The city of Athens during the classical period of Ancient Greece was the major urban center
of the notable polis of the same name, located in Attica, Greece, leading the Delian League
in the Peloponnesian War against Sparta and the Peloponnesian League. Athenian democracy
was established in 508 BC under Cleisthenes following the tyranny of Isagoras. This system
remained remarkably stable, and with a few brief interruptions remained in place for
180 years, until 322 BC. The peak of Athenian hegemony was achieved in the 440s to 430s
BC, known as the Age of Pericles. In the classical period, Athens was a center
for the arts, learning and philosophy, home of Plato's Akademia and Aristotle's Lyceum,
Athens was also the birthplace of Socrates, Pericles, Sophocles, and many other prominent
philosophers, writers and politicians of the ancient world. It is widely referred to as
the cradle of Western Civilization, and the birthplace of democracy, largely due to the
impact of its cultural and political achievements during the 5th and 4th centuries BC on the
rest of the then known European continent.
History
Rise to power
Hippias - of the Peisistratid family - established a dictatorship in 514 BC, which proved very
unpopular, although it established stability and prosperity, and was eventually overthrown
with the help of an army from Sparta, in 511/510 BC. The radical politician of aristocratic
background, Cleisthenes, then took charge and established democracy in Athens. The reforms
of Cleisthenes replaced the traditional four Ionic "tribes" with ten new ones, named after
legendary heroes of Greece and having no class basis, which acted as electorates. Each tribe
was in turn divided into three trittyes, while each trittys had one or more demes—depending
on their population—which became the basis of local government. The tribes each selected
fifty members by lot for the Boule, the council which governed Athens on a day-to-day basis.
The public opinion of voters could be influenced by the political satires written by the comic
poets and performed in the city theaters. The Assembly or Ecclesia was open to all full
citizens and was both a legislature and a supreme court, except in murder cases and
religious matters, which became the only remaining functions of the Areopagus. Most offices were
filled by lot, although the ten strategoi were elected.
Prior to the rise of Athens, Sparta, a city-state with a militaristic culture, considered itself
the leader of the Greeks, and enforced an hegemony. In 499 BC Athens sent troops to
aid the Ionian Greeks of Asia Minor, who were rebelling against the Persian Empire. This
provoked two Persian invasions of Greece, both of which were repelled under the leadership
of the soldier-statesmen Miltiades and Themistocles. In 490 the Athenians, led by Miltiades, prevented
the first invasion of the Persians, guided by king Darius I, at the Battle of Marathon.
In 480 the Persians returned under a new ruler, Xerxes I. The Hellenic League led by the Spartan
King Leonidas led 7,000 men to hold the narrow passageway of Thermopylae against the 100,000-250,000
army of Xerxes, during which time Leonidas and 300 other Spartan elites were killed.
Simultaneously the Athenians led an indecisive naval battle off Artemisium. However, this
delaying action was not enough to discourage the Persian advance which soon marched through
Boeotia, setting up Thebes as their base of operations, and entered southern Greece. This
forced the Athenians to evacuate Athens, which was taken by the Persians, and seek the protection
of their fleet. Subsequently the Athenians and their allies, led by Themistocles, defeated
the Persian navy at sea in the Battle of Salamis. It is interesting to note that Xerxes had
built himself a throne on the coast in order to see the Greeks defeated. Instead, the Persians
were routed. Sparta's hegemony was passing to Athens, and it was Athens that took the
war to Asia Minor. These victories enabled it to bring most of the Aegean and many other
parts of Greece together in the Delian League, an Athenian-dominated alliance.
Athenian hegemony
Pericles—an Athenian general, politician and orator—distinguished himself above the
other personalities of the era, men who excelled in politics, philosophy, architecture, sculpture,
history and literature. He fostered arts and literature and gave to Athens a splendor which
would never return throughout its history. He executed a large number of public works
projects and improved the life of the citizens. Hence, he gave his name to the Athenian Golden
Age. Silver mined in Laurium in southeastern Attica contributed greatly to the prosperity
of this "Golden" Age of Athens. During the time of the ascendancy of Ephialtes
as leader of the democratic faction, Pericles was his deputy. When Ephialtes was assassinated
by personal enemies, Pericles stepped in and was elected general, or strategos, in 445
BC; a post he held continuously until his death in 429 BC, always by election of the
Athenian Assembly. Peloponnesian War
Resentment by other cities at the hegemony of Athens led to the Peloponnesian War in
431, which pitted Athens and her increasingly rebellious sea empire against a coalition
of land-based states led by Sparta. The conflict marked the end of Athenian command of the
sea. The war between Athens and the city-state Sparta ended with an Athenian defeat after
Sparta started its own navy. Athenian democracy was briefly overthrown
by the coup of 411, brought about because of its poor handling of the war, but it was
quickly restored. The war ended with the complete defeat of Athens in 404. Since the defeat
was largely blamed on democratic politicians such as Cleon and Cleophon, there was a brief
reaction against democracy, aided by the Spartan army. In 403, democracy was restored by Thrasybulus
and an amnesty declared. Corinthian War and the Second Athenian League
Sparta's former allies soon turned against her due to her imperialist policies, and Athens's
former enemies, Thebes and Corinth, became her allies. Argos, Thebes and Corinth, allied
with Athens, fought against Sparta in the decisive Corinthian War of 395 BC–387 BC.
Opposition to Sparta enabled Athens to establish a Second Athenian League. Finally Thebes defeated
Sparta in 371 in the Battle of Leuctra. However, other Greek cities, including Athens, turned
against Thebes, and its dominance was brought to an end at the Battle of Mantinea with the
death of its leader, the military genius Epaminondas. Athens under Macedon
By mid century, however, the northern kingdom of Macedon was becoming dominant in Athenian
affairs, despite the warnings of the last great statesman of independent Athens, Demosthenes.
In 338 BC the armies of Philip II defeated Athens at the Battle of Chaeronea, effectively
limiting Athenian independence. Athens and other states became part of the League of
Corinth. Further, the conquests of his son, Alexander the Great, widened Greek horizons
and made the traditional Greek city state obsolete. Antipater dissolved the Athenian
government and established a plutocratic system in 322 BC. Athens remained a wealthy city
with a brilliant cultural life, but ceased to be an independent power.
In the 2nd century BC, following the Battle of Corinth, Greece was absorbed into the Roman
Republic as part of the Achaea Province, concluding 200 years of Macedonian supremacy.
Geography Overview
Athens was in Attica, about 30 stadia from the sea, on the southwest slope of Mount Lycabettus,
between the small rivers Cephissus to the west, Ilissos to the south, and the Eridanos
to the north, the latter of which flowed through the town. The walled city measured about 1.5 km
in diameter, although at its peak the city had suburbs extending well beyond these walls.
The Acropolis was just south of the centre of this walled area. The city was burnt by
Xerxes in 480 BC, but was soon rebuilt under the administration of Themistocles, and was
adorned with public buildings by Cimon and especially by Pericles, in whose time it reached
its greatest splendour. Its beauty was chiefly due to its public buildings, for the private
houses were mostly insignificant, and its streets badly laid out. Towards the end of
the Peloponnesian War, it contained more than 10,000 houses, which at a rate of 12 inhabitants
to a house would give a population of 120,000, though some writers make the inhabitants as
many as 180,000. Athens consisted of two distinct parts:
The City, properly so called, divided into The Upper City or Acropolis, and The Lower
City, surrounded with walls by Themistocles. The port city of Piraeus, also surrounded
with walls by Themistocles and connected to the city with the Long Walls, built under
Conon and Pericles. The Long Walls
The Long Walls consisted of two walls leading to Piraeus, 40 stadia long, running parallel
to each other, with a narrow passage between them. In addition, there was a wall to Phalerum
on the east, 35 stadia long. There were therefore three long walls in all; but the name Long
Walls seems to have been confined to the two leading to the Piraeus, while the one leading
to Phalerum was called the Phalerian Wall. The entire circuit of the walls was 174.5
stadia, of which 43 stadia belonged to the city, 75 stadia to the long walls, and 56.5
stadia to Piraeus, Munichia, and Phalerum. The Acropolis
The Acropolis, also called Cecropia from its reputed founder, Cecrops, was a steep rock
in the middle of the city, about 50 meters high, 350 meters long, and 150 meters wide;
its sides were naturally scarped on all sides except the west end. It was originally surrounded
by an ancient Cyclopean wall said to have been built by the Pelasgians. At the time
of the Peloponnesian war only the north part of this wall remained, and this portion was
still called the Pelasgic Wall; while the south part which had been rebuilt by Cimon,
was called the Cimonian Wall. On the west end of the Acropolis, where access is alone
practicable, were the magnificent Propylaea, "the Entrances," built by Pericles, before
the right wing of which was the small Temple of Athena Nike. The summit of the Acropolis
was covered with temples, statues of bronze and marble, and various other works of art.
Of the temples, the grandest was the Parthenon, sacred to the "Virgin" goddess Athena; and
north of the Parthenon was the magnificent Erechtheion, containing three separate temples,
one to Athena Polias, or the "Protectress of the State," the Erechtheion proper, or
sanctuary of Erechtheus, and the Pandroseion, or sanctuary of Pandrosos, the daughter of
Cecrops. Between the Parthenon and Erechtheion was the colossal Statue of Athena Promachos,
or the "Fighter in the Front," whose helmet and spear was the first object on the Acropolis
visible from the sea.
Lower city The lower city was built in the plain round
the Acropolis, but this plain also contained several hills, especially in the southwest
part. On the west side the walls embraced the Hill of the Nymphs and the Pnyx, and to
the southeast they ran along beside the Ilissos. Gates
There were many gates, among the more important there were:
On the West side: Dipylon, the most frequented gate of the city, leading from the inner Kerameikos
to the outer Kerameikos, and to the Academy. The Sacred Gate, where the sacred road to
Eleusis began. The Knight's Gate, probably between the Hill of the Nymphs and the Pnyx.
The Piraean Gate, between the Pnyx and the Mouseion, leading to the carriage road between
the Long Walls to the Piraeus. The Melitian Gate, so called because it led to the deme
Melite, within the city. On the South side: The Gate of the Dead in
the neighbourhood of the Mouseion. The Itonian Gate, near the Ilissos, where the road to
Phalerum began. On the East side: The Gate of Diochares, leading
to the Lyceum. The Diomean Gate, leading to Cynosarges and the deme Diomea.
On the North side: The Acharnian Gate, leading to the deme Acharnai.
Districts The Inner Kerameikos, or "Potter's Quarter,"
in the west of the city, extending north as far as the Dipylon gate, by which it was separated
from the outer Kerameikos; the Kerameikos contained the Agora, or "market-place," the
only one in the city, lying northwest of the Acropolis, and north of the Areopagus.
The deme Melite, in the west of the city, south of the inner Kerameikos.
The deme Skambonidai, in the northern part of the city, east of the inner Kerameikos.
The Kollytos, in the southern part of the city, south and southwest of the Acropolis.
Koele, a district in the southwest of the city.
Limnai, a district east of Milete and Kollytos, between the Acropolis and the Ilissos.
Diomea, a district in the east of the city, near the gate of the same name and the Cynosarges.
Agrai, a district south of Diomea. Hills
The Areopagus, the "Hill of Ares," west of the Acropolis, which gave its name to the
celebrated council that held its sittings there, was accessible on the south side by
a flight of steps cut out of the rock. The Hill of the Nymphs, northwest of the Areopagus.
The Pnyx, a semicircular hill, southwest of the Areopagus, where the ekklesia of the people
were held in earlier times, for afterwards the people usually met in the Theatre of Dionysus.
The Mouseion, "the Hill of the Muses," south of the Pnyx and the Areopagus.
Streets Among the more important streets, there were:
The Piraean Street, which led from the Piraean gate to the Agora.
The Panathenaic Way, which led from the Dipylon gate to the Acropolis via the Agora, along
which a solemn procession was made during the Panathenaic Festival.
The Street of the Tripods, on the east side of the Acropolis.
Public buildings
Temples. Of these the most important was the Olympieion, or Temple of Olympian Zeus, southeast
of the Acropolis, near the Ilissos and the fountain Callirrhoë, which was long unfinished,
and was first completed by Hadrian. The Temple of Hephaestus, located to the west of the
Agora. The Temple of Ares, to the north of the Agora. Metroon, or temple of the mother
of the gods, on the west side of the Agora. Besides these, there was a vast number of
other temples in all parts of the city. The Bouleuterion, at the west side of the
Agora. The Tholos, a round building close to the
Bouleuterion, built c. 470 BC by Cimon, which served as the Prytaneion, in which the Prytaneis
took their meals and offered their sacrifices. Stoae, or Colonnades, supported by pillars,
and used as places of resort in the heat of the day, of which there were several in Athens.
In the Agora there were: the Stoa Basileios, the court of the King-Archon, on the west
side of the Agora; the Stoa Eleutherios, or Colonnade of Zeus Eleutherios, on the west
side of the Agora; the Stoa Poikile, so called because it was adorned with fresco painting
of the Battle of Marathon by Polygnotus, on the north side of the Agora.
Theatres. The Theatre of Dionysus, on the southeast slope of the Acropolis, was the
great theatre of the state. Besides this there were Odeons, for contests in vocal and instrumental
music, an ancient one near the fountain Callirrhoë, and a second built by Pericles, close to the
theatre of Dionysius, on the southeast slope of the Acropolis. The large odeon surviving
today, the Odeon of Herodes Atticus was built in Roman times.
Panathenaic Stadium, south of the Ilissos, in the district Agrai, where the athletic
portion of the Panathenaic Games were held. The Argyrocopeum appears to have been in or
adjoining the chapel of a hero named Stephanephorus. Suburbs
The Outer Kerameikos, northwest of the city, was the finest suburb of Athens; here were
buried the Athenians who had fallen in war, and at the further end of it was the Academy,
6 stadia from the city. Cynosarges, east of the city, across the Ilissos,
reached from the Diomea gate, a gymnasium sacred to Heracles, where the Cynic Antisthenes
taught. Lyceum, east of the city, a gymnasium sacred
to Apollo Lyceus, where Aristotle taught. Culture
The period from the end of the Persian Wars to the Macedonian conquest marked the zenith
of Athens as a center of literature, philosophy and the arts. Some of the most important figures
of Western cultural and intellectual history lived in Athens during this period: the dramatists
Aeschylus, Aristophanes, Euripides and Sophocles, the philosophers Aristotle, Plato and Socrates,
the historians Herodotus, Thucydides and Xenophon, the poet Simonides and the sculptor Phidias.
The leading statesman of this period was Pericles, who used the tribute paid by the members of
the Delian League to build the Parthenon and other great monuments of classical Athens.
The city became, in Pericles's words, "the school of Hellas [Greece]."
See also
References