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Pericles Strategies During The Peloponnesian War

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The Athenian City State objectives had two overarching strategies during the Peloponnesian War. The strategies had different requirements of the means that the City State had to provide, which either increase or decrease the risks assumed by Athens. Pericles strategy at the start of the Peloponnesian War was driven off the objective to preserving the empire. The follow on leaders Cleon and Nicias, strategies shifted from defending to growth of the Empire that eventually contributed to its downfall.
The following strategy outline by Pericles was a defensive one, his ends was not to engage Sparta in a land battle, but to protect the City State of Athens. The objectives outline by him directed the people of Attica to “not to go out to battle, …show more content…

Athens had the means to support the war due to the immense wealth and the resources remitted from Athenian colonies and allies. He figured that they would outlast the Spartans do to their limited wealth and resource base available to them. To ensure that the means of Athens were maintained, she was required “to keep a tight rein on their allies” since without their allies the support being provided and remittance of resources would dry up. During the Spartan raids into Attica in attempts to draw out the Athenian army, the ever present risk that was present to answer the raids due to the honor which called the people to defending their homes and lands. Pericles minimized the risk by not calling an assembly or meeting the people, which could reverse the strategy that he outlined. To counter the raids by Sparta, Pericles directed the Athenian navy to conduct raids within the Sparta homeland of Peloponnesus, which strike at their limited resource …show more content…

The Athenians was able to project the new strategy with the Spartans as they requested for peace and the return of their soldiers on the island. Encourage by Cleon the Athenians reject the peace offering from Sparta “grasping at something further”. Athenians requested four cities that were lost to be return to Athens. The Spartan envoys needed time to consult on the request that the Athenians made. “Cleon violently assailed” the envoys, causing the Spartans to depart knowing whatever they offered would not be good enough for the

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