PAUSANIAS, a celebrated Greek general, was the son of Cleombrotus, and nephew of Leonidas. The first important event in his life was the distinguished part which he played in repelling the second Persian invasion in 479 B.C. In that year the task of leading the Spartan contingent northward to the scene of war in Boeotia was entrusted to him. The other Peloponnesian allies joined him at the Isthmus of Corinth; the Athenian troops fell in at Eleusis; and the command of the assembled forces was then conferred upon him. Crossing Mount Cithæron at the head of 110,000 men, he confronted an army of 350,000 Persians on the banks of the River Asopus. After delaying several days, and changing his position twice, he came to a general engagement with the enemy at Plataea. Of all his forces, the Spartans fought most bravely; and of all the Spartans, he himself achieved the greatest feats of valour. The Persians were completely routed; their camp was stormed; and all their remaining troops, with the exception of a few thousands that escaped, were remorselessly butchered. This brilliant exploit secured for Pausanias another high post of honour. Not long afterwards, by the unanimous voice of the Greeks, he was placed in command of a fleet, and charged with the task of following up his former successes, and driving the Persians completely out of Europe. Sailing first to Cyprus, he liberated the cities in that island. Then steering his course to the Propontis, he finished his enterprise by capturing Byzantium. Here ended the distinguished career of Pausanias: the rest of his life was nothing else than a course of the most infatuated folly. Intoxicated with military success, his brain began to be filled with the most extravagant ideas. The Spartan mode of life, he thought, would no longer suit him: it was necessary to surround himself with the luxury and splendour of a Persian satrap. These foolish aspirations soon resulted in a deliberate attempt to sell his country to the Persians for a fortune and the hand of the daughter of Darius. His recall to Sparta to answer for his conduct did not make him abandon this treacherous design. He continued to correspond with the King of Persia until the interception of one of his letters brought his guilt to light and himself to punishment. Having taken refuge in the temple of Minerva, the ephori unroofed that edifice, built up the door, and allowed him to die of cold and hunger. His demise took place at some date between 471 and 466 B.C. The Life of Pausanias has been written by Cornelius Nepos.