King Leonidas of Sparta,
A legend that remains today.
Left behind a legacy for eternity,
At the battle of Thermopylae.
The Persians were invading
The Oracles prophecy was spoken
For Sparta to win the impending war
Leonidas life must be offered as a token.
Where normal men would run and cower,
Or make excuses not to go.
Leonidas took 300 of his personal guard,
And gave the Persians a show.
On the first day one million Persian soldiers
Funneled into the narrow pass known as The Hot Gates
While thirty thousand Persians were killed or pushed back
Only three Spartans met their fate.
The second day proved much the same
With fifty thousand Persians failing to penetrate Spartan shields
Spartans stood shoulder to shoulder with Leonidas out front who said
To you Xerxes we shall never yield!
While a million men were left to wonder
How 300 withstood attack after attack
A traitor Greek known as Ephialtes
Showed Xerxes how to flank them by a mountain track.
When brave Leonidas learned of the betrayal
He knew that the end was near
But Spartan warriors were taught never to retreat
And never to show any fear.
For Spartans it was considered an honor to die in battle
So no matter what happened the battle would end well
Leonidas was quoted as saying on the morn of battle,
Spartans, tonight we dine in hell!
On that third and fateful day
300 Spartans fought and died
But the story will be told of 300 who stood against one million
The story will stand the test of time.
