Second Persian Invasion of Greece

Follow the story · Four stages

1. 01

   Background

   After the Ionian Revolt and the Persian defeat at Marathon, the Achaemenid court still sought to secure its authority and prestige around the Aegean. Xerxes assembled a large land army and fleet, crossed the Hellespont, and advanced south through Greece.

   • The Ionian Revolt sharpened tensions between Persia and the Greek cities
   • The Achaemenid court prepared a major land and sea expedition
   • Independent poleis sought a framework for common defense

   
2. 02

   Course

   Persian forces broke through at Thermopylae and occupied an evacuated Athens. The allied Greek fleet then won at Salamis, and in 479 Greek forces defeated the remaining invasion army at Plataea while another victory followed at Mycale.

   • Xerxes I's army crossed the Hellespont and moved south
   • Athens was occupied after the pass at Thermopylae was forced
   • The allied Greek fleet used the constricted waters of Salamis

   
3. 03

   Outcome

   The invasion withdrew without bringing mainland Greece under Achaemenid rule. Conflict did not simply end there: Greek and Persian powers continued to fight and negotiate, especially around the islands and cities of the eastern Aegean.

   • The Persian invasion failed to conquer mainland Greece and withdrew
   • Greek forces also prevailed at Plataea and Mycale
   • Fighting and diplomacy continued in the eastern Aegean

   
4. 04

   Historical significance

   The victories strengthened Athenian naval influence and helped lead to the Delian League. Most detailed narratives survive from Greek authors, so reported numbers, motives, and heroic episodes must be distinguished carefully from what the evidence can establish.

   • Athenian naval power and political influence grew
   • Conditions developed for the later Delian League
   • The surviving victor-side narratives require critical reading