In 192 B.C., rising Rome met a remnant of the empire of Alexander the Great on the storied ground of Thermopylae, nearly 200 years after the Spartans had made it famous fighting Persia. The battle played a significant role in the course of history in the Mediterranean.
By September of 1944, the Western Allies had broken out of the Normandy beachehead, and suddenly and quickly moved across northern France . By September 7th, the 90th division was stretched across the northern sector on Patton’s Third Army’s left, advancing slowly northeast. As they did so the German defenders made a risky attack in an effort to spoil the allied advance, cutting through Allied lines in a surprise action at the small town of Mairy-Mannville.