The Battle of Thermopylae (Ancient Greek: ἡ ἐν Θερμοπύλαις μάχη?, hē en Thermopýlais
máchē) was fought by an alliance of Greek poleis, led by Spartan King Leonidas I against
the Persian Empire ruled by Xerxes I. It took place over three days, during the second Persian
invasion of Greece, in August or September 480 BC at the narrow passage
of Thermopylae ("The Hot Gates") at the same time as the naval battle of Cape Artemisium.
The Persian invasion was a response to the setback suffered during the failed first invasion of
Greece that had ended with the great Athenian victory at the Battle of Marathon in 490
BC. Xerxes had gathered a huge army and a powerful fleet to conquer all of Greece. The
Athenian general Themistocles proposed that the Greeks prepare to block the advance of the
Persian army at the pass of Thermopylae, while at the same time hindering the Persian fleet at
the Straits of Cape Artemisium.
A Greek army of about 7,000 men marched north to try to stop the advance of the Persians in the
summer of 480 BC. Xerxes' army arrived at the pass in late August or early September but was
held back for a week by the Greeks who, although greatly outnumbered, blocked the only route
by which the massive Persian army could reach central Greece; however, a local
named Ephialtes revealed to the attackers the existence of a side road that led behind the Greek
lines. Leonidas, aware that he had been outflanked, drove off the bulk of the Greek army and
remained guarding the passage with 300 Spartans, 700 Thespians, 400 Thebans, and, perhaps,
a few hundred others, most of whom were killed.
After this battle the Greek fleet, while fighting at Cape Artemisium under the command of the
Athenian politician Themistocles, received news of their defeat at Thermopylae. Since it was the
plan of the Greeks that both Thermopylae and Cape Artemisium should be kept under control,
and the fleet having suffered heavy losses, it was decided to withdraw to Salamis. The Persians
invaded Boeotia and then entered Athens, which had previously been evacuated. Later the
Greek fleet attacked and defeated the invaders at the Battle of Salamis towards the end of 480
BC: after the battle King Xerxes, fearing to be trapped in Europe with the greatly weakened fleet,
decided to return home with part of the army (losing many men to hunger and disease) and left
the general Mardonius in command of the remaining units to complete the conquest of Greece.
The following year, however, a Hellenic army decisively defeated the Persians at the Battle of
Plataea.
For ancient and modern scholars and writers, the battle of Thermopylae is an example of the
astonishing military results that can be achieved, against forces far superior in numbers, with a
highly motivated army fighting in defense of the soil of the homeland. The action of the defenders
of Thermopylae is also considered a classic demonstration of the superior combat effectiveness
of a well-trained and equipped military unit.
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The South African Railways (SAR) Class 26 locomotive, known as the Red Devil, is a steam
locomotive that was rebuilt by a unit of SAR Class 25NC to a design by engineer David Wardale.
The objective of the reconstruction, which was based on the principles advocated and applied by
the Argentine engineer Livio Dante Porta, was to demonstrate to the SAR management the
possibility of avoiding the replacement of the steam traction system with electric and diesel ones,
also given the local availability of the fuel (coal) at a lower cost than diesel, which would also
have had to be imported.
The result of the reconstruction confirmed the design assumptions, providing the operation with a
machine capable of guaranteeing a saving of 28% in coal consumption and 30% in water
consumption and a 43% increase in maximum towing power at the hitch.
However, these results did not convince the SAR management of the advisability of not
abandoning steam traction, also in view of the contraction of passenger traffic and the extension
of electrification, which meant that from 1987 the use of steam traction was increasingly reduced.
The Red Devil, which remained a one-off and was withdrawn from active service after just over
ten years from its entry into operation, being the last steam locomotive to undergo innovative
modifications, is considered the machine that, two centuries after those
of Trevithick and Stephenson, closed the era of steam traction.
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Did you know that...
The Isles of Scilly Football League, also known as the Lioness Shield, is played annually in
the Isles of Scilly archipelago of England. The competition, inaugurated in the 1920s, is the
smallest of its kind in the world as only two teams take part: the Woolpack Wanderers and the
Garrison Gunners.
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Recurrences
Aldo Palazzeschi
Born on February 2nd...
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James Joyce (1882)
Aldo Palazzeschi (1885)
Arfa Karim (1995)
... e morti
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Papa Clemente XIII (1769)
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Bertrand Russell (1970)
Sid Vicious (1979)
In questo giorno accadde...
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962 – Papa Giovanni XII incorona imperatore Ottone I di Sassonia.
1709 – Il naufrago Alexander Selkirk viene tratto in salvo. La vicenda ispirerà il
libro Robinson Crusoe di Daniel Defoe.
1943 – Con la resa della 6ª armata del feldmaresciallo Friedrich Paulus ha termine
la battaglia di Stalingrado.
1989 – L'ultima colonna blindata dell'Unione Sovietica lascia Kabul, ponendo fine a
nove anni di occupazione militare.
2007 – Filippo Raciti, ispettore capo della polizia, perde la vita durante gli scontri fra
tifosi e forze dell'ordine alla fine della partita di calcio Catania-Palermo.
Ricorre oggi: negli Stati Uniti d'America e in Canada è il Giorno della marmotta. La Chiesa
cattolica celebra la festa della Presentazione del Signore (detta "Candelora").
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