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Persia
Persia planned to conquer the Greek peninsula by defeating individual poli, but Athens convinced other poli to combine forces with one another. The combined forces were known as leagues. Many poli fought the Persians, including fierce warriors from Sparta. The Greek leagues were outnumbered, but they managed to defeat the larger Persian army. Ten years after the retreat at Marathon, Darius’ son, Xerxes prepared another invasion. Xerxes sent about 200,000 soldiers and 800 ships to fight the Greeks at the Battle of Salamis. The Persian king watched from a mountaintop as the Greeks again managed to destroy more than 200 ships and kill 20,000 sailors. Xerxes was so enraged that he beheaded the few captains who were able to escape the wrath of the Greek armies. After the wars with the Persians, the Greeks felt a tremendous pride in their culture. The great Persian kingdom no longer awed them. This pride was especially strong in Athens. The artists, poets, sculptures, and architects developed a culture that was unique to Greece. The thirty-year period after the wars (460 BC to 430 BC) was known as the “Golden Age of Greece.” |
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Persia
was a kingdom east of the Greek peninsula. The Persians created a vast
empire that eventually stretched from Asia Minor (modern Turkey) to Babylon
(modern Iraq). In 490 BC, was the king of Persia. He decided to expand
his empire by attacking Athens. The Persians landed at Marathon, twenty-six
miles from the poli. A messenger named Pheidippides ran to Athens without
stopping to warn the Athenians of the invasion. Pheidippides died from
exhaustion shortly after gasping out his news, but his “marathon
run” alerted the Athenian army of the Persian landing. Soldiers
from Athens marched to Marathon and forced the Persians to return to their
ships. Today, runners call long races marathons in honor of Pheidippides’
run.