The 2nd Peloponnesian war Flashcards
(19 cards)
431 BCE – War Begins
Sparta invades Attica.
Athens launches naval raids along the Peloponnesian coast.
Theban attack on Plataea fails—sparks wider hostilities.
430–426 BCE – Plague in Athens
A devastating plague hits Athens (possibly typhus or typhoid).
Kills Pericles, the Athenian leader, and a large portion of the population (~25%).
Athenian morale and military capacity weakened.
429 BCE – Death of Pericles; Battle of Naupactus
Athens wins a naval victory under Phormio.
Spartan attempts to challenge Athenian naval dominance fail.
427 BCE – Revolt of Mytilene
Mytilene revolts against Athens; rebellion crushed.
Debate in Athens (Cleon vs. Diodotus) results in moderation: Mytilene spared massacre.
425 BCE – Battle of Pylos/Sphacteria
Athenian general Demosthenes traps Spartans on the island of Sphacteria.
Spartans surrender—a humiliation.
Boosts Athenian morale; some Spartans used as hostages.
424 BCE – Battle of Delium and Brasidas’ campaign
Battle of Delium: Thebes defeats Athens in Boeotia.
Spartan general Brasidas captures several cities in northern Greece, including Amphipolis.
422 BCE – Battle of Amphipolis
Brasidas and Cleon (Athenian demagogue) both killed.
Sets the stage for a truce.
421 BCE – Peace of Nicias
Supposed to be a 50-year peace; ends Archidamian War.
Largely ineffective—many allies on both sides refuse to comply.
415 BCE – Sicilian Expedition Begins
Athens sends huge fleet to aid Egesta against Syracuse.
Commanders: Nicias, Alcibiades, Lamachus.
Alcibiades recalled to Athens on charges of sacrilege; defects to Sparta.
414–413 BCE – Siege of Syracuse
Syracuse resists with help from Spartan general Gylippus.
Athens fails to take the city; fleet is trapped.
Athenian fleet and army destroyed.
Nicias and Demosthenes captured and executed.
Shocks the Athenian empire and emboldens Sparta.
413 BCE – Sparta fortifies Decelea in Attica
Occupation disrupts Athenian agriculture and silver mining.
Permanent Spartan presence in Attica.
412 BCE – Alliances with Persia
Sparta signs treaties with Persian satraps (Tissaphernes and Pharnabazus).
Persia provides funds for Sparta’s new navy.
411 BCE – Coup in Athens – The Four Hundred
Oligarchic revolution replaces democracy temporarily.
But then democracy restored.
410 BCE – Battle of Cyzicus
Athenian navy (under Alcibiades, Thrasybulus, Theramenes) wins major victory.
Temporarily restores Athenian control of the sea.
407 BCE- Battle of Notium
Alcibiades returns in triumph but is soon exiled again after a defeat at Notium.
406 BCE – Battle of Arginusae
Athenian naval victory over Sparta.
6/8 Athenian generals executed afterwards for failing to rescue survivors—morale and leadership suffer.
405 BCE – Battle of Aegospotami
Lysander, Spartan commander, destroys Athenian fleet.
Cuts off grain supply from the Black Sea.
404 BCE – Fall of Athens
Athens surrenders after blockade and famine.
Delian League dissolved.
“Thirty Tyrants” installed in Athens under Spartan rule.
Marks the end of the war and Spartan hegemony over Greece (briefly).
Timeline of events:
431 War begins; Thebes attacks Plataea
430–426 Plague in Athens
427 Mytilenean revolt
425 Battle of Pylos/Sphacteria – Spartan surrender
424 Battle of Delium, Brasidas in north
422 Battle of Amphipolis – Brasidas & Cleon die
421 Peace of Nicias
415 Sicilian Expedition begins
413 Defeat at Syracuse
412 Persian alliance with Sparta
411 Oligarchic coup in Athens
410 Battle of Cyzicus – Athenian naval comeback
406 Battle of Arginusae – Athenian victory, then executions
405 Battle of Aegospotami – Athenian fleet destroyed
404 Athens surrenders – end of the war
