Battle of Salamis

Overview

The Battle of Salamis was a naval battle fought in 480 BC, between an alliance of Greek city-states under Themistocles, and the Achaemenid Empire under King Xerxes. It resulted in a victory for the outnumbered Greeks.

Overview adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Significance

The Battle of Salamis was a naval engagement fought between an alliance of Greek city-states, led by Themistocles and the Spartan commander Eurybiades, and the fleet of the Achaemenid Empire under Xerxes I. The Greek alliance, though outnumbered, secured a victory over the Persian fleet, which fielded a force recorded at 1,207 vessels and included commanders such as Artemisia I of Caria, Ariabignes, Achaemenes, Tetramnestos, and Damasithymos. The Persian defeat at Salamis was a decisive moment in the Second Persian invasion of Greece, checking Achaemenid naval power and undermining Xerxes' capacity to sustain operations in the Greek theater. By defeating the larger Persian fleet, the Greek alliance preserved its ability to contest control of the Aegean and denied Xerxes the naval supremacy that would have been necessary to consolidate an occupation of Greece.

Forces & casualties

Commanders (8)