Diodorus And Herodotus: The Battle Of Thermopylae

Both Diodorus and Herodotus write about the battle of Thermopylae. While the two accounts are generally similar, there are many differences, which makes it hard to know what the truth was, as some details are vastly different. Diodorus writes that “Leonidas then led a valiant night attack on the Persian camp,” so that the Persians would not be aware of how small the Greek force was. While Herodotus claims that the battle was by day, both Justin in his Epitome of Pompeius Trogus (“He exhorted his Spartans "to remember that, however they struggled, they must expect to perish; to take care not to show more resolution to stay than to fight;" adding that, "they must not wait till they were surrounded by the enemy, but when night afforded them opportunity, must surprise them in security and at their ease .

. They immediately seized their arms, and six hundred men rushed into the camp of five hundred thousand.”) and Plutarch in his On the Malice of Herodotus (“For when they perceived by night that they were encompassed by the barbarians, they marched straight to the enemies' camp, and got very near the King's pavilion, with a resolution to kill him and leave their lives about him.”) speak of the night attack. Also, as is usually the case with ancient battles, there is some difference in the size of the two armies in the different sources. While Herodotus says that the Greek army had a force of around 5,000, Diodorus says that they had an army of around 7,000. In these numbers, the story of the 300 Spartans is consistent, but the other figures change with each source, whether it be Herodotus, Diodorus, or someone completely