Thebes (in modern Greek: Θήβα - Thíva, in ancient Greek and Katharevousa: Θῆβαι - Thēbai 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. In ancient times it was the largest city of the region of Boeotia and the modern city still contains the Cadmea (ancient citadel). Modern Greek (Νεοελληνική) is a dialect family that refers to the fifth stage of the evolution of the Greek language (the first four being Mycenean, Ancient Greek, Post-Classical or Hellenistic Greek and Medieval Greek), and it includes every dialect and idiom of Hellenic speech that exists in the world today. ... Ancient Greek refers to the stage in the history of the Greek language corresponding to Classical Antiquity, which normally applies on two ancient periods of Greek history: Archaic and Classic Greece. ... Katharevousa (Greek Καθαρεύουσα, IPA //) is a form of the Greek language, created during the early 19th century by Adamantios Korais (1748-1833). ... In Greek mythology, Cithaeron was beloved by Tisiphone, one of the Erinyes. ... Boeotia (Greek Βοιωτια) was the central area of ancient Greece. ... This article is about Attica in Greece. ... Boeotia (Greek Βοιωτια) was the central area of ancient Greece. ...

History

The record of the earliest days of Thebes was preserved among the Greeks in an abundant mass of legends which rival the myths of Troy in their wide ramification and the influence which they exerted upon the literature of the classical age. Five main cycles of story may be distinguished: Walls of the excavated city of Troy (Turkey) This article is about the city of Troy / Ilion as described in the works of Homer, and the location of an ancient city associated with it. ...

1. The foundation of the citadel Cadmea by Cadmus, and the growth of the Sparti or "Sown Men" (probably an aetiological myth designed to explain the origin of the Theban nobility which bore that name in historical times);
2. The building of a "seven-gated" wall by Amphion, and the cognate stories of Zethus, Antiope and Dirce;
3. The tale of the "house of Laius," culminating in the adventures of Oedipus and the wars of the "Seven Against Thebes" and the Epigoni;
4. The advent of Dionysus; and
5. The exploits of Heracles.

It is difficult to extract any historical fact out of this maze of myths; the various groups cannot be fully co-ordinated, and a further perplexing feature is the neglect of Thebes in the Homeric poems. On the other hand, these myths cannot be entirely discarded, as shown by the recovery in the 1909 excavation of the "House of Cadmus", whom legend states was born in Tyre and taught letters to the Greeks, of a collection of Mesopotamian cylinder-seals, including one referring to a Kassite king who ruled between 1381 and 1354 BC. Further archeological excavations in and around Thebes have revealed cist graves dated to Mycenaean times containing weapons, ivory, and tablets written in Linear B. It seems safe to infer that it was one of the first Greek communities to be drawn together within a fortified city, that it owed its importance in prehistoric – as in later days – to its military strength. As a fortified community, it attracted attention from the invading Dorians, and the fact of their eventual conquest of Thebes lie behind the stories of the successive legendary attacks on that city. Cadmus Sowing the Dragons teeth, by Maxfield Parrish, 1908 Cadmus, or Kadmos (Greek: Κάδμος), in Greek mythology, was the son of the king of Phoenicia and brother of Europa. ... In Greek mythology, Sparti (Gr. ... Etiology (alternately aetiology, aitiology) is the study of Greek words aitia = cause and logos = word/speech) is used in philosophy, physics and biology in reference to the causes of various phenomena. ... There are two characters named Amphion in Greek mythology: Amphion, the brother of Zethus Amphion son of Hyperasius and Hypso, an Argonaut ... Amphion (native of two lands) and Zethus, in ancient Greek mythology, were the twin sons of Zeus by Antiope. ... ... Dirce (double or cleft) was the wife of Lycus in Greek mythology, and sister in law to Antiope whom Zeus impregnated. ... Å’dipus and the Sphinx, from an 1879 illustration from Stories from the Greek Tragedians by Alfred Church Oedipus (Greek , Oidipous, swollen-foot; rarely ; Latin Oedipus) or Å’dipus was the mythical king of Thebes, son of Laius and Jocasta, who, unknowingly, killed his father and married his mother. ... The Oath of the Seven Chiefs, an 1897 illustration from Stories from the Greek Tragedians by Alfred Church Seven Against Thebes is a play by Aeschylus concerning the battle between Eteocles and the army of Thebes and Polynices and his supporters, traditional Theban enemies. ... Epigoni are a group of figures in Greek mythology. ... Bacchus by Caravaggio The god Dionysus is occasionally confused with one of several historical figures named Dionysius, a theophoric name that simply means [servant] of Dionysus. ... Statue of Heracles In Greek mythology, Heracles, or Heraklês (glory of Hera, ηρακλης) was the demigod son of Zeus and Alcmene, the grand-son of Perseus and the wife of Amphitryon. ... Bust of Homer in the British Museum For other uses, see Homer (disambiguation). ... 1909 was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... Tyre (Arabic الصور aṣ-Ṣūr native Phoenician Ṣur, ) is an ancient Phoenician city in Lebanon on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, about 23 miles, in a direct line, north of Acre, and 20 south of Sidon. ... The Kassites were a Near Eastern mountain tribe of obscure origins, who spoke a non-Indo-European, non-Semitic language. ... The Lion Gate at Mycenae The Lion Gate (detail) Mycenae (ancient Greek: , IPA , in modern Greek: Μυκήνες ), is an archaeological site in Greece, located about 90km south-west of Athens, in the north-eastern Peloponnese. ... Linear B script sample Linear B is the script that was used for writing Mycenaean, an early form of the Greek language. ... The Dorians were one of the ancient Illyrian (Greek) tribes acknowledged by Greek writers. ...

The central position and military security of the city naturally tended to raise it to a commanding position among the Boeotians, and from early days its inhabitants endeavoured to establish a complete supremacy over their kinsmen in the outlying towns. This centralizing policy is as much the cardinal fact of Theban history as the counteracting effort of the smaller towns to resist absorption forms the main chapter of the story of Boeotia. No details of the earlier history of Thebes have been preserved, except that it was governed by a land-holding aristocracy who safeguarded their integrity by rigid statutes about the ownership of property and its transmission. The Ancient Greek term aristocracy meant a system of government with rule by the best. This is the first definition given in most dictionaries. ...

In the late 6th century BC the Thebans were brought for the first time into hostile contact with the Athenians, who helped the small village of Plataea to maintain its independence against them, and in 506 repelled an inroad into Attica. The aversion to Athens best serves to explain the unpatriotic attitude which Thebes displayed during the Persian invasion of Greece (480–479 BC). Though a contingent of 700 was sent to Thermopylae and remained there with Leonidas until just before the last stand when they surrendered to the Persians^[1], the governing aristocracy soon after joined King Xerxes I of Persia with great readiness and fought zealously on his behalf at the battle of Plataea in 479 BC. The victorious Greeks subsequently punished Thebes by depriving it of the presidency of the Boeotian League, and an attempt by the Spartans to expel it from the Delphic amphictyony was only frustrated by the intercession of Athens. (7th century BC - 6th century BCE - 5th century BCE - other centuries) (600s BCE - 590s BCE - 580s BCE - 570s BCE - 560s BCE - 550s BCE - 540s BCE - 530s BCE - 520s BCE - 510s BCE - 500s BCE - other decades) (2nd millennium BCE - 1st millennium BCE - 1st millennium) The 5th and 6th centuries BCE were... The Acropolis in central Athens, one of the most important landmarks in world history. ... Plataea is an ancient city, located in Greece in southeastern Boeotia, south of Thebes. ... Centuries: 7th century BC - 6th century BC - 5th century BC Decades: 550s BC - 540s BC - 530s BC - 520s BC - 510s BC - 500s BC - 490s BC - 480s BC - 470s BC - 460s BC - 450s BC Events and Trends 509 BC - Foundation of the Roman Republic 508 BC - Office of pontifex maximus created... 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. // Origins Persian Impire in 500 BC At the end of the 6th century BC, Darius the Great ruled over an... Centuries: 6th century BC - 5th century BC - 4th century BC Decades: 530s BC 520s BC 510s BC 500s BC 490s BC - 480s BC - 470s BC 460s BC 450s BC 440s BC 430s BC Years: 485 BC 484 BC 483 BC 482 BC 481 BC _ 480 BC _ 479 BC... 479 pr. ... In the Battle of Thermopylae of 480 BC an alliance of Greek city-states, called the Delian League, fought the invading Persian army in a mountain pass. ... Leonidas can refer to: Leonidas I, king of Sparta, ruled c. ... Xerxes I (خشایارشاه), was a Persian king (reigned 485 - 465 BC) of the Achaemenid dynasty. ... The Battle of Plataea took place in 479 BC between an alliance of Greek city-states Sparta, Athens, Corinth, Megara, and others against the Persians. ... 479 pr. ... Boeotia (Greek Βοιωτια) was a central area of ancient Greece. ... The Amphictyonic League (Amphictyony) was a form of Greek Hellenic religious organization that was formed to support specific temple or sacred place. ...

In 457 Sparta, needing a counterpoise against Athens in central Greece, reversed her policy and reinstated Thebes as the dominant power in Boeotia. The great citadel of Cadmea served this purpose well by holding out as a base of resistance when the Athenians overran and occupied the rest of the country (457–447). In the Peloponnesian War the Thebans, embittered by the support which Athens gave to the smaller Boeotian towns, and especially to Plataea, which they vainly attempted to reduce in 431, were firm allies of Sparta, which in turn helped them to besiege Plataea and allowed them to destroy the town after its capture in 427 BC. In 424 at the head of the Boeotian levy they inflicted a severe defeat upon an invading force of Athenians at the Battle of Delium, and for the first time displayed the effects of that firm military organization which eventually raised them to predominant power 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: 462 BC 461 BC 460 BC 459 BC 458 BC - 457 BC - 456 BC 455 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... 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... Map of the Greek world at the start of the Peloponnesian War Temple of Apollo at Corinth The Peloponnesian War began in 431 BC between the Athenian Empire (or The Delian League) and the Peloponnesian League which included Sparta and Corinth. ... 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: 432 BC 431 BC 430 BC 429 BC 428 BC - 427 BC - 426 BC 425 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: 429 BC 428 BC 427 BC 426 BC 425 BC - 424 BC - 423 BC 422 BC... The Battle of Delium took place in 424 BC between the Athenians and the Boeotians, and ended with the siege of Delium in the following weeks. ...

After the downfall of Athens at the end of the Peloponnesian War the Thebans, finding that Sparta intended to protect the states which they desired to annex, broke off the alliance. In 404 they had urged the complete destruction of Athens, yet in 403 they secretly supported the restoration of its democracy in order to find in it a counterpoise against Sparta. A few years later, influenced perhaps in part by Persian gold, they formed the nucleus of the league against Sparta. At the battles of Haliartus (395) and Coronea (394) they again proved their rising military capacity by standing their ground against the Spartans. The result of the war was especially disastrous to Thebes, as the general settlement of 387 stipulated the complete autonomy of all Greek towns and so withdrew the other Boeotians from its political control. Its power was further curtailed in 382, when a Spartan force occupied the citadel by a treacherous coup-de-main. Three years later the Spartan garrison was expelled, and a democratic constitution definitely set up in place of the traditional oligarchy. In the consequent wars with Sparta the Theban army, trained and led by Epaminondas and Pelopidas, proved itself the best in Greece. Some years of desultory fighting, in which Thebes established its control over all Boeotia, culminated in 371 in a remarkable victory over the pick of the Spartans at Leuctra. The winners were hailed throughout Greece as champions of the oppressed. They carried their arms into Peloponnesus and at the head of a large coalition permanently crippled the power of Sparta. Similar expeditions were sent to Thessaly and Macedonia to regulate the affairs of those regions. 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: 409 BC 408 BC 407 BC 406 BC 405 BC - 404 BC - 403 BC 402 BC... 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: 408 BC 407 BC 406 BC 405 BC 404 BC - 403 BC - 402 BC 401 BC... Centuries: 5th century BC - 4th century BC - 3rd century BC Decades: 440s BC 430s BC 420s BC 410s BC 400s BC - 390s BC - 380s BC 370s BC 360s BC 350s BC 340s BC Years: 400 BC 399 BC 398 BC 397 BC 396 BC - 395 BC - 394 BC 393 BC... The Battle of Coronea can refer to: Battle of Coronea (447 BC) Battle of Coronea (394 BC) This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... Centuries: 5th century BC - 4th century BC - 3rd century BC Decades: 440s BC 430s BC 420s BC 410s BC 400s BC - 390s BC - 380s BC 370s BC 360s BC 350s BC 340s BC Years: 399 BC 398 BC 397 BC 396 BC 395 BC - 394 BC - 393 BC 392 BC... Centuries: 5th century BC - 4th century BC - 3rd century BC Decades: 430s BC 420s BC 410s BC 400s BC 390s BC - 380s BC - 370s BC 360s BC 350s BC 340s BC 330s BC Years: 392 BC 391 BC 390 BC 389 BC 388 BC - 387 BC - 386 BC 385 BC... Centuries: 5th century BC - 4th century BC - 3rd century BC Decades: 430s BC 420s BC 410s BC 400s BC 390s BC - 380s BC - 370s BC 360s BC 350s BC 340s BC 330s BC Years: 387 BC 386 BC 385 BC 384 BC 383 BC - 382 BC - 381 BC 380 BC... Epaminondas (c. ... Pelopidas (d. ... 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... Leuctra was a village of Boeotia in the territory of Thespiae, chiefly noticeable for the battle fought in its neighborhood in 371 BC between the Thebans and the Spartans and their allies. ... 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. ... 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. ...

The monument at Chaeronea with the lion head for Thebans who died in Battle of Chaeronea

However the predominance of Thebes was short-lived; the states which she protected refused to subject themselves permanently to her control, and the renewed rivalry of Athens, which had joined with Thebes in 395 in a common fear of Sparta, but since 371 had endeavoured to maintain the balance of power against her ally, prevented the formation of a Theban empire. With the death of Epaminondas at Mantinea in 362 the city sank again to the position of a secondary power. In a war with the neighbouring state of Phocis (356–346) it could not even maintain its predominance in central Greece, and by inviting Philip II of Macedon to crush the Phocians it extended that monarch's power within dangerous proximity to its frontiers. A revulsion of feeling was completed in 338 by the orator Demosthenes, who persuaded Thebes to join Athens in a final attempt to bar Philip's advance upon Attica. The Theban contingent lost the decisive battle of Chaeronea and along with it every hope of reassuming control over Greece. Philip was content to deprive Thebes of her dominion over Boeotia; but an unsuccessful revolt in 335 against his son Alexander was punished by Macedon and other Greek states by the severe sacking of the city, except, according to tradition, the house of the poet Pindar. Image File history File links Taken from: Livius on ancient history File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Image File history File links Taken from: Livius on ancient history File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Chaeronea was a city in the province of Boeotia in Ancient Greece. ... The monument with the lion head for Thebans who died in Battle of Chaeronea The Battle of Chaeronea (338 BC), fought near Chaeronea, in Boeotia, was the greatest victory of Philip II of Macedon. ... Epaminondas (c. ... 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... Phocis (Greek, Modern: Φωκίδα, Ancient/Katharevousa: -s, also Phokida, Phokis) is an ancient district of central Greece. ... Centuries: 5th century BC - 4th century BC - 3rd century BC Decades: 400s BC 390s BC 380s BC 370s BC 360s BC - 350s BC - 340s BC 330s BC 320s BC 310s BC 300s BC 361 BC 360 BC 359 BC 358 BC 357 BC 356 BC 355 BC 354 BC 353... Centuries: 5th century BC - 4th century BC - 3rd century BC Decades: 390s BC 380s BC 370s BC 360s BC 350s BC - 340s BC - 330s BC 320s BC 310s BC 300s BC 290s BC 351 BC 350 BC 349 BC 348 BC 347 BC 346 BC 345 BC 344 BC 343... Philip II of Macedon (382 BC–336 BC; Greek: ΦΙΛΙΠΠΟΣ) was the King of Macedon from 359 BC until his death. ... Demosthenes Demosthenes (384 BC – 322 BC) is generally considered the greatest of the Attic orators, and thus the greatest of all Ancient Greek orators. ... Two famous ancient battles were fought at Chaeronea in Boeotia: Battle of Chaeronea (338 BC) Battle of Chaeronea (86 BC) This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... Centuries: 5th century BC - 4th century BC - 3rd century BC Decades: 380s BC 370s BC 360s BC 350s BC 340s BC - 330s BC - 320s BC 310s BC 300s BC 290s BC 280s BC Years: 340 BC 339 BC 338 BC 337 BC 336 BC - 335 BC - 334 BC 333 BC... Alexander the Great fighting the Persian king Darius (Pompeii mosaic, from a 3rd century BC original Greek painting, now lost). ... Pindar, THE GREATEST SEX GOD!! (or Pindarus) (522 BC – 443 BC), the greatest penis pumper of ancient Greece, was born at Cynoscephalae, a village in Thebes. ...

The city was refurbished in 315 by Cassander, but it never again played a prominent part in Greek politics. It suffered from the establishment of Chalcis as the chief fortress of central Greece, and was severely handled by the Roman conquerors Mummius and Sulla. Strabo describes it as a mere village, and in Pausanias's time (mid-1st century) its citadel alone was inhabited. During the Byzantine period it served as a place of refuge against foreign invaders, and from the 10th century, became a centre of the new silk trade. Though severely plundered by the Normans in 1146 it recovered its prosperity and was selected by the Frankish dynasty de la Roche as its capital. In 1311 it was sacked by the Catalan Company. Today the city of Thebes still exists on Greek soil but only as a shadow of its former self. Centuries: 5th century BC - 4th century BC - 3rd century BC Decades: 360s BC 350s BC 340s BC 330s BC 320s BC - 310s BC - 300s BC 290s BC 280s BC 270s BC 260s BC 320 BC 319 BC 318 BC 317 BC 316 BC - 315 BC - 314 BC 313 BC 312... Cassander (c. ... Chalcis or Chalkida, Halkida, Halkis or Chalkis (Greek, Modern: Χαλκίδα, Ancient/Katharevousa: _is), the chief town of the island of Euboea in Greece, situated on the strait of the Euripus at its narrowest point. ... Lucius Cornelius Sulla Felix (Latin: L·CORNELIVS·L·F·P·N·SVLLA·FELIX) ¹ (ca. ... Strabo (squinty) was a term employed by the Romans for anyone whose eyes were distorted or deformed. ... Pausanias was Greek traveller and geographer of the 2nd century A.D., who lived in the times of Hadrian, Antoninus Pius and Marcus Aurelius. ... (1st century BC - 1st century - 2nd century - other centuries) The 1st century was that century which lasted from 1 to 100. ... The Byzantine Empire is the term conventionally used to describe the Greek-speaking Roman Empire during the Middle Ages, centred at its capital in Constantinople. ... As a means of recording the passage of time, the 10th century was that century which lasted from 901 to 1000. ... Silk weaver Silk is a natural protein fiber that can be woven into textiles. ... The Normans (adapted from the name Northmen or Norsemen) were a mixture of the indigenous Gauls of France and the Viking invaders under the leadership of Rollo (Gange Rolf). ... Events Saint Bernard of Clairvaux preaches the Second Crusade at Vezelay, Burgundy First written mention of Bryansk. ... Events Bolingbroke Castle passes to the House of Lancaster. ... The Oriental Catalan Company, or the Grand Company, was founded by Roger de Flor (who inspired the medieval tale of Tirant lo Blanc) after the Peace of Caltabellotta in 1302 had left jobless the soldiers from Catalonia (Spain and France), and Aragon fighting against the French dynasty of Anjou. ...

Portions of the historical section were taken from the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica. (Redirected from 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica) The Eleventh Edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica (1911) in many ways represents the sum of knowledge at the beginning of the 20th century. ...

See also

• List of traditional Greek place names

This is a list of traditional Greek place names. ...

Bibliography

• Herodotus "The Histories of Herodotus"

Bust of Herodotus Herodotus of Halicarnassus (Greek: ΗΡΟΔΟΤΟΣ, Herodotos) was an ancient historian who lived in the 5th century BC (484 BC-ca. ...

Notes

1. ^  Herodotus Bibliography VII:205 ,222,223.

External links

• Timeless Myths - House of Thebes