Timeline of Ancient Greece

BC

1000-700

Synoikismos of Athens, people of Attica were willing to transfer their allegiance to one city, Athens, because of Theseus

683[?]

office of Archon established King was emasculated

632

Cylon, Athenian noble, seizes Acropolis and tries to make himself king, fails

621[?]

Draco, Athenian lawgiver, issues code of laws where everything is punishable by death -- Draconian

594[?]

Solon, Athenian statesman, becomes Archon, captures Salamis from Megarians, establishes Timocracy, rule by the richest, constitutional reforms, more vote and trade, abolishes slavery, Know Thyself

590[?]

Sappho, Greek poetess and priestess, flourishes on island of Lesbos

565[?]

Pisistratus, Athenian general, organizes Diakrioi[?], party of poor people

561[?]

Pisistratus takes power first time, driven out by Lycurgus who leads nobles

559

Pisistratus restored by help of Megacles[?]

556

Pisistratus expelled, makes fortune from Thracian mines

546

Croesus, rich king of Lydia, killed at Sardis by Persians

546

Pisistratus restored by Thessaly and Lygdamos[?] of Naxos

527

Pisistratus dies, succeeded by sons Hippias[?] and Hipparchus[?]

525

Persian Darius I, son-in-law of Cyrus the Great takes Egypt

507

Cleisthenes[?], Greek reformer, takes power, increases democracy

490

Themistocles and Miltiades, Athenians, defeat Darius at Marathon, Phidippides runs with news

484

Aeschylus, Athenian playwright, wins Athenian Prize

480

Leonidas, Thespian, makes sacrifice of 300 Spartans at Thermopylae so main force can escape, Xerxes son of Darius is leading the Persians

480

Battle of Salamis - Themistocles, Athenian general, lures Persians into Bay of Salamis, Xerxes loses and goes home, leaves behind Mardonius[?]

479

Pausanius, Greek general routs Mardonius[?] at Plataea

479

Battle of Mycale[?] frees Greek colonies in Asia. After the Battle of Salamis, Athens set up the Delian League, treasury on island of Delos, a confederacy of cities around the Aegean[?]. It was intended as a military defense association against Persia but was turned into an empire, collecting tribute and deciding policy of its associates. Sparta formed rival Peloponnesian League

476-462

Cimon elected general each year, he was victorious over Persia and then enforced military power on Delian League

474

Pindar, Greek poet moves to Thebes from court at Syracuse

471

Themistocles ostracized

468

Sophocles, Greek playwright, defeats Aeschylus for Athenian Prize

461

Cimon ostracized

457

Pericles, Athenian statesman begins Golden Age, he was taught by Anaxagoras, who believed in dualistic Universe and atoms

456

Aeschylus dies

449

Herodotus, Greek Historian, writes History of Greco-Persian War from 490-479

448

Ictinus[?] and Callicrates[?], Greek architects rebuild Acropolis from Persain destruction

441

Euripides, Greek playwright, wins Athenian prize

440

Heraclitus, Greek philospher, believes everything is mutable

435

Phidias, Greek sculptor, completes Zeus at Elis 1 of 7 wonders

433

Corinth and Sparta Megara[?] and Aegini[?] also ally against Corfu and Athens Rhegium[?] and Leontini also

432

End of Golden Age, Peloponnesian Wars begin Athens under Pericles blockades Potidaea[?], Corfu declares war on Corinth

431

Sparta led by Archidamus II sets out to destroy Athens

431

Empedocles, Greek doctor, believes body has 4 humors

430

Failed peace mission by Athens, bubonic plague year, Sparta takes no prisoners

430

Leucippus, Greek philospher, believes every natural event has natural cause

429

Phormio[?], Atheinian admiral, wins at Chalcis

429

Pericles dies of bubonic plague

429

Hippocrates, Greek doctor, believes diseases have physical cause

428

Mitylene[?] rebels, chief city of Lesbos

427

Archidamus II dies, Alcidas[?], Greek admiral sent to help Lesbos, raids Ionia and flees after seeing Athenian might

427

Mitylene[?] surrenders to Athens, Plataeans[?] surrender to Athens

427

Aristophanes, Greek playwright, wins Athenian Prize

426

Corfu secures island for Athens

426

Demosthenes, Athenian general, and Cleon, Athenian demagogue, revitalizes Athenian forces, makes bold plans opposed by Nicias, his first military campaign barely succeeds

425

Athenian fleet bottles up Spartan navy at Navarino Bay[?], Nicias resigns

424

Syracuse sends Athenians home

424

Pagondas[?] of Thebes crushes Athenian army at Delium[?], Brasidas a Spartan general makes a successful campaign, Cleon exiles Thucydides for 20 years for arriving late

423

Truce of Laches[?] supposed to stop Brasidas but doesn't, Nicias leads Athenian forces in retaking Mende[?]

422

Cleon meets Brasidas outside of Amphipolis, both are killed

421

Peace of Nicias brings temporary end to war, but Alcibiades, a nephew of Pericles, makes anti-Sparta alliance

420

Quadruple alliance of Athens, Argus, Mantinea[?], and Elis confronts Spartan-Boeotian alliance

419

King Agis, ruler of Sparta, attacks Argus, makes treaty

418

Mantinea[?], greatest land battle of war, gives Sparta victory over Argus, which broke treaty, Alcibiades thrown out, alliance broken

416

Alcibiades makes plans, is restored to power

415

Hermai are mutilated in Athens, Alcibiades accused, asks for inquiry, told to set sail for battle, is condemned to death in absentia, he defects to Sparta

414

Lemachus[?], Athenian commander killed at Syracuse

413

Nicias and Demosthenes killed at Syracuse

412

Alcibiades is thrown out of Sparta, conspires to come back to Athens

411

Democracy ends in Athens by Antiphon, Peisander[?], and Phrynichus[?], overthrown by Theramenes, Constitution of the 5000[?], Athenian navy recalls Alcibiades, confirmed by Athenians

410

After several successes, Athenian demagogue Cleophon[?] rejects Sparta peace overtures

409

Byzantium recaptured by Alcibiades for Athens

408

Alcibiades reenters Athens in triumph, Lysander, a Spartan commander, builds fleet at Ephesus

407

Lysander begins destruction of Athenian fleet, Alcibiades stripped of power

406

Callicratides[?], Spartan naval leader, loses Battle of Arginusae[?] over blockade of Mitylene[?] harbor, Sparta sues for peace, rejected by Cleophon[?]

405

Lysander captures Athenian fleet, Spartan king Pausanius lays siege to Athens, Cleophon[?] executed, Corinth and Thebes demand destruction of Athens

404

Athens capitulates Apr 25 Theramenes secures terms, prevents total destruction of Athens, Theramenes and Alcibiades are killed

401

Thucydides, Greek historian, leaves account of Golden Age and Pelopennesian War[?] at his death

399

Socrates, Greek philospher, condemned to death for corrupting youth

347

Plato, Greek philospher, founds Academy

342

Aristotle, Greek philosopher, begins teaching Alexander, son of Philip of Macedon

338

Philip of Macedon defeats Athens and Thebes in last struggle for Greek Independence at Battle of Cheronea[?] Aug 2

336

Alexander succeeds father, who was assassinated at the wedding feast of his daughter

333

Alexander defeats Persians at Battle of Issus, Oct, but Darius III escapes

332

Alexander conquers Egypt

331

at Battle of Arbela[?] Oct 1, Alexander end Achaemenid Dynasty and takes Persian Empire

330

Democritus, Greek philosopher, develops Atomic theory, believes cause and necessity, nothing comes out of nothing

329

Alexander conquers Samarkand

327

Alexander invades Northern India[?], but army is tired so doesn't pursue it

323

Alexander dies, his generals vie for power in Wars of the Diadochi[?] Antigonus- Macedonia, Antipater- Macedonia, Seleucus- Babylonia and Syria, Ptolemy- Egypt, Eumenes[?]- Macedonia, Lysimachus, later Antipaters son Cassander also vies for power

316

Meander, Greek playwright, wins Athenian prize

300

Euclid, Greek mathematician, publishes Elements, treating both geometry and number theory (see also Euclidean algorithm)

295

Athens falls to Demetrius, Lachares[?] killed

265

Archimedes, Greek mathematician, develops screw, specific gravity, center of gravity; anticipates discoveries of integral calculus

See also

• Hellenic civilization
• History of Ancient Greece.