[Rahe] has an excellent eye for military logistics: His account of the practicalities of Xerxes' vast invasion of Greece (what did those hundreds of thousands of men eat?) is crisp and persuasive. -Wall Street Journal There is a wealth of information in this book, covering almost every aspect of the complex situations on both sides that resulted in such a crushing defeat for the Persian Empire. -David Sim, Minerva Polymath Paul Rahe-classicist, historian, scholar of the European Enlightenment-in this brilliant revisionist study, reminds us how Sparta, not just Athens, saved Western freedom from the Persian aggression-and did so because of its innate courage, political stability, and underappreciated genius. -Victor Davis Hanson, author of The Other Greeks and A War Like No Other Western civilization owes much to Athens but also, Paul Rahe argues, to Sparta. He shows how Sparta's militaristic culture enabled it to defeat the massive Persian invasion of 480 BC, and make the flowering of ancient Greece possible. -Michael Barone, Resident Fellow, American Enterprise Institute The level of learning demonstrated here is high and the mastery of the source material and scholarship impressive. -Thomas Figueira, Rutgers University The degree of originality in this book is remarkable. Its careful, detailed description and analysis of the Spartan constitution is full of keen understandings that help explain Spartan policy, diplomacy, and strategy. -Donald Kagan, author of The Peloponnesian War