The battles of Plataea and Mycale Flashcards
The final battles in this stage of Greco-Persian conflict
What did Themistocles do after the battle of Salamis?
He spent the winter of 480/479 BC in a congress in Sparta to discuss strategy
However, at this point the Athenians had him replaced
Who did the Athenians appoint to replace Themistocles?
Xanthippus and Aristides
What happened in 479BC?
How did the Athenians respond?
The Persians attacked Greece again
The Greeks evacuated Attica for a second time
The people retreated to Salamis and Athens was agin destroyed
Who did the Athenians appeal to for help?
The Spartans
After the death of Leonidas, who was ruling Sparta?
Leonidas’ son was king but far too young to rule
His gaurdian Pausanias became regent and ruled in his place
Where did the Greek forces assemble?
At the isthmus of Corinth
From where did the assembled Greek forces come?
Sparta, Athens, Plataea, Megara, Aegina, Corinth
In total, roughly how many Greek were assembled?
30,000
What did Mardonius attempt to do when the Greek forces assembled?
Make a truce with the Athenians (which they refused) before retreating from Athens
Where did Mardoniusgo when he retreated from Athens?
To boeotia, where he prepared his 40-50,000 men for a battle at Plataea
Why was this battle unusual for the Greeks?
Pausanias seemed to have little control over the different Greek contingents
At one point he ordered a retreat which the Athenians refused to obey
Who was the Athenian commander who refused to retreat when ordered to by Pausanias?
Aristides
Who met the Persians in the battle?
A strong spartan phalanx
Who did the Athenians meet in the battle?
Thebans who had medised
What did Pausanias decide to do with the Thebans who had medised and fought with the Persians?
To take them to the isthmus and execurte them
How were the Persians finally defeated?
Mardonius was killed in the battle of Plataea
After the battle what did the Greeks do?
Set up an altar to Zeus on the battle field
Establish a four-yearly festival of salvation which would happen on the site of the battle
What was the name of the other Spartan king at this point?
What was he doing?
Leotychidas
He was leading a naval expedition to Ionia
What did the Spartan king come across on his expedition?
How did he respond?
A Persian naval encampment at Mycale
He stormed this camp and burnt the Persian ships
How did the Ionians in the encampment at Mycale respond to the attack?
They fought hard against the Persians, with the Spartans
What did events at Mycale lead to?
A wider revolt against Persia in Ionia in which tyrants and Persian garrisons were driven out
What did the Ionians ask of the Spartans after the Greek victory?
To protect them by letting them join the Hellenic alliance
The Spartans wouldn’t let the Ionians join the Hellenic alliance
What did they advise them to do instead?
Move to mainland Greece
