Greek Period Study - Topic 5 The End of the Peloponnesian war

Thucydides 5:43

Alcibiades and the rest of his party called for an end to the peace of Nicias

Wanted to establish an alliance with Argos. Again Thucydides discusses his motivations for this. Firstly he states that he 'genuinely' thought that this was the best thing for Athens, and secondly he wanted to gain the respect that he had lost after the peace of Nicias was arranged without his input.

Sends a message to the Argives to come to Athens to establish an alliance. Intended to form a four-way alliance with Athens, Argos, Mantinea and Ellis

Thucydides 7:18 (reasons for outbreak of war)

States that it was the Athenians who broke the treaty first, at least in the Spartans eyes. Indeed, Thucydides states that that there were constant raids from Pylos, and the Athenians laid waste part of Epidaurus and Prasiae. Furthermore, whenever doubtful points arose, Sparta offered to submit to arbitration and Athens who refused.

Thucydides 6:91

Alcibiades' speech to Sparta imploring them to take action, and to fortify Decelea in Attica, and to take action in Sicily.

Fortification of Decelea supposedly 'the thing of which the Athenians have always been most frightened'

Will deprive Athens of her silver mines at Laurium. She will also lose the tribute she gains from the allies, because they will pay it in much less regularly.

Thucydides 7:18 (Decelea)

Plays down the significance of Alcibiades, here in the decision of fortifying Decelea. While he does acknowledge Alcibiades' requests for them to do so, he states that the marching on Attica and the fortification of Decelea mainly came about because Sparta realised that Athens would be at her weakest while fighting a war on two fronts.



Sparta was also encouraged supposedly by the suggestion that apparently Athens had been the first to break the treaty.

Thucydides 7:27-28

Evidence of the attacks being made frequently from Decelea.

Athenians had to send Thracian troops back because it was deemed too expensive to retain their services for dealing with the attacks made on them from Decelea



States that Athens had suffered a great deal and that it was 'one of the chief reasons for the decline in Athenian power.

Constant raids to take supplies. The fortification cut them off from 20,000 slaves and all the sheep and farm animals

Food, which had previously gone by quicker route overland through Decelea now had to go round by sea round Sunium at great expense

As Athens was becoming embarrassed financially she imposed a 5%  tax on all imports and exports by sea to bring in more money

Thucydides 4:50

Sparta clearly engaging with the Persians, however Sparta is clearly unsure what they want out of the Persians as the king cannot even understand what they want due to the differing accounts from the ambassadors. Clearly negotiations for finances, however intercepted negotiations by Athens

Thucydides 8.6

**Reasons for Persian engagement** - Darius II secure and had changed his satraps with recovering tribute from the Asiatic Greeks --> meant he needed to defeat Athens in the Aegean

Thucydides 8:9

Does not go well initially because most of the people in Chios were unaware of their oligarch's communication with Sparta so when they are confronted by Athens they send them 7 ships as the oligarchs wanted some tangible progress before upsetting the people.

Thucydides 8:17

Terms of the alliance


1. All territories previously belonging to the king and his ancestors shall be his
2. All money paid by subjects previously to Athens was to go to the Persian king
3. The war will be carried on jointly
4. Any people who revolt from Persia shall be enemies of Sparta
5. Any who revolt from Sparta shall be enemies of Persia

Thucydides 8:37

2nd version of the treaty with Persia

Thucydides 8:58

3rd version of treaty with Persia

Thucydides 8:29

Tardiness of Tissaphernes in paying up for the rowers of the Peloponnesian fleet

Thucydides 8:87

States that after mustering a Phoenician fleet to aid the Peloponnesians Tissaphernes only brought part of it into the Aegean. Thucydides states that this was to prolong the war... Who knows?

Andocides 3.29

Stresses that there may have been a peace called the 'Peace of Epilycus' between Athens and Persia during this period which would be dated to around 425 BCE where the new Persian king came to the throne

Aristophanes Achanians 61-71

Embassy comes back to Athens from Persia at about this time

Xenophon Hell 1.4.1-7

Spartan embassy returns from Darius II court stating that the King had decided to act in Sparta's interests . Athenian embassy detained so that Athens would have no knowledge of the new support from Persia

Xenophon Hell 1.5.1-3

Cyrus truly engaged in the war - gives Sparta 500 talents and says that if that was not enough he would use his own finances --> attempts to  entice rowers away from the Athenian fleet.

Xen Hell 2.1.7-8

Lysander re-established as naval commander and Cyrus recalled but before he left he handed over as much tribute as he could muster

Thucydides 2.65

Apparently Pericles had the foresight to see that if Athens should not take part in any overseas ventures while in the war.

States that those who advocated for the Sicilian expedition were only acting out of private profit.

States that the Sicilian expedition failed because there was quarrelling within Athens. (Not borne out by his later narrative, however)

Thucydides 6:8

Athenian assembly votes in favour of sending sixty ships to Sicily along with the commanders Alcibiades and Nicias, who were instructed to help the Egestaens against the Selinuntines, and to make provisions for Sicily which were in accordance with Athenian interests.

Nicias did not want command

Thucydides 6:12-13

Nicias argues that after plague Athens should be spending money on herself, not on Egesteans

Nicias has a go at Alcibiades and condemns him of being selfish, wanting admiration (horses reference).

Again this idea of weak old men being less expansionist and more cautious

*Thucydidean Speech - 1.22*

Thucydides 6:15

Alcibiades in favour of he expedition. Thucydides states that he was motivated purely to go against Nicias, whom he had never seen eye to eye with. Furthermore we are told that he was also motivated by desire for the command, personal greed and ambition.

Public opinion of Alcibiades that he had dictatorial ambitions

*How does* *Thucydides know his private motivations? Clear Thucydidean distaste, goes on to explain that Alcibiades was an extravagant aristocrat who had been brought up in Pericles’ house and played the people as Pericles had done*

Thucydides 6:24

Nicias changes approach and asks for greater forces in the hope that the enormity would dissuade the Athenian assembly. Assembly undeterred and agree to send more men. Therefore Nicias presented as largely responsible for turning a setback of 60 ships to a disaster.

Thucydides 6:31

Account of the makeup of the expedition

First fleet:

* 100 ships and 5,000 hoplites

Second Fleet:

* 60 ships and 1,200 hoplites

In total, 45,000-50,000 Athenians and allies perished

Thucydides 6:82-83

Athens attempts to gain the support of the Sicilian city Camarina



* Acknowledges the Syracusan argument that the Camarinans should side with the Syracusans because they are Dorian like them
* Why is Sparta depicted as an empire? They aren't
* Saying that they are not Dorian because the only Dorians they have come into contact with were the Spartans. Building up a repour with the Camarinans.
* Talks about the oppressing of the Ionian kinsman. Saying that they have subjugating the Ionians for their own interest. Says they only did this because of the Persians. Did it out of fear
* 'It is for your own security that we are in Sicily'

Thucydides 6:89-90

Alcibiades’ speech at Sparta

* Tries to bond with the Spartans by way of saying we really aren't that different. Tries to connect democracy and oligarchy


* Does not like democracy, blames it for his exile and failure in the war.


* Tells us that they were planning to attack Sicily, the Hellenes, the Carthaginian empire and then Sparta itself.
* Suspiciously lays it out in bullet point form. Not that reliable?
* Trying to show why Sparta is involved in what happens.
* 'We should be masters of the entire Hellenic world'
* Makes mention of the war. Thucydides trying to gloss over the peace to promote it as one continuous war

Thucydides 8:2

After the failure in Sicily 'all of Hellas' turned against Athens. Allies were eager to be fred from the sufferings and Those who had not been allied with either side chose to go against Athens on their own accord seeing as Athens, if successful in Sicily, would probably have done the same to them

Mood of confidence in Sparta as a result and therefore 'determined to throw themselves into the war without any reservation'

*Stressing the importance of the Sicilian expedition on Athenian failure in the war*

Thucydides 8:52

Alcibiades attempting to persuade Tissaphernes to become a friend of the Athenians

Xenophon Hellenica 1.6.6-11

Callicratidas goes to Cyrus to request the payment of his sailors and is told to wait 2 days. Furious he then sailed away and sent triremes to Sparta to ask for more money. Determined to win the war without Persian support

Xenophon Hellenica 2.1.20-32

Account of the battle of Aegospotami. 4 days of avoiding battle. Lysander attacks on the 5th day. Victory