5th Century/600s B.

C
The Century of Greece

Key Terms in this Lecture

 Ionian Revolt [499-494 B.C]
 Athens
 Darius I
 Marathon [490]
 Xerxes [486]
 Hellenic League [480]
 Thermopylae
 Leonidas
 Salamis
 Platea [479]

I. The Greek Century

A. Background Information
1. The height of the Greek culture/wealth/power
2. Famous after defeating the Persian empire
B. Persian Conquer Cont
1. Persians control the Ionia area in which were inhibited by Greeks who despised the Persians
a. The Ionian Revolt
 The Ionians knew that if they wanted to succeed in the battle they would need help from
other allies that had also hated the Persians. The Ionians begged for help from the Greeks
in Greece and unfortunately, everyone in Greece was afraid of the Persians so they did not
send any help. Fortunately, Athens decides to send help with their hoplite soldiers and
ships to help this revolt
 The revolt fails  494 B.C, the Persians crush the Ionian revolt and their citizens are again
forced to be subjects to the Persian empire
 Persian King at this time = Darius I, who wanted to let the revolutionists that if you
rebel against Persia you will fail and die, and those that do help go against Persia, you
will also be punished
2. Darius I decides to crush Athens for helping the Ionians in 490 B.C
a. Darius gathers an army of 20k soldiers and sends them across the ocean to go attack Athens
and land at their city called Marathon which is 26 miles away from Athens, they send a
message from Marathon to Athens
 Tells the Athenians that their resistance is futile so they might as well just surrender and
become a subject of Persia in such that none of their citizens will have to die or lose lives
 The Polis of Athens decides to fight as their group decision is made and the Athenians were
outnumbered. Despite these odds, the Athenians win the battle of Marathon and 7k
Persians died with the rest of them running away. Only 142 Persians died
 Athenians were able to win this battle because not all people in the Persian army were
Persian; most of them were just captured countries in which they do not really want to
fight. Athenians were highly motivated as they were protecting their home land
 The Athenians go into battle with Hoplite armor where as the Persians went into battle
with iron weapons but don’t wear armor in battle
  Caused Darius to be very upset and made him lose his pride and decides that he is
going to prepare a proper invasion of Athens/Greece; he does not only want to
conquer all of Athens but the rest of Greece
 The Persians won’t be attacking Athens for another good ten years
3. Darius dies in 486 and Xerxes, his son, takes over his throne
a. Xerxes was not a good military leader so his conquest in Greece will not be successful
b. Xerxes gathers up an army of 200k men and gathers a navy of 600 ships/triremes and marches
along the coast towards Greece
 The Greeks knew that the Persians were coming and decide to start up an army and the
other p0lis’ decide to send in their aid to them, the armies sign the Hellenic League in 480
B.C which was a military alliance between their polices
 Together, they have 400 Triremes and 400k soldiers, not all Greek polis’ joined
because of competition and some of their polis’ hated each other and some of them
even went to join the Persians!
 The Greeks try to stop the Persians at Thermopile
 Reenactment of 300, Xerxes burns down Athens as revenge, they have not defeated
the Greeks yet, but they have defeated Athens
c. The Battle of Salamis
 Rested the Greek navy where the defeated Athens held the Persian army and navy
 Xerxes wants to defeat the Greeks ASAP because he wants to return home before his
empire crumbles in susceptible revolts, Salamis has a very narrow water channel and
Xerxes decides that he wants to destroy the Greek navy there in the open sea
 Persian ships were much quicker and easier to maneuver around , although, the
Greeks had a heavier and slower ship, their ships are stronger
 The Greek navy destroys the Persian navy and lost very few men in comparison to the
Persian men as they were able to swim to safety when their ship were to die, however, the
Persians chained their men to their ships 
 Importance?
 Persian fleet is destroyed
 Xerxes panics and races home with the majority of his army, after this battle Xerxes no
longer has a navy and since he thinks that without a navy = trapped in Greece, he
decides to take his army and go home
d. Xerxes leaves behind 70k soldiers in his rush
e. The Battle of Platea
 The Greeks become victorious for the same reasons of why the Athenians won the battle of
Marathon
 Persians are driven out of Greece 
C. Impacts of Greek Victory Over the Persians
1. Persians would never return to Greece
a. Meant that Greek will never be conquered by Persia and to continue to develop their free and
independent civilization
b. 479 marks the end of the Persian wars but also the beginning of the Golden Age/Classic Age for
the Greeks
 The Greeks were convinced that they could do anything and achieve anything
 Art, Architecture, Philosophy, Literature, Plays/Dramas, etc. mostly happen after the
Persian wars!