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The city-state played a leading role in the defeat of the Persian Invasion and it emerged as the de-facto leader of the Greek world after Sparta withdrew from offensive operations against Persia. Athens became the leader of the Delian League and continued the war against the Persians. Athens was a democracy, but it was very different from modern conceptions of democracy. All the citizens participated in the administration and the government of the city-state<ref> Saxonhouse, A. W. (1993). Athenian democracy: Modern mythmakers and ancient theorists. PS: Political Science & Politics, 26(3), 486-490 </ref>. Citizens were elected every year to a range of posts, from that of general (strategeos) to municipal officials. The citizens sat in a council that voted on the policies and laws of the city. They even voted on criminal cases and decided who could be exiled from the city and even executed. However, women and foreigners could not be citizens and Athens was a slave-owning society. In the Fifth Century BC, the economy of the city-state flourished thanks to maritime trade, the silver mines, and industry. Athens was the undisputed maritime power in the Eastern Mediterranean and this was the source of its security and wealth<ref>Wolin, Sheldon S. "Democracy: Electoral and Athenian." PS: Political Science & Politics 26, no. 3 (1993): 475-477 </ref>.
==The life of Pericles==
Pericles was born into one of Athens’ most prominent families. His father Xanthippus was a hero of the Persian Wars and his mother was a member of the noble Alcmaeonidae clan<ref> Plutarch, Life of Pericles, 1.5. 6</ref>. He was highly educated and moved in the same circles as some of the leading Athenian philosophers such as Anaxagoras. It seems probable that he gained military experience while still a young man. Pericles used his financial wealth to sponsor Aeschylus's play, The Persians. This play was seen as supporting the popular party in the city. Pericles soon became the leader of this party in the city, despite his wealthy aristocratic background. His main opponent was the leader of the conservative party, Cimon. From 463 and 461, Pericles worked to prosecute Cimon, for failure to protect the city’s interests in Macedonia. He eventually secured the expulsion of Cimon from Athens, after a public vote. Pericles was a capable general and led a successful military campaign. He was elected a general, every year, for the rest of his life. He was to lead Athenians land and naval expeditions many times and typically with great success. Pericles was very popular because of his great ability as an orator, his speeches could persuade the citizenry of Athens to follow his policies <ref>Plutarch, 6. 4. 1</ref>. He was never officially the leader of the city, but his abilities made him the most influential person in the city Athens for decades. Pericles played a leading role in the formulation of a peace treaty with the Persians and also the end of the First Peloponnesian War with Sparta and her allies. This was to lead to almost two decades of peace, which resulted in a brief but glorious cultural flourishing in the city. Pericles was an imperialist and he wanted to turn Athens into an Empire. He sponsored invasions of Cyprus and Egypt, during the 440s BC. In 454 BC, he was the chief instigator of the decision to move the treasury of the Delian League from Delos, to Athens. This and other policies, over a number of years, turned what had once been an anti-Persian alliance into the Athenian Empire. Pericles ordered the brutal suppression of any Athenian subject-city or island who wanted more autonomy or independence. The treasury of the Delian League was used to finance great building projects in the city, such as the Acropolis. Pericles was determined to beautify the city which also benefitted it economically. As Athens's power grew, Sparta felt isolated and threatened. When its ephors and kings demanded some concessions in relation to Megara, Pericles refused and in 431 BC, war broke out between the two most powerful Greek states. Sparta invaded Attica and raided the countryside around Athens. Pericles was able to persuade the Athenians not to fight the Spartans on land but to withdraw to the city and use its navy to harass the enemy and to keep the city supplied by sea<ref>Thucydides. History of the Peloponnesian War, 2. 37. 1</ref>. The Athenian statesman knew that the Spartans had a larger and better field army. His strategy, sometimes named after him, he argued would eventually lead to the Spartans losing a war of attrition, because Athens had more resources. However, this was not a popular strategy and he was briefly deposed from office in 430 BC, but he was later recalled. In 429 BC, disaster struck Athens, a plague ravaged the city. Pericles two legitimate sons died in the plague and up to one-third of the population perished. A few months later Pericles also died of the plague, while his city was in a life-or-death struggle with Sparta. His death left the city leaderless and none of his successors could match his abilities and this was a factor in Athens defeat by Sparta.
==Pericles: the democrat==
==The Athenian Empire==
While Pericles may have been a democrat and was a passionate advocate of freedom, he was also paradoxically an imperialist, who advocated the conquest and coercion of other city-states and peoples. From an early date, he advocated an aggressive foreign policy. His ability to dominate the politics of Athens meant that it became an imperialist power, although it must be remembered that the conservatives also supported foreign conquests. However, Pericles was a crucial player in the transformation of the Delian League into a de-facto Athenian Empire. He was the driving force behind the standardization of coinage and weights in the Empire and was determined that the former allies were completely dependent on Athens. Initially, the Delian League was a league dominated by Athens, but Pericles turned it into a formal Empire. This was crucial in the growth and development of the city. However, it alarmed many other Greek city-states and it led to a growing suspicion of Pericles and the Athenians, which was one of the root causes of the Second Peloponnesian War.
==Periclean Athens==
Pericles was a very cultured man and was widely read in philosophy. His consort, the remarkable Aspasia, was also a very cultured woman, who introduced him to the latest ideas and was also an accomplished writer. Pericles was an early humanist and believed in the dignity and the perfectibility of men and women. He held that the arts and culture were essential and could promote improvements in individual citizens and in the wider society. This was why Pericles sought to democratize culture and enabled ordinary citizens to attend cultural events such as the theatre. Moreover, he was an enthusiastic patron of the arts, education, and culture. In one famous speech, he professed the ambition that Athens ‘be the education of Greece’ <ref> Thucydides, 2. 37.2 </ref>. That is, he wanted the city-state to be the cultural center of the Greek world and this, was indeed the case, in the Fifth Century BC. The statesman used his influence to persuade the city’s magistrates to spend civic funds on cultural and artistic projects. Pericles used the treasures of the Athenian Empire to finance many remarkable architectural projects such as the Acropolis, The Parthenon and The Temple of Nike. The plastic arts also flourished and one of the world’s greatest sculptor Phidias worked in Athens during the Periclean Golden Age. The Age of Pericles was also, crucial in the history of theatre. The great tragedians, Euripides, Sophocles, and Aeschylus all worked in Athens, as did the great comic playwright, Aristophanes. Pericles was very liberal-minded for the time and believed in freedom of thought and expression. This made Athens a center of philosophy, and during his lifetime philosophers such as Anaxagoras, Protagoras, Zeno, and the great Socrates all felt free to speculate on the ultimate questions in Periclean Athens. Socrates is regarded as the founder of Western Philosophy. While it seems likely that Athens would have experienced a cultural flourishing after the defeat of the Persians it would not have been as remarkable without the patronage and support of Pericles<ref> Azoulay, Vincent. Pericles of Athens (Princeton, Princeton University Press, 2017), p 113</ref>.