This is a teaser of the bonus episode, "Xerxes Invasion" found over on Patreon.
Step back in time with us and uncover the epic saga of Xerxes' colossal invasion of Greece. Imagine inheriting a crown and a vendetta: that's exactly what Xerxes faced as he ascended to the Persian throne, but was he burning with the ambition to subjugate all of Greece? As your guide through this march into history, I'll take you through the aftermath of the First Persian Invasion, revealing how initial Persian endeavours sowed the seeds for an even grander campaign. We'll scrutinize Xerxes' grandiose preparations for war, from manipulating Greek city-states to bend the knee through 'Medizing' to constructing monumental engineering marvels like the canal through Mount Athos and the bridge over the Hellespont. These efforts etched themselves into the annals of history, setting the stage for a conflict of legendary proportions.
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Hello everyone, mark here with a teaser of what's happening over on Patreon. Every month, a new bonus episode is released on Patreon for members to show my appreciation of the support they are extending to the show. These bonus episodes have allowed me to head back through the series, episodes where I take topics that were covered briefly and then explore them in a little more detail. These bonus episodes haven't taken anything away from my initial vision of the series, but have allowed me to supplement it with topics in isolation. This teaser is designed to give you an idea of the topics we cover and, if these bonus episodes would be of interest to yourself, the teaser for the latest release will remain on the normal feed for a month and then replace with the teaser of the next bonus episode to come out. If you are interested in supporting the series, please consider heading over to the Casting Thorentian Grease Patreon page, where you can get access to these bonus episodes plus other benefits. Hello, and welcome back to another bonus episode here on Patreon where, this time around, we'll be turning to the preparations and why Xerxes would invade Greece.
Speaker 1:
After the previous 5 bonus episodes, we had looked deeper into the Battle of Marathon that had developed as the decisive battle of the First Persian Invasion. Earlier, we had also looked at this First Persian Invasion in general and what its initial purpose was. We had seen that there had been two separate campaigns launched in the direction of Greece. The first would come in 492 in the north, through Thracian lands up into Macedonian territory. However, it seemed that this campaign was not one designed to conquer all of Greek lands. Its aims had appeared to be more limited, with objectives in Thrac and controlling coastal regions. This may have then allowed for further expansion in the future through additional campaigns, though this expedition would not be smooth sailing, with a great proportion of the Persian fleet lost in a storm of Mount Athos, while the army would encounter serious resistance in Thrac. However, persia would still have a presence in the region even after these setbacks. The second campaign would be an amphibious one that would come across the Aegean. Again, it seems its aims had been more limited than the subjugation of all Greece. We would find the main targets of this campaign were islands and cities that had assisted the Onians in their revolt of 499 BC. Naxos would be destroyed, along with Eritrea, where the next target had been Athens, and the result from the Battle of Marathon would see the Persians abandon their campaign.
Speaker 1:
Even if the Persians had been successful against Athens, it seems unlikely that they had enough troops to occupy Athens, support their army and continue campaigning. Modern estimates place the Persian army at around 20 to 25,000 strong, not enough to carry out all these tasks and conquer all Greek cities. It also seems likely that the Persians didn't have the intention of occupying and remaining in Greece through this campaign, as we hear through horolitus, that the old Athenian Tyre and Hippias had been brought along to be installed back in power where he would have been governing through Persian interests. It also appears that, had Persia been successful, there may have been enough support to see Hippias tolerated. However, for this to take place, the democratic factions would need to be decisively beaten. One of the biggest bits of evidence that points to the fact that this first Persian invasion did not have the aim of subjugating all of Greece was the fact that they failed in even these more limited aims that we have covered. The scale of the invasion would need to have been much larger and expansive than what had been sent in 492 and 490.
Speaker 1:
For this bonus episode, we'll be now turning to the period between the first failed Persian invasion and the second invasion that would come 10 years later, under the new King Xerxes. This invasion would be on a much grander scale and would appear to have the aim of conquering all Greece. We will briefly look at what was taking place in Persia after Marathon and the rise of the new King Xerxes. Then we will turn to the reasons Xerxes would decide to launch his invasion. Then, to see out the episode, we will look at the scale of preparations that would take place for the second invasion. The Athenians would celebrate their victory over the Persians as a great feat, and that it was Marathon would mark a point in Athens history where they had presented themselves as a formidable power on land. Previously, this reputation had rested with Sparta in the Greek world. As we have spoken about before, marathon was a great victory for Athens, but the situation was not a zero sum game.
Speaker 1:
The defeat for Persia, although a setback, was not a disastrous event. The forces sent across the Aegean was but a fraction of what they had sent on other campaigns around their empire, while it appears their aims west were somewhat limited at this stage. Even with this defeat, persia would incorporate back into the empire the islands off the Anatolian coast, while they would also make inroads through Thrace and gain some concession from Macedon. These northern additions would see Persian influence filter further west towards Greek lands. However, not all of those had been a part of the only revolt against the Persians in 499, had been punished for their role, athens had remained undefeated and Persia had not exacted revenge for their involvement. As we have seen with the Persian Empire, they placed great importance on punishing those cities that dared revolt against its authority or to assist those who had. It is probably this view that we need to take away when developing context around the aftermath of the first Persian invasions. The traditional view has been to see the conquest of all Greece as Persia's intention, with the developments 10 years later being a continuation of this aim. However, at the end of 490 BC, it appears things were a little more nuanced than the simplistic view.
Speaker 1:
Well, I hope you enjoyed that taste of what's happening over on Patreon. If you would like to support the series, please consider heading over to Patreon, where you can gain access to the full version of this episode, plus many more. Alternatively, you can head to the Casting Thorentian Greece website and click on the Support the Series button, where you can discover many ways to extend your support to the show. Thank you everyone for listening to the series and I hope you continue to enjoy what is to come in the future.