18. The Seaman Who Saved Ancient Greece
Themistocles (524 – 460 BC) was a brilliant politician and admiral, whose strategy saved Athens and Greece from Persian subjugation with a victory at the Battle of Salamis in 480 BC. Born to an aristocratic father and a non-Greek concubine, Themistocles was ineligible for Athenian citizenship, until democratic reforms made citizens of all free men in Athens. That made him a lifelong champion of democracy.
In 490 BC, the Persians sent a punitive expedition to Athens, in retaliation for Athenian support of Persia’s Greek subjects in Asia during a failed rebellion. The Persians were defeated at the Battle of Marathon, after which most Athenians thought the danger had passed. Not Themistocles. In the 480s BC, Athens’ state-owned silver mines struck a rich vein, and many Athenians called for dividing the windfall among the citizens. Themistocles, convinced that the Persians would return, called for investing the new riches in warships.