Battle of Plataea

Battle of Plataea
John Steeple Davis · Public domain · source
Conflict	Battle of Plataea
Partof	the Greco-Persian Wars
Date	August 479 BC
Place	Near Plataea, Boeotia, Greece
Result	Decisive Greek victory
Combatant1	Greek city-states
Combatant2	Achaemenid Empire
Commander1	Pausanias, Aristides
Commander2	Mardonius, Artabazus
Strength1	c. 38,700 hoplites, c. 69,500 light troops
Strength2	c. 70,000–120,000 (modern estimates)
Casualties1	c. 1,360+ (Herodotus)
Casualties2	c. 50,000+ (Herodotus)

Battle of Plataea. The Battle of Plataea was the final major land engagement of the Greco-Persian Wars, fought in August 479 BC between an alliance of Greek city-states and the invading forces of the Achaemenid Empire. The decisive Greek victory, led by the Spartan regent Pausanias, ended the Second Persian invasion of Greece and secured the independence of mainland Greece from Persian domination. This triumph, occurring on the same day as the Greek naval victory at the Battle of Mycale, marked a pivotal turning point in Classical history.

Background

The battle was the culmination of the Second Persian invasion of Greece, launched by Xerxes I in 480 BC in response to the earlier defeat at the Battle of Marathon. Following the Persian victories at the Battle of Thermopylae and the Battle of Artemisium, and the subsequent sack of Athens, the Persian land army, now under the command of Mardonius, wintered in Thessaly. After failed diplomatic overtures to Athens, Mardonius reoccupied Attica in the summer of 479 BC, forcing the Athenians to again evacuate to Salamis. In response, a massive allied Greek army, the largest assembled during the wars, mustered at the Isthmus of Corinth under the leadership of Pausanias, regent for the underage Spartan king Pleistarchus. This Peloponnesian League force, joined by contingents from Athens, Megara, and other states, marched into Boeotia to confront Mardonius, who had established a fortified camp on the north bank of the Asopus River near Plataea.

Opposing forces

The Greek alliance fielded a formidable force drawn from over twenty city-states. The core consisted of a Spartan contingent of 5,000 full Spartiate hoplites, accompanied by 35,000 light-armed Helots, alongside 8,000 Athenian hoplites led by Aristides. Other major contributors included Corinth, Sicyon, and Tegea, bringing the total hoplite strength to nearly 40,000, supported by tens of thousands of lighter troops. The Persian army, commanded by Mardonius, was a multi-ethnic imperial force. Its elite core included the Immortals and other Persian units, supplemented by formidable Medes, Saka, and Bactrian cavalry. Mardonius also fielded contingents from his Greek allies, primarily from Thebes and other regions of Boeotia, who provided both hoplites and cavalry. The total Persian-led force, though numerically larger than the Greeks, relied heavily on cavalry and archery.

Battle

For several days, the armies faced each other across the Asopus River, with the Persian cavalry under Masistius harassing Greek supply lines and water sources. After the death of Masistius in a skirmish, Mardonius grew impatient. Exploiting a complex Greek redeployment that created gaps in their line, he launched a full-scale assault, believing the Greeks were in disarray. His cavalry and infantry poured across the Asopus, focusing their attack on the Spartans and Tegeans on the Greek right wing. The Spartans, however, held their position at the sanctuary of Demeter, weathering a barrage of arrows before engaging the Persians in close-quarters combat where their superior armor and discipline proved decisive. Meanwhile, the Athenian center and left wing engaged and defeated the Theban and other Greek allies of Persia. In the pivotal moment of the battle, Mardonius himself was killed, causing the Persian army's morale to collapse. The remaining forces, led by Artabazus, fled northward towards Thessaly and ultimately Asia Minor.

Aftermath

The Greek victory was overwhelming. According to the historian Herodotus, Persian casualties exceeded 50,000, while Greek losses were minimal in comparison. The immense Persian camp was captured and plundered, yielding vast quantities of treasure. Following the battle, Pausanias famously refused to retaliate against the captured Persian commanders, contrasting Persian hubris with Greek moderation. The allied army then marched on Thebes, compelling the city to surrender the leaders of its pro-Persian faction, who were executed. The simultaneous victory at the Battle of Mycale freed the Ionian Greeks and began the rollback of Persian influence in the Aegean Sea, leading to the formation of the Delian League under Athenian leadership.

Significance

The Battle of Plataea holds immense historical significance as the decisive event that secured Greek independence from the Achaemenid Empire. It ended the immediate Persian threat to mainland Greece, allowing the Classical Greek civilization to flourish. The victory cemented the military reputation of the Spartan hoplite and demonstrated the power of Greek unity, however temporary, against a common enemy. The triumph directly led to the Greek counter-offensive across the Aegean Sea, shifting the conflict from defense to liberation. The battle's legacy profoundly influenced subsequent Greek politics, contributing to the rise of Athens and the tensions that would later erupt into the Peloponnesian War. It was memorialized by ancient writers including Herodotus, Thucydides, and Plutarch, and its site was marked by the Serpent Column at Delphi, a monument later moved to the Hippodrome of Constantinople.

Category:Battles of the Greco-Persian Wars Category:479 BC