Athens from Alexander to Antony

by Habicht, Christian; Schneider, Deborah Lucas

• ISBN13: 9780674051119
• ISBN10: 0674051114
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 1997-11-21
• Publisher: Harvard Univ Pr

Summary

The conquests of Alexander the Great transformed the Greek world into a complex of monarchies and vying powers, a vast sphere in which the Greek city-states struggled to survive. This is the compelling story of one city that despite long periods of subjugation persisted as a vital social entity throughout the Hellenistic age. Christian Habicht narrates the history of Athens from its subjugation by the Macedonians in 338 B.C. to the battle of Actium in 31 B.C. , when Octavian's defeat of Mark Antony paved the way for Roman dominion over the Hellenistic world. For nearly three centuries Athens strove unsuccessfully for sovereignty; its foreign policies were shaped by the dictates first of the Macedonian monarchy and later of the Roman republic. Yet the city never relinquished control of internal affairs, and citizen participation in its government remained strong. Habicht lucidly chronicles the democracy's setbacks and recoveries over these years as it formed and suffered the consequences of various alliances. He sketches its continuing role as a leader in intellectual life and the arts, as Menander and other Athenian playwrights saw their work produced throughout the Greek world; and the city's famous schools of philosophy, now including those of Zeno and Epicurus, remained a stellar attraction for students from around the Mediterranean. Habicht has long been in the forefront of research on Hellenistic Athens; in this authoritative yet eminently readable history he distills that research for all readers interested in the ancient Mediterranean world.

Author Biography

Christian Habicht is Emeritus Professor of Ancient History at the Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton.

Table of Contents

Introduction	1	(5)
1. In the Shadow of Macedonian Expansion (338-323)	6	(30)
1. Political Leaders
2. Endangered Peace
3. The Age of Lycurgus
4. The Crisis
2. Under Foreign Rule (323-307)	36	(31)
1. The Hellenic War
2. Unsettled Postwar Years
3. Demetrius of Phalerum
3. Between Freedom and Dependency (307-287)	67	(31)
1. Democracy without Full Freedom
2. Tyranny
3. King Demetrius
4. Culture in Public Life	98	(26)
1. Drama
2. The Schools of the Philosophers
3. The Fine Arts
4. Prose: Historiography and the Characters of Theophrastus
5. The Independent City (287-262)	124	(26)
1. Policy amid Competing Forces
2. Life in the City
3. The Chremonidean War
6. Renewed Subjugation (262-229)	150	(23)
1. The Royal Governor
2. A Satellite of Macedonia
3. Official Religion and the Royal House
4. Hellenistic Athens as Seen by a Contemporary
7. Freedom and Neutrality (229-200)	173	(21)
1. Precarious Freedom
2. The 220s
3. Athens as a Neutral Power
8. Alliance with Rome (200-167)	194	(26)
1. Against Philip
2. Against Antiochus
3. Against Perseus
9. Times of Peace (before and after 167)	220	(26)
1. Contacts with Kings
2. Contacts with Independent States
3. Conditions at Home
10. Athenian Delos	246	(18)
1. The Cleruchy
2. The Limits of Athenian Sovereignty
3. Center of Trade
11. Roman Hegemony	264	(16)
1. Athens and Oropus
2. Rome Acquires a Foothold on the Balkan Peninsula
3. Athens and Delphi
12. The Close of the Second Century	280	(17)
1. Foreign Relations
2. Conditions at Home
13. Athens and Mithridates	297	(18)
1. The Break with Rome
2. War and Its Consequences
14. After the War	315	(23)
1. The Constitution
2. Ruling Circles
3. A Difficult New Beginning
15. Subjection	338	(28)
1. Clodius' Plebiscite
2. Romans in Athens
3. In the Civil Wars
Epilogue	366	(4)
Abbreviations and Short Titles	370	(3)
Select Bibliography	373	(18)
Index	391