Did the 300 Spartans exist

Answer 1

We have reliable historians who have recorded this to be so, but not in quite the romantic way depicted in some accounts and movies. The 300 were the bodyguard of King Leonidas of Sparta. As the invading Persians had a strong amphibious capability which threatened the Greek cities, the cities all kept their main armies back for home defence, including Sparta. So Leonidas took this bodyguard, plus a couple of thousand serfs owned by them as light infantry, to Thermopylai to help the other city contingents hold the pass and force a sea battle in the adjacent strait, in an attempt to cripple the Persian naval forces, and so get rid of the amphibious threat. The sea battle at Artemesion was a failure, and so the sacrifice was in vain. A second sea battle at Salamis, off Athens, was successful, and with the amphibious threat gone, the cities sent their full armies to Plataia the following spring and defeated the Persian land forces and their Greek allies, ending the Persian invasion.

Answer 2

Yes, the 300 Spartans did exist. They were a group of elite warriors from the ancient Greek city-state of Sparta who fought in the Battle of Thermopylae in 480 BC against the Persian Empire. While the exact number of Spartans is debated, they were vastly outnumbered and eventually defeated, but their bravery and sacrifice became legendary.