Back in the day, Greece was not a unified country like today. Greece was made up of many city-states that were constantly at war with each other. Some famous examples of the city-states are Athens, Sparta, and Thebes. Athens and Sparta dominated Greece but were always at war with each other. Sparta had the superior land army but Athens had the better navy. However, in (insert date), something close to a miracle occurred. The long and bitter rivalry between these city-states ceased for a time and became united. What caused this change? The arrival and threat of a huge empire called Persia. Persia extended from the eastern border of Greece to the eastern border of the present day Middle East. Persia sought to take over Greece while the city states fought …show more content…
After a long and bitter struggle, the Greek city-states emerged victorious. Persia was beaten back. What caused this? How did a huge empire like Persia get defeated by a bunch of city-states?
The first thing that put the odds in Greece’s favor was their will and spirit. The people of Greece weren’t just fighting for honor and glory. They were fighting for survival, for freedom. The Persians on the other hand weren’t has convicted. That’s not to say that glory and honor wasn’t part of it. Just because the city-states were united at the moment in a common struggle doesn’t mean that the rivalries disappeared. City –states still sought to beat their rival but instead of turning that energy onto their rival, The Persian were on the receiving end. Greek ideals were also very important. Greeks held honor and bravery in high honor. The city-state that most exemplified this was Sparta. For Spartans, cowardice was a weakness, something to be scorned on. To flee from battle was cowardice. Add this to the fact that Spartans were trained for war. Their ideals of discipline, bravery, and honor were more important than death. To die a