Themistocles was a leading Athenian politician and general in the early 5th Century. He fought at Marathon in 490BC, and played a leading role during the Greco-Persian Wars and was the lead admiral at the Battle of Salamis in 480BC when the Persians were defeated, thus ending their chance of conquering Greece.
But it was his decision in the intervening years between Marathon and Salamis to direct the revenue gained from silver mines at Laurium that would set Athens on a course that would lead to its Empire, war with Sparta, and the Classical Age which saw Pericles’ building programme including the Parthenon.
Michael Scott joins, Professor of Ancient history at my old university Warwick, author of a new book, Themistocles: The Rise and Fall of Athens’ Naval Mastermind.
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Themistocles: The Rise and Fall of Athens’ Naval Mastermind
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