Ask the Chatbot Games & Quizzes History & Society Science & Tech Biographies Animals & Nature Geography & Travel Arts & Culture ProCon Money Videos
First Peloponnesian War
References
Britannica AI Icon

First Peloponnesian War

Greek history
Written by
The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

The Information Architects maintain a master list of the topics included in the corpus of  Encyclopædia Britannica, and create and manage the relationships between them.
The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Last updated

Quick Summary

The First Peloponnesian War was a conflict fought between the ancient Greek city-states of Athens and Sparta, along with their respective allies. This war, occurring from 460 to 446 BCE, was primarily driven by friction between Athens and Corinth, a key Spartan ally.13

Athens's expansionist policies and alliances, particularly with Argos and Megara, directly challenged Corinth's influence in the Peloponnese. The conflict saw Athens, with its strong navy, pitted against Sparta, which commanded a formidable army. While Sparta eventually intervened, its involvement was inconsistent, and the war is largely seen as a contest between Athens and Corinth. The Thirty Years' Treaty in 445 BCE brought a temporary end to hostilities, but underlying tensions would later erupt into the more famous Great Peloponnesian War.231

Summary created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
3 Britannica Sources
  1. Peloponnesian War
  2. ancient Greek civilization - Causes
  3. ancient Greek civilization - Friction between Athens and Corinth

Ask Britannica AI about this topic

Britannica doesn't have a full article on this topic, so we've curated a list of our relevant coverage.