Peace of Callias
Encyclopedia
The Peace of Callias is a purported treaty established around 449 BC
between the Delian League
(led by Athens
) and Persia
, ending the Persian Wars. The peace was agreed as the first compromise treaty between Achaemenid Persia and a Greek city.
The peace was negotiated by Callias
, an Athenian politician. Persia had continually lost territory to the Greeks
after the end of Xerxes I's invasion in 479 BC
, and by 450
they were ready to make peace. The Peace of Callias gave autonomy to the Ionia
n states in Asia Minor
, prohibited the establishment of Persian satrap
ies elsewhere on the Aegean
coast, and prohibited Persian ships from the Aegean. Athens also agreed not to interfere with Persia's possessions in Asia Minor, Cyprus
, Libya
or Egypt
(Athens had recently lost a fleet aiding an Egyptian revolt against Persia).
and Demosthenes
as well as the historian Diodorus. The ancient historian Theopompus deemed it a fabrication arguing that the inscription of the treaty was a fake – the lettering used hadn't come into practice until half a century after the treaty was purporting to have been agreed. It is possible that the treaty never officially existed, and if did exist, its importance is disputed. Thucydides
did not mention it, nor does Herodotus, and Plutarch
thought it had either been signed after the Battle of the Eurymedon
in 466 BC
, or that it had never been signed at all. In any case, there seems to have been some agreement reached ending hostilities with Persia after 450/449, which allowed Athens to deal with the new threats from the other Greek states such as Corinth and Thebes
, as well as Euboeoa which rebelled from the Delian League shortly after this. These conflicts may have arisen when the other Greeks felt there was no longer a justification for the Delian League
, which had developed from the Sparta
n-led Hellenic League that defeated Xerxes' invasion, as Persia was no longer a threat. As Athens demanded more and more tribute and exerted more control over its allies, it has been argued that the League became more of a true empire, and many of Athens' former allies began to rebel. Although Callias was also responsible for a peace (The Thirty Years' Peace
) with Sparta in 446
–445 BC
, the growing Athenian threat would eventually lead to the Peloponnesian War
.
There was no direct fighting between the Greeks and the Persians after 450, but Persia continued to meddle in Greek affairs over the next twenty years, and was to become instrumental in securing a Sparta
n victory in the Peloponnesian War.
Nonetheless, it remains an increasingly controversial topic among historians today.
449 BC
Year 449 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time, it was known as the Third year of the decemviri and the Year of the Consulship of Potitus and Barbatus...
between the Delian League
Delian League
The Delian League, founded in circa 477 BC, was an association of Greek city-states, members numbering between 150 to 173, under the leadership of Athens, whose purpose was to continue fighting the Persian Empire after the Greek victory in the Battle of Plataea at the end of the Greco–Persian Wars...
(led by Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
) and Persia
Achaemenid Empire
The Achaemenid Empire , sometimes known as First Persian Empire and/or Persian Empire, was founded in the 6th century BCE by Cyrus the Great who overthrew the Median confederation...
, ending the Persian Wars. The peace was agreed as the first compromise treaty between Achaemenid Persia and a Greek city.
The peace was negotiated by Callias
Callias
Callias was the head of a wealthy Athenian family, and fought at the Battle of Marathon in priestly attire. His son, Hipponicus, was also a military commander...
, an Athenian politician. Persia had continually lost territory to the Greeks
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
after the end of Xerxes I's invasion in 479 BC
479 BC
Year 479 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Vibulanus and Rutilus...
, and by 450
450 BC
Year 450 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time, it was known as the Second year of the decemviri...
they were ready to make peace. The Peace of Callias gave autonomy to the Ionia
Ionia
Ionia is an ancient region of central coastal Anatolia in present-day Turkey, the region nearest İzmir, which was historically Smyrna. It consisted of the northernmost territories of the Ionian League of Greek settlements...
n states in Asia Minor
Asia Minor
Asia Minor is a geographical location at the westernmost protrusion of Asia, also called Anatolia, and corresponds to the western two thirds of the Asian part of Turkey...
, prohibited the establishment of Persian satrap
Satrap
Satrap was the name given to the governors of the provinces of the ancient Median and Achaemenid Empires and in several of their successors, such as the Sassanid Empire and the Hellenistic empires....
ies elsewhere on the Aegean
Aegean Sea
The Aegean Sea[p] is an elongated embayment of the Mediterranean Sea located between the southern Balkan and Anatolian peninsulas, i.e., between the mainlands of Greece and Turkey. In the north, it is connected to the Marmara Sea and Black Sea by the Dardanelles and Bosporus...
coast, and prohibited Persian ships from the Aegean. Athens also agreed not to interfere with Persia's possessions in Asia Minor, Cyprus
Cyprus
Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
, Libya
Libya
Libya is an African country in the Maghreb region of North Africa bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....
or Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
(Athens had recently lost a fleet aiding an Egyptian revolt against Persia).
Arguments for the existence of a peace treaty
Our knowledge of the Peace of Callias comes from references by the fourth century orators IsocratesIsocrates
Isocrates , an ancient Greek rhetorician, was one of the ten Attic orators. In his time, he was probably the most influential rhetorician in Greece and made many contributions to rhetoric and education through his teaching and written works....
and Demosthenes
Demosthenes
Demosthenes was a prominent Greek statesman and orator of ancient Athens. His orations constitute a significant expression of contemporary Athenian intellectual prowess and provide an insight into the politics and culture of ancient Greece during the 4th century BC. Demosthenes learned rhetoric by...
as well as the historian Diodorus. The ancient historian Theopompus deemed it a fabrication arguing that the inscription of the treaty was a fake – the lettering used hadn't come into practice until half a century after the treaty was purporting to have been agreed. It is possible that the treaty never officially existed, and if did exist, its importance is disputed. Thucydides
Thucydides
Thucydides was a Greek historian and author from Alimos. His History of the Peloponnesian War recounts the 5th century BC war between Sparta and Athens to the year 411 BC...
did not mention it, nor does Herodotus, and Plutarch
Plutarch
Plutarch then named, on his becoming a Roman citizen, Lucius Mestrius Plutarchus , c. 46 – 120 AD, was a Greek historian, biographer, essayist, and Middle Platonist known primarily for his Parallel Lives and Moralia...
thought it had either been signed after the Battle of the Eurymedon
Battle of the Eurymedon
The Battle of the Eurymedon was a double battle, taking place both on water and land, between the Delian League of Athens and her Allies, and the Persian Empire of Xerxes I. It took place in either 469 or 466 BC, in the vicinity of the mouth of the Eurymedon River in Pamphylia, Asia Minor...
in 466 BC
466 BC
Year 466 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Priscus and Albinus...
, or that it had never been signed at all. In any case, there seems to have been some agreement reached ending hostilities with Persia after 450/449, which allowed Athens to deal with the new threats from the other Greek states such as Corinth and Thebes
Thebes, Greece
Thebes is a city in Greece, situated to the north of the Cithaeron range, which divides Boeotia from Attica, and on the southern edge of the Boeotian plain. It played an important role in Greek myth, as the site of the stories of Cadmus, Oedipus, Dionysus and others...
, as well as Euboeoa which rebelled from the Delian League shortly after this. These conflicts may have arisen when the other Greeks felt there was no longer a justification for the Delian League
Delian League
The Delian League, founded in circa 477 BC, was an association of Greek city-states, members numbering between 150 to 173, under the leadership of Athens, whose purpose was to continue fighting the Persian Empire after the Greek victory in the Battle of Plataea at the end of the Greco–Persian Wars...
, which had developed from the Sparta
Sparta
Sparta or Lacedaemon, was a prominent city-state in ancient Greece, situated on the banks of the River Eurotas in Laconia, in south-eastern Peloponnese. It emerged as a political entity around the 10th century BC, when the invading Dorians subjugated the local, non-Dorian population. From c...
n-led Hellenic League that defeated Xerxes' invasion, as Persia was no longer a threat. As Athens demanded more and more tribute and exerted more control over its allies, it has been argued that the League became more of a true empire, and many of Athens' former allies began to rebel. Although Callias was also responsible for a peace (The Thirty Years' Peace
Thirty Years' Peace
The Thirty Years' Peace was a treaty, signed between the ancient Greek city-states Athens and Sparta, in the year 446/445 BC. The treaty brought an end to the conflict commonly known as the First Peloponnesian War, which had been raging since c.460 BC....
) with Sparta in 446
446
Year 446 was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Aetius and Symmachus...
–445 BC
445 BC
Year 445 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Augurinus and Philo...
, the growing Athenian threat would eventually lead to the Peloponnesian War
Peloponnesian War
The Peloponnesian War, 431 to 404 BC, was an ancient Greek war fought by Athens and its empire against the Peloponnesian League led by Sparta. Historians have traditionally divided the war into three phases...
.
There was no direct fighting between the Greeks and the Persians after 450, but Persia continued to meddle in Greek affairs over the next twenty years, and was to become instrumental in securing a Sparta
Sparta
Sparta or Lacedaemon, was a prominent city-state in ancient Greece, situated on the banks of the River Eurotas in Laconia, in south-eastern Peloponnese. It emerged as a political entity around the 10th century BC, when the invading Dorians subjugated the local, non-Dorian population. From c...
n victory in the Peloponnesian War.
Nonetheless, it remains an increasingly controversial topic among historians today.
Further reading
- De Ste. Croix, G.E.M.,The Origins of the Peloponnesian War, London 1972 (especially the Appendices).
- Rhodes, P.J. The History of the Classical World 478–323 BC, 2005.