Pericles
ca. 495 – 429 BC
Bust of Pericles after Cresilas, Altes Museum, Berlin
Place of birth	Athens
Place of death	Athens
Allegiance	Athens
Rank	General (Strategos)
Battles/wars	Battle in Sicyon and Acarnania (454 BC) Second Sacred War (448 BC) Expulsion of barbarians from Gallipoli (447 BC) Samian War (440 BC) Siege of Byzantium (438 BC) Peloponnesian War (431–429 BC)

Pericles (also spelled Perikles) (ca. 495–429 BC, Greek: Περικλῆς, meaning "surrounded by glory") was a prominent and influential statesman, orator, and general of Athens during the city's Golden Age–specifically, the time between the Persian and Peloponnesian wars. He was descended, through his mother, from the powerful and historically influential Alcmaeonid family. Title page of the 1611 quarto edition of the play Pericles, Prince of Tyre is a play written (at least in part) by William Shakespeare and included in modern editions of his collected plays despite some questions over its authorship. ... Centuries: 6th century BC - 5th century BC - 4th century BC Decades: 540s BC 530s BC 520s BC 510s BC 500s BC - 490s BC - 480s BC 470s BC 460s BC 450s BC 440s BC Years: 499 BC 498 BC 497 BC 496 BC - 495 BC - 494 BC 493 BC 492 BC... Centuries: 6th century BC - 5th century BC - 4th century BC Decades: 470s BC 460s BC 450s BC 440s BC 430s BC - 420s BC - 410s BC 400s BC 390s BC 380s BC 370s BC Years: 434 BC 433 BC 432 BC 431 BC 430 BC - 429 BC - 428 BC 427 BC... Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 343 × 598 pixel Image in higher resolution (1048 × 1828 pixel, file size: 322 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Pericles User:Phantis... Cresilas, a Cretan sculptor of Cydonia. ... Berlin, Old Museum, June 2003 The Altes Museum or Old Museum (until 1845 Royal Museum) located on Berlins Museum Island was built between 1825 and 1828 by the architect Karl Friedrich Schinkel in the neoclassical style to house the Prussian Royal familys art collection. ... This article is about the capital of Germany. ... This article is about the capital of Greece. ... This article is about the capital of Greece. ... This article is about the capital of Greece. ... This does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... The term strategos (plural strategoi; Greek στρατηγός) is used in Greek to mean general. In the hellenistic and Byzantine Empires the term was also used to describe a military governor. ... Sicyon was an ancient Greek city situated in the northern Peloponnesus between Corinth and Achaea. ... Acarnania was a region of ancient central western Greece that lay along the Ionian Sea, west of Aetolia, with the Achelous River for a boundary, and north of the gulf of Calydon, which is the entrance to the Gulf of Corinth. ... Centuries: 4th century BC - 5th century BC - 6th century BC Decades: 500s BC 490s BC 480s BC 470s BC 460s BC - 450s BC - 440s BC 430s BC 420s BC 410s BC 400s BC Years: 459 BC 458 BC 457 BC 456 BC 455 BC - 454 BC - 453 BC 452 BC... Combatants Athens Phocis Sparta Delphians Commanders Pericles The Second Sacred War took place between 449 BC-448 BC and resulted in an indirect confrontation between Athens and Sparta during the so-called First Peloponnesian War. ... Centuries: 6th century BC - 5th century BC - 4th century BC Decades: 490s BC 480s BC 470s BC 460s BC 450s BC - 440s BC - 430s BC 420s BC 410s BC 400s BC 390s BC Years: 453 BC 452 BC 451 BC 450 BC 449 BC - 448 BC - 447 BC 446 BC... For other uses, see Gallipoli (disambiguation). ... Centuries: 6th century BC - 5th century BC - 4th century BC Decades: 490s BC 480s BC 470s BC 460s BC 450s BC - 440s BC - 430s BC 420s BC 410s BC 400s BC 390s BC Years: 452 BC 451 BC 450 BC 449 BC 448 BC - 447 BC - 446 BC 445 BC... The war in Samos was the most important military event in ancient Greece before the Peloponnesian War. ... Centuries: 6th century BC - 5th century BC - 4th century BC Decades: 490s BC 480s BC 470s BC 460s BC 450s BC - 440s BC - 430s BC 420s BC 410s BC 400s BC 390s BC Years: 445 BC 444 BC 443 BC 442 BC 441 BC - 440 BC - 439 BC 438 BC... Byzantium (Greek: Βυζάντιον) was an ancient Greek city, which, according to legend, was founded by Greek colonists from Megara in 667 BC and named after their king Byzas or Byzantas (Βύζας or Βύζαντας in Greek). ... Centuries: 6th century BC - 5th century BC - 4th century BC Decades: 480s BC 470s BC 460s BC 450s BC 440s BC - 430s BC - 420s BC 410s BC 400s BC 390s BC 380s BC Years: 443 BC 442 BC 441 BC 440 BC 439 BC - 438 BC - 437 BC 436 BC... “Athenian War” redirects here. ... Centuries: 6th century BC - 5th century BC - 4th century BC Decades: 480s BC 470s BC 460s BC 450s BC 440s BC - 430s BC - 420s BC 410s BC 400s BC 390s BC 380s BC Years: 436 BC 435 BC 434 BC 433 BC 432 BC - 431 BC - 430 BC 429 BC... Centuries: 6th century BC - 5th century BC - 4th century BC Decades: 470s BC 460s BC 450s BC 440s BC 430s BC - 420s BC - 410s BC 400s BC 390s BC 380s BC 370s BC Years: 434 BC 433 BC 432 BC 431 BC 430 BC - 429 BC - 428 BC 427 BC... Centuries: 6th century BC - 5th century BC - 4th century BC Decades: 540s BC 530s BC 520s BC 510s BC 500s BC - 490s BC - 480s BC 470s BC 460s BC 450s BC 440s BC Years: 499 BC 498 BC 497 BC 496 BC - 495 BC - 494 BC 493 BC 492 BC... Centuries: 6th century BC - 5th century BC - 4th century BC Decades: 470s BC 460s BC 450s BC 440s BC 430s BC - 420s BC - 410s BC 400s BC 390s BC 380s BC 370s BC Years: 434 BC 433 BC 432 BC 431 BC 430 BC - 429 BC - 428 BC 427 BC... Statesman is a respectful term used to refer to politicians, and other notable figures of state. ... The History of Athens is one of the longest of any city in Europe and in the world. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Persian Wars redirects here. ... “Athenian War” redirects here. ... The Alcmaeonidae or Alcmaeonids were a powerful noble family of ancient Athens who claimed descent from the mythological Alcmaeon, the grandson of Nestor. ...

Pericles had such a profound influence on Athenian society that Thucydides, his contemporary historian, acclaimed him as "the first citizen of Athens." Pericles turned the Delian League into an Athenian empire and led his countrymen during the first two years of the Peloponnesian War. The period during which he led Athens, roughly from 461 to 429 BC, is sometimes known as the "Age of Pericles," though the period thus denoted can include times as early as the Persian Wars, or as late as the next century. Bust of Thucydides residing in the Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto. ... Delian League (Athenian Empire), right before the Peloponnesian War in 431 BC. Corcyra was not part of the League The Delian League was an association of Greek city-states in the 5th century BC. It was led by Athens. ... Centuries: 6th century BC - 5th century BC - 4th century BC Decades: 510s BC 500s BC 490s BC 480s BC 470s BC - 460s BC - 450s BC 440s BC 430s BC 420s BC 410s BC Years: 466 BC 465 BC 464 BC 463 BC 462 BC - 461 BC - 460 BC 459 BC... Centuries: 6th century BC - 5th century BC - 4th century BC Decades: 470s BC 460s BC 450s BC 440s BC 430s BC - 420s BC - 410s BC 400s BC 390s BC 380s BC 370s BC Years: 434 BC 433 BC 432 BC 431 BC 430 BC - 429 BC - 428 BC 427 BC... The Age of Pericles is the term used to denote the historical period in Ancient Greece lasting roughly from the end of the Persian Wars to either the death of Pericles or the end of the Peloponnesian War. ... The Greco-Persian Wars or Persian Wars were a series of conflicts between the Greek world and the Persian Empire that started about 500 BC and lasted until 448 BC. The term can also refer to the continual warfare of the Roman Empire and Byzantine Empire against the Parthians and...

Pericles promoted the arts and literature; this was a chief reason Athens holds the reputation of being the educational and cultural centre of the ancient Greek world. He started an ambitious project that built most of the surviving structures on the Acropolis (including the Parthenon). This project beautified the city, exhibited its glory, and gave work to the people.^[1] Furthermore, Pericles fostered Athenian democracy to such an extent that critics call him a populist.^[2][3] The term ancient Greece refers to the periods of Greek history in Classical Antiquity, lasting ca. ... The Acropolis of Athens is the best known acropolis (high city, The Sacred Rock) in the world. ... For other uses, see Parthenon (disambiguation). ... Athenian democracy (sometimes called Direct democracy) developed in the Greek city-state of Athens. ... Look up Populism in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

Early years

Pericles was born around 495 BC, in the deme of Cholargos just north of Athens.^α[›] He was the son of the politic Xanthippus, who, although ostracized in 485–4 BC, returned to Athens to command the Athenian contingent in the Greek victory at Mycale just five years later. Pericles' mother, Agariste, was a scion of the powerful and controversial noble family of the Alcmaeonidae, and her familial connections played a crucial role in starting Xanthippus' political career. Agariste was the great-granddaughter of the tyrant of Sicyon, Cleisthenes, and the niece of the supreme Athenian reformer Cleisthenes, another Alcmaeonid.^β[›][4] According to Herodotus and Plutarch, Agariste dreamed, a few nights before Pericles' birth, that she had borne a lion.^[5][6] One interpretation of the anecdote treats the lion as a traditional symbol of greatness, but the story may also allude to the unusual size of Pericles' skull, which became a popular target of contemporary comedians.^[6][7] (Although Plutarch claims that this deformity was the reason that Pericles was always depicted wearing a helmet, this is not the case; the helmet was actually the symbol of his official rank as strategos (general)).^[8] In biology, a deme (rhymes with team) is another word for a local population of organisms of one species that actively interbreed with one another and share a distinct gene pool. ... Holargos or Cholargos, rarely Kholargos (Greek: Χολαργός) Latin/Older form: Cholargus is a suburb of Athens, Greece, located northwest of the city center. ... Xanthippus was a Greek (possibly Spartan) mercenary general hired by the Carthaginians to aid in their war against the Romans during the First Punic War. ... Pieces of broken pottery as voting tokens. ... Combatants Greek city-states Persia Commanders Leotychides Artaÿntes Strength About 40,000 60,000 men, 300 ships Casualties 40,000 The Battle of Mycale, Greek Μάχη Μυκάλης, Mache tes Mycales , was one of the two major battles that ended the Persian invasion of Greece, during the Greco-Persian Wars. ... Sicyon was an ancient Greek city situated in the northern Peloponnesus between Corinth and Achaea. ... Cleisthenes (also Clisthenes or Kleisthenes) was the tyrant of Sicyon, who aided in the war against Cirra that destroyed that city in 595 BC. He organized a competition with his daughter Agarista as a prize; the two main competitors for her were the Alcmaeonid Megacles, and Hippocleides. ... Cleisthenes (also Clisthenes or Kleisthenes) was a noble Athenian of the accursed Alcmeonidate family. ... Herodotus of Halicarnassus (Greek: HÄ“rodotos Halikarnāsseus) was a Greek historian from Ionia who lived in the 5th century BC (ca. ... Mestrius Plutarchus (Greek: Πλούταρχος; 46 - 127), better known in English as Plutarch, was a Greek historian, biographer, essayist, and Middle Platonist. ... The term strategos (plural strategoi; Greek στρατηγός) is used in Greek to mean general. In the hellenistic and Byzantine Empires the term was also used to describe a military governor. ...

Pericles belonged to the local tribe of Acamantis (Ἀκαμαντὶς φυλὴ). His early years were quiet; the introverted, young Pericles avoided public appearances, preferring to devote his time to his studies.^[9] http://www. ...

His family's nobility and wealth allowed him to fully pursue his inclination toward education. He learned music from the masters of the time (Damon or Pythocleides could have been his teachers)^[10][11] and he is considered to have been the first politician to attribute great importance to philosophy.^[9] He enjoyed the company of the philosophers Protagoras, Zeno of Elea and Anaxagoras. Anaxagoras in particular became a close friend and influenced him greatly.^[10][12] Pericles' manner of thought and rhetorical charisma may have been in part products of Anaxagoras’ emphasis on emotional calm in the face of trouble and scepticism about divine phenomena.^[4] His proverbial calmness and self-control are also regarded as products of Anaxagoras' influence.^[13] Damon, son of Damonides, of the Athenian deme of Oe (sometimes spelled Oa), was an advisor of Pericles. ... For other uses, see Philosophy (disambiguation). ... A philosopher is a person who thinks deeply regarding people, society, the world, and/or the universe. ... Protagoras (in Greek Πρωταγόρας) was born around 481 BC in Abdera, Thrace in Ancient Greece. ... Zeno of Elea (IPA:zÉ›noÊŠ, É›lɛɑː)(circa 490 BC? – circa 430 BC?) was a pre-Socratic Greek philosopher of southern Italy and a member of the Eleatic School founded by Parmenides. ... Elea (Velia by the Romans; see also List of traditional Greek place names) was a Greek coastal city founded around 540 BC in Lucania in southern Italy, 15 miles southeast of the Gulf of Salerno. ... Anaxagoras Anaxagoras (Greek: Αναξαγόρας, c. ...

Political career until 431 BC

Entering politics

In the spring of 472 BC, Pericles presented the Persae of Aeschylus at the Greater Dionysia as a liturgy, demonstrating that he was then one of the wealthier men of Athens.^[4] Simon Hornblower has argued that Pericles' selection of this play, which presents a nostalgic picture of Themistocles' famous victory at Salamis, shows that the young politician was supporting Themistocles against his political opponent Cimon, whose faction succeeded in having Themistocles ostracized shortly afterwards.^[14] The Persians (Πέρσαι) is a tragedy by the ancient Greek playwright Aeschylus. ... This article is about the ancient Greek playwright. ... The Dionysia was a large religious festival in ancient Athens in honour of the god Dionysus, the central event of which was the performance of tragedies and comedies. ... A liturgy is the customary public worship of a religious group, according to their particular traditions. ... Themistocles (Greek: ; c. ... For other uses, see Battle of Salamis (disambiguation). ...

Plutarch says that Pericles stood first among the Athenians for forty years.^[15] If this was so, Pericles must have taken up a position of leadership by the early 460s BC. Throughout these years he endeavored to protect his privacy and tried to present himself as a model for his fellow citizens. For example, he would often avoid banquets, trying to be frugal.^[16][17]

In 463 BC Pericles was the leading prosecutor of Cimon, the leader of the conservative faction, who was accused of neglecting Athens' vital interests in Macedon.^[18] Although Cimon was acquitted, this confrontation proved that Pericles' major political opponent was vulnerable.^[19] Centuries: 4th century BC - 5th century BC - 6th century BC Decades: 510s BC 500s BC 490s BC 480s BC 470s BC - 460s BC - 450s BC 440s BC 430s BC 420s BC 410s BC Years: 468 BC 467 BC 466 BC 465 BC 464 BC - 463 BC - 462 BC 461 BC... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Ancient Macedons regions and towns Macedon or Macedonia (Greek ) was the name of an ancient kingdom in the northern-most part of ancient Greece, bordered by the kingdom of Epirus to the west and the region of Thrace to the east. ...

Ostracizing Cimon

A modern statue of Pericles in modern Cholargos (Pericles' avenue). The name of the suburb dates to ancient Athens, but the ancient deme of Cholargos, which belonged to the tribe of Acamantis, was near modern Kamatero or Peristeri.

Around 462–461 BC the leadership of the democratic party decided it was time to take aim at the Areopagus, a traditional council controlled by the Athenian aristocracy, which had once been the most powerful body in the state.^[20] The leader of the party and mentor of Pericles, Ephialtes, proposed a sharp reduction of the Areopagus’ powers. The Ecclesia (the Athenian Assembly) adopted Ephialtes' proposal without strong opposition.^[21] This reform signalled the commencement of a new era of "radical democracy".^[20] The democratic party gradually became dominant in Athenian politics and Pericles seemed willing to follow a populist policy in order to cajole the public. According to Aristotle, Pericles' stance can be explained by the fact that his principal political opponent, Cimon, was rich and generous, and was able to secure public favor by lavishly bestowing his sizable personal fortune.^[18] The historian Loren J. Samons II argues, however, that Pericles had enough resources to make a political mark by private means, had he so chosen.^[22] Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (2560x1920, 740 KB) Summary Statue of Pericles in Cholargus Taken by me, by my camera! Licensing File links The following pages link to this file: Pericles Metadata This file contains additional information, probably added from the digital camera or scanner used... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (2560x1920, 740 KB) Summary Statue of Pericles in Cholargus Taken by me, by my camera! Licensing File links The following pages link to this file: Pericles Metadata This file contains additional information, probably added from the digital camera or scanner used... Holargos or Cholargos, rarely Kholargos (Greek: Χολαργός) Latin/Older form: Cholargus is a suburb of Athens, Greece, located northwest of the city center. ... There is also a Kamatero in the island of Salamis, see Kamatero Salaminos Kamatero, (Greek, Modern: Καματερό, Ancient/Katharevousa: -on), older forms Kamateron, is a suburb in the southwestern part of Athens, Greece. ... Peristeri, older forms Peristerio and Peristerion is a suburban community in Athens area (Attica), Greece. ... Centuries: 4th century BC - 5th century BC - 6th century BC Decades: 510s BC 500s BC 490s BC 480s BC 470s BC - 460s BC - 450s BC 440s BC 430s BC 420s BC 410s BC Years: 467 BC 466 BC 465 BC 464 BC 463 BC - 462 BC - 461 BC 460 BC... Centuries: 6th century BC - 5th century BC - 4th century BC Decades: 510s BC 500s BC 490s BC 480s BC 470s BC - 460s BC - 450s BC 440s BC 430s BC 420s BC 410s BC Years: 466 BC 465 BC 464 BC 463 BC 462 BC - 461 BC - 460 BC 459 BC... This article concerns the Classical judicial body. ... For Ephialtes, the son of Eurydemus of Malis, see Ephialtes Ephialtes (Greek: ) was leader of the democratic movement and of the homonymous party in Athens. ... The ecclesia or ekklesia (Greek έκκλησία) was the principal assembly of the democracy of ancient Athens. ... For other uses, see Aristotle (disambiguation). ...

In 461 BC, Pericles achieved the political elimination of this formidable opponent using the weapon of ostracism. The ostensible accusation was that Cimon betrayed his city by acting as a friend of Sparta.^[23] Pieces of broken pottery as voting tokens. ... For modern day Sparta, see Sparti (municipality). ...

Even after Cimon's ostracism, Pericles continued to espouse and promote a populist social policy.^[21] He first proposed a decree that permitted the poor to watch theatrical plays without paying, with the state covering the cost of their admission. With other decrees he lowered the property requirement for the archonship in 458–457 BC and bestowed generous wages on all citizens who served as jurymen in the Heliaia (the supreme court of Athens) some time just after 454 BC.^[24] His most controversial measure, however, was a law of 451 BC limiting Athenian citizenship to those of Athenian parentage on both sides.^[25] Look up Archon in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Centuries: 4th century BC - 5th century BC - 6th century BC Decades: 500s BC 490s BC 480s BC 470s BC 460s BC - 450s BC - 440s BC 430s BC 420s BC 410s BC 400s BC Years: 463 BC 462 BC 461 BC 460 BC 459 BC - 458 BC - 457 BC 456 BC... Centuries: 4th century BC - 5th century BC - 6th century BC Decades: 500s BC 490s BC 480s BC 470s BC 460s BC - 450s BC - 440s BC 430s BC 420s BC 410s BC 400s BC Years: 462 BC 461 BC 460 BC 459 BC 458 BC - 457 BC - 456 BC 455 BC... Heliaia ( Greek: ἡλιαία) or Halia ( Greek: ἁλία) was the supreme court of ancient Athens. ... Centuries: 4th century BC - 5th century BC - 6th century BC Decades: 500s BC 490s BC 480s BC 470s BC 460s BC - 450s BC - 440s BC 430s BC 420s BC 410s BC 400s BC Years: 459 BC 458 BC 457 BC 456 BC 455 BC - 454 BC - 453 BC 452 BC... Centuries: 6th century BC - 5th century BC - 4th century BC Decades: 500s BC 490s BC 480s BC 470s BC 460s BC - 450s BC - 440s BC 430s BC 420s BC 410s BC 400s BC Years: 456 BC 455 BC 454 BC 453 BC 452 BC - 451 BC - 450 BC 449 BC...

Such measures impelled Pericles' critics to regard him as responsible for the gradual degeneration of the Athenian democracy. Constantine Paparrigopoulos, a major modern Greek historian, argues that Pericles sought for the expansion and stabilization of all democratic institutions.^[26] Hence, he enacted legislation granting the lower classes access to the political system and the public offices, from which they had previously been barred on account of limited means or humble birth.^[27] According to Samons, Pericles believed that it was necessary to raise the demos, in which he saw an untapped source of Athenian power and the crucial element of Athenian military dominance.^[28] (The fleet, backbone of Athenian power since the days of Themistocles, was manned almost entirely by members of the lower classes.^[29]) Constantine Paparregopoulus (1815-1891) was a nineteenth century Greek historian greatly influential in Greece and abroad for his original reasearch in Byzantine history as well as in other fields of Greek studies. ...

Cimon, on the other hand, apparently believed that no further free space for democratic evolution existed. He was certain that democracy had reached its peak and Pericles’ reforms were leading to the stalemate of populism. According to Paparrigopoulos, history vindicated Cimon, because Athens, after Pericles' death, sank into the abyss of political turmoil and demagogy. Paparrigopoulos maintains that an unprecedented regression descended upon the city, whose glory perished as a result of Pericles' populist policies.^[26] According to another historian, Justin Daniel King, radical democracy benefited people individually, but harmed the state.^[30] On the other hand, Donald Kagan asserts that the democratic measures Pericles put into effect provided the basis for an unassailable political strength.^[31] After all, Cimon finally accepted the new democracy and did not oppose the citizenship law, after he returned from exile in 451 BC.^[32] Donald Kagan (born 1932) is a Yale historian specializing in ancient Greece, notable for his four-volume history of the Peloponnesian War. ...

Leading Athens

Ephialtes' murder in 461 BC paved the way for Pericles to consolidate his authority.^δ[›] Lacking any robust opposition after the expulsion of Cimon, the unchallengeable leader of the democratic party became the unchallengeable ruler of Athens. He remained in power almost uninterruptedly until his death in 429 BC.

First Peloponnesian War

Main article: First Peloponnesian War

Phidias Showing the Frieze of the Parthenon to his Friends
Pericles, Aspasia, Alcibiades and friends viewing Phidias' work. Alma-Tadema, 1868, Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery

Pericles made his first military excursions during the First Peloponnesian War, which was caused in part by Athens' alliance with Megara and Argos and the subsequent reaction of Sparta. In 454 BC he attacked Sicyon and Acarnania.^[33] He then unsuccessfully tried to take Oeniadea on the Corinthian gulf, before returning to Athens.^[34] In 451 BC, Cimon is said to have returned from exile and negotiated a five years' truce with Sparta after a proposal of Pericles, an event which indicates a shift in Pericles' political strategy.^[35] Pericles may have realized the importance of Cimon's contribution during the ongoing conflicts against the Peloponnesians and the Persians. Anthony J. Podlecki argues, however, that Pericles' alleged change of position was invented by ancient writers to support "a tendentious view of Pericles' shiftiness".^[36] Combatants Delian League led by Athens, Argos Peloponnesian League led by Sparta, Thebes Commanders Pericles Cimon Leosthenes Tolmides Myronides Pleistoanax Nicodemes The First Peloponnesian War began in 460 BC and lasted circa 15 years. ... Image File history File links Phidias_and_the_Frieze_of_the_Parthenon. ... Image File history File links Phidias_and_the_Frieze_of_the_Parthenon. ... Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema, OM, RA (January 8, 1836, Dronrijp, the Netherlands. ... Year 1868 (MDCCCLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian Calendar (or a leap year starting on Monday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery Opened in 1885, Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery (BM&AG), in Birmingham, England, has a collection of international importance covering fine art, ceramics, metalwork, jewellery, archaeology, ethnography, local and industrial history. ... Megara (Greek: Μέγαρα (Big Houses); see also List of traditional Greek place names) is an ancient city in Attica, Greece. ... This article is about the city in Greece. ... Centuries: 4th century BC - 5th century BC - 6th century BC Decades: 500s BC 490s BC 480s BC 470s BC 460s BC - 450s BC - 440s BC 430s BC 420s BC 410s BC 400s BC Years: 459 BC 458 BC 457 BC 456 BC 455 BC - 454 BC - 453 BC 452 BC... Sicyon was an ancient Greek city situated in the northern Peloponnesus between Corinth and Achaea. ... Acarnania was a region of ancient central western Greece that lay along the Ionian Sea, west of Aetolia, with the Achelous River for a boundary, and north of the gulf of Calydon, which is the entrance to the Gulf of Corinth. ... The Persians of Iran (officially named Persia by West until 1935 while still referred to as Persia by some) are an Iranian people who speak Persian (locally named Fârsi by native speakers) and often refer to themselves as ethnic Iranians as well. ...

Plutarch states that Cimon struck a power-sharing deal with his opponents, according to which Pericles would carry through the interior affairs and Cimon would be the leader of the Athenian army, campaigning abroad.^[37] If it was actually made, this bargain would constitute a concession on Pericles' part that he was not a great strategist. Kagan believes that Cimon adapted himself to the new conditions and promoted a political marriage between Periclean liberals and Cimonian conservatives.^[32]

In the mid 450s the Athenians launched an unsuccessful attempt to aid an Egyptian revolt against Persia, which led to a prolonged siege of a Persian fortress in the Nile Delta. The campaign culminated in a disaster on a very large scale; the besieging force was defeated and destroyed.^[38] In 451–450 BC the Athenians sent troops to Cyprus. Cimon defeated the Persians in the Battle of Salamis, but died of disease in 449 BC. Pericles is said to have initiated both expeditions in Egypt and Cyprus,^[39] although some researchers, such as Karl Julius Beloch, argue that the dispatch of such a great fleet conforms with the spirit of Cimon's policy.^[40] The Nile (Arabic: , transliteration: , Ancient Egyptian iteru, Coptic piaro or phiaro) is a major north-flowing river in Africa, generally regarded as the longest river in the world. ... Battle of Salamis Conflict Persian Wars Date 450 BC Place Salamis, Cyprus Result Delian League victory The Battle of Salamis took place around 450 BC near Salamis in Cyprus. ... Centuries: 6th century BC - 5th century BC - 4th century BC Decades: 490s BC 480s BC 470s BC 460s BC 450s BC - 440s BC - 430s BC 420s BC 410s BC 400s BC 390s BC 454 BC 453 BC 452 BC 451 BC 450 BC 449 BC 448 BC 447 BC 446...

Complicating the account of this complex period is the issue of the Peace of Callias, which allegedly ended hostilities between the Greeks and the Persians. The very existence of the treaty is hotly disputed, and its particulars and negotiation are equally ambiguous.^[41] Ernst Badian believes that a peace between Athens and Persia was first ratified in 463 BC (making the Athenian interventions in Egypt and Cyprus violations of the peace), and renegotiated at the conclusion of the campaign in Cyprus, taking force again by 449–448 BC.^[42] John Fine, on the other hand, suggests that the first peace between Athens and Persia was concluded in 450–449 BC, as a result of Pericles' strategic calculation that ongoing conflict with Persia was undermining Athens' ability to spread its influence in Greece and the Aegean.^[41] Kagan believes that Pericles used Callias, a brother-in-law of Cimon, as a symbol of unity and employed him several times to negotiate important agreements.^[43] The Peace of Callias was established around 449 BC between the Delian League (led by Athens) and Persia, ending the Persian Wars. ... Look up Aegean Sea in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Callias was the head of a wealthy Athenian family, and fought at the battle of Marathon (490) in priestly attire. ...

In the spring of 449 BC, Pericles proposed the Congress Decree, which led to a meeting ("Congress") of all Greek states in order to consider the question of rebuilding the temples destroyed by the Persians. The Congress failed because of Sparta's stance, but Pericles' real intentions remain unclear.^[44] Some historians think that he wanted to prompt some kind of confederation with the participation of all the Greek cities, others think he wanted to assert Athenian pre-eminence.^[45] According to the historian Terry Buckley the objective of the Congress Decree was a new mandate for the Delian League and for the collection of "phoros" (taxes).^[46] Delian League (Athenian Empire), right before the Peloponnesian War in 431 BC. Corcyra was not part of the League The Delian League was an association of Greek city-states in the 5th century BC. It was led by Athens. ...

During the Second Sacred War Pericles led the Athenian army against Delphi and reinstated Phocis in its sovereign rights on the oracle.^[47] In 447 BC Pericles engaged in his most admired excursion, the expulsion of barbarians from the Thracian peninsula of Gallipoli, in order to establish Athenian colonists in the region.^[4][48] At this time, however, Athens was seriously challenged by a number of revolts among its allies (or, to be more accurate, its subjects). In 447 BC the oligarchs of Thebes conspired against the democratic faction. The Athenians demanded their immediate surrender, but, after the Battle of Coronea, Pericles was forced to concede the loss of Boeotia in order to recover the prisoners taken in that battle.^[9] With Boeotia in hostile hands, Phocis and Locris became untenable and quickly fell under the control of hostile oligarchs.^[49] In 446 BC, a more dangerous uprising erupted. Euboea and Megara revolted. Pericles crossed over to Euboea with his troops, but was forced to return when the Spartan army invaded Attica. Through bribery and negotiations, Pericles defused the imminent threat, and the Spartans returned home.^[50] When Pericles was later audited for the handling of public money, an expenditure of 10 talents was not sufficiently justified, since the official documents just referred that the money was spent for a "very serious purpose". Nonetheless, the "serious purpose" (namely the bribery) was so obvious to the auditors that they approved the expenditure without official meddling and without even investigating the mystery.^[51] After the Spartan threat had been removed, Pericles crossed back to Euboea to crush the revolt there. He then inflicted a stringent punishment on the landowners of Chalcis, who lost their properties. The residents of Istiaia, meanwhile, who had butchered the crew of an Athenian trireme, were uprooted and replaced by 2,000 Athenian settlers.^[51] The crisis was brought to an official end by the Thirty Years' Peace (winter of 446–445 BC), in which Athens relinquished most of the possessions and interests on the Greek mainland which it had acquired since 460 BC, and both Athens and Sparta agreed not to attempt to win over the other state's allies.^[49] Combatants Athens Phocis Sparta Delphians Commanders Pericles The Second Sacred War took place between 449 BC-448 BC and resulted in an indirect confrontation between Athens and Sparta during the so-called First Peloponnesian War. ... For other uses, see Delphi (disambiguation). ... Phocis (Greek, Modern: Φωκίδα/Fokída, Ancient/Katharevousa: Φωκίς/Phokis; named after the Greek mythological personage Phocus) is an ancient district of central Greece and a prefecture of modern Greece located in Sterea Hellas, one of the thirteen peripheries of Greece. ... This article is about prophetic oracles in various cultures. ... Centuries: 6th century BC - 5th century BC - 4th century BC Decades: 490s BC 480s BC 470s BC 460s BC 450s BC - 440s BC - 430s BC 420s BC 410s BC 400s BC 390s BC Years: 452 BC 451 BC 450 BC 449 BC 448 BC - 447 BC - 446 BC 445 BC... For other uses, see Gallipoli (disambiguation). ... Centuries: 6th century BC - 5th century BC - 4th century BC Decades: 490s BC 480s BC 470s BC 460s BC 450s BC - 440s BC - 430s BC 420s BC 410s BC 400s BC 390s BC Years: 452 BC 451 BC 450 BC 449 BC 448 BC - 447 BC - 446 BC 445 BC... Thebes (Demotic Greek: Θήβα — Thíva; Katharevousa: — Thêbai or Thívai) is a city in Greece, situated to the north of the Cithaeron range, which divides Boeotia from Attica, and on the southern edge of the Boeotian plain. ... The Battle of Coronea took place between the Athenian-led Delian League and the Boeotian League in 447 BC. In 457 BC the Athenians had taken control of Boeotia at the Battle of Oenophyta, and spent the next ten years attempting to consolidate the Leagues power. ... Centuries: 6th century BC - 5th century BC - 4th century BC Decades: 490s BC 480s BC 470s BC 460s BC 450s BC - 440s BC - 430s BC 420s BC 410s BC 400s BC 390s BC Years: 451 BC 450 BC 449 BC 448 BC 447 BC - 446 BC - 445 BC 444 BC... For the Greek mythological figures see Euboea Euboea, or Negropont or Negroponte (Modern Greek: Εύβοια Évia, Ancient Greek Eúboia), is the second largest of the Greek Aegean Islands and the second largest Greek island overall in area and population (after Crete). ... Megara (Greek: Μέγαρα (Big Houses); see also List of traditional Greek place names) is an ancient city in Attica, Greece. ... Attica (in Greek: Αττική, Attike; see also List of traditional Greek place names) is a periphery (subdivision) in Greece, containing Athens, the capital of Greece. ... A talent is an ancient unit of mass. ... Coordinates 38°28′ N 23°36′ E Country Greece Periphery Central Greece Prefecture Euboea Population 53,584 source (2001) Area 30. ... Istiaia (Ιστιαία) is a municipality in Euboea, Greece. ... A Greek trireme. ... Centuries: 6th century BC - 5th century BC - 4th century BC Decades: 490s BC 480s BC 470s BC 460s BC 450s BC - 440s BC - 430s BC 420s BC 410s BC 400s BC 390s BC Years: 450 BC 449 BC 448 BC 447 BC 446 BC - 445 BC - 444 BC 443 BC...

Final battle with the conservatives

In 444 BC, the conservative and the democratic faction confronted each other in a fierce struggle. The ambitious new leader of the conservatives, Thucydides (not to be confused with the historian of the same name), accused Pericles of profligacy, criticizing the way he spent the money for the ongoing building plan. Thucydides managed, initially, to incite the passions of the ecclesia in his favor, but, when Pericles, the leader of the democrats, took the floor, he put the conservatives in the shade. Pericles responded resolutely, proposing to reimburse the city for all the expenses from his private property, under the term that he would make the inscriptions of dedication in his own name.^[52] His stance was greeted with applause, and Thucydides suffered an unexpected defeat. In 442 BC, the Athenian public ostracized Thucydides for 10 years and Pericles was once again the unchallenged suzerain of the Athenian political arena.^[52] Centuries: 6th century BC - 5th century BC - 4th century BC Decades: 490s BC 480s BC 470s BC 460s BC 450s BC - 440s BC - 430s BC 420s BC 410s BC 400s BC 390s BC Years: 449 BC 448 BC 447 BC 446 BC 445 BC - 444 BC - 443 BC 442 BC... Thucydides (Greek: Θουκυδίδης) was a prominent politician of ancient Athens and the leader for a number of years of the powerful conservative faction. ... Centuries: 6th century BC - 5th century BC - 4th century BC Decades: 490s BC 480s BC 470s BC 460s BC 450s BC - 440s BC - 430s BC 420s BC 410s BC 400s BC 390s BC Years: 447 BC 446 BC 445 BC 444 BC 443 BC - 442 BC - 441 BC 440 BC... Suzerainty refers to a situation in which a region or people is a tributary to a more powerful entity which allows the tributary some limited domestic autonomy but controls its foreign affairs. ...

Athens' rule over its alliance

Pericles wanted to stabilize Athens' dominance over its alliance and to enforce its pre-eminence in Greece. The process by which the Delian League transformed into an Athenian empire is generally considered to have begun well before Pericles' time,^[53] as various allies in the league chose to pay tribute to Athens instead of manning ships for the league's fleet, but the transformation was speeded and brought to its conclusion by measures implemented by Pericles.^[54] The final steps in the shift to empire may have been triggered by Athens' defeat in Egypt, which challenged the city's dominance in the Aegean and led to the revolt of several allies, such as Miletus and Erythrae.^[55] Either because of a genuine fear for its safety after the defeat in Egypt and the revolts of the allies, or as a pretext to gain control of the League's finances, Athens transferred the treasury of the alliance from Delos to Athens in 454–453 BC.^[56] By 450–449 BC the revolts in Miletus and Erythrae were quelled and Athens restored its rule over its allies.^[57] Around 447 BC Clearchus proposed the Coinage Decree, which imposed Athenian silver coinage, weights and measures on all of the allies.^[46] According to one of the decree's most stringent provisions, surplus from a minting operation was to go into a special fund, and anyone proposing to use it otherwise was subject to the death penalty.^[58] The lower half of the benches and the remnants of the scene building of the theater of Miletus (August 2005) Miletus (Carian: Anactoria Hittite: Milawata or Millawanda, Greek: Μίλητος transliterated Miletos, Turkish: Milet) was an ancient city on the western coast of Anatolia (in what is now Aydin Province, Turkey), near... Erythrae (mod. ... The island of Delos, Carl Anton Joseph Rottmann, 1847 The island of Delos (Greek: Δήλος, Dhilos), isolated in the centre of the roughly circular ring of islands called the Cyclades, near Mykonos, had a position as a holy sanctuary for a millennium before Olympian Greek mythology made it the birthplace of...

It was from the alliance's treasury that Pericles drew the funds necessary to enable his ambitious building plan, centered on the "Periclean Acropolis", which included the Propylaea, the Parthenon and the golden statue of Athena, sculpted by Pericles’ friend, Phidias.^[59] In 449 BC Pericles proposed a decree allowing the use of 9,000 talents to finance the major rebuilding program of Athenian temples.^[46] Angelos Vlachos, a Greek Academician, points out that the utilization of the alliance's treasury, initiated and executed by Pericles, is one of the largest embezzlements in human history; this misappropriation financed, however, some of the most marvellous artistic creations of the ancient world.^[60] Crowds of tourists climb the steps to the Propylaea, gateway to the Acropolis, Athens Stairs leading up to the Propylea The Propylaea, Propylea or Propylaia (Greek Προπυλαια) is the monumental gateway that serves as the entrance to the Acropolis in Athens. ... Phidias Showing the Frieze of the Parthenon to his Friends by Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema Phidias (or Pheidias) (in ancient Greek, ) (c. ... The title Academician denotes a Full Member of an art, literary, or scientific academy. ...

Samian War

A 20 drachma coin of the Hellenic Republic picturing Pericles

Main article: Samian War

The Samian War was the last significant military event before the Peloponnesian War. After Thucydides' ostracism, Pericles was re-elected yearly to the generalship, the only office he ever officially occupied, although his influence was so great as to make him the de facto ruler of the state. In 440 BC Samos was at war with Miletus over control of Priene, an ancient city of Ionia on the foot-hills of Mycale. Worsted in the war, the Milesians came to Athens to plead their case against the Samians.^[61] When the Athenians ordered the two sides to stop fighting and submit the case to arbitration at Athens, the Samians refused.^[62] In response, Pericles passed a decree dispatching an expedition to Samos, "alleging against its people that, though they were ordered to break off their war against the Milesians, they were not complying".^ε[›] In a naval battle the Athenians led by Pericles and the other nine generals defeated the forces of Samos and imposed on the island an administration pleasing to them.^[62] When the Samians revolted against Athenian rule, Pericles compelled the rebels to capitulate after a tough siege of eight months, which resulted in substantial discontent among the Athenian sailors.^[63] Pericles then quelled a revolt in Byzantium and, when he returned to Athens, he gave a funeral oration to honor the soldiers who died in the expedition.^[64] Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... The war in Samos was the most important military event in ancient Greece before the Peloponnesian War. ... Centuries: 6th century BC - 5th century BC - 4th century BC Decades: 490s BC 480s BC 470s BC 460s BC 450s BC - 440s BC - 430s BC 420s BC 410s BC 400s BC 390s BC Years: 445 BC 444 BC 443 BC 442 BC 441 BC - 440 BC - 439 BC 438 BC... Samos (Greek: Σάμος) is a Greek island in the Eastern Aegean sea, located between the island of Chios to the North and the archipelagic complex of the Dodecanese to the South and in particular the island of Patmos and off the coast of Turkey, on what was formerly known as Ionia. ... The lower half of the benches and the remnants of the scene building of the theater of Miletus (August 2005) Miletus (Carian: Anactoria Hittite: Milawata or Millawanda, Greek: Μίλητος transliterated Miletos, Turkish: Milet) was an ancient city on the western coast of Anatolia (in what is now Aydin Province, Turkey), near... Priene (mod. ... Location of Ionia Ionia (Greek Ιωνία; see also list of traditional Greek place names) was an ancient region of southwestern coastal Anatolia (in present-day Turkey, the region nearest Ä°zmir,) on the Aegean Sea. ... Mycale (also MycÇŽlé, Mukalê, Mykale and Mycali; called Samsun DaÄŸi in modern Turkey) is a mountain on the west coast of central Anatolia in Turkey, north of the mouth of the Maeander and opposite the island of Samos. ... Byzantium (Greek: Βυζάντιον) was an ancient Greek city, which, according to legend, was founded by Greek colonists from Megara in 667 BC and named after their king Byzas or Byzantas (Βύζας or Βύζαντας in Greek). ...

Between 438 BC-436 BC Pericles led Athens' fleet in Pontus and established friendly relations with the Greek cities of the region.^[65] Pericles focused also on internal projects, such as the fortification of Athens (the building of the "middle wall" about 440 BC), and on the creation of new cleruchies, such as Andros, Naxos and Thurii (444 BC) as well as Amphipolis (437 BC-436 BC).^[66] Centuries: 6th century BC - 5th century BC - 4th century BC Decades: 480s BC 470s BC 460s BC 450s BC 440s BC - 430s BC - 420s BC 410s BC 400s BC 390s BC 380s BC Years: 443 BC 442 BC 441 BC 440 BC 439 BC - 438 BC - 437 BC 436 BC... Centuries: 6th century BC - 5th century BC - 4th century BC Decades: 480s BC 470s BC 460s BC 450s BC 440s BC - 430s BC - 420s BC 410s BC 400s BC 390s BC 380s BC Years: 441 BC 440 BC 439 BC 438 BC 437 BC - 436 BC - 435 BC 434 BC... Traditional rural Pontic house A man in traditional clothes from Trabzon, illustration Pontus is the name which was applied, in ancient times, to extensive tracts of country in the northeast of Asia Minor (modern Turkey) bordering on the Euxine (Black Sea), which was often called simply Pontos (the main), by... A cleruchy, in Hellenic Greece, was a specialised type of colony established by Athens. ... Andros, or Andro (Greek: Άνδρος), an island of the Greek archipelago, the most northerly of the Cyclades, approximately 10 km (6 miles) south east of Euboea, and about 3 km (about 2 miles) north of Tinos. ... Naxos (Greek: Νάξος; Italian: Nicsia; Turkish: Nakşa) is a Greek island, the largest island (428 km²) in the Cyclades island group in the Aegean. ... Thurii, or Thueium, was a city of Magna Graecia on the Gulf of Taranto, near the site of the older Sybaris. ... Centuries: 6th century BC - 5th century BC - 4th century BC Decades: 490s BC 480s BC 470s BC 460s BC 450s BC - 440s BC - 430s BC 420s BC 410s BC 400s BC 390s BC Years: 449 BC 448 BC 447 BC 446 BC 445 BC - 444 BC - 443 BC 442 BC... Localization of Amphipolis Amphipolis (Greek, Ἀμφίπολις – Amphípolis) was an ancient Greek city in the region once inhabited by the Edoni people in the present-day periphery of East Macedonia and Thrace. ... Centuries: 6th century BC - 5th century BC - 4th century BC Decades: 480s BC 470s BC 460s BC 450s BC 440s BC - 430s BC - 420s BC 410s BC 400s BC 390s BC 380s BC Years: 442 BC 441 BC 440 BC 439 BC 438 BC - 437 BC - 436 BC 435 BC... Centuries: 6th century BC - 5th century BC - 4th century BC Decades: 480s BC 470s BC 460s BC 450s BC 440s BC - 430s BC - 420s BC 410s BC 400s BC 390s BC 380s BC Years: 441 BC 440 BC 439 BC 438 BC 437 BC - 436 BC - 435 BC 434 BC...

Personal attacks

Aspasia of Miletus (c.469 BC–c.406 BC), Pericles' companion

Pericles and his friends were never immune from attack, as preeminence in democratic Athens was not equivalent to absolute rule.^[67] Just before the eruption of the Peloponnesian war, Pericles and two of his closest associates, Phidias and his companion, Aspasia, faced a series of personal and judicial attacks. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (1760x2676, 2777 KB) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Aspasia Wikipedia:Todays featured article/requests Ancient Greek eros Metadata This file contains additional information, probably added... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (1760x2676, 2777 KB) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Aspasia Wikipedia:Todays featured article/requests Ancient Greek eros Metadata This file contains additional information, probably added... Centuries: 4th century BC - 5th century BC - 6th century BC Decades: 520s BC 510s BC 500s BC 490s BC 480s BC 470s BC - 460s BC - 450s BC 440s BC 430s BC 420s BC 474 BC 473 BC 472 BC 471 BC 470 BC - 469 BC - 468 BC 467 BC 466... Centuries: 6th century BC - 5th century BC - 4th century BC Decades: 450s BC 440s BC 430s BC 420s BC 410s BC - 400s BC - 390s BC 380s BC 370s BC 360s BC 350s BC Years: 411 BC 410 BC 409 BC 408 BC 407 BC - 406 BC - 405 BC 404 BC... Marble herm in the Vatican Museums inscribed with Aspasias name at the base. ...

Phidias, who had been in charge of all building projects, was first accused of embezzling gold intended for the statue of Athena and then of impiety, because, when he wrought the battle of the Amazons on the shield of Athena, he carved out a figure that suggested himself as a bald old man, and also inserted a very fine likeness of Pericles fighting with an Amazon.^[68] Pericles' enemies also found a false witness against Phidias, named Menon. For other uses, see Athena (disambiguation). ... The Amazons (in Greek, ) were a mythical ancient nation of all-female warriors. ...

Aspasia, who was noted for her ability as a conversationalist and adviser, was accused of corrupting the women of Athens in order to satisfy Pericles' perversions.^[69][70] Aspasia was probably a hetaera and ran a brothel,^[71][72] although these allegations are disputed by modern scholars.^[73][74] The accusations against her were probably nothing more than unproven slanders, but the whole experience was very bitter for Pericles. Although Aspasia was acquitted thanks to a rare emotional outburst of Pericles, his friend, Phidias, died in prison and another friend of his, Anaxagoras, was attacked by the ecclesia for his religious beliefs.^[68] In ancient Greece, hetaerae (in Greek , hetairai) were courtesans, that is to say, sophisticated companions and prostitutes. ... A brothel, also known as a bordello or whorehouse, is an establishment specifically dedicated to prostitution, providing the prostitutes a place to meet and to have sex with the clients. ... The ecclesia or ekklesia (Greek έκκλησία) was the principal assembly of the democracy of ancient Athens. ...

Beyond these initial prosecutions, the ecclesia attacked Pericles himself by asking him to justify his ostensible profligacy with, and maladministration of, public money.^[70] According to Plutarch, Pericles was so afraid of the oncoming trial that he did not let the Athenians yield to the Lacedaemonians.^[70] Beloch also believes that Pericles deliberately brought on the war to protect his political position at home.^[75] Thus, at the start of the Peloponnesian War, Athens found itself in the awkward position of entrusting its future to a leader whose preeminence had just been seriously shaken for the first time in over a decade.^[9] Laconia (Λακωνία), also known as Lacedaemonia, was in ancient Greece the portion of the Peloponnesus of which the most important city was Sparta. ...

Peloponnesian War

Main article: Peloponnesian War

The causes of the Peloponnesian War have been much debated, but most ancient historians laid the blame on Pericles and Athens. Plutarch seems to believe that Pericles and the Athenians incited the war, scrambling to implement their belligerent tactics "with a sort of arrogance and a love of strife".^στ[›] Thucydides hints at the same thing; although he is generally regarded as an admirer of Pericles, Thucydides has, at this point, been criticised for bias towards Sparta.^ζ[›] “Athenian War” redirects here. ... For modern day Sparta, see Sparti (municipality). ...

Prelude to the war

Anaxagoras and Pericles by Augustin-Louis Belle (1757–1841)

Pericles was convinced that the war against Sparta, which could not conceal its envy of Athens' pre-eminence, was inevitable if not to be welcomed.^[76] Therefore he did not hesitate to send troops to Corcyra to reinforce the Corcyraean fleet, which was fighting against Corinth.^[77] In 433 BC the enemy fleets confronted each other at the Battle of Sybota and a year later the Athenians fought Corinthian colonists at the Battle of Potidaea; these two events contributed greatly to Corinth's lasting hatred of Athens. During the same period, Pericles proposed the Megarian Decree, which resembled a modern trade embargo. According to the provisions of the decree, Megarian merchants were excluded from the market of Athens and the ports in its empire. This ban strangled the Megarian economy and strained the fragile peace between Athens and Sparta, which was allied with Megara. According to George Cawkwell, a praelector in ancient history, with this decree Pericles breached the Thirty Years Peace "but, perhaps, not without the semblance of an excuse".^[78] The Athenians' justification was that the Megarians had cultivated the sacred land consecrated to Demeter and had given refuge to runaway slaves, a behavior which the Athenians considered to be impious.^[79] Image File history File links Anaxagoras_and_Pericles. ... Image File history File links Anaxagoras_and_Pericles. ... (This article is about the Greek island known in English as Corfu. ... Corinth, or Korinth (Greek: Κόρινθος, Kórinthos; see also List of traditional Greek place names) is a Greek city-state, on the Isthmus of Corinth, the narrow stretch of land that joins the Peloponnesus to the mainland of Greece. ... Centuries: 6th century BC - 5th century BC - 4th century BC Decades: 480s BC 470s BC 460s BC 450s BC 440s BC - 430s BC - 420s BC 410s BC 400s BC 390s BC 380s BC Years: 438 BC 437 BC 436 BC 435 BC 434 BC - 433 BC - 432 BC 431 BC...