Historical Battles: Part One
Battle of Marathon In the early 400s BC, Darius I, king of Persia, sought to attack the land of Greece. He did this as an act of revenge, as the city of Athens fought against him in the Ionian Revolt. This led to Darius swearing that he would burn down the Grecian cities of Athens and Eretria. Darius started by having his army, which was commanded by Datis and Arataphernes, sail along the northern coast of Africa, before turning northward and sailing to Greece. They landed at the Bay of Marathon, about 25 miles away from Athens. The Athenian and Plataean army, led by Miltiades, rushed to keep the Persians in the nearby plains. Miltiades sent a messenger to Sparta in order to request their aid. But the Spartans could not march to war until at least ten days, the Athenian army would have to hold out until then. Both the Persians and the Greeks did not attack initially, which worked to the advantage of the Greeks. When the Spartans did arrive, the Greeks begun their attack. T...
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