5. Persian Wars Flashcards
Which period did the Persian Wars take place?
The Classical period, c. 500 BC
What monument of war commemorates the Persian Wars and when was it dedicated?
The Serpent column c. 479 BC
Which Roman Roman king claimed the Serpent column?
Constantine I
Where was the Serpent column and where was it moved to?
The Temple of Apollo at Delphi and moved to Constantinople or Istanbul on a golden tripod.
What was the 1st inscription on the Serpent Column referencing?
The defeat of the Persians at the hands of Pausanias - ignoring the other Greek Poleis.
What happened toe the 1st inscription of Serpent Column?
The Spartans immediately erased it + replaced it with the names of EVERY polis which took part in the war.
What is the strange thing about the 2nd inscription?
There is no mention of the Greeks at all, yet it still presents unity.
What does the 2nd inscription do?
Displays the unity of the Greeks, however not all of the Greek poleis are involved. Unity of a few?
What was the 1st key Event which started the Persian wars and when did it occur?
The Ionian Revolt in 499-494 BC
What happened in the Ionian Revolt?
Athens and Eretria attempt to help the Ionians revolt against the Persian empire.
How many people are killed in the Ionian Revolt?
192 Athenians and 6000 Persians (supposedly)
Who won the Ionian revolt?
The Persians.
What happened after the Ionian Revolt was crushed?
In 492, Darius sends Mardonius to attack the Greeks by sea.
When is the Battle of Marathon?
490 BC
What started the Battle of Marathon?
Darius sends an expedition to punish Athens and Eritrea.
Who won the Battle of Marathon?
The Athenians and the Eretrians.
When does the Persian invasion of Greece under Xerxes begin?
480 BC
What occurs in 480 BC, other than the invasion?
The Battle of Thermopylae and the sack of Athens.
Who lead the Greeks in the Battle of Thermopylae?
King Leonidas of Sparta.
How many men fought in the Battle of Thermopylae?
7000 for the Greeks.
Persians were supposedly over 1 million - modern scholars say 100,000-150,000.
How long did the Battle of Thermopylae last?
7 days, including at least 3 full days of battle.
How did the Greeks lose the Battle of Thermopylae?
They were betrayed by a Greek man named Ephialtes.
They were vastly Outnumbered.
How many Greek men were lost at the Battle of Thermopylae?
300 Spartans, 700 Thespians + 400 Thebans
What happened after the Battle of Thermopylae?
The Athenians decided to withdraw to Salamis. Athens was sacked. The Battle of Salamis was won.
What and when was the Battle of Salamis?
480 BC, it was a naval battle between Xerxes’ Persians and the unified Greek states, under Athens.
Why did the Persians lose the Battle of Salamis?
In such a confined space, the huge Persian fleet was a hindrance - couldn’t move + became disorganised.
What happens upon the defeat of the Persians at the Battle of Salamis?
Xerxes retreated with much of his army and fled home to Persia.
What and when was the decisive fall of the Persians?
At the Battle of Plataea in the summer of 479 BC.
How did the Battle of Plateau begin?
The Greek army assembled a large, by ancient standards, army and the Persians set up a fortified camp near Plataea.
A stalemate for 11 days.
What cause the stalemate of 11 days in the beginning of the Battle of Plataea?
The Greeks refused to be drawn into cavalry terrain.
What officially began the Battle of Plataea?
The Greeks supply line was disrupted, so they attempted to retreat, disrupting the line. The Persians thought they were in full retreat so attacked.
Which forces in particular battled in the Battle of Plataea?
Spartans, Athenians and Tegeans.
What ended the Battle of Plataea?
The death of the commander Mardonius and the slaughter of the Persian camp.
Who was Cyrus the Great?
Founder of the Persians and the Achaemenid Empire. Father of Cambyses.
What effect of the Persian empire did Cyrus have?
Greatly expanded + conquered most of the Southwest Asian area.
How did Cyrus come into power?
He overthrew his grandfather in 549 BC.
What was the Oath of the Hellenic League?
That all Greeks that fought the Persians in the war entered into a sworn agreement - if thy should win, they would dedicate a 10th of treasures from Greeks who had not sided with them to Apollo at Delphi.
Who talks about the Oath of the Hellenic League?
Herodotus.
