The Battle of Thermopylae was a heroic stand by Spartan soldiers against a larger advancing Persian force. The Spartans were able to hold off the Persians in a narrow mountain pass where only a few soldiers were needed for defense. They fought on even when defeat was inevitable, but were eventually surrounded after a traitor showed the Persians an alternative route. Three hundred Spartans remained at Thermopylae to fight the Persians in a phalanx formation and allow the other Greeks time to retreat, though they all perished in the battle.

1. Teacher: Mauricio Torres Student: ……………………………..
Grade: 9thE.G.B. Section: ……………………………………
Subject: Social Studies Date: ....................... 2012
Activity: Reading Material
Battle of Thermopylae
Overview:Landbattlethatwas a heroic stand bySpartansthatfought off
anoverwhelmingPersianadvance,
enablingtheremainingGreekstomobilizetheirforces and minimizetheirlosses.
ThePersianschosetopursuetheGreeksthrough a narrowmountainpass, whereonly a
handful of Spartanswereneededtodefend.
TheSpartansfoughtonlongaftertheyweredoomedto die, and theyallfell in battle,
partlybecause a traitorshowedthePersians a back passagethroughthemountains.
TheGeography, a key role:
Thermopylaeis a narrowpassontheeastcoast of central
GreecebetweentheKallídhromonmassif and theGulf of Maliakós, about 85 miles
(136 kilometers) northwest of Athens (Athína). In ancient times
itscliffswerebythe sea, butsilting has widenedthedistanceto more than a mile.
Itsname, meaning “hotgates,”
isderivedfromitsnearbyhotsulfurspringsthathavewater of…
Whatis a Phalanx?
Itis a rectangular massmilitaryformation,
usuallycomposedentirely of heavy
infantryarmedwithspears, pikes, sarissas, or
similar weapons.
Theyusedshieldsto block othersfromgetting in.
Theymarched forward as oneentity,
crushingopponents.
Chain of Events:
TheGreeksheardthatthePersianswerecoming.
Theydisagreedaboutwhatto do.
Differentcitiesmadedifferentdecisions. Thebes,
whichwasclosertothePersians,
madeanalliancewiththePersians. Argos
decidedtoremain neutral. TheSpartans and
CorinthianswantedtoabandonnorthernGreece and
onlydefendsouthernGreece (wheretheywere).
ButtheAtheniansinsistedthattheyshould try

2. todefendnorthernGreece at thepass of Thermopylae. TheSpartans and
Corinthians, whodidn'twanttoseemcowardly, finallyagreedto try it.
So theAthenians, theSpartans, theCorinthians, theThebans, and
someothersoldiersfromsmallercitiesallmarchednorthtoThermopylaeto try to
stop thePersians. Theygotthere and set up barricades. ThePersiansattacked,
butforseveraldaystheycouldnotgetthroughthepass.
TheGreekswerehappythattheir plan wasworking.
Butafter a fewdays, a GreektraitortoldthePersiansaboutanother,
smallermountainpasswhere a fewPersiansoldierscouldgetthrough.
Theysecretlycamearoundthis back way and surroundedtheGreeks.
AlthoughtheThebanssurrenderedtothePersia
ns, most of theGreekswereabletogetaway.
Buttheyneeded time tomarchaway, so
thatthePersianscomingthroughthepasswould
n't catch them. A group of
threehundredSpartansoldiers,
alongwithsomeothers, agreedtostay at
Thermopylae and
fightthePersianseventhoughtheyweresurrou
nded. Theywouldfight, in a phalanx, as long as theycould, togivetheothers time
togetaway.