Pericles orPerikles (ca. 495–429 BC,Greek:Περικλῆς, meaning "surrounded by glory") was a prominent and influentialstatesman. He also was anorator, andgeneral ofAthens. He lived between thePersian andPeloponnesian wars. He was descended, through his mother, from the Alcmaeonid family.
Pericles had great influence on Athenian society.Thucydides, a contemporary historian, described him as "the first citizen of Athens". Pericles turned theDelian League into an Athenian empire and led his countrymen during the first two years of the Peloponnesian War. The period during which he led Athens, roughly from 461 to 429 BC, is sometimes known as the "Age of Pericles,". This period though can include times as early as thePersian Wars, or as late as the next century.
In Pericles late 20’s he sponsored a major dramatic production for the festival of Dionysus, and he also entertained the whole city. Pericles also got married and had 2 sons. His wife's name is unknown. He associated with a courtesan namedAspasia. A decade later the people started to like him more and more. He got involved with the politics called Ephialtes. Pericles and Ephialtes took away the noble's powers. Ephialtes was later assassinated.
Pericles promoted the arts and literature. This was a chief reason Athens holds the reputation of being the educational and cultural centre of theancient Greek world. He started an ambitious project that built most of the surviving structures on theAcropolis (including theParthenon). This project made the city more beautiful., It also showed its glory, and gave work to the people.[1] Furthermore, Pericles fosteredAthenian democracy to such an extent that critics call him apopulist.[2][3]
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Plato,Menexenus. See original text inPerseus program, fromPlato; W.R.M. Lamb (trans.) (1925).Plato in Twelve Volumes, Vol. 9. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.ISBN0-674-99185-0.{{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)
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