Chapter 12 The Great War

Question 1

Xerxes

Answer 1

Darius’ son who suppressed revolts but was inclined to leave the western frontier alone

Question 2

Mardonius

Answer 2

commander of the disastrous naval expedition in 492BC, urged Xerxes to renew attack

Question 3

Syracuse

Answer 3

greek colonies in eastern half of Sicily

housed breathtaking Sicilian temples paid for by taxes on Sicilian goods.

Question 4

Gela

Answer 4

small city on south coast of Sicily run by tyrant Hippocrates and then his cavalry commander Gelon

Question 5

Gelon

Answer 5

Took hippocrates’ place

• former cavalry commander
• when poorer citizens combined forces with native serfs to expel the aristocracy in 485 BC, Gelon used his army to restore the nobles and sized Syracuse for himself
• acted more like a king than a leader; wiping out cities and moving populations for his own build up and putting his brother in charge of Gelon.

Question 6

Himera

Answer 6

north coast of island of Sicily

-486 BC - Theron (ally of Gelon) over threw Terillus, the previous tyrant.

Question 7

Themistocles

Answer 7

Athenian that saw the need to act when Xerxes started gathering forces in 483BC
-worked behind the scenes to supervise construction of fleets while Xerxes finished prep for war

Question 8

Hamilcar

Answer 8

Carthaginian general

• wanted to reopen Sicily for trade rather than destroy the Greeks that lived there. He raised a lot of money and hired a host of mercenaries
• Violent storms sank his transport ships but he defeated a Greek army outside Himera and siezed the city.

Question 9

Thermopylae

Answer 9

“hot gates” between Thessaly and district of Locris, seemingly impassible mountain cane within few yards of the sea
-Persians stationed here in hopes to make a stand to Xerxes

Question 10

Leonidas

Answer 10

Spartan king

• Led small troop of 300 Spartans to Thermopylae
• Convinced of need to take stand, he rushed to get there before the Persians. So he repaired and old wall across the pass while the entire Greek fleet took up position nearby

Question 11

Salamis

Answer 11

island off the harbor of Athens

-in the battle, an Athenian or Aeginaean ship rammed into a Persian one and the navies fell on each other.

Question 12

Plataea

Answer 12

village in southern Boeotia where battle occurred in 479 BCE

-Mardonius’ cavalry fought Spartans while Persians attacked the Athenians

Question 13

Mycale

Answer 13

coast near Samos

• Samos Greeks warned their fleet that Ionia was going to throw off Persian rule and all the fleet needed to do was sail over and defeat the Persian ships. They made moves but the fore-warned Persians retreated, fortified the ships and closed then off. The Greeks breached the fortification.
• Then the Persians arrived and were attacked by the Athenians.
• Ended in Ionian victory.