in 480 BC, the sea washed up to the base of steep hills and the pass was narrow: five metres wide at most at each end, and no more than 15 metres even in the middle. Thermopylae is a mountain pass near the sea in northern Greece which was the site of several battles in antiquity, the most famous being that between Persians and Greeks in August 480 BCE. On 31 March Greece has issued a 2 euro circulation coin dedicated to the Battle of Thermopylae 2,500 years ago. Sending the majority of his troops to safety, Leonidas remained to delay the Persians with 300 Spartans, their helots, and 1,100 Boeotians, all of whom died in battle. The vessel THERMOPYLAE (IMO: 9702443, MMSI 229711000) is a Vehicles Carrier built in 2015 (6 years old) and currently sailing under the flag of Malta. Furthermore, in Laconia, King Leonidas of Sparta was training men for the same reason: to counter a possible attack even the Persians in Greece. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). Share. On the first day, Xerxes sent his Median and Kissian troops, and after their failure to clear the … I was fortunate enough to pass through there on the way back to Athens in 2006 after a 4-day tour around mainland classical Greece with Key Tours. In antiquity its cliffs were by the sea, but silting has widened the distance to more than a mile. Fought for over three days in one of them has survived to.... 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