His power over the Athenian people, although not completely unchallenged, was maintained under the guise of merely a statesman. As sited by pbs.org, the historian Thucydides said it best: “In name democracy, but in fact the rule of one man” (para 5). Pericles began his speech with a treatise on Athenian ancestors. They were willing to do what it took to leave a better Athens for all to enjoy freely. In his words, they “spared no pains to be able to leave their acquisitions to us of the present generation” (Pericles para 4).
The Spartan heroism at the Battle of Thermopylae, during the Persian Wars, inspired all of Greece to fight back with all their might against the invading Persians. Athenian and Spartan fought side by side in the Battle of Plataea, which ended Persian invasions of Greece. One way that Athens and Sparta really differed was in their idea of getting along with the rest of the Greeks. Sparta seemed content to keep to
Spartan’s role in the infamous battle of Thermopylae was one of great importance; I have stated before how they were ‘successful’, the reason I used this word is because they were successful in their objective in stalling the Persian invasion. this can be seen from Herodotus when he says that when the Hellen’s witnessed the Persian army, Leonidas supposedly suggested having the idea of sending the majority of troops back to their designated city states to call for reinforcement while the Spartans and select others stay and help defend. Therefore the Spartans and allies were successful in their attempt to hold the Persians back from The Hot Gates. The second reason they managed to beat back the Persians for days on end was because their spears were balanced perfectly and much longer, in comparison to the Persians who were “using shorter spears than the Greeks and having no advantage in their numbers” this shows how the military background of the Spartan infantry helped them in beating back the Persians, who had hardly any military background as
He even spoke out at a funeral for Athenian soldiers who died in the battle, and explained that the survival of Athenian democracy depended on this war. This very speech was one of the greatest highlights of his life as a democrat, as it displayed his leadership and dedication to his people, and it showed how much he believed in democracy and how important it is to a successful nation. In this speech, he states that the power of the country does not come strictly from the government, but of the country as a whole, as the citizens of the country make up almost the entire population. He believed that every person is equal, and their contribution in democracy should not be influenced by the person’s class, but rather the person’s abilities. He also believed that no one’s contribution to the democracy should be effected as a result of their poverty.
When assessing the individuals during the pentacontaetia, it seems logical to start with Miltiades. During this time, Miltiades was the Athenian general, and he made his greatest contribution to the formation of the Athenian Empire by his efforts in the battle of Marathon. This battle was a key part in the formation of the empire as it proved the Ionian States that Athens could defeat the Persians without the aid of Sparta (however the advancing army did play an indirect role in the battle). Miltiades commanded his 10,000 Athenians and Plateans (Herodotus) and successfully stopped the first Persian invasion. It is said by Plutarch that Miltiades enjoyed the highest prestige from the battle, and this would have increased Athenian reputation among the Greek states (it is important to note that one factor of the formation of e empire was that the Ionian States chose Athens), and would thus have made them more inclined to choose Athens as the hegemon, and allowing them to create their empire.
The consequential rise of the Athenian Empire, however, was simultaneous with the development of its increasingly autocratic and aggressive attitude. The aftermath of this conflict therefore involved the Athenian worldview coming to resemble that which it had initially sought to repress. The Persian Wars are demonstrative of how external threats can promote unity and cohesion from within. The ease and aggression with which the Persians conquered the region of the Asia Minor during the sixth century BCE established them as the pre-eminent power in the ancient world, and therefore a threat to Greek autonomy. After King Cyrus of Persia overthrew the Median rulers in 550 BCE, the Persians successfully extended their realm in conquering Lydia (546 BCE), eventually pushing their boarders further eastward by crossing to the boarders of Macedonia in 513 BCE (Encyclopaedia Britannica, 2012).
In reality Athenian democracy is a complete mockery of itself by not abiding by the ‘guidelines of democracy.’(i.e. for the people by the people). Although Athenian Democracy has its flaws it also has positives, during the time of democratic Athens, Athens was at its height of wealth, it was the most knowledgeable state in ancient Greece, Athens was the centre point of the time. Athenian democracy worked in many ways, with the extent of the voting systems Athens was able to vote quite accurately and thoroughly. At the time of democratic Athens a very influential figure took the chance of becoming a king in a democratic society, Pericles in some ways he achieved what he set out to do, Pericles had a great influence on the Athenian democracy, a great example of his influence is his funeral oration or his famed building programme.
We have a government that makes all of the decisions for us. The government today also tries to strengthen itself by passing laws that they came up with. Our democracy today also holds strength to our country by giving protection to us through our army and strict law enforcement. The government also tries to glorify our country today by giving the United States the image of this country that lives in peace and harmony. The Greeks affected many of our constitutional rights.
First of all the first World War happened mainly in Europe while the Second World War was fought at a global scale but they both started by a threat to the balance of power and started within Europe showing the importance that took World War II. During both wars, the Americans in battle wanted the total destruction of enemy rather than a defensive strategy. They entered war because of feeling attacked, often due to a provocation (Lusiytinia during World War I and Pearl Harbor in World War II). There is a difference due to technologic advancements in the way they fought during those wars, warfare methods differed, during World War I for example, the mobility of the soldiers was very limited, they would stay in the trenches and wait for the enemy to attack whereas during World War II, it is mainly massive bombings. ‘The most decisive a weapon is, the more surely it will be used’.
Discuss the causes and origins of the Peloponnesian War. The Peloponnesian War was a long and brutal affair involving Sparta and its allies and the Athenian empire. The war was fought over supremacy in Greece but was also a struggle of opposing political systems and outlooks. There was division, within city states themselves, particularly Athens, over whether to go to war and then how to fight it. Sparta was eventually the victor of the conflict but at a terrible price to Greece.