The Battle Of Marathon

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The Battle of Marathon The Battle of Marathon is significant not only to the Greeks, but the whole world. At the beginning of their fight, the Greeks had won a stunning victory. This was a battle no one will forget. It was only the first of many battles between the Greeks and the Persians. It all started when King Darius decided to conquer the tiny Greek city states of mainland Greece. King Darius sent messengers to ask for presents of Greek earth and water, which would be a sign that the Greeks would accept rule by the Persians. Instead, the Greeks threw the messengers in wells and pits, and told them that was their earth and water. King Darius was furious and sent soldiers and cavalry by ship to Greece, and they assembled themselves on the plain of Marathon. Miltiades, a great general for Greece, convinced other Greek commanders that the Greeks should fight the Persians at Marathon. The Athenians sent a runner named Pheidipiddes to Sparta, in desperate need of help. He ran such a long time and eventually died. He is still remembered today. The Spartans although, could not help because they were celebrating a religious festival, and couldn’t leave their homeland until the next full moon. The Athenians would just have to face the Persians alone. The Athenians stretched across a narrow valley, and for many days both sides were hesitant to attack. Finally the Greeks, by direction of Miltiades, decided they would attack first. The Athenians came in from the center and from the sides as well. This strategy had worked and the Athenians had won victory. They marched back to Athens with pride, but were ready to defend Athens against the Persian’s cavalry. We commemorate the Athenian soldiers and leaders who helped Greece. They were so brave and knew they could do it, even though they were small compared to the Persians. Since they won this war, they
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