Having presented my findings about ancient times, I acknowledge that believing every specific detail will prove challenging. Most people handle traditions—even those of their own homeland—by accepting...

The Persian Wars, though they represented the greatest accomplishment of earlier times, reached their conclusion swiftly through just two naval battles and two land engagements. In contrast, the Pelop...

There are numerous compelling reasons why you will have cause to congratulate yourselves if you accept our proposal. First, you will be extending aid to a state that has committed no offense against o...

Regarding their claim that they wanted the dispute submitted to arbitration first, it's clear that such an offer from those who hold all the advantages cannot be credited with the same sincerity as on...

Certainly, Spartans, we don't deserve the extreme hostility we face from the Greeks—not based on the patriotism we showed during the Persian crisis, nor the wisdom of our policies, and certainly not f...

Take your time in reaching this decision, for the matter is of utmost gravity. Do not let yourselves be swayed by others' arguments and grievances into bringing calamity upon yourselves. Consider care...

Shortly after the Athenians returned from Euboea, they concluded a thirty-year peace treaty with Sparta and her allies, surrendering their strongholds in the Peloponnese—Nisaea, Pegae, Troezen, and Ac...

The Spartans possessed no concrete evidence against Pausanias—neither his political opponents nor the state as a whole—of the unequivocal sort necessary to prosecute a member of the royal house, parti...

After examining the letter, the ephors felt more confident in their suspicions. Nevertheless, they wanted to hear Pausanias incriminate himself directly. Following their plan, the messenger went to Ta...

The Peloponnesian War between Athens and Sparta, along with their respective allies, now truly commenced. From this point forward, all diplomatic communication ceased except through official heralds, ...

When the Thebans realized they had been outmaneuvered, they immediately formed a tight defensive formation to ward off attacks from all directions. They managed to drive back their attackers two or th...

Meanwhile, as this tragedy unfolded in Plataea, the main Theban force—which had planned to arrive with their full strength before dawn to support the advance party if anything went wrong—received word...

After these events, the Plataeans dispatched a messenger to Athens, returned the Theban dead under a truce, and reorganized their city to best handle the current crisis. The Athenians, who had receive...

That particular year was acknowledged to have been remarkably free from other illnesses; indeed, whatever ailments did occur all transformed into this single disease. Typically, there was no apparent ...

The existing catastrophe was made worse by the flood of refugees from the countryside into the city, and this influx hit the new arrivals particularly hard. Since there were no houses available for th...

During that same summer, the Spartans and their allies launched a naval expedition with one hundred ships against Zakynthos, an island off the coast of Elis. The island was inhabited by Achaean coloni...

That same winter, the Potidaeans finally reached the point where they could no longer withstand the siege. The Peloponnesian invasions of Attica had failed to achieve their intended purpose of forcing...

During this time, the ambassadors from Mytilene who had been sent on the first ship were instructed by the Spartans to proceed to Olympia. The purpose was for the other allied states to hear their cas...

As that same winter drew to a close, the Spartans dispatched Salaethus, a Lacedaemonian officer, by ship to Mytilene. He sailed to Pyrrha, then proceeded overland, following a dry streambed where the ...

The government, recognizing their powerlessness to stop this and the peril they faced if excluded from the surrender terms, publicly negotiated with Paches and his forces to hand over Mytilene uncondi...

When Teutiaplus's words failed to persuade Alcidas, some of the Ionian exiles and the Lesbians who were with the expedition began pressing him with an alternative plan. Since his original proposal see...

On his voyage back along the coast, Paches stopped at various places, including Notium, the harbor of Colophon. The Colophonians had relocated there after Itamenes and his barbarian allies captured th...

When the prisoners arrived with Salaethus, the Athenians immediately executed him, despite his offers—including a promise to secure the Peloponnesian withdrawal from Plataea, which remained besieged. ...

I stand by my original position and am astonished at those who wish to reopen the Mytilenean debate, thereby creating a delay that benefits only the guilty party. Such postponement dulls the sharp edg...

This is not how we operate. Moreover, whenever someone is suspected of offering advice—no matter how sound—for personal gain, we resent him so deeply for the profit he might receive (though we cannot ...

Just think what a terrible mistake you'd be making if you followed Cleon's advice. As things stand now, the common people in every city are on your side. They either refuse to join the oligarchs in re...

On these momentous and historic occasions, this was the position we took, even though we later became your enemies. The blame for this lies with you. When we sought your alliance against our Theban op...

Consider this as well: at present, all Greeks look to you as models of excellence and honor. If you render an unjust verdict against us in this case—which is far from insignificant, given that you jud...

Nevertheless, we implore you in the name of the gods who once witnessed our alliance, and by virtue of the service we rendered to the Greek cause, to reconsider your decision. We fear the Thebans have...