Asher Sisneros

            If history has taught us anything, “Too big to fail” doesn’t exist. Every empire seems to crumble. Does it matter how powerful they are? No.

            Persia dominated the world once. Like all the empires before and after them, their influence faded into darkness, and another empire took their place. The closing of the Persian wars marked the end of an era and threw another nation into the dust bucket. But how did the war start in the first place? That question is often overlooked. However, knowing each country’s motives for war is just as important as the war.

            This story begins with the Perian–Athenian alliance. When the Spartans started interfering in Athenian politics, the nation allied with Persia to dissuade Sparta. Unfortunately for Athens, Persia didn’t consider themselves anyone’s equal. Persia demanded a tribute of earth and water. The diplomats agreed. Unbeknownst to them, that tribute confirmed Persia’s sovereignty—that they were lords of Earth and sea. Many Greeks were outraged, but renouncing a treaty with Persia was a death sentence—allegedly.

            In c. 499 B.C. the Ionians rebelled against Persia. They asked their allies, Sparta and Athens, to give them military aid. While the Spartans refused to cooperate, the Athenians sent twenty ships, approximately forty percent of Athen’s navy. The entire Ionian rebellion was squashed in five short years. However, Darius the 1st, Persia’s king, was outraged that Athens broke their treaty. He was going to retaliate against Greece.

            Messengers asked Sparta for a tribute of Earth and water. Persia needed to know who was going to surrender, and who wasn’t. In one of Sparta’s most notorious moments, they threw the messengers into a well and gave the most powerful nation on the planet a giant middle finger; quintessential Sparta.         

            These events set the Persian wars into motion. After numerous deaths and losses, the Greeks eventually won. Democracy was fundamental to Athens’ government. Bravery and self-reliance were fundamental to Sparta’s soul. Those attributes of each city-state made it impossible for either of them to submit to Persia. In light of those truths, the Ionian rebellion was an inevitable prelude to war.

          The Persian defeat was significant because it taught Greece one thing—when they were united, nothing could stand in their way. But only if they were united.