Ancient Wars

Yes, he expanded Macedonia, brought the Greek city-states under his control, and prepared to take over the Persian Empire, but assassination ended this.

As part of a Greek blocking force, they helped hold the pass for three days to make the Persians try to break through by turning the bottleneck by sea. The Greek navies were waiting offshore to pounce on the Persian navy to try to eliminate it and its threat to the Greek cities. As it turned out, the Greek navies were defeated and withdrew to try again at Salamis. The land blocking force at Thermopylae, its mission now invalidated, withdrew. The Spartan contingent of 300 heavy infantry and 2,100 light infantry, together with the Thespian contingent, remained holding the pass to allow the other city contingents to escape to the walls of friendly cities before the Persian cavalry broke through and rode them down in open countryside. They were killed to a man, a noble sacrifice to save their comrades.

It is called a stalemate, draw, or tie in a game.

In a war, they usually declare a winner anyway, but they call it a hollow or Pyrrhic victory, meaning that the "victory" was so devastating that it might as well be a loss.

Athens was overconfident when it entered the war, imagining the combination of the money it collected from its empire, the strength of its walls, and the dominance of its navy would see it through. The Persians swung the balance, donating money to the Peloponnesian League to buy and man a fleet to match the Athenian one. With it's fleet defeated, its sea food route closed, and city besieged, Athens was starved out.

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A battle fleet is an operational naval task force designed to operate as a coordinated unit, which is subdivided into battle groups.

The Persian army was capable of striking fast due to its highly organized structure, effective use of cavalry, and strategic deployment of light infantry. Their emphasis on mobility allowed them to cover vast distances quickly, often catching opponents off guard. Additionally, the use of well-maintained supply lines ensured that troops could sustain rapid movements without logistical delays. This combination of tactics and organization made the Persian army a formidable force on the battlefield.

The Battle of Marathon was a turning point during the first Persian invasion of Greece. The Persians vastly outnumbered the Greeks on the battlefield, but the Greeks were able to defeat them. The Greeks charged the Persian troops with a thin weaker line, while the Greeks' left and right flanks consisted of stronger troops who quickly surrounded the Persian troops and attacked them on both sides. It was a crushing defeat for the Persians, and the battle convinced the Greeks that while the Persian Empire had vast armies and archers, it was possible to defeat them.

The resources and time (15,000 versus 1000, from 72-73 CE) that Rome committed to capture an insignificant fortress like Masada, and the intensity of its defence, when an accommodation could have been negotiated is remarkable. The underlying reason is a matter for speculation, with the modern discovery of a male and his family in a cave under the rim of the fortress. It appears that a very important man was holed up and the stubborn defence could have been to protect him. An obvious answer would be that this was the would-be king who sparked the revolt put down in 70 CE.

This could have been Jesus the Nazarene whose revolution in 33 CE was put down and he was crucified as a revolutionary - his body (allegedly dead after a mere few hours on the cross - it normally took several days to die) had been released in a deal with Roman governor Pontius Pilate which also involved a prisoner-exchange with Jesus' son Jesus bar Rabbas (Barabbas - son of the Rabbi). It may have been the latter who was prominent in the revolt in 66-70 CE and whose body was found in the cave at Masada. Or it may have been some other pretender. Speculative, but it fits the intensity of the Roman determination and resources to eliminate the source of trouble.

They were having a religious festival at the time and told the Athenians they would be along as soon as it was over. The Athenians lurked in the hills around the plain of Marathon to avoid the superior Persian cavalry while they waited for the Spartan army. However on the tenth day they saw the Persian cavalry being embarked on ships, took the opportunity to run down and defeat the inferior Persian unarmoured infantry without its usual cavalry protection. Having done this, they thought about where the Persian cavalry was going and realised that it was heading for undefended Athens, with traitors ready to open the gates for them as they galloped up from the port.

he Athenian army ran back over the hill the 26 miles to Athens, arriving just as the Persian cavalry was disembarking, and formed up in front of the city walls. Frustrated, the Persians re-embarked and went home. This run by the 9,000 Athenian infantry and their 9,000 light infantry is the origin of today's Marathon run. The Athenians had it much tougher than today's pampered athletes - they ran in sandals and armour carrying their shields and weapons.

The Spartan army left as soon as the festival was over, but arrived a day too late for the battle, marching on to view the battlefield, congratulated the Athenians, and went home.

The Assyrian Empire stretched from Assyria west to the Aegean and Mediterranean Seas. This was taken over by the rise of the Babylonian Empire, which in turn was taken over by the Persians, who extended it into Libya and Egypt in the west and eastward to Central Asia and today's Pakistan.

Britain had to finance its army defending the American colonies to hold off the invading French and their Indian allies. They levied taxes to help pay for this, and many of the American colonists didn't want to pay and organised a revolt.

The citizen soldiers who risked their lives in battle didn't want any old political appointee to lead them in battle, so it was usual for the soldiers to parade in arms and vote for the war leader.

there was a war against uk

The Peloponnesian War had a profound impact on Athenian culture, leading to a decline in its artistic and intellectual achievements. The prolonged conflict and subsequent defeat weakened Athens economically and politically, fostering a sense of disillusionment and instability. This shift was reflected in the arts, as tragedy and philosophy took on darker themes, exploring human suffering and moral ambiguity. Ultimately, the war marked a transition from the high point of Athenian cultural supremacy to a period of introspection and uncertainty.

We call it today the Peloponnesian War. It was a 27-year war between the Athenian Empire and the Peloponnesian League led by Sparta.

It is estimated that there were three-hundred Spartan Hoplites who died in the defense of the pass at Thermopylae .

Its soldiers were poorly paid, sometimes participating in some spoils of looting, which they usually wasted. If they survived their service, they were given a land grant of a small farm, but this gave them subsistence, not wealth.

Their generals took the major spoils, taking the money from the sale of prisoners as slaves. They had the responsibility of ensuring their soldiers got their land grants.

It was a sea battle.

On one side was a Greek fleet from an alliance of Greek city-states led by Sparta -

Athens 180, Corinth 40, Aegina 30, Chalcis 20, Megara 20, Sparta 16, Sicyon 15, Epidaurus 10, Eretria 7, Ambracia 7, Troizen 5, Naxos 4, Leucas 3, Hermione 3, Styra 2, Cythnus 2, Ceos 2, Melos 2, Siphnus 1, Seriphus 1, Croton 1.

On the other was a mixed fleet from Persian provinces - including Greeks, Phoenicians, Egyptians etc. The figures given below for these are vastly exaggerated, as these are the nominal fleets, not the ones actually there, including losses in previous actions. Halving them is appropriate, and then subtracting the Egypitan component as it was guarding against a Greek escape through the western channel. This give a total of about 400, nearly the same as the Greek fleet.

Phoenicia 300, Egypt 200, Cyprus 150, Cilicia 100, Ionia 100, Hellespont 100, Caria 70, Aeolia 60, Lycia 50, Pamphylia 30, Dorian 30, Cyclades 17

Sparta was upset with Athens attempt to control other Greek city-states

The two city-states that fought in the Peloponnesian war were Athens and Sparta.

He used a combination of the phalanx to hold the front, the cavalry to raid the enemy's flanks, and light infantry to link between the to, minimising the opportunity for enemy penetration, and maximising the threat to, and destabilising the enemy forces.