Background

• Historic war between Athens and Sparta
• Lasted about 27 years
• Periods of truce and stalemates during this time
• Athens was the superior state: large wealth and powerful navy
• Sparta was close second to Athens and "challenged" Athens
• Outcome was eventual downfall of Greece

In the Beginning

• 431 BC: Sparta and allies attack Athens
• Plague kills 25% of population - Pericles (leader) among them
• Kept out by city walls, but devastated country side
• Athens greatly weakened by attack
• Sparta army could not withstand Athens, Athens navy could not attack Sparta (interior state)
• 421 BCE: Stalemate - peace treaty signed

Athens Strikes

• 413 BC: Athens assists ally to destroy Syracuse, which was ally of Sparta
• Sicilian Civil War
• 50,000 men and 200 ships lost by Athens
• Some allies side with Sparta
• Sparta strikes deal with Persians who supply them naval fleet

Sparta Strikes

• 407 BC: Sparta has new naval fleet with support from its allies
• Challenges Athenian invincibility with its Navy
• 404 BC: Sparta enters Athens, destroys defensive wall and defeats Athens
• War is over
• Thirty Tyrants: Commissioned by Sparta to govern defeated city
• 401 BC: Spartan king Pausanias restores democracy

The Outcome

• Neither side fully recovered from disasters of the wars
• Crippled interstate relations in Greece, and intrastate relations among city-states
• Testament to power of Democracy at the time
• Left Greece in ruins
• Opened many challenges for Sparta and Athens among themselves and among other countries

What Happens Next

• 359 BC: Philip II of Macedon takes control
• Macedonia originally primitive society from North
• Philip II learns new military tactics and waged war against Greece
• 338 BC: Macedonia defeats Greece

The Tragedy of Greece

• Stems from how Greece was structured/divided
• Organization of city-states ultimately leads to eventual downfall
• Each had its own strengths/weaknesses
• Collectively would have power to withstand other nations
• Constant fighting and civil war weakened each city-state
• Not having unified empire destroyed what could have been very powerful nation
• Comparable to downfall of Mesopotamia

Classical Greece and its Impact

• Beauty of Greece was its culture and the profound way of life that was lived
• City-states now too weak to be a threat to other nations
• Set example for other countries on what not to do and how not to structure a country
• A few individuals used this time period to reflect on deep values of life and human beings

The Plus: Post-Peloponnesian Wars

• No more "bullying" from Athens and Sparta
• Cultural awareness via art, poetry and tragedy emerges
• Intellects make more of s presence by pondering and writing about histories of Athens and Sparta
• Herodotus & Thucydides: Utilized firsthand accounts and factual information to present logical & critical ideas
• Presented the whys and hows behind everything that happened: internally (within the city-states) and externally (between city-states)
• Paves path for new scientific and systematic ways of thought for future generations

Sources

• The Cultures of the West: Volume One: To 1750: A History, Backman, Chapter 5
• Peloponnisian War Lecture, Todd Zimmerman