Sicilian Expedition was a disaster for Athens and turned the tide in Sparta’s favor. [Rev. This can partly be explained from the fact that during the war, the economy of Athens changed. In his writings, he describes three specific events that contributed to the downfall of democracy in Athens. It was obvious the Corinthians that Athenians were going to continue to stand by Corcyra. The three phases of the war, which again, are the Archidamian war, the Sicilian Expedition and the Decelean war, show … [2], Over time the Athenians, who were the largest maritime power in the Aegean, dominated the Delian League. The causes of the Peloponnesian War constitute such a persistent theme in discussions of fifth-century Greek history, in part because of the complexity of the aetiological view … All Greece needed was a spark to start a war. The Spartans came to believe that they had no choice but to go to war. build up navy) • Peloponnesian League: Sparta and allies • War/Peace o Thirty Years’ Peace: 446, 445 BCE; divides Greek world o Athens defends Corcyra against Corinth -> Corinth-Athens conflict o Potidaeans revolt against Athens with secret deal with Sparta to invade/violate peace o Megara allies with Corinth -> Athens embargo against Megara full war Gill, N.S. Before the onset of the Peloponnesian War, ancient Greece was an epicenter of great military, intellectual, cultural and political development; it was also a time of questioning and reexamination of religious and traditional beliefs. According to Thucydides the cause of the war was the “fear of the growth of the power of Athens.” Major causes of the war. Athens continued the war against Persia, and it formed the Delian League. Sparta was also suspicious of the Athenians' project to rebuild their Long Wall fortifications whi… In order to explore the rationale of this war, clhistorians have borrowed much from Thucydides’ writings. The Peloponnesian war began after the Persian Wars ended in 449 BCE. Later Athens, encouraged by Alcibiades, launched the Sicilian expedition to conquer Sicily during a lull in the fighting, known as the Peace of Nicias. Print your assignment and bring it to class! As soon as the Persians left, the Greeks immediately began to quarrel with each other. When Corcyra arrived to fight on Epidamnus’ land, former aristocrats who fled Epidamnus when the democratic government took control, pled with their former fellow citizens to stop the fighting and asked to be let back into the city. The Peloponnesian war began after the Persian Wars ended in 449 BCE. The History of the Peloponnesian War is one of those perennial classics that should be read by everyone, both as a historical document and as an outstanding example of Western literature. Thucydides repeatedly explains that the Peloponnesian War arose not simply from the specific grievances of this or that state but from a longer process of growing Athenian power that inspired fear among the Spartans, making the war inevitable. Thucydides, an exiled general of the Peloponnesian War, wrote “The History of the Peloponnesian War”. Peloponnesian War reshaped the ancient Greek world. STUDY. This evidentially resulted in the victory of Corcyraeans, who gained power and control over the Epidamnus’ land and sea. Causes Of the Peloponnesian War. Athens was a democracy, and it was very individualistic. This proved to be a disaster, which led to the loss of an Athenian army and navy. History. Ultius Blog, 28 Oct. 2014. https://www.ultius.com/ultius-blog/entry/causes-of-peloponnesian-war.html. The fundamental cause of the Peloponnesian War was А) Sparta's fear and jealousy of the power and wealth of Athens B Athens's fear of Sparta's growing empire in Greece Rome's attempt to expand into Greece Alexander the Great's conquest of the Persian Empire. The Peloponnesian War was a conflict in ancient Greece that redefined the structure of power in the Greek-speaking world. Historians that attribute responsibility for the war to Athens cite this event as the main cause for blame. The Peloponnesian War changed Greece in every way. His 2003 book provides a detailed breakdown of the politics, alliances, and events that led to the war. The Greeks had combined under Sparta and Athens' leadership to defeat the Persians, then the most powerful empire in Asia. : Penguin Books, 1972. The Corcyraeans also claimed victory for maintaining two wins against the Corinthians. Athens and the Delian League. https://www.thegreatcourses.com/courses/peloponnesian-war.html Causes of Peloponnesian War. [1] Both powers had demonstrated a reluctance for head-on war over matters peripheral to their respective spheres of influence. The Epidamnus aristocrats evacuated the city and joined forces with their foreign enemies, supporting the enemy side in a series of attacks against the new democratic city-state. The events in the disputes over Epidamnus, Corcyra and Potidaca all included a series of events that lead to one of Greece’s major changes in ancient history, the Peloponnesian War. Athenian control of Delian League, Used other city-states money to rebuild Athens, city states were forced to stay. Answers (1) Norah Today, 18:45. It was the refusal of Pericles to revoke the Megarian Decree which most commentators claimed was the cause of the Peloponnesian War. PLAY. In this provocative and wide-ranging examination of the causes of the Peloponnesian war, first published in 1972, Geoffrey de Ste Croix argued against most previous historiography (which tended to blame Athens), that the Spartans and their allies must bear the immediate and ultimate responsibility for the war. Sparta was concerned that if it displayed any weakness that this could lead to its losing its pre-eminent position in the Peloponnese League. Hi, I'm writing an essay on the causes of the Peloponessian war, but I'm having some difficulty finding good info. The primary causes were that Sparta feared the growing power and influence of the Athenian Empire. Corinth and other members of the Peloponnesian League were unhappy about Sparta’s lack of leadership. The Peloponnesian War was brought about by the rivalry that existed between Athens and Sparta and provoked by Spartan allies who felt threatened by Athens’ growth. Giovanni Parmeggiani. Gradually, the Athenians began to turn the Delian League into an Empire. The Greek historian Thucydides argued that Sparta's fear of Athens was the ultimate cause of the war. Many historical accounts make brief mention of the earlier Persian Wars, which undervalues their importance as a contributing factor to the later war. Source Material. Additionally, Athens and its ambitions caused increasing instability in Greece. The Spartan Hoplite was considered the best soldiers in the Greek world. Spell. From the end of the Persian to the beginning of the Peloponnesian War - The Progress from Supremacy to Empire CHAPTER V. Second Congress at Lacedaemon - Preparations for War … Created by. This war broke out because of a series of incidents, which were mentioned, in the previous paragraph. … Many scholars investigating the war’s causes have … Our next drawing will be held soon. In 431 BCE, the senior Spartan king led an army into the countryside around Athens and laid it waste. Check your inbox for an email about the scholarship and how to apply. Sparta favored the many oligarchies and distrusted the role of the common people in government. This was a long drawn out war between Athens and Sparta and their respective allies. 2nd Cause. The conflict was a long drawn out war between Athens and Sparta and their respective allies. October 28, 2014. https://www.ultius.com/ultius-blog/entry/causes-of-peloponnesian-war.html. It convulsed Greece and changed the course of the Classical world. One Corinthian representative stated at the meeting, “Many times before now we have told you what we were likely to suffer from Athens, and on each occasion, instead of taking to heart what we were telling you, you choose instead to suspect our motives and to consider that we were speaking only about our own grievances. It is the war that Thucydides describes that brings the … In both the French and Indian War and the American Revolutionary War… Athens had also been turned into a formidable stronghold when the city constructed the ‘Long Walls.’ These walls connected the city with its port, Piraeus, allowed the city to supply itself, and made any siege of the city unlikely to succeed.[3]. What were the long-term effects of the Peloponnesian War on Greece? The Spartans then sent out an invitation to their allies and other cities who may have a complaint against Athens to join them in a meeting and share their complaints against Athens. It is interesting to apply Thucydides’ judgment of the “truest cause” of the later war to the outbreak of this one. ** By providing my email address, I am consenting to reasonable communications from Ultius regarding the promotion. The profound cultural and political differences between the two great Greek powers contributed to the war. Several complex events occurred in Epidamnus that resulted in what Thucydides refers to as the dispute over Epidamnus. Even without the income generated by the empire, democracy proved to be a well-functioning political system. The origins of such a conflict are complex. I believe. Read More. [9] Additionally, there were those in Athens who believed that war should be welcomed. Write. THE CAUSES OF THE PELOPONNESIAN WAR IN THUCYDIDES’ WORK. But it is certain that he used his historical imagination to reconstruct only as a last resort. Despite this, Sparta grew increasingly fearful of Athens, and its main ally Corinth was actively encouraging it to attack Athens.[7]. It is interesting to apply Thucydides’ judgment of the “truest cause” of the later war to the outbreak of this one. Here are 10 interesting facts about the causes, outcome, effects and history of this historic ancient Greek war. One of the most important wars in the Ancient World was the Peloponnesian War (431-404 BCE). Corinthians were searching for allies to revolt against Athens; Perdicca sent agents to the Spartans and Corinth in hopes to gain alliances to revolt against Athens and Potidaea, he also reached out to the Chaleidians and the Bottiaeans to join in revolting against Athens. A War Like No Other: How the Athenians and Spartans Fought the Peloponnesian War, https://dailyhistory.org/index.php?title=What_were_the_causes_of_the_Peloponnesian_War%3F&oldid=21677. The only victor in the Peloponnesian War was the great king. The two powers struggled to agree on their respective spheres of influence, absent Persia's influence. This page was last edited on 8 December 2020, at 02:01. This disagreement led to friction and eventually outright war. This became known as the Megarian Decree. Peloponnesian War Summary. The Peloponnesian War was primarily caused by growing hostility between the Delian and Peloponnesian Leagues. 431BC. Use code save10u during checkout. social studies. The immediate cause of the Peloponnesian War was Corinthian opportunism. Historian Donald Kagan has been studying the causes of the Peloponnesian War for decades. The Histories is written about the Peloponnesian War and the events that led to its outbreak. It was a very stratified and conservative society. Causes of the War - The Affair of Epidamnus - The Affair of Potidaea CHAPTER III. The causes of the main Peloponnesian War need to be traced at least to the early 430s—the Great Gap period—although if Thucydides was right in his general explanation for the war, namely Spartan fear of Athenian expansion, the development of the entire 5th century and indeed part of the 6th were relevant.. [16] Thucydides states that the Corinthians condemned Sparta's lack of action until then and warned them that they had remained too passive for too long. The Peloponnesian War The Peloponnesian War occurred between the years from 431 to 404 BC. Thucydides an Athenian aristocrat and veteran of the Peloponnesian War documented the war from the beginning of the conflict in 431 BC to its conclusion in 404 BC. are known as the height of the Athenian Empire. One of the things that contributed to Athens’ strength was the Delian League, which was a naval alliance headquartered on the island of Delos that began to help insure that the Persian Wars were truly over. [14] Sparta was a highly militarized society, and the need for a strong and well-disciplined army was the main concern of the state. This war ended with a peace treaty and a ‘Thirty Years Peace.’ This treaty, in theory, guaranteed Athens and Sparta their respective spheres of influence. Remarkably, the Athenians continued to fight, and the Spartans needed Persian help to defeat them. Regardless of the treaty, Athens decided to hear both sides of the argument before deciding which city to side with. It was a racing game between city-states; city-states all around Greece were experiencing extreme poverty, and preparing for war was the only way to accommodate their allies. "[10] Thucydides believed that the Peloponnesian War was inevitable because when a rising power confronted another power, they would inevitably wage war against each other to further or protect their interests. Epidamnus was a colony of Corcyra, yet founded by the son of a Corinthian. and the 430s B.C. The population played a significant role in politics, and indeed it was a fairly radical democracy for the time. Firstly, the political structure of classical Greek society was itself a cause of war. Click here for more help with Turabian citations. He identifies three major causes that contributed to the war: the dispute over Epidamnus; the dispute over Corcyra; and the dispute of the Potidaea. Two major opponents that were fighting against each other due to the series of events that started when Epidamnus lost power and changed governments what the Athenians and the cities of Peloponnese (which was led by the Spartans). Sparta insults … [4] It had developed into the greatest maritime power in the Greek world and could dominate the trade routes in the eastern Mediterranean. (555), any major war may be triggered by either known or unknown forces. In the 5th century BCE Sparta and Athens were the two major powers in Greece and it was perhaps inevitable that their spheres of influence would overlap and cause conflict. s The two sides went back and forth with offers and counteroffers, however, the Corinthians were ready to attack and repeatedly denied any offer. His on the scene reporting was the first of its kind and has been used by historians and political theorists for the last twenty four hundred years. 0. Causes of the Peloponnesian War. The causes for the Peloponnesian war were both fundamental or long term and also incidental, or short term. Match. What was the cause of the Peloponnesian War? 0. Corinth warned Athens against breaking the 30 year peace by making an alliance with Corcyra. Created by. The roots of the peloponessian war can be traced back to many specific instances but on the most part three main elements caused its rise; Sparta’s anger at Athenian aid to Spartan enemies, Spartan fear of Athenian power, and the hostility and mistrust caused by … Starting with the change in Epidamnus’ government, the partnership between Epidamnus and the Corinthians, Athens showed poor leadership traits by breaking the Peace Treaty with the Peloponnesians and forming defenses against their allies, the Corinthians motivation to continue to fight despite their loss battles against Corcyra and Athens betrayal, the continued support Athens gave to Corcyra after the Corinthians gave Athenians an opportunity to change sides, the battles involving surrounds city-states, all were causes that led up to the Peloponnesian War.