Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of Maps
- Preface
- Introduction
- Principal dates
- Biographical notes
- Greek deities, heroes and mythological figures
- Greek terms for distances, coinage and the calendar
- Map 1. Greece and the Aegean
- Map 2. Peloponnese and Central Greece
- Map 3. Western Asia Minor and Hellespont
- Map 4. Sicily and South Italy
- The War of the Peloponnesians and the Athenians
- Introduction [I 1–23.3]
- Background to the war [I 23.4–146]
- First year of the war, 431–30 [II 1–47.1]
- Second year of the war, 430–29 [II 47.2–70]
- Third year of the war, 429–28 [II 71–103]
- Fourth year of the war, 428–27 [III 1–25]
- Fifth year of the war, 427–26 [III 26–88]
- Sixth year of the war, 426–25 [III 89–116]
- Seventh year of the war, 425–24 [IV 1–51]
- Eighth year of the war, 424–23 [IV 52–116]
- Ninth year of the war, 423–22 (IV 117–35)
- Tenth year of the war, 422–21 [V 1–24]
- Eleventh year of the war, 421–20 [V 25–39]
- Twelfth year of the war, 420–19 [V 40–51]
- Thirteenth year of the war, 419–18 [V 52–56]
- Fourteenth year of the war, 418–17 [V 57–81]
- Fifteenth year of the war, 417–16 [V 82–83]
- Sixteenth year of the war, 416–15 [V 84–116, VI 1–7]
- Seventeenth year of the war, 415–14 [VI 8–93]
- Eighteenth year of the war, 414–13 [VI 94–105, VII 1–18]
- Nineteenth year of the war, 413–12 [VII 19–87, VIII 1–6]
- Twentieth year of the war, 412–11 [VIII 7–60]
- Twenty-first year of the war, 411–10 [VIII 61–109, unfinished]
- Appendix 1 Notes on the Greek text: variations from the OCT
- Appendix 2 Thucydides in the ancient world: a selection of texts
- Bibliography and further reading
- Synopsis of contents
- Synopsis of speeches
- Glossary
- Index of names
- General index
- References
Fifth year of the war, 427–26 [III 26–88]
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 April 2013
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of Maps
- Preface
- Introduction
- Principal dates
- Biographical notes
- Greek deities, heroes and mythological figures
- Greek terms for distances, coinage and the calendar
- Map 1. Greece and the Aegean
- Map 2. Peloponnese and Central Greece
- Map 3. Western Asia Minor and Hellespont
- Map 4. Sicily and South Italy
- The War of the Peloponnesians and the Athenians
- Introduction [I 1–23.3]
- Background to the war [I 23.4–146]
- First year of the war, 431–30 [II 1–47.1]
- Second year of the war, 430–29 [II 47.2–70]
- Third year of the war, 429–28 [II 71–103]
- Fourth year of the war, 428–27 [III 1–25]
- Fifth year of the war, 427–26 [III 26–88]
- Sixth year of the war, 426–25 [III 89–116]
- Seventh year of the war, 425–24 [IV 1–51]
- Eighth year of the war, 424–23 [IV 52–116]
- Ninth year of the war, 423–22 (IV 117–35)
- Tenth year of the war, 422–21 [V 1–24]
- Eleventh year of the war, 421–20 [V 25–39]
- Twelfth year of the war, 420–19 [V 40–51]
- Thirteenth year of the war, 419–18 [V 52–56]
- Fourteenth year of the war, 418–17 [V 57–81]
- Fifteenth year of the war, 417–16 [V 82–83]
- Sixteenth year of the war, 416–15 [V 84–116, VI 1–7]
- Seventeenth year of the war, 415–14 [VI 8–93]
- Eighteenth year of the war, 414–13 [VI 94–105, VII 1–18]
- Nineteenth year of the war, 413–12 [VII 19–87, VIII 1–6]
- Twentieth year of the war, 412–11 [VIII 7–60]
- Twenty-first year of the war, 411–10 [VIII 61–109, unfinished]
- Appendix 1 Notes on the Greek text: variations from the OCT
- Appendix 2 Thucydides in the ancient world: a selection of texts
- Bibliography and further reading
- Synopsis of contents
- Synopsis of speeches
- Glossary
- Index of names
- General index
- References
Summary
Summer [III 26–86]
The following summer, after the Peloponnesians had dispatched the forty ships to Mytilene, appointing their admiral Alcidas to take command, they and their allies invaded Attica in order that the Athenians might be harassed by both land and sea and be less able to take action against the ships while they were en route to Mytilene. The leader of this invasion was Cleomenes, acting on behalf of his nephew Pausanias son of Pleistoanax, who was king but still a minor. They wasted Attica, destroying anything that had grown back in the parts previously flattened and anywhere else that had been passed over in the earlier invasions. Indeed from the point of view of the Athenians this was the most severe of all the invasions after the second one. The Peloponnesians pressed on doing extensive damage while all the time expecting to hear news from Lesbos of some accomplishment by their fleet, which they supposed must have made the crossing by then. But when none of their expectations were realised and their supplies of food had run out, they withdrew and went home to their various cities.
Meanwhile the Mytilenaeans were forced to come to terms with the Athenians. The promised ships had failed to arrive from the Peloponnnese but were loitering en route, and their food supplies had also run out. The background was as follows. Salaethus had himself lost confidence that the ships would come and therefore issued the populace, who had previously only had light arms, with full hoplite armour in order to prepare them for an attack on the Athenians. When they had got hold of these arms, however, the people would no longer listen to their leaders but gathered in groups and told those in power to bring the food supplies out into the open and distribute them to everyone; otherwise, they said, they would make their own agreements with the Athenians and surrender the city to them. The authorities realised that they were not in a position to prevent this and saw the dangers of being excluded from any agreement.
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- ThucydidesThe War of the Peloponnesians and the Athenians, pp. 177 - 217Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2013