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490 BCE
Battle of Marathon
The Battle of Marathon took place in 490 BC in the city-state of Marathon and was the first battle of the Persian wars. This battle was won by the Greeks mainly through their battle formation called the Phalanx. This formation involved foot soldiers standing side by side with spears and shields. This formation proved to work quite well against the Persians. This Battle is significant because it is the first battle that the small Greek empire won against the big Persian Empire. -
480 BCE
Battle of Salamis
The is the third and final battle of the Persian wars and was fought in 480 BC. The Greeks fight the Persians in the water near the island of Salamis. During this sea battle the Greeks are able to sink one third of the Persian fleet. The Persians were trying to go through a small opening in the water and because of this the Greeks easily took them out. This battle was important because the victory in this battle meant the Greeks won the Persian wars. -
480 BCE
Battle of Thermopylae
The Battle of Thermopylae was the second battle of the Persian wars and occurred during 480 BC. During this battle, the Greeks united to stop Xerxes from taking Athens. The numbers for Sparta were small compared to the Persians, about 300 to 10,000. The Spartans were able to hold Thermopylae, a mountain pass, for 3 days, but inevitably lost. This Battle was important because the Greeks proved once again that they don't need a big empire to stop the Persians and again they held off the Persians. -
Period: 479 BCE to 431 BCE
Golden Age
Athens economic success from the Delian League led to the Golden Age of culture. The golden age occurred between 479 and 431 BCE. Pericles was leader of Athens during the Golden Age and he increased democracy, created the most powerful navy, and made Athens beautiful. The Golden Age included columns, classical art, and theater. This culture was important for Athens because they made a powerful navy a=to protect themselves and made Athens beautiful to attract people to them. -
478 BCE
Delian League
After the Persian wars, in 478 BC, Athens became very wealthy and powerful and emerged as leader of the Delian League. The Delian League was an alliance of Greek city-states that would protect Greece against another Persian attack. Athens builds a powerful navy and trading empire. Athens became harsh leaders and would punish city-states that wanted to leave the league. The Delian league was important sparked the formation of the Peloponnesian League thus starting the Peloponnesian war. -
Period: 431 BCE to 404 BCE
Peloponnesian War
The Peloponnesian war, fought between Athens and Sparta, occurred through 431 and 404 BC. Pericles brings all of the citizens behind the cities wall for protection. However, Athens suffers a plague which killed 1/3rd of the population including Pericles. Because of the Plague, Sparta wins the war. Since both city-states are weakened by the war, Greece is easily conquered by Phillip the II. The war was important because it led to the conquering of Greece that was not possible before. -
430 BCE
Plague in Athens
The plague in Athens occurred during the Peloponnesian war in 430 BC. The plague flooded the streets of Athens affecting all of its people. It was a disease that came from Egypt and started with symptoms such as rise in body temperature, this led to eye inflammation, and that led to chest pain and intense coughing. The plague ultimately led to an awful death to the person that had it. The plague was significant because it caused a high death rate in Athens leading the Spartans to win the war. -
430 BCE
Phillip the II
After the Peloponnesian war, both city-states were weakened and vulnerable. Because of the vulnerability Greece was conquered by Phillip the II in 430 BC. Phillip the II was Alexander the Great's father. He was able to conquer Greece, this was something that the Persian empire tried to do multiple times and each time they had fail. The importance was that the king was able to gain control over Greece and make it his.
