The 10000 Immortals [10KIM]

One of the most feared and famous armies of antiquity, the Immortals were a 10,000-strong fighting force associated with the Achaemenid Empire of Persia. These spear-toting warriors first appear in the Greek chronicler Herodotus’s account of the Persian invasion of Greece, where they are described as “the best…and most magnificently equipped” soldiers operating under the command of King Xerxes. According to Herodotus, the nickname “Immortals” arose because the unit always had the same number of troops. If even a single Immortal fell sick or died in battle, he was immediately replaced so that the unit’s strength was “never more nor less than 10,000.”

While the Persian army was a multinational force, only those with Persian or Medic ancestry were allowed to serve in the Immortals, and they were adorned with gold jewelry to signify their high status. The 10,000 primarily served as the king’s personal bodyguards, but they also took to the field in times of war. Their most famous action came during the Persian victory at the Battle of Thermopylae in 480 B.C., when they bypassed a blocked path and ambushed the Spartan-led Greeks from the rear.