750L - 890L. from GREECE S GOLDEN AGE. 2/23/2018 The Peloponnesian War Topic Kids Discover

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1 The Peloponnesian War from GREECE S GOLDEN AGE 750L - 890L Remember at the beginning, when Athens and Sparta united to defeat the Persians? They succeeded, but that didn't make them great pals. Once Greece's two most powerful city-states had beaten their common enemy, their own rivalry resumed. This led 1/7

2 to a long string of battles called the Peloponnesian War. How did the war start? Athens's leaders wanted more power over other city-states. They made the Delian League into their own Athenian Empire. Athens became very wealthy from the tributes, or taxes, it collected from other city-states. Pericles used a lot of the money to strengthen Athens's defense walls (known as the Long Walls). They protected the route between Athens and its port, Piraeus, about seven miles away. Pericles also built up the Athenian eet, already the biggest navy around. Athens used its powerful navy to pressure more city-states to accept its rule. 2/7

3 2/23/2018 The Peloponnesian War Topic Kids Discover Peloponnesian War Sparta didn't like seeing its old enemy build up its defenses so much. In BCE, the simmering conªict boiled over into war. Over the next years, the citystates fought, each winning and losing battles. By BCE, both were tired of war. They signed a treaty called the Thirty Years Peace, but it didn t settle any of their issues. It didn t even last years. 3/7

4 M OR E! The Peloponnesian War Topic Kids Discover LE AR N 2/23/2018 This picture shows a sea battle between Athens and Sparta near the Hellespont, a strait that connects the Aegean Sea and the Sea of Marmara. Sailors and soldiers rowed triremes, or warships, which each 4/7

5 carried about qoo people. These days, the Hellespont is called the Dardanelles. Why do you think the sailors removed the masts? A er ps years of uneasy peace, Sparta and Athens resumed ghting. The war went on for qv years, with a six-year truce in the middle. The Spartan army raided Attica, the area around Athens. People rushed to get inside the city walls. At sea, the Athenian navy attacked the coasts and shipping routes of Sparta s allies. With so many people trying to escape the ghting, Athens became overcrowded. Then a 5/7

6 2/23/2018 The Peloponnesian War Topic Kids Discover plague struck and killed many civilians, soldiers, and even Pericles. The historian Thucydides, who survived, wrote that the plague discouraged the Athenians. A«er Pericles died, his rival Cleon took power. Thucydides viewed Cleon as a demagogue. That's a weak leader who is popular because he tells people what they want to hear even if it isn t true. Finally, the Spartans won the war. A«er the Peloponnesian War, They replaced Athens s democracy with Athens, Argos, and Corinth formed the 6/7

7 a dictatorship, or government that had total power over its people. The rulers were a cruel group called the Thirty Tyrants. When the city-state Thebes helped some Athenians take back Piraeus, the tyrants leader died in battle. Sparta refused to help the tyrants, and soon, a group of rich Athenians took back their city. Democracy was restored, but things were never the same. Corinthian alliance. They hired mercenaries, or soldiers who ght for whoever pays them. So Sparta hired its own mercenaries, and the battle was on. Sparta won this time, but Athens had a powerful new ally: Thebes. With help from vo other city-states, they beat Sparta. Then Thebes s leader died in battle, and it lost its hold over Greece. No one city-state had enough power to rule them all. As a result, Greece became unstable. 7/7