Battle of Marathon of events, with the competitors running from Marathon to Athens. So popular was this event that it quickly caught on, becoming a fixture at the Olympic games, with major cities staging their own annual events. The distance eventually became fixed at 26 miles 385 yards, or 42.195 km, though for the first years it was variable, being around —the approximate distance from Marathon to Athens. Battle of Marathon The Battle of Marathon (Greek: , "Machē tou Marathōnos") took place in 490 BC, during the first Persian invasion of Greece. It was fought between the citizens of Athens, aided by Plataea,
Battle of Athens (1941) towards the end of the entry for Marmaduke Pattle. The battle began when the 12 remaining Hawker Hurricane aircraft of the Royal Air Force (RAF)'s 80 Squadron, flying in formation over Athens were attacked by a large group of German Luftwaffe planes (which, according to the citizens of Athens, had 200 planes; and according to Roald Dahl, had 152 bombers and fighters), mostly Messerschmitt Bf 109s and Bf 110s along with some Junkers Ju 87s and Junkers Ju 88s. In the resulting battle five RAF pilots were shot down and killed, including the famous Marmaduke "Pat" Pattle and one pilot