Out of the archives of heroic courage and self-sacrifice march the ancient Spartans, saviors of Western Civilization through their heroic action at the Pass of Thermopylae known as the Hot Gates. This name was due to the sulfur springs in the area as well as the entrance into the pass that was narrow and felt like a passage through a gate.

In the spring of 480 B.C.E., King Xerxes of Persia set forth to achieve what his father (King Darius) had failed to achieve ten years previously in 490 B.C.E.—the conquest of the Greek city-states with the final goal being the whole of Europe. At that time, the Athenians valiantly crushed King Darius’ empire-building desires on the plains of Marathon. The extremely religious Spartans, the most elite warriors of all the Greek city-states, missed the triumphant victory by arriving late to the battlefield due to their honor-bound observance of the feast of Carneian Apollo. Since the Persian defeat at Marathon, Darius’ son, King Xerxes, had been amassing a titanic army of over 200,000 men as well as a massive fleet rumored to be close to 1,300 vessels. This time King Xerxes was not going to repeat his father’s failure by invading from the sea, but was going to attack Greece by land. Just to move and supply such a massive force would be a feat in itself.

Once again the Persians were invading Greece and history seemed to be repeating itself—the Spartans, once more, were involved in a religious observation. This meant that, as before, the best warriors in Greece would arrive late. This time there was a difference: King Leonidas. His personal bodyguard of 300 was not honor-bound by the religious laws of Sparta. These laws kept the rest of the Spartan army from marching to battle, but not the King and his personal bodyguard. Aware of the Delphic Oracle that Sparta would be sacked or Sparta would mourn the death of a king from the house of Hercules (where Spartan kings claimed lineage), the Lion still went forth with his 300 to secure the pass at Thermopylae. True to their honor and loyal to their king, the Spartans’ sacrifice down to the last warrior at the ‘pillars of fire’ echoes throughout history as one of the foremost examples of bravery, courage and valor.