In 454 BC the Athenian-led Delian League lost a fleet in an unsuccessful attempt to aid an Egyptian revolt against Persia. Over the next three years, Athens also failed to capture Pharsalus in Thessaly, as well as Sicyon and Oeniadae, all of which were allies of the Spartan-led Peloponnesian League. In 451 BC Athens concluded a five-year truce with Sparta.
After the truce Cimon found the opportunity to continue the war against the Persians. He sailed to Cyprus with two hundred triremes of the confederacy. From there, he sent sixty ships to Egypt to help the Prince Amyrtaeos, who was fighting the Persians at the Nile Delta. Cimon with the remaining ships aided the uprising of the Cypriot Greek city-states against their hegemon and laid siege to the Persian stronghold of Citium on the south west coast of Cyprus. During the siege Cimon died and the command of the fleet was given to Anaxicrates, who left Citium to engage the Phoenician and Cilician fleet at Salamis of Cyprus. The Greek fleet gained a complete victory on sea and land and rejoining with the sixty ships in Egypt, sailed to Athens.
The Athenians did not take advantage of their victory; instead, they simply returned home, where they found that Sparta had taken over the temple at Delphi, and that the Boeotians were beginning to revolt against Athenian rule. This revolt led to the Battle of Coronea in 447 BC.
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