The slide is related to the course The European Historical Experience.

1. The Peloponnesian Wars
The European Historical Experience
Lecture 3

2. 1. Striking contrast between Athens and
Sparta
o No other city states but Athens and Sparta give a
striking contrast.
o Athens: liberal, had a democratic constitution and her
economy was based on industry and commerce.
o Sparta: narrow-minded, her attitude was anti-
democratic and her economy was based on agriculture.

3. 2. Athens as Leader of the Delian League
o Victory in Graeco-Roman wars made Athens most
important city state in Greece.
o A maritime confederacy or league was made in 478 B.C.
keeping Athens as their leader.
o The league was made for several reasons which are: facing
future Persian invasion effectively, to free Greek city states
under Persian control, to prevent Xerxes from assuming
control over the Aegean Sea and Asia Minor.
o The richer city states were expected to contribute with
ships whereas the poor city states to give money to meet
the requirements of the league.
o Miltiades, son of Cimon had fleet of two hundred triremes
of the League under his control. The league was able to
wipe out Persian influence from the Aegean Sea.

4. Triremes

5. o Athens tried to convert the Delian League into an Athenian
empire.
o As the most powerful and leader of the league, Athens
started to interfere in the internal affairs of the member
states.
o Several states didn’t like this and wanted to withdraw from
the league.
o Pericles, general of Athens who was reasonable was also
guilty. In 454 B.C., he transferred the treasury of Delian
League from island of Delos to Athens and used its money
for beautifying Athens.

6. 3. Sparta, the sworn enemy of Athens
o Disliked the domination of Athens in the Aegean Sea.
o Sparta: considered herself as the greatest city state and
rival of Athens.
o Like Athens, Sparta was also the leader of another league
called the Peloponnesian League including Corinth and
Megara in the sixth century B.C.
o In attempt of expanding trade, Athens illegally entered in
the territory of Corinth.
o Sparta asked the members of the Delian league to rise a
revolt against Athens.
o Athens, besieged the state of Aegina, the ally of Corinth.
o With the fall of Aegina to Athens, Sparta challenged Athens
with all the forces of the Peloponnesian League.
o Thus the Peloponnesian war broke out and lasted for 27
years. (431-404 B.C.)

7. o Sparta was strong on land and Athens was strong on the
sea.
o Sparta build a formidable navy fleet with the help of
Persia.
o Spartan navy fleet beaten Athenian navy fleet in the
battle of Aegospotami in 405 B.C. and the Peloponnesian
army entered Attica.
Athens surrendered and most humiliating conditions was
imposed upon her. These are:
 The Athenian empire should be liquidated.
 The five mile walls between Athens and the port of
piraeus should be pulled down

8.  The Athenian fleet should be surrendered.
 An oligarchy of thirty men approved by Sparta should
be set up.
The ruin of Athens was complete. Almost her entire
navy was wiped out and most of her young men died
on the battle field.

9. Sparta, even victorious found no peace
o had to fight against Persia for 14 long years as Persia
helped them in the Peloponnesian war in a hope that
Sparta will return the Ionian cities.
o Athens made alliance with Thebes, Corinth, Argos in 395
B.C. to overthrow the control of Sparta in Greece.
o Democratic government restored in Greece.
o In 386 B.C. attempts were made to bring peace in Greece
by ceding the Ionian cities to Persia.
o Thebes hold the hegemony in Greece after she defeated
Sparta in 371 B.C. in the battle of Leuctra.
o The rise of Thebes declined in 362 B.C. with the death of
her leader Epaminondas.

10. Conquest of Greece by Philip
o Philip, the king of Macedon (359 B.C. – 336 B.C.) with Pella
as the capital took advantage of the civil war and internal
dispute in Greece.
o He conquered Thessaly, Thrace and so on until whole of
Greece came under his control.
o For three years , he had stayed as hostage in Thebes when
it was a powerful state in Greece.
o He highly appreciated Thebes and the fighting Phallnx of
the Theban leader Epaminondas.
o After becoming king of Macedon, he formed his army just
like Theban soldiers but gave them longer spears.
o The Macedonian spear was as long as twenty-four feet.

11. o Certain leaders in Athens tried to save the
independence of Athens.
o Leaders like Demosthenes and Isocrates tried their best
to save Athens from Philip.
o Demosthenes, a great orator of delivered a series of
prejudicial speeches against Philip known as Phillipics in a
hope to rouse patriotism of the Athenians.
o He said Philip a barbarian and Macedonia as a country
unfit to supply even slaves in these speeches.
o However, it was too late. His speech went into deaf ears.
The Greek city states already went in self destruction and
hundred Demosthenes couldn’t save them.

12. o Philip defeated the Greeks (Athenians and Thebans) in
the famous battle of Chaeronea in 338 B.C.
o In 337 B.C. the ‘Eternal Hellenic Confederacy’ was
established keeping Philip as the protector of Greek city
states.
o He declared his objective which was peace at home and
attack on Persia abroad.
o But before his plans could be put into effect, he was
murdered by Pausanias in 336 B.C. in his daughter’s
marriage celebration.