The Battle of Thermopylae

溫泉關戰役

This is a true story. It happened long ago in Greece….

這是一個很久以前發生在希臘的真實的故事……

We must fight, the Spartan chief told his small army of brave men. They were at a great disadvantage. There were only three hundred of them. The Persian military had hundreds of thousands of men.
“我們必須起來戰斗”斯巴達的首領對他手下的一小群勇士們說。他們處境極為不利，只有三百名軍士，而波斯軍隊卻有成千上萬的士兵。

They were going to lose unless they could secure a small entrance. The enemy couldn’t move through it easily. They intended to stop the enemy here. The chief and his men got ready for the battle.

他們可能會輸，除非他們能守住一個小隘口，阻止敵人輕易通過。他們打算在這個入口阻擊敵人。他們已做好了戰斗的準備。

Soon, long lines of the enemy’s army twisted around the hills. The chief met the enemy with laughter. He knew that his men’s weapons and skills were better. The Spartans trusted their leader and obeyed him.

很快，列著長隊的敵軍出現了。斯巴達首領笑迎敵人。他知道他們所帶的武器和戰士素質都更勝敵軍一籌。三百斯巴達勇士也都很信任他們的領袖追隨他。

First, the enemy soldiers shot arrows from their bows. The chief told his men to lift their shields. The arrows stuck into the shields but did not hurt any of the men.
一開始，敵軍向他們發射弓箭。斯巴達首領一聲令下，勇士們舉起盾牌擋住了箭，士兵們毫發無傷。

Then the enemy’s soldiers attacked the Spartans with long spears. The chief surprised them. His troops rolled logs down on the enemy.

然后，敵軍用長矛發起攻擊。斯巴達勇士的首領做出的反擊讓對手猝不及防。他們從高處往下扔圓木作為反擊。

They fought for three days. Though they hardly slept at all, the chief and his men remained steady.

戰斗持續了三天，盡管大家已經三天未眠，但大家都保持著清醒。

But the enemy found a way to beat the Spartans. The chief and all of his men were killed. Even though they lost, the Battle of Thermopylae is one of the most famous battles in history.

但是，敵軍最后還是找到了擊敗斯巴達軍隊的方式。最終斯巴達首領和他的所有勇士都被殺了。他們雖然戰敗,但這場溫泉關戰役成為了歷史上最著名的戰役之一。

單詞arrow n.箭

battle n.戰役

bow n.弓

brave adj勇敢的

chief n.首領

disadvantage n.缺點；不利

enemy n.敵人

entrance n.入口

hardly adv.幾乎不

intend v.打算

laughter n.笑聲

log n.原木

military n.軍隊

obey v.服從，順從

secure v.得到

steady adj.穩定的

trust v.信任

twist v.纏繞

unless conj.除非

weapon n.武器