Salamis 480 BC: The Battle for Greece

[Music] in the fth century BC the great King of Persia ruled the greatest Empire the world had ever seen it stretched from Modern Pakistan to Macedonia and contained 1/5th of the world's population the Persian Empire was sophisticated rich and all conquering and in 480 BC King Xerxes LED its Mighty forces against Greece a patchwork of tiny city states that lay on the western fringes of his vast realm he had decided to punish the Greeks for having dared to meddle in his Affairs but seeking Vengeance conquest and Glory he would find only disaster and death in

The Straits of Salamis [Music] the histori of Herodotus of halicarnassus is presented here so that the great and marvelous Deeds of Greeks and barbarians should not go unsung the events that follow are known chiefly from the writings of Herodotus of halicarnassus an ancient Greek colony on what's now the west coast of turkey about 30 years after the Persian Invasion Herodotus began his hisi his inquiries into its Origins and course like most people in the ancient world he believed in Omens oracles and divine intervention but he also believed that humans could shape their own fate so

he traveled across Greece and the Persian Empire reading records and inscriptions speaking to local people and weighing up the evidence according to his own reason the Roman writer Cicero would later dub her Herodotus the father of [Music] History war is the father and king of all some he has made gods and some men some slaves and some free the root of the conflict between Greece and Persia went back a generation in the 6th Century BC King Cyrus the Great brought the Greek colonies of Western Anatolia under Persian rule but in 499 they rebelled and appealed

to their fellow Greeks for Aid only Athens and erra answered the call together the Greeks burned the provincial capital Sardis and its Temple to the Earth goddess cile it seemed like a major victory but the Persians responded with impressive speed and the Greeks were soon in full Retreat back to the coast it took the Persians four years to finally Stamp Out the Revolt in Western Anatolia then the great king Darius turned his attention to the Greeks across the sea who dared to Aid the rebels he sent ambassadors to the many city states of Greece demanding

earth and water as tokens of submission many submitted but two did not Athens a young democracy fiercely protective of its Liberty and Sparta a conservative militarized state that took orders from no one both cities answered the great King by kicking his envoys down a well where they were told they might find all the earth and water they required in 490 BC Darius dispatched a mighty expedition to bring the Greeks to heal naos was the largest of several islands to submit batraa was sacked and burned then the Persians landed at Marathon to meet out the same

punishment to Athens Athenian troops with those of their small neighbor platia met them on the beach though outnumbered 2 to one the Greek soldiers attacked their hoplight infantry fought with large heavy Shields and Spears in a tight fank formation the more lightly equipped Persians could not stand up to their Onslaught Persian troops were slaughtered on the beach the survivors scrambled back to their ships Athens had been saved 4 years later Darius died and was succeeded by his son Xerxes he took up the task of punishing the Greeks and avenging his father's humiliation the new king

of kings summoned troops and ships from across his Empire and ordered a bridge of boats to be built across the helis Pont in Spring 480 BC his gigantic Invasion Force crossed from Asia into Europe Herodotus estimated its size at 2.3 million m men an impossible number that could not have been fed or watered modern historians think 200,000 more likely still vast for the age it was accompanied by an enormous Fleet a thousand warships or more supplied by Persia's vassel States across the Eastern Mediterranean Greece appeared an easy target its many independent city states were not

torious for constant infighting but in the face of the Persian threat 31 States put aside their differences and convened a council of War at the ismos of Corinth to plan the defense of Greece these states were later commemorated on a giant serpent column at Deli the Greek's most sacred site at the top of the list the lacedemonians another name for the Spartans followed by the a iians and Corinthians knowing the Persians would invade from the north the Greeks sent 10,000 men to hold a mountain pass at Tempe near Mount Olympus but when the troops arrived

they found the position could be easily outflanked nor were they confident about the Loyalty of thesy to their rear so the troops withdrew instead the Greeks would make their St stand at theropo with 7,000 men led by the Spartan King Leonidas the Greek Fleet arrived at artemisium to guard the sea flank like the alliance itself the Greek fleet was an uneasy Coalition with ships from city states like Athens and aena that had until recently been at War the Athenian contingent was by far the largest it only existed thanks to the discovery 3 years earlier of

Rich Silver Mines at laurum it had taken the foresight of their Mr CLE an Athenian Statesman and general to persuade the people of Athens not to spend this windfall on cash handouts for themselves instead he' urged them to spend the money on a fleet of 200 trims for their own future security it was a decision that may ultimately have saved Greece Athens however was so distrusted by other Greeks that they refused to serve under an Athenian Admiral so theist tactfully accepted the appointment of a Spartan URI bades to lead the fleet even though Spartans had

no expertise in Naval Warfare spray flying from the OES The Fleets sweep together plowing through the swell Ram te [Music] Beed both the Greek and Persian fleets relied on a single type of Warship one that dominated Naval Warfare in the Mediterranean the trm Sleek agile and delicate the trim carried masts and sails for cruising but in combat these were lowered and the ship relied on three Banks of rowers which gave the trim its name the ship carried 170 oresman in total who could produce a top speed of around 10 knots to smash their primary weapon

a bronze sheath Ram into the hull of an enemy ship leaving it crippled boarding the enemy was another tactic a Greek ship usually carried 14 Marines 10 hotlights armed with spear and shield and four armor ERS the ship's Commander the triarch sat at the stern alongside the Helmsman the kybernetes who guided the ship's course with twin Rudders a bosen and bow officer relayed orders to the oresman while a piper helped them keep time a carpenter and 10 Sailors brought the ship's total compliment to 200 men every ship had a name name and a painted eye

on the bow to avert ill Fortune Herodotus describes the Greek ships as more heavily built than the Persian ships although in what way we're not sure he also tells us that Persian ships carried many more Marines 44 in total here the sons of Athens set in place the bright foundation stone of Freedom while Leonidas and the Greeks held the pass at thop the Persian Fleet sailed South along the rugged Coastline of magnesia but one night while at anchor they were hit by a violent storm hundreds of ships were wrecked and damaged thousands of sailors drowned

according to Herodotus the Persians further weakened their Force by sending 200 trims around the island of yubia to cut off the Greek retreat but the entire Squadron was destroyed by another storm her Herodotus offers little supporting evidence for this operation which would have been extremely Reckless and some historians doubt it ever happened despite Persian losses the Greeks still faced odds of nearly 3 to one at artemisium and they weren't just outnumbered the Persian fleet was more experienced in Naval Warfare particularly the elite squadron from Phoenicia in modern Lebanon nevertheless over 3 days of tense Naval

Combat the Greek Fleet held its nerve and kept the Persians at Bay but at the end of the third day disastrous news arrived Leonidas and the Greeks at theropo had been encircled the Spartan King and half his men had been killed the pass had fallen it seemed the efforts of the Greek Fleet had been in vain Central Greece and Athens itself now lay open to the Persian Onslaught as the Greek Fleet withdrew the Persians marched South burning cities farms and sanctuaries though sparing thieves one of several Greek city states to side with Persia to Athenian

dismay the Greek army dominated by troops from the peloponese gathered at the ismos of Corinth and began building a great wall to protect their own homes from The Invader Athens was to be abandoned the Greek Fleet began to evacuate civilians to Trine aena and salamis Palace Athena cannot appease Olympian Zeus but the wooden wall alone the wooden wall shall stand in the months before the Persian Invasion the Athenians had sent a delegation to the Greeks holiest Shrine the Oracle of Deli seeking guidance for the upcoming war they'd received only a terrifying warning why are you

sitting there you fools flee flee to the ends of the Earth but a second Oracle offered the Athenians a sliver of Hope Athens could trust in its wooden wall a few Athenians thought the Oracle referred to a thorn hedge that had once enclosed the city's Acropolis it's Citadel so they fortified themselves there but when the Persians arrived they were surrounded and slaughtered Xerxes then burned Athens and its temples to avenge the destruction of Sardis 18 years before theistic argued that Athens wooden wall was her new Fleet but as Greek Naval commanders met at salamis in

mid-september the situation looked Grim a king of Spartan was dead Athens was burning the Greek Alliance was on the brink of [Music] collapse theocles was desperate to stop the pelian ships retreating to the ismos he warned them that the enemy's greater numbers and faster ships meant the Greeks would be defeated if they fought on the open sea but in the narrow Straits of Salamis with less room to maneuver the Persians wouldn't be able to exploit their greater numbers and the heavier Greek ships had the advantage the mystically even warned the other Greeks that if they

retreated now the Athenian ships would quit the alliance and sail to Italy so the fleet commander Yuri bades accepted the mystic's plan but the mysticle worried that the pelian would change their minds secretly he ordered a trusted servant to go to the Persian Camp to tell Xerxes that the Greeks were in a state of Terror and would flee at first light just 8 miles away at pheron the great king sought the Council of his generals and Admirals all advised him to attack the Greeks immediately to win the final victory that would end the war all

except queen arisia of had a carasses commanding five ships from carer why risk battles she argued when the Great king had only to threaten Southern Greece by land or Sea and the pelian would rush home to defend their land and the Greek Alliance would split then victory was certain but Xerxes sought the glory of battle and was confident of an easy Victory then the mr's messenger arrived telling the king exactly what he wanted to hear the Greeks were terrified and preparing to to flee he must strike immediately Xerxes ordered the Persian Fleet to see that

night so they would be in position to annihilate the Greeks as they tried to escape at dawn meanwhile at the Greek Camp an Athenian named aristedes arrived with sacred relics from aena to inspire the fleet he also brought news that the enemy had put to Sea and blocked The Straits theistically ruse had worked retreat was no longer an option the Greeks would have to fight at salamis oh Divine salamis you will be the death of mother's sons the earliest surviving accounts of the battle that followed by Herodotus and the Athenian playright escalus are sometimes vague

and allow different inter rations but they are detailed enough to allow us to reconstruct the most likely course of events the Persian Fleet put to sea at night around 600 TRS outnumbering the Greeks 3 to2 expecting hard fighting at the entrance to the straight they landed 400 soldiers on the tiny island of satalia their role was to finish off any Shipwrecked Greeks who made it to shore then keeping close to the mainland the Persian Fleet silently Advanced into the narrow straight the elite Phoenicians leading the way according to a later Greek historian diodorus culus the

Persians also sent an Egyptian Squadron around salamis to cut off any Greek Escape into the Gulf of Megara but this event is not mentioned in earlier sources and may be an invention at dawn Xerxes arrived at an observation post overlooking the straight the great king was confident that his presence would Inspire his captains to fight with more determination than they'd shown at Arium a few weeks before he was accompanied by scribes ready to note down the names of captains who fought well and those who did not the Persian Fleet lined the northern side of the

straight ready to hunt down Greek ships as they fled what they saw instead was 368 Greek trimes emerging from The Bays of Salamis ready to fight they formed a line of battle with the best squadrons on each flank on the left the Athenians on the right the agans as they rode they sang peans Greek hymns of battle at first they held formation perhaps waiting for the morning Breeze to blow at their back or for more Persians to crowd into the straight then a Greek ship saw an opening and attacked soon both fleets were fully engaged

the battle became a chaotic mass of ships Wheeling weaving looking for a chance to Ram an enemy and avoid the same fate themselves in the narrow straight the Persian squadrons became increasingly disordered any ship trying to fall back ran into other ships trying to press forward their captains eager to impress the great king what's more the Persian orsman had been rowing all night and soon began to Tire the Greeks were fresh and fighting for their freedom the Phoenicians Squadron suffered heavy losses at the hands of the heavy Greek trims some Phoenician captains who'd abandoned their

ships and made it to shore were brought before Xerxes they blamed the unfolding disaster on the cowardice of their allies the carians and ionians just at that moment Xerxes saw an ionian ship Ram an Athenian trim before it was rammed in turn by an Igan ship undaunted the ionian Marines counterattacked boarding and taking the aganan ship after observing this evidence of ionian Bravery Xerxes ordered that The Phoenician captains be taken away and executed wrecked ships floundering men and corpses clogged the straight As the battle turned decisively against the Persians he isalus the playright who almost

certainly fought in the battle compared the Greeks killing Persians to fisherman spearing tuna as Persian ships tried to escape they were hit in the flank by The agitans Who distinguished themselves above all other Greeks that day Queen arisia was among those trying to escape the slaughter with an Athenian Trim in Hot Pursuit seeing her path blocked by a friendly ship she gave the order to Ram it when the Athenian captain saw this he thought he must be pursuing an allied ship and went looking for other prey the remnants of the Persian Fleet streamed back to

feron in a final ruthless Act of the battle aristedes landed with a force of hoplight on satalia and massacred the 400 Persians who'd been abandoned there in total the Persians lost around 200 ships and 12,000 men including the fleet commander Arab bignes a half brother of the great king himself the Greeks lost just 40 ships it proved to be one of the greatest naval victories in history Our Land bewails the men she bore slaughtered for Xerxes who has fed hell's hungry jaws with Persian dead the Greeks had inflicted a humiliating defeat on Xerxes and ended

all hopes of an easy Conquest now the king heeded Queen arisia's advice and ordered his General mardonius to continue the campaign in Spring while he returned to Asia with the bulk of his army if mardonius was Victorious sisia had told him the glory would belong to Xerxes if mardonius was defeated the blame belonged to mardonius but there was no victory for mardonius the next summer he faced the combined Greek army at platea in a crushing Persian defeat mardonius was killed along with much of his army on the very same day according to Herodotus the Greek

Fleet inflicted another heavy defeat on the Persians at mikali the threat of Persian invasion was over in the years that followed the Greek Counterattack would begin led by a new Greek Alliance the Dilan League salamis has been credited with more significance than almost any other Battle in History the victory that saved Greece from slavery and paved the way for its classical age this was the period in which the Arts democracy science and philosophy flourished in the Greek World thus salamis has been hailed as the battle that saved the Cradle of Western [Music] Civilization it's a

dramatic argument that can be overstated Greek defeat would not necessarily have led to the extinction of Greek culture and though fifth century Athens was a revolutionary pioneering experiment in democracy it's not the sole blueprint on which modern democracy is [Music] based nevertheless salamis remains a decisive battle and a turning point of history and thanks to Herodotus it survives as one of History's oldest examples of of a heroic struggle against the odds and struggle for Freedom we have many people to thank for their help in making this video Nadim Jan injai provided our Total War gameplay

footage you can watch his reconstructions of other historical battles on his YouTube channel we highly recommend his epic depiction of the battle of cresy the brilliant divida at Emperor Total War mod team provided crucial modding support you can find out about their work transforming Total War roome 2 on their website divida imperor mod.com and big thanks to bill manopoulos for producing much of the music in this video check the video description to find out more about all the contributors who helped make this video last but not least thank you as ever to all our patreon

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