Gates of Fire: An Epic Novel of the Battle of Thermopylae

“Because a warrior carries helmet and breastplate for his own protection, but his shield for the safety of the whole line.”

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.

The Greeks’ sculpture and athletics celebrated the human form, their literature and music human passion, their discourse and philosophy human reason.

“Dienekes says the mind is like a house with many rooms,” he said. “There are rooms one must not go into. To anticipate one’s death is one of those rooms. We must not allow ourselves even to think it.”

A king does not expend his substance to enslave men, but by his conduct and example makes them free.

“Xerxes does not want your lives, sir,” Tommie called. “Only your arms.” Leonidas laughed. “Tell him to come and get them.”

“Habit is a mighty ally, my young friend. The habit of fear and anger, or the habit of self-composure and courage.”

“But by our deaths here with honor, in the face of these insuperable odds, we transform vanquishment into victory. With our lives we sow courage in the hearts of our allies and the brothers of our armies left behind. They are the ones who will ultimately produce victory, not us. It was never in the stars for us.

There is a force beyond fear. More powerful than self-preservation. You glimpsed it today, in a crude and unself-aware form, yes. But it was there and it was genuine.