THE PELOPONNESIAN WAR

(432-404 B.C.)

The Pelopennisian War was a disastrous, protracted war between Athens and Sparta and its allies. The Athenians barricaded themselves into the city with its walled passage to the Piraeus (the harbor), and attempted to win the war with their great navy. However, grain ships brought disease, and Athens was soon struck with the plague, which killed Pericles. There was an attempted take-over of Sicily by Athens in 415 B.C., on the pretext of giving aid to the Segestans, allies of the Athenians. A great expeditionary force of approximately 50,000 soldiers landed at Syracuse. In the ensuing massacre, only 7,000 Athenian soldiers survived, and they were taken prisoner. Eventually the Spartans blocked the harbor, and Athens was starved into submission. The Athenians were completely defeated in 404 B.C. It spelt the end of the dominance of Athens. Socrates fought in at least three campaigns in the Pelonnesian War, which was chronicled by Herodotus in his The History (see Athens).