The Persian Wars took place in Greece, Cyprus, Asia Minor, and Egypt. They represent mostly failed attempts by Persian kings to control Greece. Some Greek poleis joined Persia (Thessaly, Boeotia, Thebes, and Macedonia), as did other non-Greeks, including Phoenicia and Egypt, but many Greek poleis, under the leadership of Sparta, especially on land, and the dominance of Athens at sea, opposed the Persian forces. Before the invasion of Greece, Persians had been facing revolts within their own territory. During the Persian Wars, revolts continued and when the Egyptians revolted, Greeks helped them.
The Persian Wars are usually dated 492-449/448 B.C. However, conflict started between the Greek poleis in Ionia and the Persian Empire before 499 B.C. There were two mainland invasions of Greece, in 490 (under King Darius) and 480-479 B.C. (under King Xerxes). The Persian Wars ended with the Peace of Callias of 449, but by this time, and as a result of actions taken in Persian War battles, Athens had developed her own empire. Conflict mounted between the Athenians and the allies of Sparta. This conflict would lead to the Peloponnesian War during which the Persians opened their deep pockets to the Spartans.
Persian Wars Timeline
Information on many of the individual battles:
- 1st Naxos
- Sardis
- Ephesus
- Lade
- 2nd Naxos
- Eretria
- Marathon
- Thermopylae
- Artemisium
- Salamis
- Potidea
- Olynthus
- Plataea
- Mycale
- Sestus
- Byzantium
- Eion
- Doriskos
- Eurymedon
- Prosopitis
- Salamis and Cyprus
Thucydides (3.61-67) says the Plataeans were the only Boeotians [For Boeotia and Plataea, see map] who did not Medize. To Medize was to submit to the Persian king as overlord. The Greeks referred to the Persian forces collectively as Medes, not distinguishing Medes from Persians. Likewise, we today don't distinguish among the Greeks (Hellenes), but the Hellenes were not a united force before the Persian invasions. Individual poleis could make their own political decisions. Panhellenism (united Greeks) became important during the Persian Wars.
"Next, when the barbarian invaded Hellas, they say that they were the only Boeotians who did not Medize; and this is where they most glorify themselves and abuse us. We say that if they did not Medize, it was because the Athenians did not do so either; just as afterwards when the Athenians attacked the Hellenes they, the Plataeans, were again the only Boeotians who Atticized." ~Thucydides
The final battle of the war had led to the death of the Athenian leader Cimon and the defeat of the Persian forces in the area, but it didn't give decisive power in the Aegean to one side or the other. The Persians and Athenians were both tired and after Persian overtures, Pericles sent Callias to the Persian capital of Susa for negotiations. According to Diodorus, the terms gave the Greek poleis in Ionia their autonomy and the Athenians agreed not to campaign against the Persian king. The treaty is known as the Peace of Callias.
Herodotus is the principal source on the Persian Wars, from Croesus of Lydia's conquest of the Ionian poleis to the fall off Sestus (479 B.C.). Thucydides provides some of the later material. There are also later historical writers, including Ephorus in the 4th century B.C., whose work is lost except for fragments, but was used by Diodorus Siculus, in the 1st century A.D. Supplementing these are Justin (under Augustus) in his Epitome of Pompeius Trogus, the biographies of Plutarch (2nd century A.D.) and the geographer Pausanias (2nd century A.D.).
Greek
Persian
© N.S. Gill June 2007.
