In the decisive battle of Salamis in the Hippo War, Greece was victorious and entered its historical heyday

Ancient Greek civilization is the most important and direct source of European civilization, and the Salami battle won all this for the Greeks. Greece has since entered its heyday in history. The Athenian Empire, Parthenon Temple and "金时代" followed!

The revenge heart of the Persian king

In October 485 BC, he was out of war and wanted to smash the rebellious Persian Empire for his father. The crown prince Xerxes received a quick Malay report, and his father, King Darius, died unfortunately.

This is a news that shocked the world. Hearing the news, Xerxes had no time to mourn the departure of his father, and led the army back to the imperial capital Persepolis from thousands of miles away. History has shown that when the lord of a country passes away and the huge empire has no leader, there are often rebellions, which may even lead to the collapse of the empire. Back then, Darius, the father of Xerxes, took advantage of the sudden death of the second emperor of the Persian Empire and put down the rebellion in one fell swoop to win the throne. Xerxes at this time naturally did not want anyone to rob him in front of him to usurp his inheritance rights. Fortunately, Xerxes rushed back in time before his father, Yuwei, and was naturally pushed to the throne.

According to Persian tradition, the new king’s accession should be proved by divine signs, and a great saint must be crowned for him, but Xerxes does not need these. His soldiers are "Shen Shi", and no one is qualified to crown him. So Xerxes himself put the crown on his head and became the king of the most powerful empire in the world.

Xerxes inherited Darius’s kingly power and his father’s ambitions. He is a grumpy, happy king. As soon as he became king, he ordered his architects to build magnificent palaces. Persepolis thus became one of the most magnificent cities in the ancient world.

薛西斯

At the same time, the leaders of the empire's provinces also sent envoys to present Xerxes with gifts of respect and surrender. The prosperous city of Persepolis was crowded with envoys and caravans from all over for a while. There is everything for the new king. There are camels from Egypt, gold from Asia Minor, bracelets from Africa...but there are no Athenians, and no gifts are from Athens.

The absence of Athens reminds Xerxes that his father Darius’ plan to conquer Greece ended in failure. The Greek city-states, including Athens, are still outside the rule of the Persian Empire. . This became a lifelong regret for King Darius.

Xerxes has always expected to be as strong and heroic as his father. He determined that the Athenians should pay the price for their fluke victory. The Persians are a group of great warriors led by ambitious kings. The Persian Empire was the most powerful country in the world at that time. No one could despise the Empire without paying the price.

The Persian Empire in the 5th century BC spans the three continents of Asia, Africa, and Europe, starting from India in the east, reaching the Adriatic Sea, the Mediterranean Sea and North Africa in the west, reaching the vast Russian steppes in the north and south To the Arabian Peninsula. This super empire includes Egypt, Lydia, Asia Minor, Babylon in Mesopotamia, ancient Syria and Palestine, as well as some Greek city-states. Its vast territory can be seen from the post roads built all over the country. According to measurement, the longest post road is the "Royal Road" from Susa, the central city of the Persian Empire, to the Aegean Sea. The length of is 2500 kilometers.

The expansion of the Persian Empire was almost always during the reign of Xerxes’ father Darius, which was the strongest period of the Persian Empire. After Darius took over the throne, he continued to conquer the east and the west. After more than twenty battles, he built a vast empire on the basis of the original empire. He was the greatest hero of that era and the most powerful king. In the famous "Bexisdun Inscription", he declared to the world that he is "Great King, King of Kings, King of Persia, King of Provinces".

When Darius was in power, all the people surrendered to this "king of kings".

However, it is this "king of kings" who has never been able to conquer Greece across the sea. In the first expedition to Greece, his fleet was destroyed by the storm; the second time, his army was defeated in the Marathon.

The Persians wanted to conquer Greece for a long time, but the direct cause of Darius's expedition was just to give Greece a warning.

At that time, the city-state system was generally implemented on the Greek peninsula. All over the peninsula are city-states that independently exercise their "sovereignty". Their range is generally small, consisting of a city and surrounding agricultural areas. The average population is about 10,000 people, but there are more than tens of thousands, which is a bit of a "small country with few people". The two largest and most influential city states are Athens and Sparta. After the Persian Empire destroyed Lydia, the great power of Asia Minor in 546 BC, those originally controlled by Lydia, including Miletus and other Greek city-states along the coast of Asia Minor, were simultaneously conquered by the Persian Empire. About 514 BC, King Darius led an army across the Bosphorus Strait in an attempt to conquer the Scythians north of the Danube. Although this battle failed, it controlled Thrace and the Black Sea Strait, directly threatening the city-states of the Greek Peninsula.

The Black Sea coast is an important food supply base and commodity market for the Greek states, especially Athens. After Persia took control of the Black Sea Channel, not only did the traffic between Greece and the Black Sea experience difficulties, but the Phoenicians who had already belonged to Persia also took the opportunity to invade the Greeks’ overseas commercial interests. Thus, the Greeks instigated the already surrendered Miletus and other Greek city-states to stage an uprising. After the uprising was suppressed, Persia used the excuse that Athens and Eletria had sent troops to assist Miletus and wanted to "punish" it.

In 492 BC, Darius opened the prelude to the Hippocratic War. However, his fleet was hit by a hurricane at Cape Athos, all 300 warships sank to the bottom of the sea, and more than 20,000 soldiers were killed. The Persian fleet was annihilated without fighting. Two years later, in 490 BC, Darius sent an army to begin a second westward invasion, this time entering the frontier of Athens after destroying the city-state of Eleanor. The Athenian army, with only 11,000 men, did not shrink from the 100,000 Persian army, and fought bravely. The two sides fought fiercely on the marathon plain northeast of the city. It was a fierce battle, much more fierce than the later textbooks. As a result, the dominant Persian army was defeated by the Athenians in one fell swoop.

For the invincible King Darius, the failure of the expedition to Greece is undoubtedly a great shame. The father's business and the son admitted that Xerxes is now going to completely destroy Greece and Athens, in order to comfort his father's spirit and calm his own vengeful heart.

Xerxes

Before he succeeded to the throne, although Xerxes quelled some rebellions, he did not achieve a great cause worthy of history. He didn't even add a scratch or a glass of water to his father's empire.

Now he is eager to prove: He, Xerxes, is as great as his great father. For this reason, he can't wait to conquer Greece and Athens. He unabashedly declared:

"If we conquer Athens, the territory of the Persian Empire will be unprecedentedly expanded, and its borders will extend to the sky of the gods."

Less than a year after ascending to the throne, Xerxes began to prepare for the invasion of Greece. Four years later, he enlisted thousands of fighters from the entire empire and assembled the largest army in the world. This army came from 46 countries and more than 100 ethnic groups that subdued Persia. There are Persians and Medes who wear colorful long coats and scaly armors, and carry short swords and spears; there are Assyrians who wear copper helmets, hold linen shields and wooden sticks; use bows, arrows and axes as the main Parthians and Khwarazim of weapons; Indians in long robes; Arabs in cloaks with tight waists and long bows on their right shoulders;There are Ethiopians who wear leopard skin or lion skin and have red and white tattoos. Their weapons are palm tree bows, flint arrows and antelope fox skins; they wear bright red cloaks and hold javelins and shields. Thracians; there are soldiers of all ethnic groups from the Caucasus with cow ears on their helmets, leather shields and short spears in their hands. The personnel of the Persian army are so large and diverse, and the weapons and equipment are so diverse, making this army very much like a large exhibition of various ethnic forces and armaments.

In 480 BC, Xerxes personally led this army of 5 million people (in fact, 300 to 500,000 people) to start another expedition to Greece. The army departed from Persepolis and reached Susa, taking a shortcut towards Sardis. In order to allow the huge fleet to enter the sea smoothly, Persia spent 3 years digging a 1.5-mile long canal winding through the Mount Athos state into the sea. In the past, the storm shattered his father's dream, but this time, Xerxes was determined not to let his fleet repeat the same mistakes.

But the empire did not have enough ships to carry such a huge army, Xerxes had to let the Persian army march along the coast and bypass the Aegean Sea from the north to Greece. The Persian fleet, with 1,200 large warships, carries the supplies of the army, and is not far behind by the sea.

In order to transport a huge army, Xerxes had to turn the sea into land. When the Persian army reached 尼尔海峡, Xerxes ordered the bridge to be erected.

Hundreds of ships were tied together to form a spectacular pontoon bridge. But a violent summer storm came unexpectedly. The pontoons they carefully built were eventually blown to pieces. Xerxes received this report and was very angry, and ordered the sea to be punished by three hundred lashes. He loudly declared to the sea: "King Xerxes will pass you, whether you like it or not."

The history records the declaration of this incredible king.

When the sea returns to calm, the pontoon has been repaired. Xerxes led his army towards Europe. He flew with a sword and said loudly to his army: "My Persian heroes, you are an invincible and brave division. I hope you will be more brave and proficient this time. As long as you conquer the Greeks, the whole world will crawl. Under our feet." The huge army spent two days and two nights crossing the Dardanelles. The spectacular scenes at that time made people think that the history of Europe would be rewritten by the Persians. The Greek cried out in horror:

"Zeus, why did you become a Persian and change your name to Xerxes, leading all mankind to destroy Greece? "

The huge Persian army entered Europe from Asia. They headed towards Greece non-stop, while the Persian fleet had been sailing in the nearby waters.

At the same time, in the face of an unprecedented invasion by the enemy, the Greek city-states, which have always liked internal struggles, were forced to unite. More than 30 city-states formed an anti-Persian alliance. Onida served.

In Athens, a fleet of 200 new warships has also begun to take shape. The new warships are all three-layer ships made of oak trees. This kind of warship moves quickly and is easy to dispatch. Each battleship is more than 100 feet tall, has a streamlined appearance, and can accommodate a total of 170 oarsmen on 3 floors. Relatively speaking, the old-fashioned sailing warships of the Persian fleet are large, slow, and have poor maneuverability. Therefore, the three-tier ship will be the secret weapon of the Athenian army at sea. is a very far-sighted young politician Di Mistogli persuaded the Athenians to build this kind of ship.

Marathon Campaign

当年马拉松战战's victory made the Athenians extraordinarily confident and even conceited. Only Dimistockli still maintains considerable Calm and sober. He remembered the invasion of the Persian army that year. He knew that the Persians who suffered a fiasco would not let it go. He also understood Xerxes' determination to destroy Athens. For this reason, he suggested that Athens transfer its military power from traditional spears and shields to ships and wooden oars. he thinksThe Greeks, who are leading in seafaring skills, can only contend with the enemy by relying on their superiority at sea.

At first the Athenians were reluctant to consider Di Mistocle’s suggestion, and even mocked him for being timid and weak. Di Mistocles was unfairly excluded and criticized in Athens politics. In the face of numerous resistances, Dimitocli, out of his loyalty to the country, always insisted on his proposition, for which he did not hesitate to offend many powerful people. As the news of the Persians preparing for war with great fanfare continued, the Athenians were panicked and began to gradually accept Di Mistocle’s claims. This allowed the formation of the new Athenian fleet in time, and Di Mistocle was appointed as the navy. Commander.

When the last batch of three-layer ships was launched for trial sailing, the Persian army had already entered Greece. Subsequently, the Persians swept all the way, invincible.

After hearing the news of the invasion, the Athenians sent an emissary to the temple in Delphi to inquire about prophecies about Persian enemies. Before making any major decisions, the Greeks would consult the priestess of Delphi.

The messenger from Athens climbed to the temple at the foot of Mount Panathes and listened to the oracle delivered by the god to the priestess. The eyes of the priestess slowly opened, but her eyes were empty, as if she had lost all hope. Suddenly, she yelled in a very sad tone:

"Poor man, why are you still sitting there? Run away, to the end of the universe! Leave your home, leave Holy land! Only the wooden wall will not be looted.” The

oracle spread throughout Athens, and the Athenians panicked even more, preparing to abandon the city and surrender. At this time, Mystocle, who has become the naval commander of the Greek Allied Forces, is even more anxious, but his perseverance makes him calm. He understands that this is a moment of life and death. He must stand up and give everyone confidence, so he is strict. He reprimanded those timid people and said that the oracle had told the Athenians that their saviors were warships, and those warships were wooden walls that would not be looted.

But in the face of powerful enemies, confidence is not enough. The Persians pressed on, and defeated the Greek Allied Army in the battle of Hot Spring Pass. The heroic Allied President, the handsome Spartan King Leonidas was also martyred. Xerxes continued to lead the army toward Athens with great strength. At the same time, more and more cities in northern Greece surrendered to the Persians.

The crisis is approaching quickly. The Persians sent messengers to the Athenians to demand soil and water-this is a symbol of surrender. This was the last chance Xerxes gave to the Athenians to make them surrender. Athens was caught in rumors and panic, and people were panicked. However, under the insistence of Dimitocli and other main combatants, the Athenians made the decision to refuse to surrender.

At the same time, Dimitocli looked at the situation and suggested that all women and children take a boat to Trosin in Agos and the island of Salami in their home country to escape. All the men took the warship and gathered to Salami Bay is ready to fight. People in Athens and other city-states accepted his suggestion. The women and children fled to the nearby island of Salamis. Only the old, the weak and the sick are left in Athens.

Xerxes did not wait for the surrender of the Athenians. Exasperated, he led the Persian army commander straight into Greece and attacked Athens. However, Athens had basically given up holding it at this time, and the Persians easily invaded the city. The city of Athens was looted like never before. The Persians took the most sacred statue, massacred the citizens who remained in the city, and set fire to the largest and most prosperous city in Greece at the time.

Xerxes triumphantly watched the city turn into ashes. At this moment he was victorious, and he finally washed away the shame of his father being defeated. Looking at the raging fire in Athens, he couldn't help thinking that he was greater than his father.

For Athena, the goddess of Athens, everything seems to have been lost. However, the Greek Allies also had a fleet of more than 300 warships gathered in Salami Bay to prepare for battle. Moreover, their commander is the outstanding commander Di Mistockli.

Xerxes did not take the Greek fleet into consideration at all. Just as the Persian army went straight to Athens and occupied it, the Persian Navy with 1,200 warships also bypassed Euboea.Passed Attica and came to Piraeus, the outer port of Athens. They echoed the land and water, and the momentum was great, and it was just around the corner to level Greece. Xerxes personally led his fleet and sailed to Salami Bay.

At this time, the Greek warships are waiting. However, when the Persian fleet approached, the huge fleet out of sight made many Greeks frightened. A dispute broke out among the Greek commanders. Most commanders wanted to move the fleet out of Salamis to avoid direct confrontation with the Persians. Among them, the generals of the Peloponnesian city-states participating in the Alliance army have the most intense opinions. They believe that fighting against enemies several times their own, the result is conceivable.

At this moment of life and death, is it to fight or withdraw? Mistocle is determined to fight. He tried his best to persuade other commanders and gave generously:

"If we use our few warships against most of their warships in a narrow sea, we will win; because we fight in the narrow sea. It is good for us, and fighting on the open sea is good for them. The entire fate of the war depends on our ships and the location of the war."

The military meeting was held twice, but Dimitocli still did not It can eliminate the fear in the hearts of some commanders.

Di Mistockley is extremely anxious. If the generals of the Peloponnese city-states participating in the Alliance army lead their troops to retreat from Salamis, the Athenian fleet will be forced to fight the Persian fleet alone and give the Persian fleet the opportunity to give full play to its numerical advantages on the high seas.

Dimitocli was determined to break the boat. He forced other commanders to believe that their only chance of victory was to start a decisive battle with the approaching Persians in the strait. He came up with a clever plan: Why not ask the enemy to help? So he called a slave he trusted the most and handed him a secret letter, asking him to inform the king of Persia, saying that the Greek navy's hearts were floating and they did not dare to fight and wanted to escape the bay. Xerxes was very happy to see the secret letter, and immediately ordered his captain to block all escape routes throughout the night and not let a boat pass. In this way, all the Greeks had to give up the idea of ​​retreat and fight their backs. As a result, the Greek Allies became united as never before, and shared the same hatred.

The Greeks slept well all night, while the Persian crew stayed by the oars all night. But they did not wait for anything.

In the early morning of the next day, Xerxes was full of victory. He climbed up the hill and found a suitable terrain to watch the battle, waiting for the Persians to break the Greek fleet. By his side, the historian holding pen and paper is also preparing to truthfully record the glorious victory of the Persian Navy.

The Persian warships are already in place. Some warships blocked the western strait. The remaining warships were crowded in the narrow waters of Salamis, waiting for the fleeing Greek fleet.

Everything is ready, it's time to attack. Xerxes asked the command team for advice. Except for one person, everyone suggested that he attack. Different voices come from the only female commander-Queen Artemisia. She is a Greek, but now she is fighting alongside the Persians. At this moment, she warned the king:

"King, save your ship, don’t start naval battles rashly. In terms of sailing skills, the Greeks are far superior to you. You. Haven't you already become the master of Athens? Hasn't your expedition reached its goal?"

But Xerxes was obviously unwilling to consider her suggestion. Victory is in sight, is there any reason for him to give up? Queen Artemisia had to accept orders to direct the attack.

At this time, the Greeks are patiently waiting for the direction of the sea breeze to be beneficial to them. After a night of rest, they were refreshed and ready to attack. The wind is now blowing south, blowing the Persian fleet closer to the narrow sea. The Greek battleship is ready to take action. A fleet rushed towards the Persian camp.

The exhausted Persians realized that they were in the middle. The Greeks not only did not escape, but took the initiative to attack. Young people in Greece are fighting bloody battles for the survival of the motherland.

in each three-layer shipAbove, 170 well-trained oarsmen, like powerful engines, coordinated and rowed. A Greek battleship rammed a Persian battleship, the stern and deck were crushed, and the crew was thrown into the sea. The prelude to the battle began. Dimitocli took advantage of the small speed and speed of his own ship, and wittily commanded the Athenian warships to continuously slash toward the Persian warships. They used a 5-meter-long copper-clad crossbar in the bow of the ship to first attack the enemy’s The long oar broke, then turned the bow, and hit the abdomen of the Persian warship with the copper-clad bow.

In order to frighten the enemy, the Greeks painted the ship’s collision angle as a hideous face.

On the coast, spectators in Athens let out deafening cheers. At first, it seemed that the Persians had the upper hand. But people don't know that this is part of Dimitocli's tactics.

The Persian fleet was increasingly lured into the narrow waters. As soon as the time came, Dimitocli immediately commanded other warships that had been in ambush to attack the Persian fleet from the flanks. The Persian fleet was hit head-on by the Greek fleet, and the warships were sunk one by one. After a fierce battle, the Persian forward fleet could not resist and was forced to retreat. The Persian warships coming from behind didn't know the battle situation, they rang forward with their flutes and drums. As it was a good wind, the succeeding warship, which was full of sails, rushed into the bay, and it happened to collide head-on with the retreating forward ship, causing a mess. Seeing this, Di Mistocle took the opportunity to command the entire army to attack from all sides. The Persian fleet was in a dilemma and was smashed into pieces, and there was no way to fight back.

The ship on which Queen Artemisia was travelling was in disaster, and it was closely watched by an Athens ship. After being surrounded on all sides, the queen rushed to another Persian warship in a panic. I had no choice but to sink it, blazing a way of escape for myself.

Because they are too close to each other, the Persian ships have no ability to turn around, and the Persian crew are exhausted and lose their combat effectiveness. The battlefield situation developed as planned by Dimitocli.

The fleets of both sides were crowded in this narrow sea area, and the three-tiered ship of the Greeks showed an advantage. This kind of warship is not as bulky as the Persian warship. It is easy to maneuver and travels fast. It shuttles and attacks among the bulky Persian warships and moves forward and backward freely.

The huge Persian warships were knocked over one by one. The sea was filled with the howls of Persians.

The king of Persia can only watch his fleet as a fish in a net. When I heard that Artemisia was the first person who drove a boat to sink his own ship, Xerxes roared:

"My man flinched, but my woman fought like a man. .”

The Persian fleet was completely defeated. Although Queen Artemisia escaped by chance, by the end of the battle, one-third of the Persian fleet, more than 200 warships, were sunk, and more than 50 warships were captured. The Greeks lost only 40 warships.

There are many sacrifices. Xerxes' brother was among them. Xerxes never thought that he would fail, and the failure was so miserable that he regretted it.

Salamis

Salamis turned the whole battle around and laid the foundation for the Greeks to win.

Faced with the reality of failure, Xerxes had to start thinking about the future of the entire expeditionary army. First, the navy was defeated and the army's basic logistics supplies were lost; second, the Greek navy might take advantage of the victory to hit the Darier Strait, blocking his return. So he looked up to the sky and sighed, and ordered the remaining warships to quickly withdraw to the Dardanelles. A few days later, Xerxes left a portion of his troops to continue fighting in Central Greece, and he led the rest to retreat to Asia Minor.

Xerxes returned to Asia, and all the troops he left behind were annihilated by the Greeks in the Battle of Blattes the following year. These two failures dealt a heavy blow to Persia. Xerxes' ambition suffered an unprecedented setback, and he never dared to attack Greece easily. The rulers after Xerxes did not even dare to have his ambitions. Although the huge Persian Empire is intactNo damage, but its national power has turned from strength to decline, and it can no longer threaten the West.

Xerxes is still the king of kings, but Greece is still not under his rule.

Mistocle is not so lucky. In this democratic city, the Athenians were afraid that he would expand his power and destroy the traditional democratic system of Athens. Victory made Di Mistocle become arrogant. He ignored the fact that he had offended many dignitaries. Those offended dignitaries did not forgive him. Once the war subsided, the forces opposed to him gathered again. Mystokeli is facing an embarrassing situation.

The Athenians gathered together and voted to determine the future of Mistogli. If more than 6000 people vote to ban him, then Dimitocli will be banished from Athens for 10 years. The voting result came out. Di Mistocle was asked to leave the city immediately. Greece no longer has a place for him.

In despair, he fell to Persia. Ironically, he asked his former enemy Xerxes for help. Some say that Di Mistocle met King Xerxes himself. In fact, it is more likely that the king's son Artxerxes received him. No matter who received it, Di Mistocle's words saved his own life. He said: "I have caused the greatest damage to your empire, but I can also create the greatest benefit for you. If you kill me, you will kill an enemy of the Greeks." Since then, Demis Tokly spent the rest of his life in the Persian court.

When Greece entered the classical age, people began to record history in words. The Battle of Salami was the first battle recorded by historians. The historian who recorded this battle is Herodotus, the recognized father of history. Most of his works are about the Persian invasion of Greece and the Battle of Salamis.

The victory of the Salamis by the Greeks in 480 BC was an important turning point between Greek and Western civilization. The Athenians who won in the Battle of Salamis regained their confidence. Greece thus entered its historical heyday-the classical period. The greatest achievement of ancient Greece was born.

Athens was flourishing in the 4th and 5th centuries BC. Aristotle and Plato wrote their greatest works. Greek theater, Greek philosophy and classical architecture and sculpture are also heading for glory. This golden age has laid the foundation for European civilization and even our modern civilization.