“In 480 BC, his enormous army journeyed to the Dardanelles (Hellespont) Strait, separating Asia from Europe. To get his army quickly into Greece, Xerxes ordered the construction of a pontoon bridge across the 1.2 kilometer (1300 yards) strait. But before his army were able to cross, a storm blew in and destroyed the bridge.
Infuriated with the sea, Xerxes ordered his soldiers to punish it by whipping it with chains 300 times and poking it with red-hot irons. Handcuffs were also tossed into the water to symbolize the sea’s submission to his authority. Finally, he ordered the decapitation of the engineers behind the bridge’s construction.
The ancient Greek historian Herodotus describes in his Histories that the bridge was then rebuilt . Over 600 ships were tied together with papyrus and flax ropes, finally bridging the gap between the continents. The crossing of the strait took Xerxes’ army seven days and nights. Tragically for Xerxes, it was all for naught. The Persians suffered a crushing defeat and as they retreated back to the bridge, they discovered it had been destroyed… again.”
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For context:
“In 480 BC, his enormous army journeyed to the Dardanelles (Hellespont) Strait, separating Asia from Europe. To get his army quickly into Greece, Xerxes ordered the construction of a pontoon bridge across the 1.2 kilometer (1300 yards) strait. But before his army were able to cross, a storm blew in and destroyed the bridge.
Infuriated with the sea, Xerxes ordered his soldiers to punish it by whipping it with chains 300 times and poking it with red-hot irons. Handcuffs were also tossed into the water to symbolize the sea’s submission to his authority. Finally, he ordered the decapitation of the engineers behind the bridge’s construction.
The ancient Greek historian Herodotus describes in his Histories that the bridge was then rebuilt . Over 600 ships were tied together with papyrus and flax ropes, finally bridging the gap between the continents. The crossing of the strait took Xerxes’ army seven days and nights. Tragically for Xerxes, it was all for naught. The Persians suffered a crushing defeat and as they retreated back to the bridge, they discovered it had been destroyed… again.”
https://www.ancient-origins.net/weird-facts/xerxes-bridge-0016747
tbf the sea was acting up
I am a “Generous God”.
The engineers when storm breaks the bridge: paniks
The engineers when they see the soldiers whipping the sea: kalm
The engineers when they see Xerxes looking at them disapprovingly: paniks