Ther     Thermopylae beyond ‘The 300’

The Killing Ground is a new and innovative look at a battlefield. Instead of confining itself to a single battle in detail, the authors have chosen a battlefield that has been fought over twenty-seven times by their account since ancient times. There are ancient, medieval, and modern battles over the ‘Hot Gates’ mountain pass (the literal translation of ‘Thermopylae’) over the centuries involving Persians, Greeks, Byzantines, Turks, Germans, New Zealanders and many other combatants.

The book begins with the geography of the pass and the tectonic forces which formed it. Thermopylae is important as the easiest way to travel between Central Greece and Attica in the direction of Athens. The authors present an alternate route, the Oiti Pass that runs South of Lamia to the Gulf of Corinth, which is less convenient, and cannot be covered by a fleet in the Malian Gulf that flows down the Attican coast. The book further describes the geography of the pass, divided historically into Eastern, Middle and Western Gates. The authors also cover the so-called Anopian path that allows a force to flank the pass from the North.

The bulk of the book covers the battles and actions fought at Thermopylae over the centuries. The longest chapter is of course devoted to the most famous battle, fought in 480 BCE between the Persians and a small Greek Army under the command of the Spartan King Leonidas, the famous last stand of the 300. Here the authors argue that the Phocian Wall did not run perpendicular through the pass to the sea, but instead was built parallel to the road through the pass, as a breakwater, not blocking the pass.

Most other chapters are relatively short, as little is known about several of the actions at Thermopylae from reliable primary sources. The battle in the pass in 1941 between the German Wehrmacht and Force W of mostly New Zealand troops is the most substantial. The last action covered is a successful sabotage operation of an important bridge near Thermopylae by SOE and the Greek resistance in 1943.

Most of the actions at Thermopylae were not full-fledged battles. Instead one side or the other retreated from the pass, took the Oiti pass instead, the pass was abandoned by the defender, or the attacker chose not to test the pass. The authors tally the actions as 8 wins for the defender, 18 losses, and one unclear as to the victor. So the defenders failed 2/3 of the time.

To conclude, the authors see a legend having sprung up around Thermopylae based on the heroic last stand of Leonidas and the 300 Spartans. That, along with its key strategic location explain why so many battles and actions have been fought there. Other battlefields (Manassas, Neerwinden, Fredericksburg, etc.) are lucky to have two battles fought at the same location, so twenty-seven may be a record. I recommend The Killing Ground highly as an innovative way to do military history, following a particular important location through different periods of warfare.

Note: The Killing Ground is also available in e-editions.

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