Pericles
Pericles, name meaning "surrounded by glory" , was a statesman, orator, politician, and general of Athens during the Golden Age who lived between 495 and 429 BCE. He made Athens the political and cultural focus of Greece with the development of the Athenian democracy and empire in the late 5th Century BCE and is well known for the rebuild of the Acropolis which begun in 447BCE. Pericles successfully led a military campaign in Corinth and sponsored the formation of the Athenian province in Thrace and Black Sea coast in 454BCE before being elected one of Athens’ leading generals in 443BCE which he held for the remainder of his life.
Pericles was born into one of the leading families in Athens; his father being a military commander for Athens in the battle of Mycale in 479BCE and his mother belonging to the culturally powerful Alcmaeonidae family. His father was Xanthippus who married into the controversial family of the Alcmaeonids before leaving their
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By his 20s, Pericles was recognised as a dedicated patron of the arts as he sponsored the Festival of Dionysus. It was around this time that Pericles married and his newly wife bore him two sons, however they were incompatible leading to their divorce 10 years later. Around the age of 50, although marriage was impossible due to his own law, Pericles took Aspasia of Miletus into his home. Although the story behind Aspasia is only known through legend, it is easy to believe that she was of great charm and intelligence due to her city’s great intellectual traditions. Upon leaving and returning from work, Pericles was known to kiss Aspasia which raised speculation about her influence on him and the Athenian