Includes bibliographical references (p. 265-295) and index.

Setting the awful scene -- The ancient world in 500 BCE: from India to the Aegean -- The dynamics of empire: Persia of the Achaemenids, 485 -- Hellas: the Hellenic world in 485 -- Sparta 485: a unique culture and society -- Thermopylae I: mobilization -- Thermopylae II: preparations for battle -- Thermopylae III: the battle -- The Thermopylae legend I: antiquity -- The Thermopylae legend II: from antiquity to modernity -- Thermopylae: turning-point in world history -- Appendix 1: the invention of history: Herodotus and other ancient sources -- Appendix 2: Herodotus's Persian Muster-lists: a translation -- Appendix 3: Herodotus: antidote to fundamentalism.

In 480 B.C., a huge Persian army, led by the inimitable King Xerxes, entered the mountain pass of Thermopylae to march on Greece, intending to conquer the land with little difficulty. But the Greeks, led by King Leonidas and a small army of Spartans, took the battle to the Persians at Thermopylae and halted their advance, almost. It is one of history's most acclaimed battles, one of civilization's greatest last stands. Renowned classical historian Paul Cartledge looks anew at this history-altering moment and shows how its repercussions affect us even today. The invasion of Europe by Xerxes and his army redefined culture, kingdom, and class. The valiant efforts of the Greek warriors, facing a huge onrushing Persian army at the narrow pass at Thermopylae, changed the way future generations would think about combat, courage, and death.