Gates of Fire, An Epic Novel of The Battle of Thermopylae by Steven Pressfield; 1998; 386 pages; Doubleday, New York, NY; 0-385-49251-0; 7/4/09- 7/11/09

My knowledge of the Battle of Thermopylae came courtesy of the trailer for the movie 300.  I don’t know if I know any more now after having read this, but my appreciation for the epic is now much greater.  I also understand why this book is on the United States Marine Corps reading list.

“Here is what you do, friends.  Forget country.  Forget king. Forget wife and children and freedom.  Forget every concept, however noble, that you imagine you fight for here today.  Act for this alone: for the man who stands at your shoulder.  He is everything and everything is contained within him.  That’s all I know.  That’s all I can tell you. ”

This is what men fight and die for.  A friend returned to combat and when asked why said “My men need me.”

“I will tell his Majesty  what a king is.  A king does not abide within his tent while his men bleed and die upon the field.  A king does not dine while his men go hungry, nor sleep when they stand at watch upon the wall.  A king does not command his men’s loyalty through fear nor purchase it with gold; he earns their love by the sweat of his own back and the pains he endures for their sake.  That which comprises the harshest burden, a king lifts first and sets down last.  A king does not require service of those he leads but provides to them.  He serves them, not they him.”

This is something too many people who call themselves leaders seem to forget.  There are many in positions of leadership throughout the world who would do well to follow the example of King Leonidas of Sparta.

Gates of Fire gives us the backstory to the Battle of Thermompylae, we find why the 300 were chosen, and who they were.  The story is a history of Sparta told through the eyes of the squire of one of the 3oo and told to the royal historian of the king of Persia.  We learn how he came to Sparta, how the Spartans trained and fought, why there culture was what it was.  Xeones   tells the story of his master, friends, allies and enemies.   This is one of the most engrossing books that I have read in a long time.  I will looking for more of Mr. Pressfields’ work.  RRRR