Peloponnesian War

The Golden Age of Athens and her ascending growth and development resulted in the dominance over her allies, prompting a reaction by the military-power Sparta.  In 431 B.C., the rivalry between the two cities headed towards civil war, known as the Peloponnesian War. This conflict among fellow Greeks lasted for 27 years and is historically the toughest and bloodiest in Greece’s history.  In the year 404 B.C., the war ended with the Spartans emerging as victorious, who fractured and splintered the Athenian homogeny.  Afterwards, Sparta surfaced as the region’s lone superpower.  Thebes, however, would later counter Sparta and finally put an end to her reign.