The Theban Hegemony lasted from the Theban victory over the Spartans at Leuctra in 371 BC to their defeat of a coalition of Peloponnesian armies at Mantinea in 362 BC though Thebes sought to maintain its position until finally eclipsed by the rising power of Macedon in 346BC. Thebes (in modern Greek: Θήβα — Thíva, in ancient Greek and Katharevousa: — ThÄ“bai 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. ... Hegemony (pronounced ) (greek:ηγεμονία) is the dominance of one group over other groups, with or without the threat of force, to the extent that, for instance, the dominant party can dictate the terms of trade to its advantage; more broadly, cultural perspectives become skewed to favor the dominant group. ... Sparta (Doric: Σπάρτα, Attic: Σπάρτη) is a city in southern Greece. ... Leuctra was a village in ancient Greece, in Boetia, seven miles southwest of Thebes. ... Centuries: 5th century BC - 4th century BC - 3rd century BC Decades: 420s BC 410s BC 400s BC 390s BC 380s BC - 370s BC - 360s BC 350s BC 340s BC 330s BC 320s BC 376 BC 375 BC 374 BC 373 BC 372 BC - 371 BC - 370 BC 369 BC 368... Peloponnesos (Greek: Πελοπόννησος, sometime Latinized as Peloponnesus or Anglicized as The Peloponnese) is a large peninsula in Greece, forming the part of the country south of the Isthmus of Corinth. ... Mantinea is a city in the central Peloponnese that was the site of two significant battles in Classical Greek history. ... Centuries: 5th century BC - 4th century BC - 3rd century BC Decades: 410s BC 400s BC 390s BC 380s BC 370s BC 360s BC 350s BC 340s BC 330s BC 320s BC 310s BC 367 BC 366 BC 365 BC 364 BC 363 BC 362 BC 361 BC 360 BC 359...

Externally, the way was paved for Theban ascendancy by the collapse of Athenian power in the Peloponnesian War (431 - 404 BCE) and the weaking of the Spartans by their oliganthropia (demographic decline) and the inconclusive Corinthian War (395 - 386 BCE). Internally, the Thebans enjoyed two temporary military advantages: 1) the leaders of the Theban oligarchy at the time, Epaminondas and Pelopidas, were fully committed to an aggressive foreign policy and could be relied on to win any battle and 2) the same leaders had instituted tactical improvements in the Theban heavy infantry (e.g. longer spears, the use of a wedge-shaped formation of spearmen), which had yet to catch on among their rivals. Athens (Greek: Αθήνα, Athína IPA: ) is the capital of Greece and one of the most famous cities in the world, named after goddess Athena. ... Combatants Delian League led by Athens Peloponnesian League led by Sparta Commanders Pericles Cleon Nicias Alcibiades Archidamus II Brasidas Lysander The Peloponnesian War began in 431 BC between the Athenian Empire (or The Delian League) and the Peloponnesian League, led by Sparta. ... Combatants Sparta, Peloponnesian League Athens, Argos, Corinth, Thebes, and other allies Commanders Agesilaus and others Numerous The Corinthian War (395 BC–387 BC) was an ancient Greek military conflict between Sparta and four allied states, Thebes, Athens, Corinth, and Argos, which were initially backed by Persia. ... For information about the modern board game of the same name, see Epaminondas (game). ... Pelopidas (d. ...

The Thebans had traditionally enjoyed the hegemony of the Boeotian League, the oligarchical federation of Aeolic-speaking Greeks to the immediate north-west of Athenian-dominated Attica. Their brief rise to power outside the Boeotian Plain began in 373 when the Boeotians defeated and destroyed of the town of Plataea, strategically important as the only Athenian ally in Boeotia. This was taken as a direct challenge by the previous hegemonic power, the Spartans, who gambled on restoring their waning ascendancy by a decisive defeat of the Thebans. At Leuctra, in Boeotia, the Thebans comprehensively defeated an invading Spartan army. Out of 1,000 Spartan citizens, 400 died at Leuctra. After this, the Thebans systematically dominated Greece. In the south, they invaded the Peloponnese to liberate the Messenians and Arcadians from Spartan overlordship and set up a pro-Theban Arcadian League to oversee Peloponnesian affairs. In the north, they invaded Thessaly, to crush the growing local power of Pherae and took the future Philip II of Macedon hostage, bringing him to Thebes. Pelopidas, however was killed at Cynoscephalae, in battle against troops from Pherae (though the battle was actually won by the Thebans). Boeotia (Greek Βοιωτια) was a central area of ancient Greece. ... Linguists use the term Aeolic to describe a set of rather archaic Greek sub-dialects, spoken mainly in Boeotia (a region in Central Greece), in Lesbos (an island close to Asia Minor) and in other Greek colonies. ... 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. ... Please wikify (format) this article as suggested in the Guide to layout and the Manual of Style. ... Boeotia or Beotia (//, (Greek Βοιωτια; see also list of traditional Greek place names) was the central area of ancient Greece. ... Messinia Messinia (also spelled Messenia) is a district in the Peloponnesus, a region of Greece. ... Arcadia or Arkadía (Greek Αρκαδία; see also List of traditional Greek place names) is a region of Greece in the Peloponnesus. ... Map showing Thessaly periphery in Greece Thessaly (Θεσσαλια; modern Greek Thessalía; see also List of traditional Greek place names) is one of the 13 peripheries of Greece, and is further sub-divided into 4 prefectures. ... Pherae was an ancient Greek city in Thessaly. ... Philipp II - King of Macedonia Philip II of Macedon (382 BC–336 BC; in Greek Φίλιππος, transliterated Philippos) was the King of Macedonia from 359 BC until his death. ... Two important places in antiquity were called Thebes: Thebes, Greece – Thebes of the Seven Gates; one-time capital of Boeotia. ... For the earlier battle fought here, see Battle of Cynoscephalae (364 BC). ...

The Thebans overstretched themselves strategically and, in their efforts to maintain control of the north, their power in the south disintegrated. The Spartan king, Agesilaus II, scraped together an army from various Peloponnesian towns dissatisfied with Theban rule and managed to kill but not defeat Epaminondas in the Battle of Mantinea, but not to re-establish any real Spartan ascendancy. This was if anything a Pyrrhic victory for both states. Sparta lacked the manpower and resources to make any real attempt at regaining her empire and Thebes had now lost both of the innovative leaders who had allowed her rise to dominanace and was similarly reduced in resources to the point where that dominance could, not be guaranteed. The Thebans sought to maintain their position through diplomacy and their influence at the Amphiktionic council in Delphi, but when this resulted in their former allies the Phocians seizing Delphi and beginning the Third Sacred War (c. 355), Thebes proved too exhuasted to bring any conclusion to the conflict. The war was finally ended in 346 BC, by the forces not of Thebes, or any of the city-states, but of Philip of Macedon, to whom the city-states whom the city-states had grown desperate enough to turn. This signalled the rise of Macedon within Greece and finally brought to an end a Theban Hegemony which had already been in decline. Agesilaus II, or Agesilaos II (Greek Ἀγησιλάος), king of Sparta, of the Eurypontid family, was the son of Archidamus II and Eupolia, and younger step-brother of Agis II, whom he succeeded about 401 BC. Agis had, indeed, a son Leotychides, but he was set aside as illegitimate, current rumour representing... For information about the modern board game of the same name, see Epaminondas (game). ... Combatants Thebes, Arcadia and Boeotia League Sparta, Elis, and Mantinea league Commanders Epaminondas† Agesilaus II Strength Casualties {{{notes}}} The Battle of Mantinea was fought in 362 BC between the Thebans, led by Epaminondas and supported by the Arcadians and the Boeotians, and the Spartans, led by King Agesilaus II and...