Last stand

For other uses, see Last stand (disambiguation).
The Fall of the Alamo (1903) by Robert Jenkins Onderdonk, depicts Davy Crockett wielding his rifle as a club against Mexican troops in the Battle of the Alamo in Texas in 1836.
Leonidas at Thermopylae, by Jacques-Louis David, 1814. This painting is a juxtaposition of various historical and legendary elements from the Battle of Thermopylae in Greece in 480 BC.
Siege of Castelnuovo in July, 1539. Defense of a 4,000-man garrison in the service of Charles I of Spain, against a 50,000-strong Ottoman assault force, resulting in a last stand. Painting by Pierre Mortier.
The last stand of the survivors of Her Majesty's 44th Regiment of Foot at Gandamak in Afghanistan in 1842, painted by William Barnes Wollen

A last stand is a military situation in which a body of troops holds a defensive position in the face of overwhelming and virtually insurmountable odds.[1] Troops may make a last stand due to a sense of duty; because they are defending a tactically crucial point; to buy time to enable a trapped army, person, or group of people to escape; due to fear of execution if captured; or to protect their ruler or leader. Last stands loom large in history, as the heroism and sacrifice of the defenders exert a large pull on the public's imagination. Some last stands have become a celebrated part of a fighting force's or a country's history, especially if the defenders accomplished their goals (or, in rare cases, defeated their attackers).

  1. ^ "last stand - Definition of last stand in English by Oxford Dictionaries". Oxford Dictionaries - English. Archived from the original on April 4, 2018.