gods and goddesses notes part 2
the fighting Spartans
- Greeks were certainly a warlike people-especially the Spartans
- Spartans were known for their tough, ruthless infantry: soldiers who fought on land
- Spartans boys trained from the time they were seven
Athens-naval power
- Athens had a great infantry but nothing could compare with their navy
- their most effective weapon was the trireme
the phalanx
- a close-ranked, dense grouping of warriors
- armed with long spears and interlocking shields
- soldiers could advance slowly toward the enemy, until they broke through their ranks
Persian wars
- Persian empire vs Greece
- Greece is much much smaller
- Persian empire was huge
- Persians have a huge army, and nearly unlimited resources
Greek army
- iron weapons meant ordinary citizens could afford to arm themselves
- foot soldiers (hoplites) trained from an early age
- armed with spears, swords, shields
- fought in phalanx formation
- "home field" advantage
- motivated to preserve democracy
Persian army
- first archers
- then cavalry
- lightly armored infantry
- huge numbers
- long way from home
- paid professional army soldiers (mercenaries)
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