53: Debut of the Delian League

The Greeks had now arrived at the pass of Thermopylae, in all there were some seven thousand Greeks present. They were led by the Spartan King Leonidas at the head of his three hundred strong Spartan ...

13 Nov 202031min

With Xerxes arranging the full resources of the Persian empire in an invasion against Greece, word would have filtered back to Greece of the preparations. The Greeks would not sit by idle but would no...

30 Okt 202031min

The Athenians and their Plataean allies had effectively put an end to the first Persian invasion at the Bay of Marathon in 490 BC. Athens would continue to emerge as a powerful city state with their c...

16 Okt 202032min

The Persian forces had landed at Marathon Bay unopposed and had set up camp. The Athenians and Plataeans had now arrived at Marathon to challenge the Persians invasion. A stand off had ensured with bo...

2 Okt 202029min

With the region of Ionian in the Persian Empire back under control, Darius could now turn to other business. He had reportedly, after learning of the Athenian involvement in the revolt, had one of his...

18 Sep 202029min

We now arrive on the eve of the Greek and Persian wars. The Greek colonies of Ionian had traded one ruler for another and were now part of the Persian Empire. Their lack of freedom and rising taxes wo...

4 Sep 202032min

The Casting Through Ancient Greece podcast is now moving into the Greek and Persian war period. We have spent the past 13 episodes looking at how things were developing in Greece that will help give u...

21 Aug 202038min

With the founder, Cyrus the Great of the Persian Empire now dead, power transitioned to his son Cambyses. The transition was relatively smooth and the empire remained stable and it was business as usu...

7 Aug 202034min