Unorthodox Angles/Andrew Gramling
Echoes from History: The Last Stand Before Unity Part VII
For ten solid days, the allied Greek army overlooked the Persian remnant from the foothills of Mount Cithaeron. Neither side blinked as it would signal the annihilation of one of the two forces. As a Spartan general, and perhaps objectively because of their prowess in combat, Pausanias assigned the Spartan contingent of 5,000 hoplites to the formation’s right wing, which is said to be a place of honor in Greek warfare, partly because of the tendency of the line to shift right due to each hoplite seeking cover behind his neighbor’s shield. The movement of troops to the right symbolically pointed to the strongest link, but it was also practical in terms of them being strong and disciplined enough to hold that position and prevent the line from collapsing.
As a result, Mardonius, the Persian general, matched his most elite troops opposite the Spartans. The 5,000 Spartans were a much greater number than the 300 that originally went to and died at Thermopylae, and Mardonius easily recognized the threat they represented.
Appearing to create a battle formation such as two pillars of strength, Pausanias placed the 8,000 Athenian hoplites under his command in the left wing, who were matched opposite by the Thebans— Greek traitors who vowed with their lives to serve Persia, as many in Asia previously had. Between the Spartans and the Athenians lay the remaining participating Greeks: 1,500 Tegeans, 5,000 Corinthians, 300 Potidaeans, 600 Arcadians, 3,000 Sicyonians, 800 Epidaurians, 1,000 Troezens, 200 Lepreums, 400 Mycenaeans, and over a dozen more, including 500 of the Plataeans themselves. This is the first time the Greeks had openly challenged the Persians on open ground during the invasion. Previously, their battles had been fought in narrow straits and passes, but here in Plataea, it was open plains with far less of a strategic advantage. This time everything would come down to pure resolve.
Mardonius seemed to grow impatient while waiting, especially with limited rations for his troops to consume, but didn’t want to expose any weaknesses by making the first move, so he sent a herald to the Spartans in order to goad them into doing so themselves. The herald, since he couldn’t strike at them physically, decided to attack their honor and taunted them for being weak and cowardly for remaining in the foothills and refusing to come down and fight face to face. Despite Spartan bravery and uprightness, Pausanias was completely unmoved and didn’t take the bait. This battle, the last stand for Greek freedom, was too important to let pride or ego dictate the pace and direction of the fight. The Spartans simply continued waiting for the right opportunity with discipline.
Some minor skirmishes and probing of defences occurred between them, but there was no cohesive full-on military action by either side, until the Persians had denied access to the Gargaphia spring, which the Greeks used as their primary drinking water supply. Because of that, Pausanias decided to shift the formation at night in order to quietly move closer to another water source, which Mardonius discovered and took as a sign of weakness and retreat, then ordered a full assault into the Greek ranks like an arrow moving through tall grass. In so doing, Mardonius blinked first, and paid for his miscalculation with his life. After the death of Mardonius, the Persian army fell into disarray and eventually retreated back to their fortified camp. The Greeks pursued them there, killing thousands while the remaining survivors fled north. Over a year of fighting with the Persians for the second time and the Greeks had finally truly earned their freedom with the blood of the fallen.
During the Battle of Plataea, a Spartan warrior found redemption. His name was Aristodemus. He was one of the Spartans who went to Thermopylae, but was sent away because of an eye condition. Another comrade was sent away as well, but returned to Thermopylae to fight and die while Aristodemus went home. For that, he was ridiculed to no end upon returning to Sparta. It appeared that he saw the Battle of Plataea as his chance to die with honor, as he did when he fought the Persians with unequal aggression. Even though he was not formally honored for his sacrifice, his courage to fight and die like a true Spartan was certainly restored, and his story of redemption survived for thousands of years.
Though the Greeks united to drive away the Persian threat — rival city-states like Athens and Sparta joined together to achieve victory — that alliance was temporary, and old rivalries later began to resurface. While they were once united for freedom, they again became divided over personal ambitions. The unity that was born out of necessity didn’t last forever, but for one extraordinary moment in history, it was enough.
