Battle Of Troy Research Paper

Rav Yehudah Aryeh Leib Alter, also known as the Sfas Emes, was the second Gerre Rebbe. He was the son of Rav Avraham Mordechai and the grandson of the famed Chidushei Harim, Rav Yitzchak Meir. The Sfas Emes came from a family rich with Kedusha. His father, Rav Avraham Mordechai was known for his silence and would sometimes not speak for days, with the exception of Torah and Tefillah. His grandfather, the first Gerer Rebbe, was called after his peirush, the Chidushei Harim.

During 490-479 BC the Empire of Persia had series of conflicts with Greek-City States. One of the pivotal moments in the Persian war was the battle of Thermopylae. The battle of Thermopylae took place in Greece, it started when Darius the king of Persia sent emissaries to Greece asking for land and water as an acceptance to his submission.The Spartans didn’t accept the offer and threw them down a well as a form of execution. This meant that they were effectively at war with Persia. Bernard Knox explains the actions that caused the battle, and the battle itself in an excerpt from a book called The Novel Book of Classical Literature . In this

The Spartans fought in a formation called the Hoplite Phalanx. The Hoplite Phalanx is a highly organized fighting formation where Spartans are lined up side by side with overlapping shields. The goal of the Hoplite Phalanx is to protect the person to your left and right. When one person in the front line of the Phalanx is injured or killed someone behind them takes their place. The Hoplite Phalanx was very effective and it helped Spartans win battles where they were heavily outnumbered. The fighting formation that the Spartans used in the film included a variation of unorganized infantry lines, chaotic hand-to-hand combat, and a technique that they used which consisted of them laying down on the ground to let Persian horses jump over them as they approached. The hand-to-hand combat showed Spartans fighting by themselves with no teamwork from their fellow soldiers to help them battle the Persians. This fighting style would have never happened. The reason that Spartans were so successful in battle was because they fought as a team and kept to the Hoplite Phalanx. In “Herodotus, The Histories” Demaratus says, “so it is with the Spartans; fighting singly, they

The Persian Wars had started making an appearance in 492-449 BCE When king Xerxes wanted more ruling areas. To do this the Persians needed to conquer the Greek states, their first target was Mainland Greece which affected Athens severely. To defend against the Persians, Athens called upon Sparta to help team against the Persian invaders. Instead of Sparta arriving to help fight alongside Athens, they had been celebrating a religious festival. Although Sparta didn’t arrive Athens did win a decisive battle, losing only 192 men to Persia’s 6,400.

Around 480 BC, Spartan King Leonida, 300 Spartans and their allies, made a sacrificial last stand at Thermopylae against King Xerxes and the Persians. King Xerxes demanded the surrender of the Greek weapons, to which King Leonida replied, "Molon Labe" or "Come and take them." General Themistocles lead the Athenian Navy to victory over the Persian Navy at battle of Salamis. General Themistocles used many tricks to the Persians into battle in the narrow straits of Salamis where the Athenians can take advantage. Another Persian War, the Athenians retreat and the Persians are lead by Xerxes to destroy Athens; but the Greek forces won a major naval battle in

The Greek states of Athens and Sparta allied with one another under the leadership of Spartan King Leonidas to protect Greece from the Persian invasion. They believe that their most effective strategy in fending off Persian warriors, would be to defend and protect the narrow path of Thermopylae (located in central Greece) for this was the place that allowed access to Athens. By blockading Thermopylae the Persians would be unable to access Athens, thereby preventing them from being able to attack

In the Battle of Thermopylae, the much smaller Spartan army held off the Persian invasion at Thermopylae. In this battle the Greeks and the Persians were fighting. The regions were fighting because the Persians were trying to punish Athens for burning down a Persian city 25 years earlier, and the Spartans were trying to stop the Persians from getting into Greece and burning down the city of Athens. The battle took place at a narrow pass called Thermopylae in 480 B.C. The site of the battle was an advantage for the Spartans because they knew the area better and the pass was such a narrow pass that the Persian's large army, that outnumbered the Spartans 5 to 1, had a hard time getting soldiers through. While the Spartans were holding off the

In the battle of Thermopylae the Greeks were led by Leonidas. During the battle the Greeks blocked the road that the Persians planned to use. By doing this the Greeks held the Persians off for 3 days. Another strategy the Greeks used was bringing in about 300 triremes to stop the Persians coming in ships. The Greeks also brought in the hoplites that had strong armour.

Barry Strauss organizes his summary of the Trojan War by referencing Homer 's the Iliad and the Odyssey and compares it to the historical contexts of what he thinks happened. Most scholars agree that the Trojan War dates back around 1200 B.C. during the Bronze Age. The most popular tale of how the Trojan War starts is when Paris, Prince of Troy, goes to visit Sparta to mend relations. In Sparta, Paris is welcomed by Menelaus, King of Sparta and his beautiful wife Helen. According to ancient sources, Menelaus went to Crete for business and foolishly left Helen all alone with Paris (Strauss, 15). Afterward, Helen is seduced by Paris and flees Sparta to accompany him back to Troy, along with bountiful treasures.

How Sparta chose to interact with its neighbors was not the only factor in its downfall. Spartan battle strategy was both feared and effective, but because of Sparta’s overconfidence and failure to readapt, the weaknesses of its strategy were quickly identified and exploited by its opponents. Spartans were the masters of the battlefield; quite literally, they were both born and bred for it. Josiah Ober’s article, “Sparta: The Rise and Fall of an Empire,” says that “the very sight and sound of an advancing line of Spartan soldiers” was enough to send an enemy army fleeing before spears and shields had even the slightest chance to clash. A phalanx consists of several columns of men advancing steadily, “shoulder to shoulder, with shields locked”

The Greek victory against Persia was largely due to efforts of mainly Athens but also Sparta as well. Athens was responsible for the major turning points of the Persian invasions, while Sparta was responsible for the deciding battle. Miltiades, with his skilful battle strategies, defeated the Persians during their second invasion at Marathon, which gave Athens a confidence boost on their military. During the third invasion, when the Athenians were evacuated to Salamis, Themistocles had devised a plan to trick the Persians which had resulted in Persian army without a supply line. Sparta?s importance had revealed during their sacrifice at Thermopylae and at Plataea, where they provided the most effective part of the army.

Leonidas was the king of the Spartans during the time of the Persian War. The Spartans were the elite of the elite when it came to military strength. One of the greatest displays of his courage and honor was in his last battle, The Battle of Thermopylae. At the Battle of Thermopylae the Persians were trying to come down into Greece through the mountain pass Thermopylae. The odds were heavily against the Greeks with the Persians numbering in the hundreds of thousands and the Greeks only having a couple thousand Athenians and only 300 Spartan warriors under the command of King Leonidas. The Greeks stopped-up the pass with phalanxes and were slaughtering the Persians. The battle was looking like a major victory for the Greeks until the Persians discovered a back-road on a mountain pass and were about to surround the Greeks. King Leonidas told the remaining Athenian Greeks to flee back to Athens while he and his 300 hundred Spartans held off the Persians. The Spartan army caused massive damage to the Persian army by killing off thousands of them. All the Spartans died in that battle, along with Leonidas, but this weakened the Persians and allowed the

The battle of Thermopylae was the Greek’s first stand against the massive army of King Xerxes, and was the most influential battle of the entire war. Up to this point, the Persian army was seen as too massive and powerful to be stopped. The once warring city-states of Greece knew they couldn’t stand against the Persians alone, and knew in order to defend their homeland they would have to unite. A unity of command was agreed upon; King Leonidas of Sparta was chosen to lead the Greek forces. He was chosen to lead because of the unsurpassed warring abilities the Spartans were so well known for made him perfect for the objective of stopping the Persians.

Many people have heard of Achilles, whether in Greek Mythology or when referring to the tendon in their foot. He is well known in the Iliad as the main force for the Achaeans in the Trojan War, dubbed the “swiftest warrior,” “Achilles dear to Zeus”, and “brilliant runner.” However many do not know the story of Achilles when he walks away from the Achaean campaign over a scuffle of war prizes. His action cripples the Achaean army, costing the lives of many. The story of the Trojan War is one where Achilles ultimately leads the Achaeans to Troy and kills Hector outside Priam’s walls. However, it was Patroclus, Achilles’ brother-in-arms, who should be accredited with the Achaean victories and know for his success against the Trojans in the

they were in a narrow pass and they had an almost impenatrable defenese with there shields, they were very well trained (from age 8 taking as a young boy) with 40lb bronze shields persian army had wicker shields (very weak) and were untrained mostly farmers. The spartans only had to swing and stab as the persians came running after