Traditional Greece in IVe century

Hegemony, freedom and autonomy of the Greek cities

The Peloponnesian War constitutes a radical turning in the Greek world. Before 403, the things were clear. Thus, there was Athens and its allies, which was a zone of domination and stability, with a certain number of insular cities which profited from the maritime protection of Athens. The sources denounce this supremacy of Athens quasi crushing and which had disadvantages.

After 403, the things become more complicated. One sees a certain number quoted to try their chance and to try a hegemony which wants to extend on other cities, but these hegemonies are not durable.

The first of these reversals is that operated by Athens as of 390, which enables him to become again an important power without catching up with its last splendor.

Sources

We have Xénophon, which is essential, which continued the work of Thucydide in its Helléniques , which have as an interest to deliver an account followed and almost continuous of the Greek history until in 362. However, it has defects. He lived, inter alia, near the king of Sparte Agésilas. Sparte was an important city at the beginning of.

We also have Plutarque. It is a Philistine and in its Vie of Pélopidas it gives a version thebaine from what occurred at the beginning from the IVe century. One can also find the narration of Diodore of Sicily.

Lastly, it is also the time when the epigraphy develops. It is a source of first order for the study of the IVe century and not only for Athens, but for a certain number of city of continental Greece which enact decrees.

Hegemony Spartan: an impossible empire

This hegemony was strong but short. In 405, the Spartans are Masters of all: allies of Athens, Athens even and their capacity is without division. Thereafter, the Spartans any more but do not think of defending their own city.

To found an empire Spartan?

On this subject, there was a debate between the citizens full Spartans. For Lysandre, the Spartans must rebuild the Athenian empire with their profit. However, the laws of Sparte prohibit any noble metal possession. The transactions take place by iron ingots. The noble metals that the city obtains become the property of the city. The Spartans move back in front of the innovations of Lysandre. They even move back in front of Lysandre. It drew too much from profit of its victory. For example, with Samos, are organized of Lysandreia in the honor of this last. He is recalled to Sparte and from there, does not take care of any function of first order.

One refuses in Sparte to see Lysandre or one of his successors to dominate. The Spartans refuse the tribute and the empire with the Athenian one. They decide after 403 not to support the directives which had been installation. The Spartans do not want hegemony. In fact the other cities wish a Spartiate hegemony.

Agésilas arrives at the capacity at the whole beginning of the 4th century. It is a man who was not to reign and who arrives by accident at the royalty. It underwent, contrary to other kings de Sparte, Spartiate education, which gives him ascending on these fellow-citizens. The Spartans discover a conspiracy against the laws of the city carried out by Cinadon. To resulting from this conspiracy, they realize that there are too many dangerous elements and too many people.

Agésilas follows a dynamic policy who exploits the Panhellénique feeling. It launches a campaign against the empire Perse, a campaign marked by successes. But the Perse empire reacts. King Perse has recourse to Persian gold. Instead of supporting the Spartans, it changes allied and supports the Athenians, who, with these subsidies, reconstitute their fleet and gain a certain number of victories, in particular that of Cnide. They can also rebuild their walls destroyed in 404.

In 394, the authorities of Sparte decide to make return Agésilas to continental Greece. During six years, a war opposes the Spartans to the Corinthians, helped partially by the Athenians. It is a war which is held with blow of guerilla.

The Spartans realize that they cannot fight on two grounds. They thus make the choice of Perse alliance.

The peace of Antalcidas (or peace of the King) and interventionism Spartan

It is about an edict promulgated by king Perse. By him, it preserves the Greek cities of Asia Mineure and Cyprus. The Greek cities of Aegean Sea must preserve their independence, except Lymnos, Imbros and Skyros, left with Athens. It obliges the dissolution of the systems of alliances and of the confederal systems existing and the formation of news prohibits some. It is an ultimatum which makes the deals of Athens, because the city preserves three islands. It is also a good deal for Sparte because it is selected like guarantor of this peace of the King.

On the other hand, this peace has unexpected consequences. Indeed, in accordance with its contents, the Confédération béotienne is dissolved in 386. This confederation was dominated by Thèbes, a city which was hostile with the domination Spartan. Sparte carries out operations of great scales and carries out peripheral interventions in Épire and in the north of Greece what shows the catch of the fortress of Thèbes, Cadmée thebaine, after a forwarding in Chalcidique and the catch of Olynthe. It is a Thébain politician who proposes with Phoibidas, a Spartiate military chief to seize Thèbes. This last thus seizes Cadmée. This act was highly condemned. However, the Spartans hastened to ratify this individual initiative.

In 378, Sphodrias, a Spartan chief, tries a knack against the Pirée, whose doors are not strengthened yet. It fails ten kilometers. He is discharged by the Spartiate court. An alliance is concluded between Athens and Thèbes.

The confrontation with Thèbes

Sparte will have to fight against two allied cities. Athens has to be raised of the disaster of 404. The thébains endeavor to reconstitute the old confederation béotienne with Épaminondas.

In the years 370, Sparte is in fight with Thèbes. Athens becomes being wary vis-a-vis the Thébaine power which develops. In 375, the Athenians are marked by the fact that the thébains destroy basic in roof the city of Platées.

The Athenians change alliance and one with the Spartans against Thèbes in negotiates some 375. In 371, Sparte undergone bloody the demolished from Leuctre which costs him a good part of its army, and 400 of its 2000 committed citizens. Spartiate hegemony is thus cut down.

The alternative is then Athénienne hegemony

Athenian hegemony: a more reasonable hegemony

The return to the empire of the 5th century?

The Athenians prohibit any return to the position of the 5th century. In the decree of Aristotélès, the marked goal is that to make opposite course with Spartiate hegemony. The latter are clearly denounced there like “warmonger”. It is not any more one centralized system but an alliance where the allies have their word to say. The Athenians do not sit in the council of combined and this last is not directed by an Athenian. It meets in a regular way and it is used as political and military counterweight with Athens. This new league is very moderate and is moreover one very loose organization.

Financing of the league

It is necessary to erase the bad memories of the old league. This old formula is not adapted. In the new system of financing, there is no tribute. It is about an irregular financing and which must be used for employment of the troops sent punctually by Athens and its allies. This payment is called Syntaxeis.

These contributions are not versed in Athens but are perceived by the Athenian strategists themselves. With the difference of the league of the 5th century, there is no federal case. The contributions have a precise goal and are made to be quickly spent.

The Athenians must contribute their own share, the Eisphora . The latter reform the mode of payment of this tax and created a system in advance, the Proseiphora , in which richest must make the advance of the amount of the tax and to be made refund by the other taxpayers. The system is quickly compared to a liturgy. This league meets a true need.

The failure of Athenian hegemony

On the ground, the things did not change much compared to the 5th century. The great complaint of the allies is that it is like front. The Stratège S do what they want, i.e. they can devote to extortion of moneies. The allies express their dissatisfaction. Alliance with Athens is not also any more gravitational.

There are first of all structural reasons. What made the value of this alliance, it is the fear of Sparte, but after the fall of Sparte in 371, it is manifest that this hegemony loses one of its reasons to be. The Athenians do not have any more the means of their ambitions. They have evil to finance their clean marine. So they do not manage any more to defend their allies correctly. Thus, the tyrant of Phérès destroys a certain number of cities without being continued. From 360, Athens loses its value of invincibility. A certain number of allies decide to make secession. It is the case of Byzance and Naxos in 364.

In 357, the revolt extends and between 357 and 355, Athens must face the Guerre of allied the. The exit of this war is marked by a decisive intervention of king Perse who submits an ultimatum to the Athenians. It requires that the latter recognize the independence of its allies, under penalty of what it sends 200 Trière S against Athens.

The Athenians must give up continuing the war and letting the confederation weaken more and more. The Athenians lost on all the plans and were unable to propose a durable alliance.

Hegemony thebaine, an attempt without a future

Thébains are not with their first first attempt. Thèbes is the important city of Béotie. The Confédération béotienne existed already in 447 and it reproduces starting from 386.

The confederation béotienne at the 5th century (447 - 386)

It is well-known for us thanks to a papyrus which makes known to us the essence of the confederation béotienne. It is about the Anonymity of Oxyrhynque . Thèbes there occupies a dominating position and sets up a system where the loads are distributed between the various cities of the confederation. The citizenship is defined there according to the richness. 11000 active citizens are counted.

It is divided into eleven districts, each one providing a federal magistrate, a Béotarque . They provide moreover one certain number of advisers. On the military level, they provide 1.000 hoplites and 100 riders. As of the 5th century, the philistines constitute a powerful infantry of 11.000 men. There exists also a crack corps and a light infantry; one counts 10.000 soldiers philistines armed with the light one. Their power comes from the cavalry, which counts 1.100 riders directed by a federal magistrate that it is necessary to distinguish from the local commanders. They have a small fleet which played its part by providing 25 trières to the Spartans for the Peloponnesian War. At the end of this conflict, their fleet counts 50 trières and is directed by a Avarque .

All that constituted an important force. This is why the Spartans were very happy to dissolve this confederation béotienne at the time of the Paix of the king. This dissolution was transitory. In the years 370, the thébains did not have of cease to reform this confederation. In 382, they lose Cadmée thebaine.

The re-establishment thébain

Pélopidas and Épaminondas equips Thèbes with democratic institutions rather close to those to Athens. Thébains take again on this occasion the title lost since the peace of the king of Béotarque . Pélopidas and Épaminondas post their will to reconstitute the Confédération béotienne . This objective is accomplished with the Bataille of Leuctres. They can dissolve the Spartiate power. Épaminondas removes the Peloponnese from oligarchies pro Spartiates and puts at it partisans of the Démocratie. He makes build or rebuild a certain number of cities put at evil by the Spartans. He also pushes with the rebuilding of the city of Messène thanks to an invasion of the Laconie which enables him to release the hilotes, to reconstitute the Messénie and to give him Messène like capital.

He finally decides to constitute a little everywhere in the Peloponnese of the confederations. Thus, it constitutes a Confédération Arcadienne.

The Peace of the king of 367 - 366 puts at evil the confederation Arcadienne and the Spartans leave in Messène his autonomy.

The confrontation between Athens and Thèbes

That explains the problems encountered by the Athenians with their allies of the second league. Épaminondas succeeded in convincing its fellow-citizens to build a fleet of 100 Trière S and pushes cities to leave Athenian alliance to join the maritime league béotienne.

Very stops in 362 with resulting from the Bataille of Mantinée, battles which results from the difficulty of Thébains of setting up confederations.

Sparte remains an important power and cities continue to turn to it. The confederal framework is artificial because the same confederation gathers cities which never could get along. It is the case of the cities of Tégée and Mantinée which is found together in the Confédération arcadienne. Mantinéens receive the support of the Athenians and Tégéates receives that of Thébains. Thébains triumph, but it is a triumph without a future because Épaminondas disappears during the combat. He will say besides: “ I leave in Thèbes two girls, the victory of Leuctres and that of Mantinée ”.

Thereafter, Thébains give up intervening in the Peloponnese. Moreover, Xénophon stops its history of the Greek world in 362.

Assessment

Confusion is larger after front. It is an acknowledgment of failure. According to Xénophon, the history of the Greek world is not understandable any more.

The concept of Hégémonie disappears. Starting from 362, there is no more city which can postulate with the hegemonic row of city. The Spartans are very reduced. The Athenians are not in a position to make function their fleet and after 365 they do not have any more allies.

Thèbes exerts a transitory hegemony. Épaminondas could overcome Sparte and Athens but it does not have the means of giving a great force in minor Asia.

Other forces intervene, like the Persian sovereign who is installed like referee by the Greek cities themselves. This situation reinforces the conflicts. There is a multiplication of the civil wars. The confederal framework appears and is a permanent factor of war. The wars multiply and can start anywhere. In 370, a war occurs in full winter, the invasion of the Laconie, which constitutes a first. The conflicts lengthen and are increasingly fatal.

This world of the cities will find its Master: the king of Macedonia.

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