In the late sixth century BC, the small Greek city-state of Athens emerged onto the world’s stage as a new centre of democracy. Since then, its ambitions took it right across the Greek world, and into conflict with neighbouring great powers; the Persian Invasions early in the following centuries turned out to be a series of triumphal highs and catastrophic lows for the Greeks, but ultimately, after battles like Marathon, Salamis, Plataea and Mycale, the Persian threat was pushed back - against all odds, the Greeks triumphed.
With time, Athens would blossom, recovering from its sacks during the war as its new alliance of Greek states forged into the Delian League. This new empire in all but name granted Athens, as the epicentre of this alliance, near unmatched dominance in the nearby Aegean Sea, and much of the Greek world. Through great minds and characters like Cimon and the great statesman Pericles, the Athenian Empire reached its zenith - its golden age. But with power, Athens gained watchful eyes: its dominance of the Greek world did not come peacefully or willingly at times, and Sparta, still reeling from their immortalisation after the battle of Thermopylae, had formed their own Peloponnesian League, created in stark contrast to the Delian League. Getting too big for their britches, Athens plunged the two leagues - together encompassing the entire mainland Greek world - into war: the Peloponnesian War would engulf the Greek world into chaos, for over a quarter of a century.
Early set backs in the war included the Spartan aggression into Athenian lands forcing the citizens into the city, and when plague reached the city itself, its locked-in population - Pericles and his family among them - succumbed to it. Victories at Rhium, Naupactus, Mytilene, Tanagra, Olpae and Idomene proved Athenian might in battle, while battles at Pylos and Sphacteria cracked at the myth of Spartan invincibility. Further grand battles at Plataea, Megara, Delium and Amphipolis balanced the scales. Even when peace came to Greece after ten years of conflict, battle still resumed, as battles like at Mantinea proved to still be large-scale conflicts even in times of supposed peace. Looking elsewhere, under the guide of Alcibiades, Athens looked to the isle of Sicily for conquest and glory - nearly fifteen-thousand Athenians and allies lay dead over the course of two years campaigning in this far-flung land. Athens’ very pride and reputation lay shattered, while Sparta looked elsewhere as well. Not for conquest, but for aid, and not to other Greeks, but to old enemies.
The Persian Empire - ultimately unsuccessful after its attempted conquest of Greece - watched the Greek world plunge itself into chaos, so when Sparta came knocking for gold and reinforcements, they were happy to comply, hoping to see the mighty Delian League fall. Coups within the government proved Athens was on its last legs. Further battles at Cyzicus and Notium prolonged the war further, while Athens was able to muster one final great armada to fight at Arginusae. Despite this, political turmoil meant Athens could not keep its victory for long, as its greatest generals were left disgraced and, in many cases, dead.
Now, the following year in 405 BC, having watched their enemies escape the clutches of death and defeat so many times, Sparta was ready for one final clash. With armies raised from all across the Peloponnesian League, both sides together had mustered 350 ships in total, and potentially around seventy-thousand men in total, gathered to face off against one another within the Hellespont, by the mouth of the great River Aegospotami. The future of the Greek world hung in the balance, for this would prove to be the final battle of the Greek worlds most destructive war: the great Battle of Aegospotami.
Check out my previous post on the Battle of Arginusae, 406 BC - Athens's last victory in the war.
The Return of Lysander
The Battle of Arginusae had been an unmitigated disaster for Sparta. The loss of Callicratidas, a commander who had embodied the traditional Spartan ethos, left the Peloponnesian fleet leaderless. With many ships lost and no immediate prospect of reinforcement, the Spartans found themselves in a precarious situation. However, the political instability in Athens after the trial and execution of its victorious generals proved to be an opportunity that Sparta—and more specifically, Lysander—would seize upon.
Reinstatement
Following the defeat at Arginusae, Sparta had no choice but to recall Lysander, despite the traditional law that forbade the same man from holding the position of navarch (admiral) twice. To circumvent this restriction, Aracus was officially appointed as the new Spartan commander, but in reality, it was Lysander who wielded absolute authority.
[ABOVE: Modern Greek admiral rank flag of "Návarchos"]
Plutarch records the reaction in Sparta:
The ephors, knowing well that none but Lysander could restore Spartan fortunes at sea, found means to circumvent their own laws, placing him once more in command by all but name.
[Plutarch, “Life of Lysander”, 7.1]
Lysander, who had previously secured Sparta’s alliance with Cyrus the Younger, saw his reinstatement as an opportunity to complete what he had started. Unlike Callicratidas, who had attempted to wage war without Persian aid, Lysander had no such qualms. He immediately sought an audience with Cyrus, now one of the most powerful figures in the Persian Empire, and renewed their agreement.
Cyrus the Younger's Persian Gold
Cyrus, the ambitious son of King Darius II, remained deeply invested in a Spartan victory. His rivalry with his older brother, Artaxerxes II, made him eager to secure a powerful ally in the Greek world. Lysander’s reinstatement was exactly what he had hoped for. He provided Sparta with vast sums of money, allowing Lysander to rebuild a formidable navy from scratch. Xenophon describes their meeting:
Cyrus, eager to see Athens fall, supplied Lysander not only with gold, but with promises of greater things should Sparta prove victorious.
[Xenophon, “Hellenica”, 2.1.13]
[ABOVE: "Meeting Between Cyrus the Younger and Lysander", maiolica with dusting technique by Francesco Antonio Grue in c.1650 in Abruzzo, Italy]
With Persian funding, Lysander set about recruiting skilled rowers, many of whom defected from Athens due to the higher wages he offered. He also oversaw the construction of new triremes, replenishing the Spartan fleet far quicker than the Athenians had anticipated.
Archaeological evidence from Spartan naval bases in Asia Minor suggests a rapid expansion of shipbuilding facilities during this period, supporting the historical record of Lysander’s efforts. The reconstruction of Sparta’s naval supremacy was not merely a matter of funds but of strategy. Lysander ensured that his fleet remained disciplined, well-trained, and politically loyal.
The Spartan Network: Destabilising Athens’ Allies
While rebuilding the navy, Lysander also embarked on a covert campaign to weaken Athens’ allies. Through a combination of bribes, intimidation, and diplomacy, he convinced several key Athenian subject states in Ionia and the Aegean to prepare for defection. This would ensure that when Sparta struck, Athens would stand alone. Plutarch emphasises this strategy:
Where Callicratidas had sought victory by honour, Lysander sought it by calculation and guile. He wove a web about Athens before striking the final blow.”
[Plutarch, “Life of Lysander”, 8.3]
Instead of seeking a direct confrontation with the Athenian navy, he launched a series of devastating raids on Athenian-held territories. Lysander first struck at Aegina, a former Spartan ally turned Athenian stronghold. The island had long been a key base for Athenian naval operations, and its loss significantly weakened Athens’ hold over the Saronic Gulf. He then moved against Salamis, the island directly off the coast of Athens itself. The raids on Salamis sent shockwaves through the city, as the Athenians realised that Sparta was no longer merely fighting in the Aegean—it was at their doorstep.
[ABOVE: The Saronic Gulf, showing the islands of Aegina and Salamis, nearby to Athens]
In an audacious move, Lysander then landed troops in Attica itself, devastating the countryside and cutting off vital supply lines. Unlike the earlier phases of the war, when Athens could rely on its Long Walls and naval superiority, the situation had changed drastically. With their food supply at risk and no strong leadership to rally a decisive response, panic spread through the city. Xenophon describes the moment:
The Athenians, long accustomed to sending forth their fleets, now found the enemy at their gates, and they knew their empire teetered on the edge of ruin.
[Xenophon, “Hellenica”, 2.1.15]
This forced the Athenian fleet into action. Recognising that Lysander’s movements threatened their most vital trade routes, the remaining Athenian admirals—Conon, Philocles, and Adeimantus—decided that they could no longer afford to remain passive. They pursued Lysander northward as he withdrew his forces, making for Lampsacus, a key Spartan stronghold at the entrance to the Hellespont. Here, he set the stage for the final showdown, knowing that the Athenians had no choice but to engage him if they wished to keep their empire alive.
As Athens reeled from internal strife and failed leadership, Sparta, under Lysander’s masterful orchestration, prepared for the final confrontation. With Persian wealth at his back and a fleet more powerful than ever before, Lysander set sail for Aegospotami, where the last great battle of the war would be fought. Thus, the final battle was set in motion. Athens, with its fate hanging by a thread, sailed toward its destiny at Aegospotami.
Alcibiades’ Final Attempt to Save Athens
While the Athenian fleet prepared for its final confrontation, Alcibiades still lingered in the background of the war. After his dismissal following the Battle of Notium, he had retreated to a private fortress in Thrace, where he controlled a modest personal domain. However, he had not abandoned hope of returning to power. From his castle at Bisanthe, near the Hellespont, Alcibiades observed the movements of both fleets.
According to Xenophon, he saw the danger that the Athenians were walking into—stationed at Aegospotami, a poor anchorage with limited supplies, they were vulnerable to a sudden Spartan attack. Sensing the impending disaster, Alcibiades rode down from his stronghold to warn the Athenian commanders. He advised them to relocate their fleet to Sestos, where they would have a fortified position with more reliable supply lines. Alternatively, he offered to use his Thracian mercenaries to reinforce their position and disrupt Spartan operations.
[ABOVE: Map of the Thracian Chersonese, showing the city of Sestos (Sestus)]
Xenophon describes his plea:
He came down from his castle, seeking no glory nor reward, but only to save his country. Yet they, blind in their arrogance, turned him away, scorning his words as those of a disgraced man.
[Xenophon, “Hellenica”, 2.1.26]
Diodorus Siculus similarly recounts:
Alcibiades warned them of the treachery of Lysander, that he was no fool to let such an opportunity slip. But they, fearing his return to power, rejected his counsel.
[Diodorus Siculus, “Bibliotheca Historica”, 13.105.6]
The Athenian commanders, particularly Philocles and Adeimantus, distrusted Alcibiades. Fearing that he would attempt to seize control of the fleet if he were welcomed back, they dismissed his warnings and refused his aid. With no further means to intervene, Alcibiades returned to his Thracian stronghold. It would be his last recorded attempt to shape the war. Had Athens heeded his advice, the final battle at Aegospotami might have played out very differently. But as it stood, the Athenian fleet remained vulnerable, and the trap that Lysander was preparing was about to snap shut.
The Battle of Aegospotami: The Final Blow
Prelude
After his raids on Aegina, Salamis, and Attica, Lysander moved his forces to Lampsacus, a Spartan stronghold at the entrance to the Hellespont. This strategic location allowed him to control Athens’ crucial grain supply routes from the Black Sea, tightening the noose around the city. The Athenian fleet, numbering around 180 triremes, was stationed at Aegospotami, a barren stretch of coast on the opposite side of the strait. The fleet was under the command of Conon, Philocles, and Adeimantus, three experienced admirals who knew that a decisive victory was the only hope for Athens.
[ABOVE: Modern view from across the Hellespont towards Aegospotami. Photograph taken in 2019 by Jona Lendering]
Lysander’s Strategy
Unlike previous Spartan commanders, Lysander was patient. Instead of engaging the Athenian fleet directly, he adopted a strategy of psychological warfare and deception. For four days, the Athenian ships sailed out each morning to challenge the Spartans to battle, only for Lysander to refuse engagement. This tactic lulled the Athenians into a false sense of security, leading them to believe that the Spartans were either afraid or unwilling to fight. Xenophon describes the tension:
Each morning the Athenians rowed forth in battle formation, each evening they returned, their discipline growing lax and their spirits growing restless.
[Xenophon, “Hellenica" 2.1.24]
On the fifth day, when the Athenians returned to their shore base, many left their ships to forage for food or rest, leaving their fleet scattered and unprepared.
Lysander Strikes
Seizing the perfect moment, Lysander, possibly acting through intel from spies, launched his attack. His fleet swept across the strait in a lightning-fast assault, catching the Athenians completely off guard.
Like a thunderbolt from a clear sky, Lysander's ships fell upon the Athenian fleet, seizing their vessels before they could take to the sea.
[Diodorus Siculus, Bibliotheca Historica 13.106.4]
The Spartans struck like a tempest, finding the enemy unarmed and scattered. In moments, the sea was filled with Athenian wreckage and cries of despair.
[Xenophon, “Hellenica" 2.1.24]
Within moments, the battle became a massacre. The Athenian ships, unprepared and disorganised, were destroyed or captured en masse. Only Conon and nine vessels managed to escape, fleeing to Evagoras, who was a friendly ruler of Cyprus, rather than return to Athens with news of the disaster. One ship, the Paralus, was dispatched to inform Athens of what had just unfolded.
The sea was filled with Athenian wreckage and bodies. The war had, at last, reached its inevitable conclusion.
[Xenophon, Hellenica 2.1.30]
[ABOVE: Conon's bust portrait, from Promptuarii Iconum Insigniorum, 1553]
Out of 180 Athenian ships, nearly all were destroyed or taken. According to Diodorus Siculus, Lysander executed 3,000 captured Athenian sailors, including Philocles, making it clear that there would be no mercy for Athens, although Xenophon is less explicit regarding these numbers. The capture of the Athenian commander Adeimantus has led some scholars to believe that the result of the battle was down to treachery on his part. Whatever the case, the result was very clear: the Athenian navy had been completely wiped out.
The Death of Alcibiades: The End of a Legend
After the catastrophic defeat at Aegospotami, Alcibiades, still in exile, realised that Athens was doomed. With his political ambitions permanently shattered, he sought refuge in Phrygia, a Persian satrapy controlled by Pharnabazus, who had long been sympathetic to his cause. Alcibiades still believed that he could influence the course of history. His last ambition was to convince King Artaxerxes II of Persia to support a new war against Sparta, using Athenian and Persian forces to counteract Lysander’s growing dominance.
[ABOVE: The Achaemenid Satrapy of Hellespontine Phrygia in Asia Minor, ruled by Satrap Pharnabazus II]
However, Alcibiades' presence in Phrygia was dangerous for both Sparta and Persia. Lysander, now at the height of his power, saw him as a lingering threat to Spartan hegemony. Meanwhile, the Persian elite distrusted Alcibiades’ reputation as a manipulator and feared that he might interfere in the internal affairs of the Persian court. According to Plutarch:
A man such as Alcibiades, whose cunning and influence could sway the minds of kings, was too dangerous to be left alive.
[Plutarch, “Life of Alcibiades”, 38.4]
At the request of Lysander, Pharnabazus was instructed to eliminate Alcibiades. One night, a band of Persian assassins, reportedly under Pharnabazus' orders, surrounded Alcibiades’ residence in Phrygia. There, Alcibiades was living with Pharnabazus’ mistress, Timandra, which may have been an additional motive. The assassins set fire to his house, forcing him to emerge through the flames, sword in hand.
[ABOVE: Coinage depicting Pharnabazus II from Kyzikos, Mysia, c.398 - 395 BC. OBVERSE: "ΦΑΡ-Ν-[Α]-ΒΑ", next to Pharnabazus wearing the satrapal cap, with diadem. REVERSE: A ship's prow, facing left, with a griffin and prophylactic eye. Two dolphins facing downwards into the sea, and a tuna below the ship.]
Xenophon describes his final moments:
He burst forth like a lion at bay, his sword flashing in the firelight, cutting down his first assailants. But alone, against many, he could not last. A storm of arrows and javelins struck him down, and so perished Alcibiades, the most restless soul of his age.
[Xenophon, “Hellenica" 2.3.7]
Diodorus Siculus adds:
Thus fell Alcibiades, once the glory of Athens, undone not by battle, but by treachery and fear of what he might yet accomplish.
[Diodorus Siculus, “Bibliotheca Historica”, 13.106.5]
[ABOVE: "The Death of Alcibiades", by Philippe Chéry, 1791. Now held in the Musée des Beaux-Arts, La Rochelle, France]
Aristotle states Alcibiades' death place as Mount Elaphus in Phrygia. Alcibiades' death marked the end of an era. He had once shaped the war through his charisma, strategic brilliance, and reckless ambition. Yet, in his final years, he was a man without a country—rejected by Athens, distrusted by Persia, and feared by Sparta. Had he lived, he might have continued to be a thorn in the side of Sparta and Lysander, or even changed the course of Persian involvement in Greek affairs. Instead, his assassination removed one of the last wild cards of the war.
[ABOVE: Epitaph of Hipparete, the daughter of Alcibiades, in the Kerameikos Cemetery, Athens. Picture taken by Giovanni Dall'Orto, 2009]
With Alcibiades dead, Athens broken and Lysander in command, only one event remained: the Siege and Fall of Athens.
The Siege and Fall of Athens, 405 - 404 BC
Lysander’s Advance
With Athens’ navy annihilated at Aegospotami, Lysander began his march towards the city, systematically capturing Athenian territories along the way. He first secured Sestos, encountering resistance but eventually overwhelming the defenders. As he advanced, he ensured that no grain shipments from the Black Sea reached Athens, cutting off the city’s final lifeline. Xenophon records the despair within Athens:
As news of the fleet's destruction spread, the people wailed in the streets, for they knew their doom was upon them.
[Xenophon, “Hellenica”, 2.2.2]
The Blockade and Starvation
By late 405 BC, Lysander’s fleet blockaded Piraeus, Athens' main port, while King Agis II and Pausanias led the Spartan army to besiege the city from the land. Athens, now surrounded and starving, endured a harsh winter. Inside the city, starvation and disease spread.
[ABOVE: "Lysander Outside the Walls of Athens", painting made in 1899 (unknown painter)]
Plutarch describes the suffering:
They ate the leather of their sandals, and when that was gone, they turned on each other with desperation in their eyes.
[Plutarch, “Life of Lysander”, 15.2]
Inside the city, political factions vied for control. The radical democrats, still led by Cleophon, urged continued resistance, but as starvation worsened, opposition grew. The oligarchic faction, backed by Theramenes, advocated for surrender, believing continued resistance was futile. Cleophon was ultimately arrested, tried, and executed in late 405 BC, removing one of the last obstacles to surrender.
[ABOVE: Ancient Athens and the port city of Piraeus, surrounded by the Long Walls]
Surrender and the Destruction of the Long Walls
By March 404 BC, Athens had no choice but to capitulate. Envoys were sent to Sparta, begging for mercy. Though some Peloponnesian allies, particularly Corinth and Thebes, demanded that Athens be razed to the ground, Sparta refused to destroy the city. Instead, Athens was forced to agree to harsh peace terms: The Long Walls and Piraeus’ fortifications were to be demolished, Athens’ navy was reduced to only 12 ships, while Athens itself would become a subordinate ally of Sparta. All Athenian colonies and overseas possessions were surrendered.
On the day of the surrender, Spartan troops entered Athens, and under Lysander’s orders, the city’s walls were torn down to the sound of flutes, symbolising the end of Athenian dominance. Xenophon recounts:
As the walls fell, so too did the pride of Athens, for they knew they had lost more than a war—they had lost their empire and their freedom, and their place among the great powers of the world.
[Xenophon, “Hellenica”, 2.2.23]
[ABOVE: "Lysander has the Walls of Athens Demolished", from "The Illustrated History of the World", 1881 - 1884]
Thus ended the Peloponnesian War, lasting twenty-seven years in total, leaving Athens humiliated and broken, its empire shattered. Sparta, now the supreme power in Greece, had finally achieved its long-sought victory, but the war’s consequences would reshape the Greek world forever...
And that's it: I've finally finished my Peloponnesian War series. It's lasted twenty-seven years, and it certainly felt like that from my end too; It's been a confusing slog trying to make sense of this long, complex war, but I've made it, I think producing a pretty great series as a result, and I hope you've enjoyed it.
The next period in Greece's history - The Spartan Hegemony - is a very interesting one for sure: there'll be oligarchic terror in the streets of Athens akin to the French Revolution, Spartan campaigns deep into Persian territory and an epic fight for survival story, the trial and death of perhaps history's greatest philosopher, the reign of Agesilaus II and his campaigns, the great Corinthian War, the resurged Delian League, and the rise of the Greek city of Thebes. This tumultuous and unsteady period will eventually allow a Greek power to the north to rise to prominence, and under its king - one of the most famous people in all of human history - will completely change the trajectory of world history forever...
Next Post: SOPHOCLES, 497 - 406 BC: The Dramatic Tragedian
SOURCES
- Xenophon, "Hellenica", 2.1.6 - 2.2.3
- Plato, "The Apology"
- Aristotle:
- "The Athenian Constitution"
- "History of Animals"
- Plutarch, "Life of Lysander / Alcibiades"
- Diodorus Siculus, "Library of History", 13.105 - 13.106
- Cornelius Nepos, "Lysander"
- Justin, "Epitome of Pompeius Trogus"
- Polyaenus, "Stratagems of War"
- Pausanias, "Description of Greece"
- Donald Kagan:
- "The Peloponnesian War", pages 469 - 473
- "The Fall of the Athenian Empire", pages 386
- Paul Cartledge, "Sparta and Laconia: A Regional History, 1300 - 362 BC"
YOUTUBE LINKS
(I do NOT own these videos)
"Ancient Greek History - Part 15 of the Peloponnesian War - 31" by "Historyden"
"The Full History of the Peloponnesian War - Athens vs Sparta" by "Kings and Generals"
"Dance of the Spartans - Ancient Greek Music" by "Farya Faraji"
MY ANCIENT GREEK HISTORY BLOG PAGE
MY ANCIENT PERSIAN HISTORY BLOG PAGE
MY RANDOM THOUGHTS BLOG PAGE
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