Thermopylae

Great Battles

by Christopher Carey

During the Battle of Thermopylae in 480 BC, a Greek force of approximately 7,000 faced the biggest army ever seen in the Greek peninsula. For three days, the Persians--the greatest miltary force in the world--were stopped in their tracks by a vastly inferior force, before the bulk of the Greek army was forced to retreat with their rear guard wiped out in one of history's most famous last stands.

In strict military terms it was a defeat for the Greeks. But like the British retreat from Dunkirk or the massacre at the Alamo, this David and Goliath story has taken on the aura of success. Thermopylae has aquired a glamour exceeding the other battles of the Persian Wars, passing from history into myth, and lost none of that appeal in the modern era.

In Thermopylae, Chris Carey analyses the origins and course of this pivotal battle, as well as the challenges facing the historians who attempt to seperate fact from myth and make sense of an event with an absence of hard evidence. Carey also considers Thermopylae's cultural legacy, from it's absorbtion into Greek and Roman oratorical traditions, to its influence over modern literature, poetry, public monuments, and mainstream Hollywood movies. This new volume in the Great Battles series offers an innovative view of a battle whose legacy has overtaken it's real life practical outcomes, but which showed that a seemingly unstoppable force could be resisted.

Genres: History, Ancient History

260 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2019

About the author

Chris Carey is a British classical scholar, currently Professor Emeritus of Greek at University College London (UCL). He held the Professorship of Greek at UCL, from 2003 until his retirement in 2016. In April 2000 The Independent named him one of the "stars of modern classical scholarship".

Reviews

[Marko · Rating 3 out of 5]

The parts referring directly to the Battle of Thermopylae were really nice and informative, but the parts about the meaning of the battle for later generations were less so. Strong 3 stars.

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant and detailed account of the battle and its importance in both the ancient and modern worlds.

[Lawrence Patterson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was great in parts, confusing to start with, exciting in the middle but occasionally just a bit too deep but on the whole it gave a wide ranging view of how it has been credited and popped up in so many military episodes in the histories of so many nations. The book gets a four star from me because on the whole it was readable, interesting throughout even when trying to determine how many were on each side and in the minute interrogation of different writings from various Greek sources. Much time elapsed between the event and the written words of Greek historians, scholars and writers - so much was passed down by word of mouth for several generations and probably both expanded and curtailed in equal measure. What it burns down to the fact there were many on the Persian side and few on the Greek side and yet those few were for three days holding back what was the biggest invading army that had come to the Greek mainland. In context it wasn't a battle that decided the fate of either side or of the venture to overcome either nation . It relies heavily on a band of Spartans that refused to withdraw against incredible odds and in fact may have held out longer if not outflanked by the opposition and the betrayal of others positioned to guard their rear.
In a round about way the book is highly educational not just in how the several Greek states viewed each other - those that were beligerant, those supine and those less than trustworthy - in addition the detail of how each side was armed, how some took little part due to the limited fighting terrain and how each side handled the fight. The last few chapters are more about how people through the ages compared and mentioned this battle when last stands and unequal odds in battle and conflict were written and added too by historians, poets, politicians, authors and film makers seeking to elaborate other events and battles in comparing the happenings here to their time. Whilst adding to the mystery of this battle and outlining the fact that a few sacrificed themselves it was alarming that others sought to justify other actions in history as being on a similar plain.

[Terry Hinkley · Rating 4 out of 5]

An overhyped epic battle? A celebration of failure? It seems that Chris Carey has this opinion but he makes a very good argument. Studying various accounts from Herodotus and Plutarch to modern day theorists and comparing them with accounts from Greek historians before and after the battle but there also is the fact there are no first person accounts since most of the combatants were killed, captured and executed or were not there at the scene. He has come to this conclusion but also wonders what would have happened had King Leonidas and his Spartan hoplites had won and not been betrayed by two of their own (Damaratus and Ephialtes). He also delves in to the Persian mindset and how the battle is referenced throughout history.