Battle of Plataea
479 BCE · Greece
The Battle of Plataea was fought in 479 BCE in Greece between Greek city-states vs the Achaemenid Persian Empire; decisive Greek victory that ended the second Persian invasion of Greece.
Battle of Plataea: quick facts
- Date
- 479 BCE
- Location
- Greece
- Belligerents
- Greek city-states vs the Achaemenid Persian Empire
- Commanders
- Pausanias vs Mardonius
- Result
- decisive Greek victory that ended the second Persian invasion of Greece.
- Era
- 🏺 Ancient Greece & Rome
- Quiz difficulty
- medium
What happened at the Battle of Plataea?
The combined Greek army, led by the Spartan regent Pausanias, decisively defeated the Persian forces of Mardonius at Plataea. This was the final major land battle of the second Persian invasion of Greece. The Persian commander Mardonius was killed and his army routed, effectively ending Xerxes' ambitions to conquer Greece and securing Greek independence for generations.
Did you know?
After the Greek victory at Plataea, the allied Greeks swore an oath never to rebuild the temples destroyed by the Persians, leaving them as monuments to Persian sacrilege for decades.
Sources and further reading
- Battle of Plataea on Wikipedia for the full account, historiography and primary sources.
- How BattleGuess compiles and checks battle facts: see the About page.
Entry last reviewed 26 September 2026.