Miltiades, << mihl TY uh `deez` >> (540?-488? B.C.), was a famous general of ancient Athens. Miltiades defeated the Persians at the Battle of Marathon in 490 B.C., during the wars between Greece and Persia (see Marathon, Battle of ).
Miltiades was a member of an aristocratic Athenian family. About 516 B.C., while securing trade routes for Athens, he made himself ruler of what is now the Gallipoli Peninsula in Turkey. He probably fought against Persian forces led by Darius. He lost his throne about 492 B.C. and was forced to flee to Athens. Persians invaded Greece in 490 B.C., and the Athenians made Miltiades a general. Because of his experience in fighting the Persians, he persuaded the other generals to attack the enemy at Marathon. After defeating the Persians and driving them from Greece, he commanded a fleet in the Aegean Sea.
