Delian League Athenian democracy Precursor to Empire in

Delian League, Athenian democracy Precursor to Empire in the Aegean

After the Persian Wars o When Platea and Mycale were won, no one knew for sure that the Persian threat was over. o Spartans returned to defense of the Peloponnesus, but Athens continued to press the Persians by sea for all Greece. o The Greeks who opposed Persia found a new sense of cultural identity. o Athenians led a new alliance devoted to prevent further Persian incursions. o As most powerful and populous of Greek poleis, Athens’ coffers would fill with tribute money from other cities to provide leadership against the Persians.

Formation of Delian League o 477 saw the first meeting of reps of Greek cities at the island of Delos (hence Delian). o Oaths were sworn, binding their cities to defense of all Greece. o Policy was formed by all poleis in assembly, but Athenian generals were to enforce those policies. o At first the money collected was deposited on Delos, but was clearly controlled by the Athenians. o Some poleis paid tribute in the forms of ships rather than cash. o Sparta was conspicuously absent; they were isolationist.

Athens as top dog o Leadership in the Delian league benefited Athens’ economy. o Most agree that Athens used this windfall to build a model democracy. o For many, government became a career when money became available to remunerate for public service. o Lower-class rowers on Greek triremes had saved Athens, now they would be given more of a voice as citizens. o Athens would incur resentment from other Greeks when they would come to depend on this higher standard of living, and insist upon the League’s perpetuation: Empire.

Preserving an empire o Cities were threatened with reprisal if they left the league, and new cities were forced to join. o Part of the agreement was preservation of the integrity of each city, but Athens made judgments as to what was necessary in view of the foreign threat. o Athens was demanding protection money and was essentially forming an empire. Until his ostracism, Themistocles encouraged imperial designs and competition with Sparta. o This direction was almost avoided by the brief ascendency of Cimon, son of Miltiades.

Cimon the strategos o Cimon was an Athenian general who distinguished himself “cleaning up” the Aegean for the Delian League. o He drove Persians from Eion at the mouth of the Strymon, most important remaining stronghold of the Persians west of Hellespont. o He drove pirates from the island of Scyrus and Athens annexed it. o Most sensational, on Scyrus Cimon won unfading glory by discovering the bones of Theseus and returned them to Athens. o In 468 he won decisive land sea battles over the Persians in southern Asia Minor destroying hundreds of ships at Eurymedon.

Cimon’s political career o After Themistocles was ostracized, Cimon was the leader Athenians turned to. o He symbolized the success of the Delian League and was an aristocrat. o Somewhat bland but dignified, Cimon led idealogues who favored alliance with Sparta. o He was opposed by anti-Spartan and democrat Ephialtes and his associate Pericles, son of Xanthippus.

Earthquake in Sparta: fate takes a hand o In 464 an earthquake leveled the five villages of Sparta. o Cause was attributed to massacre of helots who had sought sanctuary at temple of Poseidon. o Helots in Messenia choose that moment to revolt and win an early victory over the Spartans, and pressed the revolt for four years. o The Spartans, who had been threatening Athens with war over her imperial designs now asked for help in quelling the rebellion.

Helot rebellion Naupactus * Athens * Mt. Ithome * * Sparta

Athens sends help o Athenians split over sending help. Cimon overcomes democratic opposition and leads 4000 hoplites to help put down the Helots. o At stake was the issue of Spartan alliance and democracy in Athens, and thus the leadership and integrity of Cimon, then at his zenith of power. o The Athenians joined other Greek states in helping Sparta besiege the fortress of Ithome in SW Messenia. o But they were surprised that the Helots were not “sub-men, ” but reasonable Greeks.

Fall of a Laconiaphile o The Athenians were unable to take the fortress. o The Spartans then dismissed the Athenians, supposedly fearing their “adventurous and revolutionary spirit. ” o Cimon was disgraced and it was shown to be futile to expect friendship from the jealous Spartans. o Now labeled a laconiaphile, Cimon was ostracized and exiled for ten years. o The Athenians now gave sanctuary to Helot rebels at Naupactus, thus thumbing their noses at Sparta.

Areopagus and assassination o Ephialtes had capitalized on Cimon’s absence in Messenia by pushing through reforms that diminish the power of the Areopagus, stripping them of all politically-significant powers. o Council of Areopagus was reduced to jurisdiction in murder cases, care of the sacred olive trees, and minor religious duties. o Soon after Cimon’s ostracism in 461, Ephialtes is assassinated. o Pericles emerges as the most powerful leader of the democracy-minded Athenians.

Periclean foreign policy o Pericles dominated Athenian politics for thirty years. o The foreign policy of Athens now changed, leaving alliances with Sparta and her allies and allying with Argos and Thessaly. The enemies of Sparta. o These policies ran afoul of Corinth and Aegina, which eventually joined forces against Athens. o It started when Megara defected to the Athenian side in 459, giving Athens an effective control of the eastern Corinthian gulf.

A hot war between Greeks o Corinth felt threatened by Athens, economically and militarily, skirmishes ensue. o In 458, a Peloponnesian fleet engages the Athenians off the Argive coast and loses. Alarmed, the Aeginians enter the war. o Athens wins naval and land engagements, besieges Aegina. o Aeginans surrender in 456 and join the Delian league as a subject state.

Athenians overextend themselves o The Lybian rebel Inaros asked the Delian forces to support his invasion of Persianheld Egypt. o The time looked ripe following Xerxes’ assassination and troubles at the Persian court. o The fleet is transferred from Cyprus to Egypt and helps in the capture of Memphis in 459. o In 456, “high and dry, ” the Greeks lose Memphis, hundreds of ships and perhaps as many as 40, 000 lives. o Despite the losses, Pericles retains his power.

Possibility of Peace? o War places a tremendous strain on resources and Athens began to long for relief. o In 452 Cimon was recalled from exile and settled a five-year truce with Sparta, while the Argives signed a thirty year peace treaty with Sparta. o Athens and allies used the truce to resume warfare against Persia. o In 449 Cimon dies besieging the Persians at Cyprus, and his death motivated Pericles to conclude a peace with the Persians in 448. o Cyprus comes to be dominated by Phoenician allies of Persia.

Antebellum Athens Eve of the Peloponnesian War

445: partial collapse of empire o 445 was a crucial year for Athens. o Aristocracies recover many poleis governments. o Various parts of the Athenian empire began to chafe: Euboea and Megara revolted at the same time. o Pericles fights on two fronts until Spartans threaten Attica from the south. Pericles unites armies in the south. o King Pleistoanax withdraws but Megara realigns with Sparta, Boeotians form own league. o Athenians forced to sign a peace with the Spartans.

The “Thirty Years” Peace only lasted fourteen years. o Athens was humiliated out of fear of Spartan invasion. o Surrendered Megarian ports. o No ally could switch sides. o Neither side could interfere with the others’ allies, but each could deal with its own allies without interference. o The peace would end with the beginning of what we call the (second) Peloponnesian War that began in 431.

Positioning of Democracy o Under Pericles Athens became an imperial power and a democracy. o As Strategos and leader of democratic ideologues, Pericles instituted liturgies as a taxation system for the wealthy. o Liturgies were a system of patronage of arts and military in service of Athens. o Strategoi became the most powerful politicians due to trust and esteem. o But power in Athens was diluted by the lot and the diffusion of power among many “voluntary” public servants.

Periclean Antebellum Athens o Imperial tribute and liturgies made Athens a dominant cultural center. o The Acropolis was remade with its Parthenon, Temple of Athena Nike, and the Erektheion of Poseidon. o Athenians expand trade and form true colonies to exchange wares. o Metics, foreign traders and artisans, flock to Athens, attracted by democracy and the byproducts of Empire.

Greek Architecture o Though they lived in wooden houses, Greeks built permanent structures in stone for religious centers. o These were the earthly dwellings of gods, containing their image and accoutrements. o Three types of temples that emerged corresponded to three types of architecture: Ionic, Doric, and Corinthian, the latter not emerging fully until the fourth century.

Architecture of Athens From the time of Pericles

The Acropolis o For the first time in history, architects, not priests, directed these building projects. o The Parthenon in Athens, was built in 447 -438 BC by the architects Ictinus and Callicrates. o During the Classical period (450 -330 B. C. ) three important temples were erected on the ruins of earlier ones: the Parthenon, the Erechtheion, and the Temple of Nike. o The Propylaea was the monumental entrance to the sacred area.

The Parthenon o The Parthenon is the largest building on top of the Acropolis. It was dedicated to Athena Parthenos. o It was completely made out of marble and surrounded by freestanding columns. o Two pediments: east, above building's main entrance, shows birth of Athena; west, fight between Athena and Poseidon to name city of Athens.

The Parthenon o This structure reflects the Doric style that emerged on the Western Aegean shore. This style was used in mainland Greece and the colonies in southern Italy and Sicily. o The Doric style is stout and uncomplicated. The Doric column has a dish -shaped top, or capital, and no base. o This building contained the treasury of Athens and later that of the Delian league.

Parthenon Detail o The entablatures (lintels), spanning the columns are also distinct, the Doric having a row of 3 vertical grooves, or triglyphs, between sculpted metopes (square spaces) and mutules under the cornice. o The pediments contained scenes like Heracles.

The Erectheion 421 -406 o The temple of Erechteus, or Erechtheum, was the last the most complex, and the most richly embellished building. o It was dedicated to the worship of the two principal gods of Attica, Athena and Poseidon Erechteus. o It is an example of Ionic, or east shore style. o The Ionic style is thinner and more elegant. Its capital is decorated with a scroll-like design (a volute). o Ionic has paired volutes at its capital and carved rings at its base.

The Erectheion o The Erechtheum is best known for its caryatid porch. o The present caryatids are copies, the originals having been moved in order to preserve them. o The inner chamber of Athena was on the east side and was perpetually illuminated. o Lamp only filled once a year!

The Agora o Large flat area at the base of the Acropolis. o Market and focal point of Athenian life. o Doric temple either to Hephaestus or Theseus. o Stoa bordered the Agora and held shops.

A time of cultural development o Orchestra of the Dionysian theatre where dramas were performed below the Acropolis. o The Temple of Athena Nike was an Ionic building built in 420 by Kallikrates on the Ionic order. o But more than architecture and drama were developing…so was historical narrative.

History as a discipline o History as a rational discipline is “founded” in this era. o Herodotus of Halicarnassus (484 -428) traveled widely conducting interviews and lecturing. o He is known for his book History that covered up through the Persian Wars. o His history depended on two criteria: eyewitness accounts and hearsay. o His purpose was to tell the stories of the struggle between East and West. o History had an explainable pattern combined with smaller lessons.

Thucydides o Herodotus has been called “the father of historical practice” (Juan Luis Vive preferred, “father of lies”). o His younger contemporary was Thucydides (460 -400? ). o An Athenian general, he was exiled and finally assassinated. o His work is a history of the first twenty years of the Peloponnesian War. o He marginalizes myth, poetry, and the Trojan War; distrusts hearsay. o History is explained by human ideas, deliberation, and decision rather than accident, fate, or the gods.