A Spartan Story III (Xerxes, the King of Persia)

Xerxes, the king of Persia, wanted to conquer Sparta.

There was only one road from Persia to Sparta, and that road was between the high mountains and the deep sea. Only 300 soldiers guarded this road.

Xerxes sent his men to these soldiers.

"You cannot fight our king and his army," they said to the Spartan soldiers. "Our king has so many soldiers that their arrows will make the sky dark."

"So much the better," answered the Spartans. "We shall fight in the shade then."

Only after the last Spartan died could Xerxes' army go along this road.

But Xerxes lost a day, and by then the people of Sparta had their army ready.