Episode 15: The Lives of Alcibiades and Nicias - Part 1

Furius Camillus, whom many historians, Plutarch included, say is the second founder of Rome and in my opinion is one of the greatest Roman leaders at least up until the Empire, and even then, still holds his own! 

Lysander's importance to history begins when he is appointed as admiral of the Spartan fleet in 407 BC.   At this point Athens's navy has experienced a resurgence with the return of Alcibiades.

Lysander takes command of the Spartan fleet at Ephesus and resolves to do what it takes to make it a match for the Athenian navy. 

A tall order - is Lysander up for the challenge?

Enjoy the episode

After suffering a disastrous setback in Sicily the situation once again looks grim for Athens.  The Athenians would continue the fight however and the story of the Peloponnesian War would see a number of surprising twists - with Alcibiades playing a key role in each new turning point in the conflict.

Thanks for listening

Chris & Ryan

In Part 2 of the Lives of Alcibiades and Nicias, these two polar opposites clash over Athenian foreign policy.  With Sparta still a looming threat, Athenians must choose whether to listen to the ambitious Alcibiades or cautious Nicias.

For this episode it's going to be another two-for-one special as we will be covering two lives at once, and we will be picking up basically right where we left off.  

To jog everyone's memories, when we last left Athens the city had just been dealt a devastating blow in it's war with Sparta.  Athens's lead citizen Pericles had convinced the Athenians to avoid a decisive land battle with the Spartans which would play to the Spartan's strengths, and instead stay behind their city walls and use their large navy to their advantage.

However a plague spread within the heavily populated city and claimed the life of Pericles.  The war was not over but the city would need to find new leaders.

In this episode, we will take on the lives of two Athenians who would step into the void left behind by Pericles:  these would be Alcibiades and Nicias. 

Coriolanus was an orphan, a Patrician and a Roman with Roman-sized ambitions who wouldn't let anyone get in his way on the road to glory, fame and prominence. 

Hope you enjoy!

Chris & Ryan

Coriolanus was an orphan, a Patrician and a Roman with Roman-sized ambitions who wouldn't let anyone get in his way on the road to glory, fame and prominence. 

Hope you enjoy!

Chris & Ryan

 Pericles had reached heights of political power never achieved before in democratic Athens but the threat of war looms on the horizon for both the city and Greece as a whole.

 With Cimon out of the picture for a while, more democratic figures would step up to fill the leadership vacuum, and Pericles would end up becoming the most prominent of these, eventually establishing a legacy as arguably the greatest statesman in the history of Athens.

 With Pericles as the lead voice in the Ecclesia, Athens would experience a Golden Age which continues to impress us a full two and a half Millenia later.

Having narrowly survived the invasion of Xerxes massive Persian army, Athens would lean on the leadership of Cimon as it looks to establish supremacy in the Aegean Sea with a new alliance and a powerful navy.