The Delian League
What where the original provisions of the Delian League? How far did Athens adhere to them between 478 and 445 B.C?The Delian League (478-461) was an affiliation of Greek city-states. When faced with subjugation from Persia, they and the states in the islands in the Aegean turned towards Athens and her powerful navy for aegis and alliance. As it was led by Athens it is sometimes pejoratively referred to as the Athenian Empire.The Delian League had many provisions such as allies, an oath, finance headquarters and Synod. Athens adhered to these necessities for a certain amount of time. However they were soon contravened, so that Athens became an imperial state. Thucydides believed that there was no turning point where Athens transgressed these provisions, rather "It was the actual course of events which first compelled us to increase our power to its present extent." The aims of the League were two-fold. Their first objective was to attain a short-term offensive stance, thereby attacking Persian areas in order to, as Thucydides says "Compensate themselves for their losses by ravaging the territory of the King of Persia." As well as this there was a long-term offensive intention, to maintain the freedom of the Greeks and t
Under this Decree the people swore an oath. It was coerced into amalgamation of the League in 472 by the military actions of the Athenians. They gained more land, more money and they removed a potentially dangerous obstacle. The Persians had a large fleet and army at they mouth of the Eurymedon River in Pamphylia and in the most costly and ambitious campaign undertaken by the League fleet, in 468 Cimon inflicted a severe defeat on the Persian navy. " (Thucydides) It dominated the strategic waterway between Andros and Euboea, thus its position made the odds higher. Athens now stood on the brink of democracy, and Pericles became ready to move the League into the Athenian Empire. Megara also destroyed her Athenian garrisons, this was a huge blow but Pericles took all of Euboea and issued the Chalcis decree, it revealed that Athens was now an imperial power. "The Council and people decided that the Council and the magistrates in the cities and the episkopoi should look after the collection of tribute every year and bring it to Athens. At home, Cimon became unpopular, and a radical democratic movement under Pericles' leadership challenged his authority. As Thucydides said it was the course of events that led to the increased power Athens possessed, rather than a single affair. Conversely, rebellious states soon lost their sovereignty and became subject to Athens. Initially the allies were independent states, they had their own particular forms of government.
Common topics in this essay:
Tribute Lists,
League Hereafter,
Athenians Appointed,
Athens Aristotle,
River Pamphylia,
Moreover Athenians,
Delian League,
Carystus Persian,
Athens Thucydides,
Asia Minor,
tribute lists,
delian league,
athenian tribute lists,
athenian tribute,
imperial power,
asia minor,
significant step evolution,
attacking persian,
athenian people,
course events,
athens imperial,
athenian empire,
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Acceptance Essays
