![]() No doubt, Corinth was also jealous of Athens' new-found power and wealth. Concerned about the construction of the Athenian walls, Corinth complained to Sparta. He never returned, and instead went to Persia, were he lived out the rest of life.Ĭorinth, located near the Isthmus of Corinth, was the leader in trade, and had the largest navy in Greece, until the rise of Athens. Themistocles was forced to leave Athens for ten years. In a democracy, there was no room for standout personalities like Themistocles, and he was ostracized. Surprisingly, Themistocles, the man who convinced the Athenians to build a navy with their silver, was not rewarded. ![]() Sparta, hesitant to get involved in affairs outside of the Peloponnesus, did not join the Delian league. This was the beginning of distrust between the two city-states that had fought together during the Persian Wars. Themistocles warned Sparta to stay out of Athens' business, and that Athens would not interfere with Sparta. Themistocles went to Sparta and told the Spartans that, yes, the Athenians were building walls, and it was none of Sparta's business. Sparta was one of the concerned city-states. Some of the neighboring Greeks were uncomfortable with the idea of the Athenians building walls, they were concerned that these walls, along with the large Athenian navy, would cause the Athenians to become aggressive. After the Persian Wars, the Athenians set out to rebuild their city, including surrounding the city with stone walls. In 480, Xerxes and the Persian army razed the city of Athens, the temple on top of the Acropolis was robbed and destroyed. No power, including the Persians, could now challenge Athens' navy. It was now clear that Athens ruled the Aegean Sea. In 466 BC at the Battle of Eurymedon, off the south coast of Asia Minor, the Athenian navy, led by Cimon, destroyed the Persian fleet. The alliance was intended to keep the Greek allies free from Persian rule, and make Persia pay for the damages they caused during the Persian Wars. Each member had to pay money to a common treasury, which was held in a bank on the Island of Delos, or contribute ships and crew to the league navy. Athens was made the leader of the league. The allies, around 150 Greek cities, met on the Island of Delos, the supposed birth-place of Apollo. Many Greek city-states in the Aegean islands and Asia Minor joined with Athens to form an alliance in 478-77 BC called the Delian League. Athens also depended on trade routes throughout the Aegean Sea and into the Black Sea for grain to feed its large population. ![]() Greek city-states in and around the Aegean Sea needed protection, and Athens was the logical protector, with its large navy. The Persian Empire was as large, powerful, and rich as it always had been. The Ionian city-states gained their independence after the Persian Wars, however, the threat of a Persian attack was real. It was the Athenians who contributed most of the Greek warships at the Battle of Salamis. No polis had ever possessed a navy as large as the Athenian navy. This large fleet, a result of the Persian Wars, was something new to the Greek world. As you read in the last chapter, Athens had a fleet of over 200 warships. The polis of Athens prospered after the defeat of the Persians in 479 BC. When we talk about the accomplishments of the Greeks in the Classical Period, we are really talking about Athens. One of the most spectacular achievements in Athens during this time was the rebuilding of the Parthenon, a temple dedicated to Athena on the Acropolis. Greece would go on to great achievements, especially Athens. Not since the Trojan War, 800 years earlier, had the Greeks joined together. The Persian Wars was one of the rare times that several Greek city-states cooperated for the sake of all Greek people. This was a war for freedom, and the Greeks would continue on, free from Persian rule. The Classical Period began with the Greek victory over the Persians and a new feeling of self-confidence in the Greek world. Democracy in Athens was refined under the leadership of Pericles. The Classical Period of ancient Greece was a time when the Greeks achieved new heights in art, architecture, theater, and philosophy. Greece – The Classical Period (500-336 BC) From the Persian Wars to the conquests of Philip II of Macedonia
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