Xerxes Five Million Men

[hoplite14gr]

Felix wrote:
Concerning Plataea, I have a couple of thoughts.
First, the Greeks force was, by Greek standards, enormous. I cannot, offhand, think of any comparable sized Greek army. A Persian army of the same size was still huge by Greek standards. When trying to evaluate the odds, many observers must have felt rather overwhelmed.
As we discussed, a moderate superiority in numbers can be enough to win a battle - so if the Persians numbered, say, 120,000 to 100,000 Greeks; or 100,000 Persians to 80,000 Greeks; that is still a noticeable advantage in numbers, and might cause concern among Greek observers.

I find your comment interesting Fellix but if Athenians with 10000 succeeded against 30-50000 in Marathon, then the Platea disparity would not seem too big for them the way you suggest.

floofthegoof wrote:
Herodotus writes that after the death of a popular Persian cavalry general, the vast majority of the Persians were slaughtered huddling in unarmed masses inside the walls of the Persian camp.

Masistios death did a lot to dampen the Persian morale but the final straw was Mardonios death that left them leaderless. In the eyes of the Persians their horsemen were their "knights", their best fighters. If they failed against the Greeks like the "Immortals" in Thermopylae what the poor peasants could do more? And one can only imagine the murderous glee in the eyes of the Athenieans, Megareans, Thespians that had wached their livelihood destroyed by a foreign army all the previous year.
But that does not answer the figures problem exactly.
Though I saw may logical and well grounded postings on the subject I am still left believing that It was Xerxes ego that led a very big by the standarts of the age army that wrecked its own supply system under the burden of its numbers. After Salamis the leader escaped with his bodyguards and left the rest of the wretched souls to the tender mercies of the enemy. That alone was enough to sap theitr moral. Through out history troops that loose all hope to survival simply die.
Kind regards
Stefanos