History of the Peloponnesian War · Chapter
Chapter II explained
The Corcyraeans and Corinthians present competing arguments before the Athenian assembly, each seeking an alliance.
What happens
The Corcyraeans and Corinthians present competing arguments before the Athenian assembly, each seeking an alliance. The Athenians ultimately side with Corcyra, leading to a naval battle at Sybota. Tensions escalate as Potidaea revolts, drawing in Athens, Corinth, and Macedonia, setting the stage for the Peloponnesian War.
Themes in this chapter
Alliance and Betrayal
The Corcyraeans and Corinthians each appeal to Athens for alliance, while Perdiccas shifts allegiances, and Potidaea revolts against Athens, illustrating the fragile and shifting nature of alliances.
War and Its Consequences
The naval battle at Sybota and the siege of Potidaea demonstrate the immediate and escalating consequences of diplomatic failures, leading to open conflict.
Power and Empire
Athens' decision to ally with Corcyra and its actions against Potidaea reflect its imperial ambitions to control naval power and suppress revolts among its tributary allies.
Characters to notice
- Perdiccas
King of Macedonia, initially an ally of Athens but becomes an enemy, inciting revolts among Chalcidians and Bottiaeans.
- Aristaeus
Corinthian commander who leads reinforcements to Potidaea and is a steady friend to the Potidaeans.
- Callias
Athenian general commanding forces sent to suppress the revolt of Potidaea.
- Archestratus
Athenian commander sent with thirty ships and a thousand heavy infantry to secure Potidaea and prevent revolt.
Key passages
“Remember that there are but three considerable naval powers in Hellas—Athens, Corcyra, and Corinth—and that if you allow two of these three to become one, and Corinth to secure us for herself, you will have to hold the sea against the united fleets of Corcyra and Peloponnese.”
The Corcyraeans warn Athens that if Corinth absorbs Corcyra, Athens will face a combined naval threat from Corinth and the Peloponnesian allies.
This argument emphasizes the strategic importance of Corcyra's navy to Athenian security.
“The object that they propose to themselves, in their specious policy of complete isolation, is not to avoid sharing in the crimes of others, but to secure monopoly of crime to themselves—the licence of outrage wherever they can compel, of fraud wherever they can elude, and the enjoyment of their gains without shame.”
The Corinthians accuse the Corcyraeans of using isolation as a cover for their own wrongdoing, allowing them to act unjustly without oversight.
This rhetorical attack aims to discredit Corcyra's moral standing before the Athenian assembly.
“The Potidaeans, who inhabit the isthmus of Pallene, being a Corinthian colony, but tributary allies of Athens, were ordered to raze the wall looking towards Pallene, to give hostages, to dismiss the Corinthian magistrates, and in future not to receive the persons sent from Corinth annually to succeed them.”
Athens demanded that Potidaea, a Corinthian colony but Athenian ally, dismantle its fortifications, hand over hostages, and sever ties with Corinthian officials.
This order reflects Athens' fear of revolt and its attempt to tighten control over its allies.