Program Information

On the plain at Marathon, the Greeks met the Persian invaders. For a time the outcome was in doubt.

A Moment in Time is a brief, exciting and compelling journey into the past. Created to excite and enlighten the public about the past, its relevance to the present and its impact on the future, A Moment In Time is a captivating historical narrative that is currently broadcast worldwide.

Transcript

Lead: On the plain at Marathon, the Greeks met the Persian invaders. For a time the outcome was in doubt.

Intro: A Moment in Time with Dan Roberts.

Content: In 500 BC the Persian Empire stretched from India to the shores of the Black Sea. From their capital at Persepolis, Cyrus the Great and his successors, Darius and Xerxes extended the borders, and the generally benevolent rule of Persia, to most of the civilized world. As they moved west, however, the Persians encountered the Greeks.

From about 1100 to 800 BC the various Greek cities planted colonies around the Mediterranean. Greek language, art, religion, and, most significantly for the future, notions of democratic government, formed the dominant culture of the region. In 490 BC assisted by Athens, there was rebellion in the Greek colonies in Iona, a part of modern day Turkey that had already conquered by the Persians.

The Persians sent a large invasion force to stamp out this rebellion and go on to conquer the Greek peninsula. After several preliminary skirmishes in the out islands of the Aegean Sea, the Persians landed at the Bay of Marathon, twenty miles from Athens and began staging for the final assault.

In the face of this threat Athenian military leaders were fiddling around, demonstrating their usual disunity that was nearly always getting them in trouble. So as to prevent any single leader from getting too much power and subverting Athenian democracy, the city had an elaborate system whereby each of ten generals would command the army for only a single day at a time. While this certainly prevented a concentration of power in any one man's hands it also left the city vulnerable to outside threat. An enemy could be at the gates and the Athenians would still be debating who would lead the city's defense. Next time: The Battle of Marathon.

At the University of Richmond, this is Dan Roberts.

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