Tom Holland

And the customary Athenian practice is to line up a phalanx, the great kind of porcupine of spears that is formed by

lines and lines of Greek infantrymen equipped with spears.

Normally, an Athenian phalanx consists of eight lines.

But Miltiades, he can see down into the plain now.

There's a kind of grey light as the sun starts to rise.

And he can see that the Persian lines, because they outnumber the Athenians so strongly, is much longer than if the Athenian phalanx was eight lines deep.

And so he extends the Athenian line to match the Persian line.

And he does this by thinning out the center.

So the center is given to three of the generals, one of whom is a young general called Themistocles, who will have an important role to play in subsequent Athenian history.

And he is stationed in the weakened center.

Callimachus, the war archon, he commands the right wing.

That's the traditional place that the war archon stands.

And the Plataeans in their leather helmets are stationed on the left.

So they are lined up.

Sacrifice is offered.

The portents are good.

Miltiades then stands where everyone can hear him and he gives the command at them.

And there's a great shimmering of metal as the hoplites lower their helmets.

They heft their shields and they shoulder their spears.

And you can imagine how terrifying this moment must be.