The Most Legendary Ancient Battlefield on Earth

We found the spirit of the Spartans. Yes, us guys. As we continue the Greek road trip. Now behind me here it may look like an ordinary field near the highway. But what we are about to walk across is possibly the most famous battlefield on earth and probably the most famous from antiquity. The Thermopylae Pass or Hades Gate. We are walking across the very field where Leonidas and his 300 Spartans along with his 700 Thespian allies fought to the very last man in one of antiquity's and history's itself's greatest last stand. Now you might say technically the actual battlefield is about 20 feet below our feet. Because over time the coast moved back from where this road is about a kilometer or two in that direction. But that takes away nothing from how excited I am. I know some might just think this is a field but this is literally the story that that everyone knows. For three days and nights the Spartans and their 7,000 Greek allies held back a force of over 300,000 Persians. Well estimates go from anywhere from 120,000 to 300,000. But the ancient stories say over a million. But for three days and nights they were able to hold them back through this narrow passageway from reaching mainland Greece. On the third day a local trader showed the Persians the way through the mountains. I'm not exactly sure where the actual pass is but then the Persians were able to outflank the Greek army and kill everyone. Leonidas was actually aware of this and he dismissed the bulk of the force. Only his 300 personal guard of Spartan warriors and his 700 Thespian allies remained behind where they fought like the last man. Later on there were other battles fought here of great historical significance as well that are somewhat forgotten in comparison. Now besides the story that we all know of Leonidas and his Spartans in 480 BC and 191 BC the Romans also fought a major battle against the Seleucids here where the Seleucids 13,000 of their men and their war elephants were defeated by the Roman legions. So Thermopylae historical wise and site of battlefield wise is definitely one of the most significant on earth and to be able to walk across it like so many great men have throughout history it's it's quite a feeling. I believe what's left here is part of the Phocian wall. The Persians were coming from this direction and Leonidas and his 300 Spartans made their last stand somewhere around that hill. At least that's what it's thought. That's the accepted theory. So what we just walked across was where they were. You can picture them lining up in a phalanx against an onslaught of Persian arrows and troops, Persian immortals. You know what I can't put exactly in words how that must have felt but this is crazy to be able to touch this place. Now I almost forgot to do that. So on or around this hill here is where Leonidas made his final stand and him and his men were buried on or around this hill. It's crazy to think the amount of history you know behind a mound of rocks and dirt. It's kind of crazy. People still leave flowers. I mean that just shows you how much this spot is revered. Now it looks like they are doing excavations over here. This is probably where they were buried. Crazy. So throughout time many monuments have been built on this hill but the inscription has always stayed the same. Roughly translated to oh strangers tell the Spartans that here we lie obedient to their laws. More or less saying here we did our duty and fought to the death. It's obviously an illusion but as we were standing here watching the sunset it looked like it came back up over the hill. That makes this moment even more significant. I mean it's the clouds that cause the illusion. Could also be the ghost of Leonidas. We found the spirit of the Spartans. We'll go find you some snacks. Yeah we'll find something for you. So here's the phrase that every gun nerd in the states puts on their truck. Molon Abe and Leonidas. Yeah he is dirty. Yeah he's probably born wild or maybe he's abused. Hello Xerxes. Xerxes. Leonidas. Xerxes is less scared of you. Guys thanks so much for joining me on that really special occasion. I mean a great moment and I'm glad I could share it with you. I appreciate you as always. Thank you for your time. You didn't have to give it to me. See you on the next one.