Battle of Thermopylae at Thermopylae, the Persians sent a mounted scout to reconnoitre. The Greeks allowed him to come up to the camp, observe them, and depart. Xerxes found the scout's reports of the size of the Greek force, and that the Spartans were indulging in callisthenics and combing their long hair, laughable. Seeking the counsel of Demaratus, an exiled Spartan king in his retinue, Xerxes was told the Spartans were preparing for battle, and it was their custom to adorn their hair when they were about to risk their lives. Demaratus called them "the bravest men in Greece" and warned the Great
Marcus Fabius Vibulanus (consul 483 and 480 BC) the funerals of his brother and of Manlius. Thereafter, he earned the affection of the people by distributing the wounded troops among the households of the patricians to be cared for as they healed. According to Roman historical tradition, all of the male members of the "gens Fabia" except one perished in the Battle of the Cremera in 477 BC. If this tradition is correct, then Marcus died that year in the disaster. Tradition identifies the sole survivor as his son Quintus Fabius Vibulanus, who was too young to go to war. Marcus Fabius Vibulanus (consul 483 and 480 BC)