Classical Athens

Athens
Ἀθῆναι (Ancient Greek)
508 BC–322 BC
Owl of Athena, patron of Athens of
Owl of Athena, patron of Athens
Delian League ("Athenian Empire") shown in yellow, Athenian territory shown in red, situation in 431 BC, before the Peloponnesian War.
Delian League ("Athenian Empire") shown in yellow, Athenian territory shown in red, situation in 431 BC, before the Peloponnesian War.
CapitalAthens
Common languagesAttic Greek
Religion
Greek Polytheism
GovernmentAthenian direct democracy
Eponymous archon 
• 508–507 BC
Isagoras
• 322–321 BC
Philocles
LegislatureBoule
Ecclesia
Historical eraClassical antiquity
Classical Greece
508 BC
478–404 BC
404–403 BC
378–355 BC
322 BC
Population
• 5th century BC1
~250,000 (men with civil rights: ~30,000)
CurrencyDrachma
Preceded by
Succeeded by
Peisistratids
League of Corinth

The city of Athens (Ancient Greek: Ἀθῆναι, Athênai [a.tʰɛ̂ː.nai̯]; Modern Greek: Αθήναι, Athine [a.ˈθi.ne̞] or, more commonly and in singular, Αθήνα, Athina [a.'θi.na]) during the classical period of ancient Greece (480–323 BC)[1] was the major urban centre of the notable polis (city-state) of the same name, located in Attica, Greece, leading the Delian League in the Peloponnesian War against Sparta and the Peloponnesian League. Athenian democracy was established in 508 BC under Cleisthenes following the tyranny of Isagoras. This system remained remarkably stable, and with a few brief interruptions, it remained in place for 180 years, until 322 BC (aftermath of Lamian War). The peak of Athenian hegemony was achieved in the 440s to 430s BC, known as the Age of Pericles.

In the classical period, Athens was a centre for the arts, learning, and philosophy, the home of Plato's Academy and Aristotle's Lyceum,[2][3] Athens was also the birthplace of Socrates, Plato, Pericles, Aristophanes, Sophocles, and many other prominent philosophers, writers, and politicians of the ancient world. It is widely referred to as the cradle of Western Civilization, and the birthplace of democracy,[4] largely due to the impact of its cultural and political achievements during the 5th and 4th centuries BC on the rest of the then-known European continent.[5]

  1. ^ Democracy and knowledge: innovation and learning in classical Athens by Josiah Ober p. 40 ISBN 0-691-13347-6 (2008)
  2. ^ "Plato's Academy". Hellenic Ministry of Culture. Archived from the original on 2007-03-21. Retrieved 2007-03-28.
  3. ^ "Greece uncovers 'holy grail' of Greek archeology". CNN. 1997-01-16. Archived from the original on April 4, 2005. Retrieved 2007-03-28.
  4. ^ Cartledge, Paul. "Ancient History in depth: The Democratic Experiment". BBC. Retrieved 2007-12-26.
  5. ^ "Ancient Greece". MSN Encarta. Archived from the original on 2009-10-28. Retrieved 26 January 2007.