1. Conflict in the Mediterranean

2. The Persian Empire to the east of Greece was ruled by Darius
who was afraid that the existence of rich, democratic Athens
on his border might inspire rebellion against his harsh rule.

3. In 490 BC, a massive Persian army landed at Marathon,
26 miles north of Athens.
The outnumbered Athenians sent a runner to Sparta for aid, but the Spartans denied the request.

4. Despite overwhelming odds, the Athenians rallied their forces,
drove the Persian back into the sea, and were victorious.

5. Ten years later, the new Persian emperor, Xerxes,
invaded Greece with several hundred thousand troops.
Three hundred Spartans, led by Leonidas,
held the Persians at the pass of Thermopylae for two days,
before they were all killed.

6. With the Spartans’ defeat, the Athenians abandoned their city
to the Persians and fled to a nearby island.
The Athenian navy then trapped the Persians
forcing them to withdraw.

7. By defeating the Persians, Athens became the leader of the Greek world
and created an empire.

8. Under Pericles, Athens expanded its empire.
This period, called the “Age of Pericles,”
was the height of Athenian power.

9. Pericles turned Athens into a direct democracy
in which the assembly passed all laws, elected public officials,
and decided on war and foreign policy.

10. The Athenians developed ostracism
to protect themselves from overly ambitious politicians.
If 6,000 members of the assembly agreed,
any citizen could be banned from Athens for 10 years.

11. Tensions between the two powers in Greece, Athens and Sparta,
led to the Great Peloponnesian War in 431 BC.

12. Athens planned to win by staying behind its walls
and receiving supplies from its colonies and powerful navy.
The Spartans surrounded Athens.

13. Athens fought for another 25 years before its final defeat in 405 BC.
In 430 BC, a plague broke out in Athens killing 1/3 of the population. Pericles died the following year
Athens fought for another 25 years before its final defeat in 405 BC.

14. The Peloponnesian War weakened the Greek city-states
and ruined cooperation among them.
For the next 66 years Sparta, Athens, and Thebes
struggled for domination.