The Peloponnesian War
An ancient Greek conflict fought by the Delian League led by Athens against the Peloponnesian League led by Sparta. Historians have traditionally divided the war into three phases.
Duration
431 – 404 BC
(27 Years)
Location
Mainland Greece, Asia Minor, Sicily
Result
Spartan Victory
(Fall of the Athenian Empire)
The Belligerents
The Delian League
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Led by Athens, it was a naval alliance that evolved into an Athenian empire.
- Strength: Dominant Navy
- Strength: Vast Financial Resources
- Weakness: Reliance on tribute from allies
- Weakness: Weaker land army
The Peloponnesian League
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Led by Sparta, a league of city-states with the most feared army in Greece.
- Strength: Unmatched Land Army (Hoplites)
- Strength: Disciplined and stable political system
- Weakness: Weaker navy (initially)
- Weakness: Fear of Helot (slave) revolts
Interactive Timeline of the War
This section provides an overview of the war's major phases and events. Click on any event on the timeline to learn more about it and see how it affected the balance of power between Athens and Sparta. The chart shows Athens' relative strength; a positive value favors Athens, while a negative value favors Sparta.
Select an Event
Click on an event from the timeline to see details here. The timeline charts the major turning points of the nearly three-decade-long conflict that reshaped the ancient Greek world.
The Aftermath: A New Greek Order
The war's conclusion marked a significant power shift in ancient Greece, with lasting consequences for all city-states involved. It ended the golden age of Athens and ushered in a period of Spartan hegemony.
Who Won and Why?
Sparta won the Peloponnesian War. While Athens had naval superiority and greater wealth for much of the conflict, a series of critical factors led to its ultimate defeat:
- The Sicilian Expedition (415-413 BC): A disastrous Athenian military campaign in Sicily that resulted in the loss of two entire fleets and thousands of experienced soldiers. It was a strategic blunder from which Athens never fully recovered.
- Spartan Alliance with Persia: Sparta, traditionally an enemy of Persia, secured funding from the Persian Empire to build a formidable navy. This allowed them to challenge and eventually defeat Athens at sea.
- The Plague of Athens: An epidemic that devastated Athens in the early years of the war, killing a large portion of its population, including its influential leader, Pericles. This severely weakened Athenian morale and manpower.
- Internal Strife: Athens suffered from political instability, including oligarchic coups, which undermined its war effort. Sparta, in contrast, had a more stable political structure.
- Decisive Defeat at Aegospotami (405 BC): The final major battle where the newly-built Spartan fleet, under the commander Lysander, destroyed the Athenian navy, cutting off Athens from its vital grain supply routes and forcing its surrender.
Ultimately, Sparta won by eroding Athens's key advantages, exploiting its mistakes, and securing foreign support to overcome its own weaknesses.
Sources and References
Our understanding of the war is largely shaped by the works of historians who were contemporary to the events.
Primary Sources
- Thucydides, History of the Peloponnesian War: The most important source, written by an Athenian general who served in the war. His work is noted for its detail and analysis of human nature and power politics, though it ends abruptly in 411 BC.
- Xenophon, Hellenica: Picks up where Thucydides left off, covering the final years of the war and its aftermath.
- Plutarch, Lives: Biographies of key figures like Pericles, Alcibiades, and Lysander, written centuries later but based on earlier sources.
Modern Scholarship
- Donald Kagan, The Peloponnesian War: A comprehensive and widely-read modern account.
- Victor Davis Hanson, A War Like No Other: Explores the brutal nature of the conflict and its impact on Greek society.
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