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The Battle of Potidaea
was, with the Battle of Sybota, one of the catalysts for the Peloponnesian
War. It was fought near Potidaea in 432 BC between Athens and a combined army
from Corinth and Potidaea, along with their various allies.
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Potidaea was a colony of Corinth
on the Chalcidice peninsula, but was a member of the Delian League and paid
tribute to Athens. After Sybota, Athens demanded that Potidaea pull down part
of its walls, expel Corinthian ambassadors, and send hostages to Athens.
Athens was afraid that Potidaea would revolt due to Corinthian or Macedonian
influence, as Perdiccas II of Macedon was encouraging revolts among Athens'
other allies in Thrace.
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Athens gathered a fleet of
30 ships and 1,000 hoplites under the overall command of Archestratus, which
was originally meant to fight Perdiccas in Macedonia but was diverted to
Potidaea. The Potidaeans sent ambassadors to Athens and Sparta, and when
negotiations broke down in Athens, Sparta promised to help Potidaea revolt.
The Athenian fleet sailed for Potidaea, but when it arrived, Archestratus
attacked the Macedonians instead, as the Potidaeans had already revolted and
allied with Perdiccas. Corinth sent 1,600 hoplites and 400 light troops to
Potidaea as well, under the command of Aristeus. In response, Athens sent out
another 2,000 hoplites and 40 more ships, under the command of Callias. After
some fighting against Perdiccas, the combined Athenian forces sailed to
Potidaea and landed there. Perdiccas and 200 of his cavalry joined with
Aristeus, and their combined army marched to Potidaea as well.
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In the ensuing battle,
Aristeus' wing of Corinthian troops defeated a section of the Athenian line,
but elsewhere the Athenians were victorious. Aristeus returned to Potidaea
along the seacoast with some difficulty, hoping to avoid the main Athenian
army. A reserve force of Potidaeans, located in nearby Olynthus, attempted to
relieve Aristeus, but they were defeated as well. The Corinthians and
Potidaeans lost about 300 men, and the Athenians about 150, including
Callias. The Macedonian cavalry did not join the battle.
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The Athenians remained
outside Potidaea for some time, and were reinforced by another 1,600 hoplites
under the command of Phormio. Both sides built walls and counter-walls, and
the Athenians succeeded in cutting off Potidaea from the sea with a naval
blockade. During the blockade, representatives from Athens and Sparta met in
Sparta, resulting in a formal declaration of war.
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However, this siege
seriously depleted the Athenian treasury, dumping as much as 1,000
talents/year into this attack. This made the Athenian people unhappy, and in
combination with the plague that swept through Athens in the early 420s BC,
made the control of Pericles untenable. The Periclean strategy of hiding
behind the Long Walls and relying on the low cash reserves of the
Peloponnesians was starting to become unfavorable to the greater Athenian
consciousness.
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The new settlement took the
name of Amphipolis (literally, "around the city"), a name which is
the subject of much debates about lexicography. Thucydides claims the name
comes from the fact that the Strymon flows "around the city" on two
sides;[3] however a note in the Suda (also given in the lexicon of Photius)
offers a different explanation apparently given by Marsyas, son of Periander:
that a large proportion of the population lived "around the city".
However, a more probable explanation is the one given by Julius Pollux: that
the name indicates the vicinity of an isthmus. Furthermore, the Etymologicum
Genuinum gives the following definition: a city of the Athenians or of
Thrace, which was once called Nine Routes, (so named) because it is encircled
and surrounded by the Strymon river. This description corresponds to the
actual site of the city (see adjacent map), and to the description of
Thucydides.
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Amphipolis subsequently
became the main power base of the Athenians in Thrace and, consequently, a
target of choice for their Spartans adversaries. The Athenian population
remained very much in the minority within the city.[4] An Athenian rescue
expedition led by strategist (and later historian) Thucydides had to settle
for securing Eion and could not retake Amphipolis, a failure for which
Thucydides was sentenced to exile. A new Athenian force under the command of Cleon
failed once more in 422 BC during a battle at which both Cleon and Brasidas
lost their lives. Brasidas survived long enough to hear of the defeat of the
Athenians and was buried at Amphipolis with impressive pomp. From then on he
was regarded as the founder of the city[5] and honoured with yearly games and
sacrifices. The city itself kept its independence until the reign of the king
Philip II despite several other Athenian attacks, notably because of the
government of Callistratus of Aphidnae.
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In the first battle, called
the Battle of Delium, the Athenians were defeated by the Boeotians in 424 BC.
This was part of the Peloponnesian War.
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