PeloponnesianWar (431–404bce)

Abstract

The years 475–404bcein Greece can be conceptualized as a period of hostility followed by negotiated peace followed again by resumed conflict. The era witnessed Athens and its allies in the Delian League engaged in a sporadic military, economic, and diplomatic war with Sparta, its allies in the Peloponnesian League, and Sparta's other allies, including later the Persian Empire. The fighting between the rival city‐states (poleis), Athens and Sparta, was intermittent and marked at times by diplomatic peace settlements. What scholars call the “First Peloponnesian War” lasted from 460–445, while the later and more famous “Peloponnesian War” resumed from 431–404bce. Although details of the battles frequently survive through the writings of Thucydides and, later, Xenophon, the evidence also suggests that throughout much of the fifth century diplomacy remained a vital and integral part of the conflict.