For all who admire this Greek and in the same time Universal Place-Monument, but they are a little confused calling Thermopylae... Sparta:
I would like to say that I am afraid this is not Sparta because it is... Thermopylae!
Για όλους εκείνους τους επισκέπτες της χώρας μας, που θαυμάζουν την Ελλάδα, αλλά είναι λίγο μπερδεμένοι και αποκαλούν τις Θερμοπύλες... Σπάρτη!
Θα ήθελα λοιπόν να τους πω ότι... φοβάμαι πως δεν είναι η Σπάρτη, γιατί απλά... είναι οι Θερμοπύλες!
Εξ αιτίας μιας δημοσίευσης που είδα τυχαία, στην οποία τουρίστας από το εξωτερικό και επισκέπτης των Θερμοπυλών, ήταν απόλυτα σίγουρος ότι βρισκόταν στη Σπάρτη και όχι στις Θερμοπύλες... και χωρίς καμιά προσωπική διάθεση για ανόητες, υπέρμετρες -ή και μετριοπαθείς- σοβινιστικές θέσεις, θέλησα απλά, να γράψω κάτι, εξ ίσου απλό αλλά και ουσιαστικό, για την αποκατάσταση τυχόν -και οπωσδήποτε μη κακόβουλων- εντυπώσεων και παρερμηνειών από ξένους επισκέπτες.
At the battlefield of Thermopylae in 480BC there was written History of universal importance... ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒΕ! means ''Come and take this''! (meaning the place, pron. Molόn Lavé!)
Α very sort sentence containing only two words full of bravery and intelligence, was said by Leonidas, the King of Spartans, whose statue we see there, at Thermopylae.
SPARTA was an ancient city-state in Peloponnese, South Greece- but the 300 Spartans (warriors from Sparta) came from Sparta with their King Leonidas here, at the narrow passage of the Hot Gates (=Thermopylae) to hold the battle of Thermopylae and made History. (480 BC).
For the friends who are a little confused calling this water canal... ancient wall.
This is not any ancient wall! No way!
FIRST OF ALL this field of the picture was formed thousands of years later. The only that used to be there then, was sea!
What you see here is not than a NARROW WATER CANAL been made much later than the ancient time, in order to gather water from the hot springs of the place and lead it away. On both sides of the canal the seen ground is obvious a kind of sedimentary soil formed as the hot water of the Hot Gates flows through it and is often overflowing...
AS FOR THE BATTLE, it took place where King Leonidas of Sparta and his men chose. At the ideal topographical position of pure ruggedness between the sea on one side and steep, impassable hills on the other to battle there the Persian invaders: exactly across the road, opposite the monument of the battle of Thermopylae... Exactly at the grounds where the Statue of King Leonidas is looking at...
The BATTERFIELD was not than between the foot of the hills and the old national road to Athens.
Today, the famous PASS is not near the sea, but is several kilometres inland because of sedimentation.-
- Ὦ ξεῖν', ἀγγέλλειν Λακεδαιμονίοις ὅτι τῇδε
- κείμεθα, τοῖς κείνων ῥήμασι πειθόμενοι. (fulfilling their orders)
- Ō ksin', angellin Lakedaimoniis oti tithe
- kimetha, tis kinōn rhimasi pithomeni.
- Oh stranger, tell the Lacedaemonians that
- we lie here, obedient to their words...
- Ō ksein', angellein Lakedaimoniois hoti tēithe
- keimetha, tois keinōn rhēmasi peithomenoi.
- (Laconian Brevity) Text by HERODOTUS
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