Pericles

Pericles was the Greek statesman and general who led Athens during its golden age. He promoted the democracy and the culture and the building of the Parthenon.

Early Life and Education

Pericles was born in about 495 BC into an aristocratic Athenian family. His father was the general Xanthippus and his mother was of the Alcmaeonid family.

He received the education from the philosophers and the musicians. He was influenced by the philosopher Anaxagoras and the statesman Ephialtes.

He entered the political life and became the leader of the democratic faction. He was elected the general and the treasurer of the city.

The Rule of Athens

Pericles led the movement for the reform of the Areopagus and the extension of the democracy. He introduced the payment for the jury service and the public office.

He was elected the general for more than thirty years. He directed the policy and the strategy of the city.

He made Athens the leader of the Delian League and the head of the empire. He moved the treasury of the league to Athens and used the funds for the city.

He promoted the sense of the civic pride and the participation of the citizens. He argued that Athens was the school of Hellas.

The Building Programme

Pericles initiated the building programme on the Acropolis. He rebuilt the Parthenon and constructed the Propylaea and the Erechtheion.

The Parthenon was built between 447 and 432 BC. The temple is the masterpiece of the classical architecture and the sculpture.

He also built the Odeon and the temples of the other gods. The buildings transformed the city and employed the citizens.

The programme was funded by the treasury of the Delian League. The use of the allied funds was the subject of the criticism.

The Peloponnesian War and the Legacy

Pericles led Athens in the early years of the Peloponnesian War against Sparta. The strategy was to avoid the pitched battle and to rely on the fleet and the walls.

The overcrowding of the city behind the walls caused the plague. The plague killed many of the citizens, including the family of Pericles.

Pericles died in 429 BC from the plague. His death was a great loss to the city.

He is celebrated in the funeral oration of Thucydides as the ideal of the democratic statesman. He is regarded as one of the greatest of the ancient leaders.

The Rule of the Democracy

Pericles extended the participation of the citizens in the government. He supported the payment for the office and the jury.

He was elected the general for more than thirty years. He directed the policy of the city with the skill and the eloquence.

He was opposed by the conservative faction and the oligarchs. He defended the democracy against the critics.

The Peloponnesian War

Pericles led Athens in the war against Sparta. He advised the strategy of the defence and the reliance on the fleet.

He delivered the funeral oration for the fallen of the first year of the war. The speech is a celebration of the Athenian democracy.

He was deposed and fined in 430 BC after the plague. He was re-elected in 429 but died shortly afterwards.

The Democracy and the Reforms

Pericles extended the participation of the citizens in the government. He introduced the payment for the jury and the public office.

He supported the cultural and the religious festivals. He promoted the sense of the civic pride and the participation.

He was the leader of the democratic faction. He was opposed by the conservative and the oligarchic factions.

The Allies and the Empire

Pericles made Athens the head of the Delian League. He moved the treasury to Athens and used the funds for the city.

He suppressed the revolts of the allies and the rivals. The empire became the source of the wealth and the power of Athens.

He argued that Athens was the school of Hellas. The city became the centre of the Greek culture and the learning.

The Death and the Memory

Pericles died in 429 BC from the plague. The plague had killed many of the citizens and the members of his family.

He is celebrated in the funeral oration of Thucydides. The speech is a statement of the ideals of the Athenian democracy.

He is regarded as one of the greatest of the ancient leaders. The ideal of the democratic statesman has been admired for the centuries.

The Cultural Patronage

Pericles promoted the arts and the literature of Athens. He was the friend of the playwright Sophocles and the philosopher Anaxagoras.

He supported the construction of the Parthenon and the other buildings. The works made Athens the centre of the Greek culture.

He was the patron of the sculptors and the architects. The period of his rule is known as the golden age of Athens.

See also

• Athenian democracy
• Parthenon
• Peloponnesian War
• Ancient Greece