King · 518 BC – 465 BC
Xerxes I
Key Takeaways
- Xerxes I led the great second Persian invasion of Greece in 480 BC.
- His forces won the Battle of Thermopylae against Leonidas and the Spartans.
- He captured and burned Athens.
- His navy was crushed at Salamis and his army defeated at Plataea.
Xerxes I inherited his father’s unfinished war — and turned it into the most famous invasion of the ancient world. To avenge the Persian defeat at Marathon, he led an army of staggering size against the city-states of Greece.
Thermopylae and Athens
In 480 BC Xerxes’s host crossed into Greece. At the narrow pass of Thermopylae, the Spartan king Leonidas I and his men held for days before being overwhelmed. Xerxes pressed on, capturing and burning Athens. For a moment, the conquest of Greece seemed complete.
Salamis and ruin
Then came disaster. The Athenian leader Themistocles lured the huge Persian fleet into the straits of Salamis, where it was destroyed. The following year the Persian army was crushed at Plataea. Xerxes returned home, his invasion broken — and son of Darius the Great though he was, the king of Achaemenid Persia became, in Greek memory, the very image of proud ambition humbled.
Influence
Xerxes's failed invasion of Greece became one of history's most storied campaigns, his defeat helping preserve the independence of the Greek city-states.
Legacy
He is remembered above all through Greek accounts as the proud king humbled at Salamis, a symbol of imperial overreach.
Controversies
- His vast invasion ended in catastrophic defeat, weakening Persian prestige in the west.
Connections
Frequently Asked Questions
Who was Xerxes I?
Xerxes I (c. 518–465 BC) was the Persian king who led the great second invasion of Greece, winning at Thermopylae but losing decisively at Salamis and Plataea.
Why did Xerxes invade Greece?
He sought to avenge the Persian defeat at Marathon under his father Darius and to bring the defiant Greek city-states under Persian rule.
Citations & Sources
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Why His father, who began the war with Greece that Xerxes continued.
Leonidas I
80Leonidas I was a king of Sparta who led a small Greek force in a legendary last stand against the vast Persian army at the Battle of Thermopylae in 480 BC, becoming an enduring symbol of courage and sacrifice.
Why The Spartan king who died resisting Xerxes at Thermopylae.
Themistocles
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Why The Athenian leader whose strategy destroyed Xerxes's fleet at Salamis.
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