Léonidas Ier de Sparte

Biography

Léonidas belongs to the family of the Agiades. He is the son junior by the king Anaxandridas II and the successor of his brother Cléomène I {{er}}. He marries Gorgô, girl of this last.

When the Persian , carried out by Xerxès Ier, penetrated in Greece, with a strong army of 250.000 soldiers, the Gérousia , Conseil of Old or City of Sparte, joined together with Corinthe with the autumn -481, decided approximately 300 man sending (Lacédémoniens, dominated by the city of Sparte) under the command of Léonidas to defend the procession of the Thermopyles in order to retain Persians and to leave with the Greek fleet time to fold up itself beyond the strait which form Eubée with the continent.

Betrayed by some Éphialtès, which shows to Persians the way making it possible to circumvent Léonidas, this last will return the majority of its troops (approximately 6000 men) keeping near him 300 Pars, with their Hilote S, and the Thébains and voluntary Thespiens. After a heroic resistance, it penetrated with its men in the camp of Persians, sowing the distress before succumbing under the number. At the time of this battle, Xerxès will have lost at least 20.000 of its men.

Later, one transferred his remainders to Sparte where a splendid tomb was set up to him while festivals, called Léonidées, were instituted.

“For you, citizens of vast Sparte,

Your large city glorious or under the blows of Perséides

Tomb, or it remains; but over the race of Héraclès,

On a late king then will cry the ground of Lacédémon

Its enemy, the force of the bulls will not stop it nor that of the lions,

When it comes: its force is that of Zeus.

Not, I say it to you,

II will not stop before having received its prey, or one or the other. ”

( answer of the Pythea about the medic Wars )

Sources

(VII, 204-224).
( Lycurgue , XIV, 8; XX, 1; Thémistocle , IX, 1; Pélopidas , XXI, 3; Acted , XIV, 5; Cléomène , II, 4; Artaxerxès , XXII, 3).

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