Even though he had been killed, the Spartans repelled the enemy four times to retrieve his body. And then along with his men he fought to the very last man. Knowing that the end was near, Leonidas commanded all remaining Greeks save his Spartans to retreat. It was only on the seventh day that the enemy was able to flank him, thanks to a Greek traitor named Ephialtes whose name shall live in infamy forever. Leonidas and his Spartans repelled unending waves of frontal attacks to the point the tens of thousands of bodies of his vanquished enemies were said to have been piled high into a wall.
Nonetheless when commanded by Xerxes to lay down his weapons and bow to his might, it is Leonidas’ retort, “Molon Labe” or “Come and get them!” that echoes in eternity. Which still pales in comparison to the close to two million commanded by Xerxes (historians feel this might be closer to 300,000). It is believed the actual number of men he commanded was around 7,000. To be exact, Leonidas’ force numbered 300 Spartans, 900 Hoplites (slaves subjugated by the Spartans) and several other allied Greek forces. Supposedly before departing on what was clearly a suicide mission, his wife Gorgo told him, “Come back with your shield or on it,” which as far as badass things a wife can say to a husband before he leaves to face certain death, has got to rank at No.1. Leonidas was not going to let that happen. The Athenians went on to victory and were glorified by all of Greece. He was denied on the grounds that they were amidst a religious ceremony. During the first invasion of Greece by Darius I in 490 BC, the Athenians had sent a messenger to run the 140 miles to Sparta to beseech them for help. It was a time when Sparta had a lot to make up for. Braggadocio aside, Leonidas proved his worth and ascended to the status of eternal legend, during the second Persian invasion of Greece. The legend goes that upon being named the leader of the city-state, someone said to him, “Except for being king you are not superior to us.” To which he retorted, “But were I not better than you I should not be king,” referring to his prowess as a military leader. Dimensions : 83,6 cm x 46,8 cm.īe brave, and go ahead.It is implied that Leonidas’ exceptional performance in the Agoge made him the choice for king when his elder brother was eventually deposed for insanity. You will then compare the shape and gripping system with a british celtic ceremonial shield found in the Thames : the Chertsey shield (now in the British Museum). Sorry, I don’t know any good studies in english. Schemas and illustrations are clear enough for you (that’s in french). You can see with advantage : Les umbos de boucliers de Gournay-sur-Aronde (André Rapin, pdf) or Le maniement du bouclier celte (J-F.
Romans have adopted it in changing the shape (from flat to curved one, but the hand gripping system is the same). Gauls, Iberians, Celtiberians, Celts from central Europe (Illyrian and Germans too) used this kind of shield (there’s a lot of archeological evidences). It was certainly flat (or very slightly curved : in this case, no javelins). If the origin of such a shield is “gallic” (adapted from the shields of Keltoi, Galatoi), the hand grip was certainly horizontal, made for infantry hard close combat on a offensive and defensive way (raids, rapid assaults). But Kopis and Xyphos for versatility : yes !!! Greeks or Macedonians peasants and warriors wore instead chlamys, chlamydes… and Romans Paenulae. Long capes are bad weather cloaks, not very accurate.
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