Athens

Q: What is Athens famous for?

Athens is famous as the birthplace of democracy.

Q: When was Athens founded?

Athens was founded as a small community c. 1700-1100 BCE.

Q: Who were some of the most famous Athenians?

Famous Athenians include the statesman Pericles, the writer Aspasia, philosophers Socrates, Plato, and Antisthenes, playwrights Sophocles, Euripides, Aeschylus, the general Miltiades, among many others.

Q: Is Athens Greek or Roman?

Athens was a Greek city-state which became part of the Roman Empire and was favored by various Roman emperors.

Joshua J. Mark

Definition

Athens, Greece, with its famous Acropolis, has come to symbolize the whole of the country in the popular imagination, and not without cause. It not only has its iconic ruins and the famous port of Piraeus but, thanks to ancient writers, its history is better documented than most other ancient Greek city-states.

More about: Athens

Timeline

c. 7000 BCE - 5000 BCE
Human habitation on the Acropolis and around the Agora of Athens continues from Neolithic Period.
c. 1700 BCE - c. 1100 BCE
Mycenaean Period. Agora established at Athens.
c. 1100 BCE - c. 600 BCE
Iron Age Development, public buildings erected at the Agora in Athens.
683 BCE - 682 BCE
List of annual archons at Athens begins.
600 BCE - 550 BCE
The Dionysia becomes a major Athenian festival in honour of Dionysos.
c. 600 BCE
The Eleusinian Mysteries become part of the official Athenian religious calendar.
600 BCE - 480 BCE
Attic black-figure pottery dominates the greek ceramic market.
594 BCE - 593 BCE
In Athens the archon Solon lays the foundations for democracy.
c. 560 BCE
Pisistratos becomes tyrant in Athens for the first time.
c. 546 BCE
Pisistratus lands his Argive mercenary force at Marathon and with victory at Pallene establishes himself once again as tyrant of Athens.
c. 540 BCE
Athens removes and prohibits further burials on Delos to purify the sacred island.
525 BCE
Cleisthenes is made archon at Athens.
c. 524 BCE - c. 460 BCE
Life of Athenian general and statesman Themistocles.
514 BCE
Fall of the Peisistratid tyranny in Athens.
514 BCE
The tyrant of Athens Hipparchos is killed by Harmodios and Aristogeiton - the 'tyrannicides'.
c. 508 BCE
According to Aristotle, the institution of ostracism is introduced in Athens under Cleisthenes.
c. 508 BCE
Reforms by Cleisthenes establishes democracy in Athens.
c. 495 BCE
Birth of Pericles.
493 BCE
The first fortifications are constructed at Athens' port of Piraeus.
493 BCE
Themistocles is made archon in Athens.
490 BCE - 480 BCE
A 1.4 m (4 ft 7 in) tall Iris or Nike sculpture is erected on the Acropolis of Athens in memory of the general Kallimachos, killed in the Battle of Marathon.
490 BCE
Athens builds a treasury at Delphi following their victory at Marathon against Persia.
11 Sep 490 BCE
A combined force of Greek hoplites defeat the Persians at Marathon.
487 BCE - 486 BCE
Archons begin to be appointed by lot in Athens.
c. 483 BCE
Themistocles persuades the Athenians to significantly expand their fleet, which saves them at Salamis and becomes their source of power.
480 BCE
The fortifications of Piraeus instigated by Themistocles are completed.
480 BCE
Sack of Athens by the Persians under Xerxes. The Agora is destroyed.
Aug 480 BCE
The indecisive battle of Artemision between the Greek and Persian fleets of Xerxes I. The Greeks withdraw to Salamis.
479 BCE - 432 CE
The period of Thucydides' Pentecontaetia in ancient Greece.
479 BCE
Xerxes' Persian forces are defeated by Greek forces at Plataea effectively ending Persia's imperial ambitions in Greece.
478 BCE - 454 BCE
The treasury of the Delian League is kept on Delos until its removal to Athens.
478 BCE - 404 BCE
The Delian League in Greece, led by Athens.
476 BCE - 463 BCE
Delian League operations are led by Athenian commander Cimon
c. 475 BCE
Athenian general Cimon drives the Dolopian pirates out of the Aegean island of Scyros.
475 BCE
Cimon captures Eion in Thrace for Athens.
c. 471 BCE
The general and statesman Themistocles is voted in an ostracism and exiled from Athens.
470 BCE
Statue group of Harmodius and Aristogiton in Athens.
c. 469 BCE - 399 BCE
Life of Socrates.
c. 466 BCE
Athenian general Cimon twice defeats the Persians at Eurymedon on the southern coast of Asia Minor.
c. 465 BCE
Construction of the Long Walls fortifications joining Athens to the port of Piraeus are begun.
465 BCE - 463 BCE
Athenian general Cimon conquers Chersonesus in Thrace and the north-Aegean island of Thasos.
462 BCE - 461 BCE
Radicalisation of democracy in Athens; Cimon exiled, Pericles comes to exercise influence.
c. 462 BCE - 458 BCE
Pericles introduces democratic institutions in Athens.
461 BCE
Cimon is voted in an ostracism in Athens and exiled from the city.
461 BCE - 429 BCE
Pericles is ruler of Athens.
c. 460 BCE - c. 320 CE
Period of full and direct citizen democracy in Athens.
460 BCE - 445 BCE
First Peloponnesian War.
460 BCE - 429 BCE
The Age of Pericles. Athenian Agora is rebuilt, construction of Parthenon.
c. 460 BCE - 403 BCE
Life of Critias, one of the Thirty Tyrants of Athens.
457 BCE
Sparta wins the battle of Tanagra during the 1st Peloponnesian War with Athens.
457 BCE
Hegemony of Athens over central Greece.
454 BCE
The Athenians move the treasury of the Delian League from Delos to Athens.
453 BCE
Pericles erects trophy at Nemea after Athenian victory over the Sikyonians.
c. 451 BCE - c. 403 CE
Life of Athenian statesman and general Alcibiades.
450 BCE
Athenian general Cimon dies on Cyprus fighting the Persians.
449 BCE
The Hephaisteion, temple to Athena & Hephaistos, built in Athens.
447 BCE - 432 BCE
The construction of the Parthenon in Athens by the architects Iktinos and Kallikrates under the direction of Phidias.
28 Jul 447 BCE
Reconstruction and creation of the Acropolis of the Classical Period begins under Pericles' leadership.
446 BCE
The Middle Wall fortifications are added to the Long Walls which connect Athens and the port of Piraeus.
c. 443 BCE
Thurii in Magna Graecia founded by Athenian settlers.
438 BCE
The cult statue of Athena Parthenos is dedicated in the Parthenon of Athens.
c. 437 BCE - 431 BCE
The Propylaea is constructed on the Acropolis of Athens under the supervision of Mnesicles.
433 BCE
A naval battle between the victorious combined forces of Corcyra and Athens against Corinth.
433 BCE
Alliance between Athens and Corcyra.
432 BCE
Sparta declares that Athens has broken the Thirty Year Peace and prepares for war.
431 BCE - 404 BCE
The 2nd Peloponnesian War between Athens and Sparta (the Delian League and the Peloponnesian League) which involved all of Greece.
431 BCE
Athens invades Megara.
431 BCE - 404 BCE
The Peloponnesian Wars which leave Athens defeated and the Agora damaged.
430 BCE - c. 354 BCE
Life of Xenophon of Athens.
430 BCE
The plague decimates Athens.
c. 430 BCE - 415 BCE
The Histories of Herodotus is published. The work is divided into nine chapters, each dedicated to one of the Muses.
429 BCE
Athens successfully campaigns in the Corinthian Gulf regions during the Peloponnesian War.
429 BCE
Following attacks by Sparta, fortifications at the port of Piraeus are extended to reduce the width of the harbour entrances.
427 BCE - 347 BCE
Life of Plato.
c. 425 BCE - c. 420 BCE
The Temple dedicated to Athena Nike is constructed on the acropolis of Athens.
425 BCE
Pylos campaign, under Cleon and Demosthenes' command Athens defeats Sparta at Pylos.
424 BCE
The Athenian expeditions against Megara and Boeotia are a failure with a particularly heavy defeat near Delion.
424 BCE
A force of Athenian peltasts defeat Spartan hoplites on Sphaktria in the Peloponnese.
422 BCE
Spartan general Brasidas employs Myrkinian and Chalkidian peltasts to defeat a force of Athenian hoplites at Amphipolis.
421 BCE - 406 BCE
The Erechtheion of Athens acropolis is constructed with six Caryatids in the south porch.
c. 417 BCE
In the last recorded ostracism the demagogue Hyperbolos is exiled from Athens.
415 BCE - 413 BCE
Athenian expedition to attack Syracuse.
c. 415 BCE
Alcibiades persuades the Athenian assembly to send a military expedition to Sicily.
414 BCE
Athens constructs fortifications at Sounion.
413 BCE
On the advice of Alcibiades the Spartans take over the Athenian-held fort of Dekeleia.
413 BCE
The Athenian expedition in Sicily ends in disastrous defeat and the Athenian generals Nicias and Demosthenes are executed.
411 BCE
The oligarchy of the 400 take over the democracy in Athens and in a matter of months is replaced by an oligarchy of 5000.
410 BCE
Alcibiades leads the Athenian fleet to victory over Sparta at Cyzicus.
c. 407 BCE
Alcibiades returns to Athens in triumph and is made strategos autokrater.
c. 407 BCE
The Athenian fleet is defeated by Lysander of Sparta at Notium.
405 BCE
Athens grants Athenian citizenship to the population of Samos.
404 BCE
Spartan general Lysander attacks the Athenian port of Piraeus destroying parts of the Long Wall fortifications.
404 BCE
End of the Peloponnesian war, Athens defeated By Sparta at Aigospotamoi, Rule of the Thirty Tyrants in Athens.
403 BCE
Restoration of the democracy in Athens, death of the tyrant Critias.
c. 402 BCE - 318 BCE
Life of Athenian statesman and general Phocion.
395 BCE - 386 BCE
The Corinthian Wars between Sparta and an alliance of Athens, Corinth, Argos, Boeotia and Thebes.
390 BCE
Athenian leader Iphikrates employs peltasts to defeat Spartan hoplites at Lechaion near Corinth.
387 BCE
Sparta attacks the Athenian port of Piraeus.
384 BCE - 322 BCE
Life of Aristotle.
c. 384 BCE - 322 CE
Life of Athenian statesman Demosthenes.
380 BCE
Plato founds his Academy outside of Athens.
366 BCE
Athens regains control of Samos from Sparta.
362 BCE
Indecisive Battle of Matinea where Thebes fought against Sparta and Athens. Theban general Epaminondas is killed.
c. 354 BCE
Xenophon dies at Corinth.
338 BCE
Philip of Macedonia defeats the Greek allied forces of Athens, Thebes and Corinth in the Battle of Chaironeia.
2 Aug 338 BCE
The Battle of Charonea gives Athens to the Macedonian victors. Agora takes on Macedonian characteristics.
307 BCE
Demetrius I frees Athens from the tyrant Demetrius of Phaleron.
295 BCE
Demetrius I campaigns in central Greece, removes the tyrant Lachares from Athens and defeats Sparta.
166 BCE
Rome puts Delos under the jurisdiction of Athens and makes the island a free port.
166 BCE
Rome gives dominion over the Cyclades to Athens.
159 BCE - 138 BCE
King Attalos II of Pergamon builds the great Stoa in the Agora of Athens.
86 BCE
The Roman general Sulla sacks Athens and the port of Piraeus.
86 BCE
Siege of Athens by the Roman general Sulla. Agora is destroyed.
117 CE - 138 CE
Rule of the Roman Emperor Hadrian who supports great building projects in and around the Agora of Athens.
267 CE
The Goths sack Athens, Corinth, Sparta, and Argos.
267 CE
Agora of Athens burned by invading Herulians.