At the Battle of Marathon, the Athenians and Plataeans, under the command of the Athenian general Miltiades, stopped the first Persian invasion of Greece. The Spartans, citing holidays, were late for the battle. The Battle of Marathon in Herodotus’s “History” is presented unclearly and needs clarification. Pausanias, “Description of Hellas”, Nepos, “On Famous Foreign Generals” and Justin, “Prologues of the Works of Pompey Trogus” allow us to supplement Herodotus.

Miltiades, son of Cimon, belonged to the Athenian aristocracy. As Herodotus writes, Miltiades seized power in the Athenian colony of Chersonesus, supported 500 mercenaries and took as his wife Hegesipila, the daughter of Olor, the Thracian king. Chersonesos, together with the Greek cities of Ionia, submitted to the power of the Persian kings. Together with the Persians, the Greeks took part in the campaign of King Darius against the Scythians and guarded the bridge over the Danube. Miltiades supported the Scythians' proposal to destroy the bridge so that the Persians could not cross back. Then the Greek cities could be freed from the Persians. Most of the Ionians remained loyal to the Persians and only pretended to destroy the bridge in order to deceive the Scythians. After some time, when the Ionians nevertheless rebelled, Miltiades was forced to flee from the Persian wrath from Chersonesos and return to Athens. In Athens, Miltiades narrowly escaped death at a citizen's trial on charges of tyranny. Instead of execution, the Athenians elected Miltiades as a strategist in the future war with the Persians.

Darius in 492 BC demanded “land and water” from the Greeks and sent an army and fleet under the command of Mardonius to Greece. Mardonius, having suppressed uprisings in the Ionian cities, conquered Macedonia and sailed along the coast, capturing the Greek islands. However, near Athos, the Persian fleet was shipwrecked, and the land army was attacked by the Thracians and suffered heavy losses. Mardonius himself was wounded and forced to retreat, for which Darius removed him from office.

Battle of Marathon, 490 BC

Herodotus, History, 6.94-120

“At the same time, Darius intended, under the pretext of a campaign against the Athenians, to subjugate the other Hellenes, who did not give him land and water. For failure in the campaign, the king removed Mardonius from his post. In his place he appointed two new commanders, namely Datis the Mede and Artaphrenes, the son of Artaphrenes, his nephew, and then sent them against Eretria and Athens. The king sent them with orders to convert the inhabitants of Athens and Eretria into slavery and bring them before his royal eyes.

These newly appointed military leaders, at the head of a numerous and well-equipped army, arrived on the Aleyan plain in Cilicia. While they were encamped there, the entire fleet arrived (every coastal city was obliged to field ships). Cargo ships for transporting horses also arrived (Darius ordered his tributaries to build these ships last year). Having loaded the horses onto these ships and put the infantrymen on the ships, the Persians sailed on 600 triremes to Ionia... After this sacrifice, Datis sailed with his ships, on which the Ionians and Aeolians were, first to Eretria... Having sailed from Delos, the barbarians molested the islands, recruited there army and took the children of the islanders hostage.

After subduing Eretria, the Persians stayed there for several days and then sailed on to Attica. They drove the Athenians into gorges, believing that they would do the same as the Eretrians. The most convenient place for cavalry operations in Attica was Marathon, which was also closest to Eretria... The Plataeans came to the aid of the Athenians at the sacred grove of Hercules with their entire militia.

Meanwhile, the opinions of the Athenian strategists were divided: some spoke out against the battle with the Median army, since the Athenians were too few in number; others (including Miltiades), on the contrary, advised to take the fight... When the polemarch (Callimachus) added his voice in support of Miltiades, it was finally decided to give battle to the enemy. Then the strategists who voted for the battle, when their turn came to be commanders-in-chief, ceded the main command to Miltiades. And although he accepted the main command, he still did not start the battle until his turn to command came to him.

And so, when it was the circle’s turn to command, the Athenians lined up in battle order for battle like this: the head of the right wing was the polemarch Callimachus (the Athenians still had the custom of the polemarch being at the head of the right wing). The right wing, led by Callimachus, was followed by the [Attic] philae one after another, likethey were counting. The last to line up on the left wing were the Plataeans. From the time of this battle, it became a custom among the Athenians that on the Panathenaic festival, celebrated every fifth year, during the sacrifice, the Athenian herald uttered a prayer for the granting of benefits to the Plataeans and Athenians. While the Athenians were forming up in battle formation, Marathon Here's what happened on the field: the Hellenic battle line turned out to be equal to the Persian one, but at the same time its center was only a few rows deep; here the battle line was weakest, but on both wings the warriors stood more densely.

Having completed the battle formation, after happy omens had fallen, the Athenians, at a given signal, rushed at the barbarians with a quick step. The distance between both opponents was no less than 8 stages. At the sight of the enemies approaching at a fast pace, the Persians prepared to repel the attack. The behavior of the Athenians seemed crazy and even fatal to the Persians, since there were few enemies and, moreover, they rushed at the Persians at a run without the cover of cavalry and archers. That's what the barbarians thought. The Athenians rushed at the enemies in close ranks, hand-to-hand, and fought courageously. After all, they were the first of all the Hellenes, as far as I know, to attack the enemies at a run and were not afraid of the sight of Median attire and warriors dressed in Median style. Until now, even the very name of the Medes brought fear to the Hellenes.

The Battle of Marathon lasted a long time. In the center of the battle line, where the Persians and Saks themselves stood, the barbarians prevailed. Here the victors broke through the ranks of the Athenians and began to pursue them straight into the interior of the country. However, the Athenians and Plataeans prevailed on both wings. After the victory, the Athenians did not pursue the enemies who had fled, but, uniting both wings, fought with the enemies who had broken through the center. Here too the Athenians won. They then began to pursue and cut down the fleeing Persians until they reached the sea. Here they tried to attack the ships and set them on fire.

In this battle, the polemarch [Callimachus], who valiantly fought the enemy, fell, and among the strategists - Stesilaus, son of Thrasil, then Kinegir, son of Euphorion (his hand was cut off with an ax when he grabbed the curved part of the ship's stern). Then many other noble Athenians also died. The Athenians captured seven ships in this way. On the rest, the barbarians again went to sea.

...In this battle of Marathon, about 6,400 barbarians fell, while the Athenians lost 192 people.

After the full moon, 2000 Lacedaemonians arrived in Athens. They moved so quickly, trying to arrive on time, that they were already on the third day after leaving Sparta on Attic soil. Even though the Spartans were late to the battle, they still wanted to look at the fallen Medes. They arrived at Marathon, examined the battlefield and then, having praised the Athenians for their victory, returned home.”

Artist P. Connolly

Nepos, Miltiades

“And Darius, upon returning from Europe to Asia, heeded the persuasion of his friends who advised him to subjugate Greece, and equipped a fleet of 500 ships. He appointed Datis and Artaphernes as commanders of the fleet, providing them with 200 thousand infantry and 10 thousand horsemen, and the reason for the campaign was his enmity towards the Athenians, with the help of whom the Ionians captured Sardis. At this time, not a single city provided assistance to Athens - only Plataea, which sent a thousand soldiers. After their arrival, the number of fighters reached 10 thousand, and this small army burned with an amazing fighting spirit. And so, the next day, having lined up in battle formation at the foot of the mountain, on rather rough terrain (in many places there were single trees growing here), they entered the battle, hoping that thanks to the cover of the high mountain and the row of trees interfering with the cavalry, numerous enemies would not will be able to surround them. Datis understood that the battlefield was inconvenient for the Persians, however, relying on the number of his troops, he was eager to cross arms, considering, moreover, that it would be wiser to fight before the Lacedaemonian reinforcements arrived. So, he put 100 thousand infantry and 10 thousand horsemen in line and began the battle. In this battle, the Athenians showed incomparable valor, defeating a tenfold stronger enemy and instilling such fear in the Persians that they fled not to the camp, but to the ships. There has never been a more glorious victory in the world. Never before has such a small group of fighters crushed such a powerful army.”

Plutarch, Aristides, 5

“When Darius sent Datis to Greece (in words - to punish the Athenians for the burning of Sardis, but in reality - to enslave the Hellenes) and the Persians, landing near Marathon, began to devastate the country, the Athenians elected ten strategists to lead military actions, among whom the greatest influence Miltiades enjoyed the second, but Aristides gained good fame and universal trust.

Aristides agreed with Miltiades regarding the timing and plan of the battle, and this support proved decisive. Each strategist had supreme power for one day, but when Aristides’ turn came, he yielded command to Miltiades, instilling in his fellow officers that obeying and helping people knowledgeable in their business and carrying out their orders is not only not shameful, but, on the contrary , commendable and salutary.

In the battle, it was most difficult in the middle of the Athenian battle formation, where the barbarians held out for an unusually long time, repelling the onslaught of the phyla Leontis and Antiochides, and where Themistocles and Aristides, the former belonging to Leontis and the latter to Antiochida, fought gloriously shoulder to shoulder. The barbarians fled and boarded ships, and then the Athenians, seeing that they were not sailing to the islands, but that the wind and current were carrying them to the shore of Attica, were afraid that the enemy would capture the city that was left without defenders; Nine philas hastily set off and arrived in Athens on the same day. Aristides was left with his family in Marathon to guard captives and booty...”

Artist Igor Dzys

Pausanias, Attica, 32

“In this place of Attica the barbarians landed, here they were defeated in battle, here they, when they tried to sail to the open sea, lost several ships. On the plain there is a grave of the Athenians, and on it are steles on which are written the names of the dead and the name of Philae of each of them: there is another grave for the Boeotian Plataeans and for slaves: then for the first time slaves fought (together with the Hellenes).”

(Most likely the Psilian slaves covered the flanks of Miltiades on the slopes and behind the trees)

Artist Brian Palmer

Justin, 2.9

“When the Athenians heard that Darius was approaching, they asked for help from the Lacedaemonians, who were their allies at that time. However, having learned that the Spartans, following religious instructions, would set out no earlier than four days later, the Athenians, without waiting for their help, armed 10,000 citizens and, with a thousand auxiliary detachment from Plataea, set out to take the battle on the Marathon field with 600,000 ( ???) enemies. The commander in this war was Miltiades, and he insisted not to expect Spartan help. He was so confident in his abilities that he considered speed of action to be the best way for the defencists than the help of the allies. So great was the enthusiasm of the Greek soldiers before this battle that, when 1000 steps remained between the battle lines, they ran towards the enemy and reached him before archery was opened. And such courage did not remain fruitless. The Greeks fought so valiantly that one might think: on this side there are men, on that there are herds. The defeated Persians fled to the ships, but many of the ships were sunk and many were captured.”

Frontin, Strategems, 2.9.8

“Miltiades, having defeated a huge number of Persians at Marathon, convinced the Athenians, who were delayed by expressions of their joy, to rush to the aid of the city, where the Persian fleet rushed. When he ran forward and filled the walls of the city with soldiers, the Persians decided that the Athenians were a huge number, that some soldiers fought at Marathon, and others defended the walls; They therefore immediately pulled together their ships and headed back to Asia.”

The Svida (or Suda) gives the rationale for the Greek proverb “Cavalry away”: “When Datis invaded Attica, it is said that the Ionians, after his withdrawal, climbed into the trees and signaled to the Athenians that the cavalry was away; and learning that she had left, Miltiades attacked and therefore gained victory. Hence this saying is pronounced in relation to those who left the ranks.”

10 years after the defeat of the commanders of Darius in the Battle of Marathon, another king, Xerxes, gathered a huge army to conquer independent Greece. However, the Greeks were able to defeat the Persians at sea and on land. , in which the Greeks were defeated and most of the Spartans died, had great moral significance in uniting the Greeks against the Persian invaders. A year after Thermopylae, the Greeks won a decisive victory.

After the victory, Miltiades began to enjoy the unlimited trust of citizens. Promising them to capture a lot of gold and without revealing the details of the campaign, Miltiades took the money, fleet and army and set off to besiege Paros, whose inhabitants had given their fleet to the Persians. The adventure ended in failure. Miltiades injured his leg and ingloriously returned to Athens, where he was again put on trial. Having escaped execution, Miltiades was fined, but died of hip inflammation, and his son paid the fine.

Battle of Marathon - September 12, 490 BC. e. In the southern part of the Marathon plain, eight hundred meters from the sea, a hill rises - the common grave of the Athenians who fell in the legendary battle. All names are clearly inscribed on 10 tombstones. It was not difficult to do this - in the decisive battle with the Persians, the Greeks lost less than two hundred people.

If their opponents had decided to create such a memorial, they would have had to carve 6,500 names on the stone! The number of losses was so unequal that for this alone the Battle of Marathon can be considered one of the most extraordinary in world history.

But the Persians were so sure of the defeat of the Greeks! They loaded 600 triremes with 10,000 infantry and the same number of cavalry and horses. The fleet crossed the Aegean Sea without incident. One of the ships carried a huge block of marble - the Persians wanted to build a monument from it in honor of their victory...

By that time, the Persian power was able to subjugate a vast territory. Including the cities of Asia Minor (present-day Turkey), inhabited by Greeks. And wow, their rebellious residents had the audacity to rebel! Moreover, the Athenians sent reinforcements to help the rebels. Of course, the Persians suppressed the uprising. But they did not forget about the treachery of the Athenians.

And now war has been declared on Greece. The first trip was unsuccessful. The Persian ships were caught in a storm, and the foot army suffered losses. But King Darius began to prepare for his second coming. True, just in case, he sent ambassadors to the Greek policies - demanding submission. Some agreed to recognize the power of the Persians, but the Athenians flatly refused...

Well, the challenge was accepted. And now the Persian troops landed near the town of Marathon on a small plain surrounded by mountains and the sea. There is only one day's march to Athens - the first blow of the conquerors was supposed to fall on this city...

The place for the battle was chosen on the advice of Hippias, the former Athenian tyrant, expelled from his native land 20 years earlier. Intelligence reported that no one was guarding the plain. Even if the patrol service informs the city about the enemy's landing, at least eight hours will pass before the army reaches Marathon. The Persians will meet them in full combat readiness! In Athens they hesitated - to give the enemy battle or allow a siege?

The majority opinion is a battle. The Athenian commander Miltiades, who knew their tactics well, hurried to meet the Persians. In the open, the Persian horsemen would easily attack the Athenians from both flanks, while the archers showered her front with arrows. This means that the task is to prevent a battle on the plain.

The closed formation blocked a kilometer-long gorge between the mountain slopes. The Athenians numbered approximately 10,000 - half the number of the Persian army. But - there is nowhere to retreat, Athena is behind!.. And they began to prepare for defense.

It all started near the Athens road at the exit of the valley. Greek hoplites - warriors with heavy spears, swords and shields - lined up in a phalanx. However, the valley was still too wide. And Miltiades deliberately weakened the center, strengthening both flanks so that they could provide adequate resistance to the Persian cavalry. The most dexterous and brave were sent to the mountains so that they would hinder the enemy’s approach, showering them with arrows, stones and darts from above.

Miltiades gave the order to cut down the trees that generously covered the mountains. Ahead of the right and left flanks, abatis were set up, in which light infantry took refuge - warriors with bows, darts and slings. By taking this position, Miltiades deprived the Persians of their main trump card - cavalry attacks on the flanks. To do this, the horses would have to make their way along slopes and rubble under arrow fire. The cavalry could not strike from the front either: the infantry could barely fit in the narrow place!

Like in a fairy tale, they stood opposite each other for three days and three nights. The Greeks did not at all want to change their advantageous position, and besides, they sent a messenger to the Spartans for reinforcements. The Persians tried in vain to lure the enemy onto the plain. And, in the end, they decided, without waiting for the Spartans, to launch an offensive.

Miltiades let the enemy closer - a hundred paces. Everything was based on the exact choice of the moment of attack. A swing of the sword - and the hoplite phalanx rushed forward - not at a walk, but practically at a run. The running had a triple purpose: to increase pressure, to demoralize the enemy and to escape from the arrows. And arrows rained down on the Greek army! The Persians, seeing the Greeks approaching with alarming speed, actually stopped. And the flanking Greek detachments struck them unhindered, squeezing the Persians into a deadly pincer.

Of course, when deciding on such a high-speed attack, the Athenian commander took a great risk. The run could upset the ranks of his own warriors. Yes, both slingers and javelin throwers could not keep up with the formation, and therefore could not provide fire support to it. However, the calculation paid off! For some time, the Ionians, frozen like idols, could not withstand the ramming blow and rushed to their heels. They rushed towards the ships, with the Greeks hot on their heels. Anyone who hesitated immediately fell to the ground, pierced by a spear...

In his “Notes” he cited a similar incident in the battle of Pharsal. Then Pompey's soldiers, standing still, took the blow of the Caesarians. The pressure of the soldiers simply overturned and crushed the most powerful army! This is the inevitable fate of troops standing still during a conflict - so said Caesar, and he knew what he was saying.

In the heat of battle, the Persian commander Datis suddenly found himself cut off from the ships. What was left for him? Stop your warriors, turn around and attack again. But now the hated Hellenes are confident of their advantage. They are very close, and the vaunted Persian throwing weapons remained somewhere on the battlefield... The field fortification was also captured by the enemy. And behind us the battered but not exterminated central phyla gather again...

We must attack the enemy at all costs and break through to the ships! The Greeks rushed forward, but either the swampy river prevented them, or the Persians were stronger in hand-to-hand combat... One way or another, the Persian cavalry cut through the Athenian hoplites and cleared the way for the infantry.

By that time, some of the Persians had already set sail from the shore. The Athenian slaves who were pursuing them rushed to plunder the enemy camp. Following them, the Persian cavalry burst into the camp and also began to load onto the ships. The maddened horses resisted, and the horsemen delayed so much that both the infantry and the phalangites of Miltiades were able to catch up with them.

A fierce battle in shallow waters, in which two Athenian strategists and a polemarch died... And now the remnants of the vaunted Persian army are on the open sea. The Athenians captured 7 triremes (the rowers and crews accounted for a considerable part of the Persian losses). They saw off the fleeing enemy with warlike cries. A messenger was immediately sent to Athens with the good news. He flew like an arrow along the paths and steep slopes. Victory, victory!.. - the heart rate increased. He rushes without even taking off his armor. When he reached Athens, he shouted; "Rejoice, we won!" - and then, lifeless, he collapsed to the ground.

From Marathon to Athens 42 km and 195 m. In memory of the warrior who passed on the good news at the cost of his life, athletes began to call this distance marathon. But this is a story from our time. And then, having barely recovered from the heat of the battle, Datis did not consider it lost at all. The Persians set out on ships for Athens, convinced that there were no troops in the city. But Miltiades also received a message from Athens - the Persian fleet is heading towards the city!

And the Athenians, exhausted by the battle, the seven-kilometer forced march through the swamp and the battle for the ships, performed a real miracle. They walked forty kilometers at a fast, almost marching pace. And so, when the Persian fleet approached the harbor, Datis, to his horror, saw on the shore the same army with which he had been fighting since the morning! Of course, the battered Persians did not land in front of the enemy. After staying a little near Athens, they sailed back.

How was the small Greek army able to defeat the seemingly invincible Persian formations? The merit of Miltiades is undoubted, who managed to take a position advantageous in all respects. To this day, Marathon reminds the military of the art of placing troops on the ground so that it itself increases their strength.

The difference in weapons during the Battle of Marathon also had an impact: the Athenians were heavy and well-protected infantry, while the main weapon of the Persians was the bow. The wicker shield that the shooter put in front of him did not save him from the almost 2-meter spears of the Greeks. “They go into battle in hats and trousers,” - this is how Aristagoras described the motley Persian warriors, recruited from the inhabitants of many conquered countries. However, the strength of the phalanx is not only in courage and weapons. She is united and united. The dexterity and courage of each warrior are compressed into “one thundering fist.”

The difference between the troops of both sides is best shown in the Greek legend about the conversation between the Persian king Xerxes and the exiled Spartan ruler Demaratus. The great king boasts that among his bodyguards there is more than one person who is ready to compete with three Hellenes at once. Demaratus argues that this is useless. Of course, the Spartans are no more brave than other people, but their true strength lies in unity. The law commands them, without leaving the ranks, to win together or die together...

It should be noted that on the day of the Battle of Marathon, the Spartans did not come to the aid of their brothers. They answered the messenger that they could not go to war during the religious holiday of Karneya, which would end by the next full moon. The fast walker went back and along the road, according to legend, met none other than the god Pan. He, unlike the allies, offered his help to the Athenians. He promised to sow confusion in the ranks of the enemy - and brilliantly fulfilled his promise. And at the same time he gave us the word “panic”.

By the way, the generally accepted date for the Battle of Marathon is September 12, 490 BC. e. It was calculated in the 19th century by August Beck based on the notes of Herodotus. It was the Karneia holiday that became the basis for the scientist’s calculations. But Bekh took the Athenian calendar as a basis. But Donald Olson from the University of Texas at one time considered this a mistake. Carneia is a Spartan holiday, and therefore it must be tied to the Spartan calendar. The Athenian year began with the new moon after the summer solstice, and the Spartan year began with the first full moon after the autumn equinox.

Olson and his colleagues calculated that between the autumn equinox and the summer solstice in 491 - 490 there were 10 new moons - one more than usual. Therefore, that year the Spartan calendar was one month ahead of the Athenian calendar. This may mean that the Battle of Marathon actually took place on 12 August. This means that it was the summer heat that could have caused the legendary messenger to overheat, which probably caused his sudden death.

P.S. What about the piece of marble brought by the self-confident Persians? He remained lying on the battlefield of Marathon. After many wanderings, the beautiful stone ended up in the workshop of the Greek sculptor Phidias, and the Athenians ordered an image of the goddess of love Aphrodite to be made from it to decorate the city garden. The most worthy of Phidias' students, Agorakritos of Pharos, created this beautiful work of art from trophy marble.

September 12, 490 BC e. Not far from the Greek village of Marathon, a battle took place between the troops of Athens and the army of the Persian king Darius. This battle is known to us as the Battle of Marathon. Thanks to the Battle of Marathon, it was possible to stop the advance of the Persian Empire into Europe.

Prehistory: In 510 BC. The citizens of Athens expelled their tyrant Hippias from the city, and he fled under the protection of Darius. In 508 or 507 BC. e. the ambassadors of Athens, sent by Cleisthenes, asked Darius for help in view of the supposed Spartan intervention and, as a sign of submission, offered him “earth and water”; this gave Darius reason to consider Athens as a city subject to him.

The reason for the battle was that in 500 BC. e. the inhabitants of the Greek city of Miletus in Asia Minor (which was at that time conquered by the Persians) rebelled against Persian rule. The Athenians, who encouraged the Milesians to do this, first assisted them with their fleet, but at a critical moment abandoned the rebels. The uprising was suppressed. However, King Darius I decided to punish the Athenians for helping Milete. The sea campaign was planned as a punitive action against Athens, as well as the city of Eretria on the island of Euboea, which also helped the rebels. A previous attempt to punish the Greeks (in 493 BC) failed due to a storm that scattered the ships carrying the Persian army and smashed them against the rocks.

In the summer of 490 BC. e. a fleet of 600 ships (including special ships for transporting horses) was assembled in Cilicia and sailed from there to conquer Greece. Sources do not name the exact number of troops that took part in the marathon battle. Historians estimate the minimum number of Persian troops at 20 thousand soldiers, and the maximum number of all participants in the campaign at 100 thousand. The number of cavalry was small, and cavalry did not participate in the battle. The Athenian army, according to researchers, numbered about 10 thousand hoplites (heavily armed infantrymen), and 1000 hoplites were sent by the city of Plataea, allied to Athens. Another 2,000 infantrymen went from Sparta to Marathon, but this detachment was late and did not take part in the battle.

The commanders of the Persians in this campaign were Datis and Artaphernes. The campaign was led by the former Athenian tyrant Hippias; he longed to take revenge on the Athenians and regain power. The Persian fleet moved from island to island, destroying cities and enslaving the inhabitants. In the end, the Persian ships landed on the shores of Attica, where the closest convenient place for landing was Marathon Bay, which was adjacent to a small valley.

The Marathon plain has the shape of a crescent, its ends abutting the Marathon Bay, and on the outer side it is bordered by a number of heights. A Greek army came from Athens to that very valley and set up a camp at a distance of 1-2 km from the Persian landing site. The commander of the Athenian troops was the polemarch Callimachus.

Before the battle, Miltiades formed the Greek phalanx at the entrance to the Marathon Valley. On the right flank were the best Athenian hoplites, the rest of the warriors lined up to the left according to the phyla; the left flank consisted of a detachment of Plataeans. The right wing was led by Callemarchus, the left flank was commanded by the brave Aemnest.

Due to the numerical superiority of the Persians and the considerable width of the valley, Miltiades could not give his phalanx the necessary depth. In addition, he took into account the possibility of his flanks being covered by Persian cavalry. Therefore, he reduced the number of ranks in the center and accordingly increased the number of ranks on the flanks. The total length of the front reached approximately 1 km.

The Persian battle formation consisted of foot archers located in the center and cavalry lined up on the flanks. In order to not give the Persian cavalry time to attack the Greeks on the plain and to immediately move on to hand-to-hand combat after archery, Miltiades moved from the heights towards the enemy in a “running march”. The “Running March” made it possible to quickly overcome the space hit by arrows and had a moral effect on the enemy.

Having withstood the initial onslaught, the Persian archers counterattacked the Greeks, broke through the weak center of the Athenian phalanx and pursued the Athenians deep into the valley. But the strong flanks of the Greek phalanx overthrew the Persian cavalry, which failed to break through the ranks of the Athenians here, and went against the Persian center, rushing to the aid of their constrained comrades. The consequence of this attack was the defeat of the Persian archers. Surrounded on all sides, the Persians fled.

The battle continued until dark. The weapons and protection of the Greeks, their physical training, better coordination of actions in the ranks, gave them a great advantage over the light weapons and uncoordinated actions of the Persians and Saks. In the evening, already in the dark, the Persian center could not stand it and fled to the parking lot of its fleet.

The Athenians' victory cost 192 citizens, including the polemarch Callimachus. Herodotus estimates the Persian losses at 6,400 people. The Persian fleet headed from the Marathon Valley to Athens, around Attica, rounding Cape Sounion. The Persians hoped to get there before the hoplites on foot, but the Athenians beat them to it. Seeing from the ships that the Athenian army was already waiting for them, the Persian commanders did not dare to land on the shore and left the shores of Hellas

The Persians, despite the losses they suffered in the Marathon valley and the general failure of that campaign, did not consider themselves defeated and were preparing for a full-scale war against Greece.

However, the moral impact of the victory at Marathon on the entire Greek society was very significant. For the first time, the superiority of Greek weapons and Greek military art over Persian ones was demonstrated. This confidence played an important role in subsequent events.

There is also a legend according to which a Greek warrior named Pheidippides, after the Battle of Marathon, ran without stopping from Marathon to Athens to announce the victory of the Greeks. Having reached Athens without stopping, he managed to shout “Rejoice, Athenians, we have won!” and died. This legend is not confirmed by documentary sources; According to Herodotus, Pheidippides was a messenger who was unsuccessfully sent for reinforcements from Athens to Sparta and covered a distance of 230 km in less than two days.

The legend was invented by later authors and appeared in Plutarch's Ethics in the 1st century AD (more than 550 years after the actual events). The International Olympic Committee in 1896 estimated the actual length of the distance from the Marathon battlefield to Athens to be 34.5 km. At the first modern Games in 1896 and at the 2004 Games, the marathon actually took place along a distance laid from Marathon to Athens.

At the beginning of the 5th century BC. e. The ruler of the huge Persian power, the powerful king Darius I, planned to subjugate all of Hellas. Ambassadors from Darius arrived in Greek cities with the words: “Our ruler, the king of kings, the great king Darius, the ruler of all people from sunrise to sunset, demands from you land and water...” With this event, the period of the Greco-Persian wars begins. In today's lesson you will learn about the first military clash between the Greeks and Persians - the famous Battle of Marathon.

Background

Persian kings by 539 BC conquered Asia Minor, Babylon, Egypt, Palestine and Syria.

In the second half of the 6th century. BC. became a huge state. Its territory extended from India to Egypt.

Ancient Greece at this time was in the heyday of its power and culture.

Events

546 BC- the campaign of the Persian king Cyrus in Asia Minor. Lydia and the large city of Sardis were captured, after which the Greek city-states in Asia Minor surrendered to the Persians one after another.

513 BC- the campaign of the Persian king Darius against the Scythians. Ended in failure for Darius.

500-449 BC.- Greco-Persian wars.

500 BC- the beginning of the Greek uprising against the Persians in Asia Minor. Considered the beginning of the Greco-Persian Wars. Athens helped with the fleet, but the uprising was still suppressed.

September 12, 490 BC- Marathon Battle (see plan).

• The Persian fleet suddenly appeared off the coast of Greece near the city of Marathon near Athens.
• Urgently gathering an army, the Athenians sent a messenger to Sparta. But the Spartans could not go on a military campaign until the full moon. Therefore, the Spartan army was delayed and did not have time for the battle.
• They had to defend themselves against the Persians with a small army, led by Miltiades.
• By forming a phalanx, the Athenians were able to defeat the outnumbered Persians.
• The Persians fled from the battlefield and decided on a trick: they sailed to Athens to capture the unarmed city.
• Having guessed the plans of the Persians, the Greek army marched 42 km (the distance from Marathon to Athens) and met the Persians where they wanted to land. The frightened Persians sailed away without a fight.

Hoplite phalanx - combat formation of Greek heavy infantry (hoplites). Hoplites were armed with large round shields, helmets and spears. The warriors stood and moved in close formation, shoulder to shoulder, so they were very dangerous for the enemy.

Participants

They sent to Sparta for help. They promised to help, but later, citing an ancient custom that forbade the Spartans to enter into battle before the full moon. Only the city of Plataea, bordering Attica, sent a detachment of soldiers to help Athens.

From Marathon to Athens is about 40 km. When the Greek army reached the hills surrounding Marathon Bay, they saw the enemy's vast camp and their ships. The enemy's superiority was obvious. Miltiades blocked the enemy's path to Athens, but did not dare to descend from the hills onto the plain, convenient for the Persian cavalry. It went day after day. September 13, 490 BC e. Miltiades built his army so that the forest and sea covered its flanks. The Persians tried to lure out the enemy. This went on for 3 days. On the third day, the Persians decided to go around Attica and land troops near Athens. In response to this, Miltiades decided to start a battle and withdrew his troops from the camp. He built the army in a phalanx - in close, serried ranks, not allowing the enemy to surround them. The Persians began to advance (Fig. 2).

Fearing the approach of the Spartans, Darius I moved his troops towards the Greeks. The Greeks met the enemy with a hail of stones and arrows. And then Miltiades ordered (the sound of a trumpet) to go on the offensive. And then it seemed to the Persians that the Greeks had gone mad. Having no cavalry and archers, they rushed to the attack under enemy arrows. Thus began the marathon battle. The phalanx's attack was terrible - the Persians suffered heavy losses. However, new warriors began to push back the Greeks and struck at the enemy’s center. The Greeks wavered and began to retreat. Soon the Persians cut the Greek army into two groups, victory seemed close, but... The edges of the Greek army began to move forward, enveloping the enemy army. The Persians could not stand it and ran to their ships. While the Greek phalanx was rebuilding, the Persians boarded ships and headed for Athens. Having guessed the enemy's plan, the Athenians rushed with all their might to defend their home city. We met the Persian fleet at the ready in the Athenian harbor. The Persians did not tempt fate and sailed away.

Rice. 2. Marathon Battle ()

After the full moon, the Spartans arrived, but they were too late for the battle. They nevertheless went to Marathon to examine the battlefield.

Miltiades ordered the fastest warrior to go to Athens to report the victory. In Athens, the warrior only managed to say: “Rejoice, Greeks, we won!” His heart could not withstand the enormous stress, and he died (Fig. 3). And in his memory, the distance he covered was 42 km 195 meters, on which the most enduring runners now compete during the Olympics. This sport is called marathon running.

Rice. 3. Feat of Pheidippides ()

After the Greek victory at Marathon, the Persians were no longer considered invincible. The Athenians were the first to defeat them.

Bibliography

1. A.A. Vigasin, G.I. Goder, I.S. Sventsitskaya. Ancient world history. 5th grade - M.: Education, 2006.
2. Nemirovsky A.I. A book to read on the history of the ancient world. - M.: Education, 1991.

1. Rulibs.com ()
2. E-reading-lib.org()

Homework

1. Why did most of the city-policies of Greece recognize the power of the Persians?
2. How were the Persians who landed at Marathon militarily superior to the Greeks?
3. Why, despite the superiority of the Persians, did the Greeks win?
4. What competition is held today to commemorate the victory of the Athenian army in the Marathon battle?