300

In 485 BCE, Xerxes succeeded Darius I on the throne of the Persian Empire. The great Greek cities quickly understood that a new war was coming. Athens, Thebes, Corinth and Delos rallied to Sparta, which had the best army. In 480, the Spartan king Leonidas was named commander-in-chief of this last-chance military union. When the Persian fleet rallied Xerxes' infantry, the Greek troops became frightened.