|
Pelopidas
Pelopidas (; grc-gre, Πελοπίδας; died 364 BC) was an important Theban statesman and general in Greece, instrumental in establishing the mid-fourth century Theban hegemony. Biography Athlete and warrior Pelopidas was a member of a distinguished family and possessed great wealth, which he expended on his friends and on public service while he himself was content to lead the rough life of an athlete.T Duff ed., ''Plutarch: The Age Of Alexander'' (Penguin 2011) p. 48-9 In 384 BC, he served in a Theban contingent sent to the support of the Spartans during the Siege of Mantinea, where he was saved, when dangerously wounded by the Arcadians, by Epaminondas and Agesipolis. ::Pelopidas, after receiving seven wounds in front, sank down upon a great heap of friends and enemies who lay dead together; but Epaminondas, although he thought him lifeless, stood forth to defend his body and his arms, and fought desperately, single-handed against many, determined to die rather tha ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pelopidas Leading The Thebans At The Battle Of Leuctra
Pelopidas (; grc-gre, Πελοπίδας; died 364 BC) was an important Theban statesman and general in Greece, instrumental in establishing the mid-fourth century Theban hegemony. Biography Athlete and warrior Pelopidas was a member of a distinguished family and possessed great wealth, which he expended on his friends and on public service while he himself was content to lead the rough life of an athlete.T Duff ed., ''Plutarch: The Age Of Alexander'' (Penguin 2011) p. 48-9 In 384 BC, he served in a Theban contingent sent to the support of the Spartans during the Siege of Mantinea, where he was saved, when dangerously wounded by the Arcadians, by Epaminondas and Agesipolis. ::Pelopidas, after receiving seven wounds in front, sank down upon a great heap of friends and enemies who lay dead together; but Epaminondas, although he thought him lifeless, stood forth to defend his body and his arms, and fought desperately, single-handed against many, determined to die rather than ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pelopidas Setting Out For Thebes
Pelopidas (; grc-gre, Πελοπίδας; died 364 BC) was an important Theban statesman and general in Greece, instrumental in establishing the mid-fourth century Theban hegemony. Biography Athlete and warrior Pelopidas was a member of a distinguished family and possessed great wealth, which he expended on his friends and on public service while he himself was content to lead the rough life of an athlete.T Duff ed., ''Plutarch: The Age Of Alexander'' (Penguin 2011) p. 48-9 In 384 BC, he served in a Theban contingent sent to the support of the Spartans during the Siege of Mantinea, where he was saved, when dangerously wounded by the Arcadians, by Epaminondas and Agesipolis. ::Pelopidas, after receiving seven wounds in front, sank down upon a great heap of friends and enemies who lay dead together; but Epaminondas, although he thought him lifeless, stood forth to defend his body and his arms, and fought desperately, single-handed against many, determined to die rather than ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sacred Band Of Thebes
The Sacred Band of Thebes (Ancient Greek: , ''Hierós Lókhos'') was a troop of select soldiers, consisting of 150 pairs of male lovers which formed the elite force of the Theban army in the 4th century BC, ending Spartan domination. Its predominance began with its crucial role in the Battle of Leuctra in 371 BC. It was annihilated by Philip II of Macedon in the Battle of Chaeronea in 338 BC. Formation The earliest surviving record of the Sacred Band by name was in 324 BC, in the oration ''Against Demosthenes'' by the Athenian logographer Dinarchus. He mentions the Sacred Band as being led by the general Pelopidas and, alongside Epaminondas who commanded the army of Thebes (Boeotia), were responsible for the defeat of the Spartans at the decisive Battle of Leuctra (371 BC). Plutarch (46–120 AD), a native of the village of Chaeronea, is the source of the most substantial surviving account of the Sacred Band. He records that the Sacred Band was originally formed by ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Epaminondas
Epaminondas (; grc-gre, Ἐπαμεινώνδας; 419/411–362 BC) was a Greek general of Thebes and statesman of the 4th century BC who transformed the Ancient Greek city-state, leading it out of Spartan subjugation into a pre-eminent position in Greek politics called the Theban Hegemony. In the process, he broke Spartan military power with his victory at Leuctra and liberated the Messenian helots, a group of Peloponnesian Greeks who had been enslaved under Spartan rule for some 230 years after being defeated in the Messenian War ending in 600 BC. Epaminondas reshaped the political map of Greece, fragmented old alliances, created new ones, and supervised the construction of entire cities. He was also militarily influential and invented and implemented several major battlefield tactics. Xenophon, the historian and contemporary, is the main source for Epaminondas' military prowess, and Xenophon describes his admiration for him in his major work ''Hellenica'' (book VII, chap ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Epaminondas Defending Pelopidas
Epaminondas (; grc-gre, Ἐπαμεινώνδας; 419/411–362 BC) was a Greek general of Thebes and statesman of the 4th century BC who transformed the Ancient Greek city-state, leading it out of Spartan subjugation into a pre-eminent position in Greek politics called the Theban Hegemony. In the process, he broke Spartan military power with his victory at Leuctra and liberated the Messenian helots, a group of Peloponnesian Greeks who had been enslaved under Spartan rule for some 230 years after being defeated in the Messenian War ending in 600 BC. Epaminondas reshaped the political map of Greece, fragmented old alliances, created new ones, and supervised the construction of entire cities. He was also militarily influential and invented and implemented several major battlefield tactics. Xenophon, the historian and contemporary, is the main source for Epaminondas' military prowess, and Xenophon describes his admiration for him in his major work '' Hellenica'' (book VII, chap. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Battle Of Tegyra
{{Campaignbox Greek wars of the 4th century BC The Battle of Tegyra (375 BC) (also known as the Battle of Tegyrae)Plutarch, ' was an ancient Greek battle between Theban and Spartan hoplite forces. In the battle, a Theban army under Pelopidas was challenged by a substantially larger Spartan force while retreating from an abortive attack on Orchomenus, but successfully attacked and routed the Spartans. The battle marked the first occasion in the historical record in which a Spartan force had been defeated by a numerically inferior enemy in a set battle (as opposed to irregular warfare, employed by Iphicrates). Prelude After an insurrection in 379/8 BC removed Spartan control over Thebes, the city set about reestablishing its control over the Boeotian League. Over several years of campaigning, the Thebans succeeded in driving Spartan garrisons out of every city in Boeotia but Orchomenus. In 376 BC, Pelopidas, learning that the Spartan garrison of Orchomenus had gone on an expedit ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alexander Of Pherae
Alexander ( grc, Ἀλέξανδρος) was Tyrant or Despot of Pherae in Thessaly, ruling from 369 to c. 356 BC. Following the assassination of Jason, the tyrant of Pherae and Tagus of Thessaly, in 370 BC, his brother Polydorus ruled for a year, but he was then poisoned by another brother (or nephew, according to Xenephon), Alexander. Alexander governed tyrannically and was constantly seeking to control Thessaly and the kingdom of Macedonia. He also engaged in piratical raids on Attica. Alexander was murdered by the brothers of his wife, Thebe, as it was said that she lived in fear of her husband and hated Alexander's cruel and brutal character. Reign The accounts of how Alexander came to power vary somewhat in minor points. Diodorus Siculus tells us that upon the assassination of the tyrant Jason of Pherae, in 370 BC, his brother Polydorus ruled for a year, but he was then poisoned by Alexander, another brother.Diodorus Siculus, xv. 60-61 However, according to Xenophon, P ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Battle Of Leuctra
The Battle of Leuctra ( grc-gre, Λεῦκτρα, ) was a battle fought on 6 July 371 BC between the Boeotians led by the Thebans, and the Spartans along with their allies amidst the post- Corinthian War conflict. The battle took place in the vicinity of Leuctra, a village in Boeotia in the territory of Thespiae. The Theban victory shattered Sparta's immense influence over the Greek peninsula, which Sparta had gained with its victory in the Peloponnesian War a generation earlier. Prelude In 371 BC, the newly established democracy of Thebes had elected four Boeotarchs, the traditional title of the generals of the Boeotian League, and so proclaimed their intention of reconstituting the aforementioned league that Sparta had disbanded.Tritle 1987, p. 80 During this period, Thebes had an ally in Athens, but Athens was far from happy with the treatment Plataea had received. When it came to swearing an oath to respect the treaty, Sparta swore on behalf of itself and its allies. W ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Siege Of Mantinea
The siege of Mantinea occurred in 385 BC, and resulted in a victory of the Spartans over the city of Mantinea, which was defeated and dismembered. On this occasion, Epaminondas, then fighting on the side of the Spartans, famously rescued his fellow Theban Pelopidas. Mantinea had been opposed to the Spartans in the Peloponesian War. As a result, Mantinea first fell in 417, and it was then destroyed in the siege of 385 BC. However, the Arcadians were able to recover and restored their city after the Battle of Leuctra The Battle of Leuctra ( grc-gre, Λεῦκτρα, ) was a battle fought on 6 July 371 BC between the Boeotians led by the Thebans, and the Spartans along with their allies amidst the post- Corinthian War conflict. The battle took place in the vici ... and the defeat of Spartan hegemony. References 385 BC Mantinea Mantinea Mantinea {{Siege-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Parallel Lives
Plutarch's ''Lives of the Noble Greeks and Romans'', commonly called ''Parallel Lives'' or ''Plutarch's Lives'', is a series of 48 biographies of famous men, arranged in pairs to illuminate their common moral virtues or failings, probably written at the beginning of the second century AD. The surviving ''Parallel Lives'' ( Greek: Βίοι Παράλληλοι, ''Bíoi Parállēloi'') comprises 23 pairs of biographies, each pair consisting of one Greek and one Roman of similar destiny, such as Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar, or Demosthenes and Cicero. It is a work of considerable importance, not only as a source of information about the individuals described, but also about the times in which they lived. Motivation ''Parallel Lives'' was Plutarch's second set of biographical works, following the Lives of the Roman Emperors from Augustus to Vitellius. Of these, only the Lives of Galba and Otho survive. As he explains in the first paragraph of his ''Life of Alexander'' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Thebes, Greece
Thebes (; ell, Θήβα, ''Thíva'' ; grc, Θῆβαι, ''Thêbai'' .) is a city in Boeotia, Central Greece. It played an important role in Greek myths, as the site of the stories of Cadmus, Oedipus, Dionysus, Heracles and others. Archaeological excavations in and around Thebes have revealed a Mycenaean settlement and clay tablets written in the Linear B script, indicating the importance of the site in the Bronze Age. Thebes was the largest city of the ancient region of Boeotia and was the leader of the Boeotian confederacy. It was a major rival of ancient Athens, and sided with the Persians during the 480 BC invasion under Xerxes I. Theban forces under the command of Epaminondas ended Spartan hegemony at the Battle of Leuctra in 371 BC, with the Sacred Band of Thebes, an elite military unit of male lovers celebrated as instrumental there. Macedonia would rise in power at the Battle of Chaeronea in 338 BC, bringing decisive victory to Philip II over an alliance of Theb ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Theban Hegemony
The Theban hegemony lasted from the Theban victory over the Spartans at Leuctra in 371 BC to their defeat of a coalition of Peloponnesian armies at Mantinea in 362 BC, though Thebes sought to maintain its position until finally eclipsed by the rising power of Macedon in 346 BC. Externally, the way was paved for Theban ascendancy by the collapse of Athenian power in the Peloponnesian War (431–404 BC), through the weakening of the Spartans by their oliganthropia (demographic decline) and by the inconclusive Corinthian War (395–386 BC). Internally, the Thebans enjoyed two temporary military advantages: #The leaders of the Theban oligarchy at the time, Epaminondas and Pelopidas, were fully committed to an aggressive foreign policy and could be relied on to win any battle and #The same leaders had instituted tactical improvements in the Theban heavy infantry (e.g. longer spears, the use of a wedge-shaped formation of spearmen), which had yet to catch on among their rivals. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
