Molon Labe--what it is

[novice]

Had to look this up:

"The Greek phrase Molōn labe! (Μολὼν λαβέ; approximate Classical Greek pronunciation [moˈlōn laˈbe], Modern Greek [mo̞ˈlo̞n laˈve̞]), meaning "Come [and] take [them]!", is a classical expression of defiance reported by Plutarch, roughly corresponding to the modern equivalent English phrase "over my dead body"....reportedly the defiant response of King Leonidas I of Sparta to Xerxes I of Persia at the onset of the Battle of Thermopylae (480 BC)...the Spartans were ultimately annihilated....The source for this quotation is Plutarch, Apophthegmata Laconica, 225c.11. "
[Wikipedia]


recalls to me the phrase "from my cold dead hands," or maybe, "bring it on."

[ChamberedRound]

See this post as well for more information:

http://www.pafoa.org/forum/pistols-4...html#post39577

[imashooter2]

In 480 B.C the forces of the Persian Empire under King Xerxes, numbering according the Herodotus two million men, bridged the Hellespont and marching in their myriads to invade and enslave Greece. In a desperate delaying action, a picked force of three hundred Spartans was dispatched to hold the pass of Thermopylae, where the confines between mountains and sea were so narrow that the Persian multitudes and their cavalry would at least be partially neutralized. Here, it was hoped, an elite force willing to sacrifice their lives could keep back, at least for a few days, the invading millions. Three hundred Spartans and their allies held off the invaders for seven days, until, their weapons smashed and broken before the slaughter, they fought with bare hands and teeth (as recorded by Herodotus) before at last being overwhelmed.
The Spartans and their Thespian allies died to the last man, but the standard of valor set by their sacrifice inspired the Greeks to rally and, in that fall and spring, defeat the Persians at Salamis and Plataea and preserve the beginnings of Western democracy and freedom from perishing in the cradle.
Two memorials remain today at Thermoplae. Upon the modern one, called the Leonidas monument in honor of the Spartan king who fell there, is engraved his response to Xerxes demand that the Spartans lay down their weapons. Leonidas reply was two words, Molon labe. Come and get them. The second monument, the ancient one, is an unadorned stone engraved with the words of the poet Simonides. Its verses comprise perhaps the most famous of all warrior epitaphs:
Go tell the Spartans, stranger passing by, That here, obedient to their laws we lie.
------Steven Pressfield, Gates of Fire

[RocketFoot]

Gun owners and and Amendment supporters have adopted Molon Labe as a sort of battle cry to the anti's!

[Brick]

I have often seen it translated as "Come and Get Them"
and your references to King Leonidas is correct.

But let's not forget that during Texas's fight against Mexico "Come and Take It" was used in defiance to Mexican orders for the Texas Militia to turn over a cannon, resulting in the Battle of Gonzales.

[abpt1]

• freedom of speech