BC430-411 Alcibiades of Athens

In the twenty years from 430-411 BC Alcibiades (pictured) came back to power in Athens.

The Peloponnesian War continued between Athens and Sparta. The war was initially caused by a dispute between Corinth and its colony Corfu in which Athens intervened.

Soon after, Corinth and Athens argued over control of Potidaea.

Athens sieged Potidaea and issued a series of economic decrees known as the "Megarian Decrees" that placed economic sanctions on the Megarian people. Athens was accused by the Peloponnesian allies of violating the Thirty Years Peace and Sparta formally declared war.

The war would last 27 years, partly because Athens was a naval power and Sparta was a land power and both found it difficult to meet in battle. Sparta's initial strategy was to invade Attica, but the Athenians were able to retreat behind their walls. An outbreak of plague in Athens during the Spartan siege caused heavy losses, including Pericles.

At the same time, the Athenian fleet landed troops in the Peloponnese, winning battles at Naupactus (429 BC) and Pylos (425 BC). But neither side had a decisive victory and a moderate Athenian leader, Nicias, concluded the Peace of Nicias in 421 BC.

In 418 BC, however, hostility between Sparta and the Athenian ally, Argos, led to a resumption of fighting and at Mantinea Sparta defeated the combined armies of Athens and her allies.

The Athenian war party, led by Alcibiades, came back to power in Athens and in 415 BC Alcibiades persuaded the Athenian Assembly to launch a major expedition against Syracuse, a Peloponnesian ally in Sicily.

Though Nicias was a skeptic about the Sicilian Expedition, he joined Alcibiades to lead the expedition. However, after Alcibiades had accusations made about him he left the expedition and fled to Sparta where he persuaded the Spartans to send aid to Syracuse in Sicily. As a result of Alcibiades' actions, the whole expeditionary force was lost and Nicias was executed by his captors.

Nevertheless, Alcibiades rejoined the Athenian side towards the end of the Peloponnesian War.

BC410-391 Carthage Conquests

In the twenty years from 410-391 BC a strengthened Carthage in North Africa sponsored Himilco the Navigator's exploration of Europe's Atlantic coast (pictured) to found new colonies.

Were it not for plague in 396 BC, Carthage would have emerged victorious in the Mediterranean, winning Sicily from the Greeks and becoming more a superpower than it was already.

By 410 BC, a strengthened Carthage had conquered Tunisia, founded new colonies in North Africa, and sponsored Mago Barca's journey across the Sahara Desert, Hanno the Navigator's journey down the African coast, and Himilco the Navigator's exploration of Europe's Atlantic coast. Sicily was next.

In 409 BC, Hannibal Mago set out for Sicily and was successful in capturing some cities before returning triumphantly to Carthage with the spoils of war. Syracuse -- the primary target -- remained untouched and in 405 BC, Hannibal Mago led a second expedition to Sicily, this time to claim the whole island.

During the siege of Agrigentum -- against the army of Dionysius, the new tyrant of Syracuse -- the Carthaginian forces were ravaged by plague. Hannibal Mago died of plague, and his successor, Himilco, finally had to sue for peace before returning to Carthage.

In 398 BC, Dionysius broke the peace treaty, striking at a Carthaginian stronghold, Motya. Himilco responded by leading an expedition which not only reclaimed Motya, but also captured Messina. Finally, he laid siege to Syracuse itself, but by 396 BC plague had again ravaged the Carthaginian forces, and they collapsed.

In Greece, Lysander was in charge of the Spartan fleet in the Aegean, based at Ephesus (407 BC) when Alcibiades rejoined the Athenian side towards the end of the Peloponnesian War. In his first year as admiral (406 BC) he won a sea battle at Notium and obtained support for the Spartan cause from Cyrus the Younger, Persian satrap and son of Darius II.

Lysander was then victorious against the Athenians at Aegospotami in 405 BC, and in the following year, he took Athens itself, bringing the Peloponnesian War to an end.

When Athens succumbed after to Lysander's siege, he installed a government of thirty, later known as the Thirty Tyrants (404 BC). By promoting the interests of his friends and displaying vindictiveness against those who displeased him, Lysander became unpopular throughout Greece. A democratic revolt led by Thrasybulus in 403 brought Lysander back to Athens to support the Thirty Tyrants, but the Spartan Kings called him back -- and he lost face.

On the death of King Agis of Sparta, Lysander was instrumental in promoting Agesilaus II as king in 399 BC, but after starting a joint expedition to attack Persia the new king spurned him. Lysander returned to Sparta in 396 BC to face another challenge.

After the end of the Peloponnesian War, Corinth and Thebes, which were former allies with Sparta in the Peloponnesian League, had grown dissatisfied with the hegemony of Sparta and started the Corinthian War (395-387 BC) against it.

At the beginning of the Corinthian War Lysander led an army of allies into Boeotia from Phocis and was killed in 395 BC when his troops were surprised by a Theban ambush at Haliartus.

Socrates also died in 399 BC.