27. Ancient Athens’ Savior
Few states can rival Ancient Athens when it comes to routine demonstrations of ingratitude towards saviors and heroes. Miltiades (550 – 489 BC), who led Athens in defeating a Persian invasion in 490 BC at the Battle of Marathon, was one of the earliest examples. A decade before the events of the movie 300, Marathon was an upset victory against a numerically superior force, which saved Athens from Persian conquest.
Miltiades was born into a wealthy aristocratic family that owned a private kingdom in the Chersonese (today’s Gallipoli Peninsula), which Miltiades inherited in 516 BC. When Darius I of Persia invaded the Chersonese in 513 BC, Miltiades surrendered and became a Persian vassal. In 499 BC, the Ionian Greeks of Asia Minor revolted against Persian rule. Miltiades marched against the rebels, but secretly supported their cause and helped funnel them aid from Athens.