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Pleistoanax
Pleistoanax, also spelled Plistoanax, (Ancient Greek: Πλειστοάναξ) was Agiad king of Sparta from 458 to 409 BC. He was the leader of the peace party in Sparta at a time of violent confrontations against Athens for the hegemony over Greece.
The son of Pausanias, Pleistoanax was still a minor in 458 BC, so his uncle Nicomedes acted as regent. His first recorded action was the invasion of Athens in 446 BC as part of the First Peloponnesian War (460–445 BC), but he chose instead to negotiate with Pericles a settlement that became the Thirty Years' Peace. However, Pleistoanax was sued in Sparta for his failure to take Athens and went into exile in Arcadia to avoid punishment. He lived on the sacred ground of Zeus in Mt. Lykaion for the next 18 years.
The death of the rival king Archidamus II in 427 enabled his return to Sparta, while the city was again at war against Athens in the Second Peloponnesian War (431–404 BC). Pleistoanax renewed his efforts to make peace with Athens, which was finally concluded in 421 (as the Peace of Nicias).
Pleistoanax was the son of Pausanias, regent in the beginning of the reign of his nephew Pleistarchus (r. 480–459) until his murder by the ephors, possibly in 467/6, allegedly for Medism. He belonged to the Agiad dynasty, one of the two royal families in Sparta (the other being the Eurypontids). He was born in the second half of the 470s; two younger brothers rapidly followed: Cleomenes and Aristocles.
Pleistoanax succeeded his cousin Pleistarchus, who died childless in 459. As he was still a minor, his uncle Nicomedes (Pausanias' younger brother) became his regent.
At the time of Pleistoanax's accession, Greece was torn by the First Peloponnesian War (460–445 BC), a series of minor conflicts between Sparta and Athens and their respective allies. In 457 Pleistoanax's uncle and regent Nicomedes commanded a large army of 1500 Spartans and 10,000 allies to help Doris to repel an attack from Phokis. The army was considerably larger than needed to defeat Phokis, so its real goal was likely to invade Attica from the west. The other king, Archidamus II, did not command the expedition, either because he was still busy with the revolt of the Helots, or perhaps he disapproved it. Nicomedes drew the Athenians into battle by reaching Tanagra, close to their border. The subsequent battle was nevertheless a Pyrrhic victory for Sparta, which had to retreat to the Peloponnese by breaking through Megara on the Isthmus.
Pleistoanax's first campaign took place in the Summer of 446, at the expiration of a five year peace with Athens. As he was still young (in his 20's), Pleistoanax was given a group of advisers—the only named being Cleandridas (father of the famous Gylippus), probably ephor that year. Sparta exploited the revolts of Megara and the island of Euboia against Athens, which had forced Pericles to lead an army to the island. Pericles swiftly returned to the mainland when he heard that Pleistoanax had passed through the Isthmus and Megara to Athens, and was ravaging the area around Eleusis in Attica. While a battle looked inevitable, Pleistoanax and Pericles actually negotiated a settlement. Pericles abandoned all Athenian claims on the Greek mainland (apart from its own civic territory) and withdrew the garrisons from Megara, Troezen, and Achaia; the Spartan army then returned home.
However, upon his return, Pleistoanax and Cleandridas were accused by several Spartans of bribery for having spared Athens while they had the upper hand. Plutarch tells that Pericles listed the sum of ten talents (about 260kg of silver) in his accounts for his year of office, which would therefore be the money used to buy the Spartans. Although it is not impossible that Pleistoanax accepted the money, it is certainly not the only reason for his withdrawal. Perhaps he simply thought that Pericles' offer was enough for a campaign without any fighting. A solar eclipse took place on 2 September 446 and could have been interpreted as a bad omen to continue the war. In 480, Pleistoanax's grandfather, the regent Cleombrotus, had cancelled a campaign for the same reason. Another possibility is that Pleistoanax could have feared that if Athens became too weak, it would not have been unable to counter a new offensive of Persia into Greece. Pleistoanax was prosecuted immediately after his arrival to Sparta. A majority of the ephors and probably the other king Archidamus II voted against him. Although some modern scholars consider that Pleistoanax could have been sentenced to death, most think he was only fined 15 talents; the king nevertheless refused to pay and went into exile. Cleandridas received a death sentence, but fled to Thourioi in Italy, where he received the citizenship.
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Pleistoanax
Pleistoanax, also spelled Plistoanax, (Ancient Greek: Πλειστοάναξ) was Agiad king of Sparta from 458 to 409 BC. He was the leader of the peace party in Sparta at a time of violent confrontations against Athens for the hegemony over Greece.
The son of Pausanias, Pleistoanax was still a minor in 458 BC, so his uncle Nicomedes acted as regent. His first recorded action was the invasion of Athens in 446 BC as part of the First Peloponnesian War (460–445 BC), but he chose instead to negotiate with Pericles a settlement that became the Thirty Years' Peace. However, Pleistoanax was sued in Sparta for his failure to take Athens and went into exile in Arcadia to avoid punishment. He lived on the sacred ground of Zeus in Mt. Lykaion for the next 18 years.
The death of the rival king Archidamus II in 427 enabled his return to Sparta, while the city was again at war against Athens in the Second Peloponnesian War (431–404 BC). Pleistoanax renewed his efforts to make peace with Athens, which was finally concluded in 421 (as the Peace of Nicias).
Pleistoanax was the son of Pausanias, regent in the beginning of the reign of his nephew Pleistarchus (r. 480–459) until his murder by the ephors, possibly in 467/6, allegedly for Medism. He belonged to the Agiad dynasty, one of the two royal families in Sparta (the other being the Eurypontids). He was born in the second half of the 470s; two younger brothers rapidly followed: Cleomenes and Aristocles.
Pleistoanax succeeded his cousin Pleistarchus, who died childless in 459. As he was still a minor, his uncle Nicomedes (Pausanias' younger brother) became his regent.
At the time of Pleistoanax's accession, Greece was torn by the First Peloponnesian War (460–445 BC), a series of minor conflicts between Sparta and Athens and their respective allies. In 457 Pleistoanax's uncle and regent Nicomedes commanded a large army of 1500 Spartans and 10,000 allies to help Doris to repel an attack from Phokis. The army was considerably larger than needed to defeat Phokis, so its real goal was likely to invade Attica from the west. The other king, Archidamus II, did not command the expedition, either because he was still busy with the revolt of the Helots, or perhaps he disapproved it. Nicomedes drew the Athenians into battle by reaching Tanagra, close to their border. The subsequent battle was nevertheless a Pyrrhic victory for Sparta, which had to retreat to the Peloponnese by breaking through Megara on the Isthmus.
Pleistoanax's first campaign took place in the Summer of 446, at the expiration of a five year peace with Athens. As he was still young (in his 20's), Pleistoanax was given a group of advisers—the only named being Cleandridas (father of the famous Gylippus), probably ephor that year. Sparta exploited the revolts of Megara and the island of Euboia against Athens, which had forced Pericles to lead an army to the island. Pericles swiftly returned to the mainland when he heard that Pleistoanax had passed through the Isthmus and Megara to Athens, and was ravaging the area around Eleusis in Attica. While a battle looked inevitable, Pleistoanax and Pericles actually negotiated a settlement. Pericles abandoned all Athenian claims on the Greek mainland (apart from its own civic territory) and withdrew the garrisons from Megara, Troezen, and Achaia; the Spartan army then returned home.
However, upon his return, Pleistoanax and Cleandridas were accused by several Spartans of bribery for having spared Athens while they had the upper hand. Plutarch tells that Pericles listed the sum of ten talents (about 260kg of silver) in his accounts for his year of office, which would therefore be the money used to buy the Spartans. Although it is not impossible that Pleistoanax accepted the money, it is certainly not the only reason for his withdrawal. Perhaps he simply thought that Pericles' offer was enough for a campaign without any fighting. A solar eclipse took place on 2 September 446 and could have been interpreted as a bad omen to continue the war. In 480, Pleistoanax's grandfather, the regent Cleombrotus, had cancelled a campaign for the same reason. Another possibility is that Pleistoanax could have feared that if Athens became too weak, it would not have been unable to counter a new offensive of Persia into Greece. Pleistoanax was prosecuted immediately after his arrival to Sparta. A majority of the ephors and probably the other king Archidamus II voted against him. Although some modern scholars consider that Pleistoanax could have been sentenced to death, most think he was only fined 15 talents; the king nevertheless refused to pay and went into exile. Cleandridas received a death sentence, but fled to Thourioi in Italy, where he received the citizenship.