When it comes to the Battle of Marathon, many people think of a legend about a messenger who, having brought to Athens the good news of the victory of the Greeks over the Persians, ran 42.195 km and, telling his fellow citizens this news, fell dead. In this regard, sports discipline arose in antiquity - a 42 km race, the so-called marathon, which has survived thanks to the Olympic Games. However, the Battle of Marathon itself is known for the fact that in this battle the Athenian army managed to defeat the superior army of Persians, while the losses of the Greeks amounted to 192 people against 6400 dead from the enemy.
Sources
The marathon battle is covered in the VI book "History" of Herodotus. This is the main source narrating about those events, which has come down to our time. The information presented by the ancient Greek historian is often criticized, because his approach to writing his works is the principle of transmitting everything that people tell him, and whether to believe all this or not is a completely different question.
Many of Herodotus’s stories can most likely be attributed to legends and short stories. In addition, various official records and eyewitness accounts served as sources. Nevertheless, the data of the historian today are confirmed by all kinds of studies. According to Herodotus, the date of the Battle of Marathon is September 12, 490 BC. e.
Background
In the VI century BC, there was an active development of the Persian Empire, which constantly annexed new territories. In the end, in the west, the Achaemenid power encountered a highly developed Greek civilization, whose people were very freedom-loving. And although the Persian conquerors managed to subjugate many Hellenic cities located on the western coast of Asia Minor, the Greeks continued to resist, and in 500 BC e. an open rebellion broke out in these lands, which began in Miletus. The Battle of the Marathon was a vivid episode of this confrontation.
However, the first years of the uprising did not bring the Hellenes living in Asia Minor great successes in the struggle against the conquerors. Despite the fact that Eretria and Athens provided military support to the inhabitants of Miletus, the Greeks could not join all their forces and render the Persians the proper rebuff. Therefore, in 496 BC. e. The Achaemenid state suppressed the rebellions, while declaring war on the whole of Hellas.
The beginning of a new war
In 492 BC e. the first campaign against the Greeks was organized, but the fleet, which transported the army across the sea, was almost completely destroyed by a raging storm. The military operation was interrupted, and the next year the Persian king Darius decided to act differently - he sent ambassadors to Hellas, who demanded obedience from the Greeks on his behalf. Some cities have chosen to accept Darius’s demands, but not all. The inhabitants of Athens and Sparta simply dealt with the Persian ambassadors.
In 490 BC e. the Persians embark on a new campaign in Hellas, and this time it begins more successfully. Their fleet safely crosses the Aegean Sea, and the army landed in the north-east of Attica - just near the small town of Marathon. In these places the Marathon battle took place, which became famous throughout the world.
Preparations for battle
The Persian army consisted equally of foot archers and cavalry, the total number - twenty thousand people. The marathon plain was great for their battle tactics. The Athenian army was almost half the size, but significantly superior in equipping lightly armed Persians. It consisted of hoplites, clad in armor, legguards, copper helmets and armed with large shields and long throwing spears. But the battle of the Marathon was won by the Greeks not only due to their good equipment. An important role was also played by strategy.
Miltiad, who was one of ten commanders who traditionally led the Greek army, was familiar with Persian combat tactics. He proposed an effective plan, but the opinions of strategists were divided. Some of them insisted that the army return to Athens and defend the city, while others wanted to meet the enemy here in the valley. In the end, Miltiad managed to persuade the majority to his side. He said that if the battle of the Marathon was won, it would save other Greek cities from destruction .
Battle outcome
The Persians hoped that their archers would shower the enemy with a hail of arrows, and the cavalry could bypass the Greeks from the flanks and bring confusion into their ranks. But Miltiad provided for the Persians to use this tactic and took retaliatory measures. But the “runaway march” technique used by the Athenian army came as a surprise to the conquerors. Approaching the Persians at a distance shot by archers, the Greeks started to run, thereby minimizing the damage from enemy arrows. The heavily armed Hellenic hoplites were very able to withstand both archers and the cavalry of the Persians. The battle resulted in a random retreat of the conquerors, while a significant part of the Persian army died on the battlefield.
In fact, for Persia this lost battle did not have any fatal consequences, because the Achaemenid Empire was at the peak of power and had enormous resources. The year of the Battle of Marathon was the beginning of a long period of the struggle of the Greeks for their freedom.