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492 BCE
Darius I Invades Greece
He was the third Achaemenian king and was considered by many to be “the greatest of the Achaemenian kings.” During his reign, Darius completed the work of his predecessors, and not only did he “hold together the empire,” but he also extended it in all directions. -
490 BCE
Greeks defeat persians at marathon
Thebatte on the plain of marathon in September 490 BCE between Greek and the invading force of Persian king Darius was a victory which would go down in folklore as the moment the Greek city- states showed the world their courage and excellence and won their liberty. -
480 BCE
Battle of Salamis
The Battle of Salamis was a naval battle fought between an alliance of Greek city-states under Themistocles and the Persian Empire under King Xerxes in 480 BC which resulted in a decisive victory for the outnumbered Greeks. -
480 BCE
Battle of Termopylae
Thermopylae is a mountain pass near the sea in northern Greece which was the site of several battles in antiquity, the most famous being that between Persians and Greeks in August 480 BCE. -
445 BCE
Thirty Years Peace Between Argos and Sparta Begins
The First Peloponnesian War, which effectively ended after the Battle of Coronea, and the Second Sacred War forced both the Spartans and Athenians to realize a new dualism existed in Hellenic affairs; the Hellenes now had one hegemon on the mainland under Sparta and one in the Aegean under Athens. -
424 BCE
Athens Invades Megara
The Peloponnesian Wars fought between Athens and Sparta and their respective allies came in two stages, the first from c. 460 to 446 BCE and the second and more significant war from 431 to 404 BCE. -
404 BCE
End of the Peloponnesian War
In the 5th century BCE Sparta and Athens were the two major powers in Greece and it was perhaps inevitable that their spheres of influence would overlap and cause conflict.
