| Looking mainly from the perspective of Greek history, this dissertation studies the Graeco-Persian relations from 478 to 386 BC. As two age-old civilizations, the clash and interchange between Greece and Persia not only exerted a great impact on their own historical course, but also affected the direction of world history.In the introduction I illustrate the significance of this subject, the purport of my research. I also review the researching situations in the field of the Graeco-Persian relations, and point out many scholars' viewpoints, material used, and methods of research. Then I show my own perspective of research, material used, the rough frame and the principle contents of the dissertation, the emphasis and the difficulty of my research.In Chapter one I illustrate some issues on the continuing war of the Delian League against Persia, including its influence upon the international pattern among the Greek city-states. On account of some special conditions, Sparta withdrew from the continuing war against Persia before long after the Persian War. That offered an opportunity to Athens, and she took advantage of the continuing war against Persia to make her strength growing enormously, and finally built an ocean empire. The Callias Peace was concluded in 449 BC, which marked the end of the massive war between Greece and Persia, and the Graeco-Persian relations developed into a new phase.In Chapter two I researched the Graeco-Persian relations during the Peloponnesian War. According to the policy to this war adopted by Persia, I divided the Graeco-Persian relations during this period into two stages: the Cold War and the Ionian War. During the former stage Persia by and large looked on from the side line the fighting and basically took a wait-and-see attitude, but later she took vigorous actions to negotiate with Sparta, and helped Sparta smash Athens to pieces with abundant funds, and as a reward acquired the suzerainty of Asia Minor.In Chapter three I analyze the Graeco-Persian relations after the Peloponnesian War. Since Sparta dispatched her army to help Cyrus the younger contending for the royal crown of Persia with Artaxerxes II, the friendship established during the Ionian War between Sparta and Persia began to deteriorate. On request of the Greeks living in Asia Minor, Sparta launched an offensive attack upon Persia. As a result Persia on one hand answered Spartan aggression with vigorous military counterattack, on theDoctoral Dissertation: Researches in the Graeco-Persian relations 478-386 BCother hand spared no effort to abet the anti-Spartan Greek city-states to unite together and launch an invasion into Laconia. That gave rise to the Corinthian War. Persia supported the Corinthian League against Sparta with economic and military resources, which made the war going on continuously. During the war Athenian Empire began to revive rapidly in Aegean, too. Therefore Persia and Sparta hoped the war finished. Under the Persian pressure, the Greek city-states accepted the King Peace, which established the autonomy of every Greek city-state, and put the Greeks in Asia Minor under the domination of Persia.By the research of the Graeco-Persian relations from 478 to 386 BC, we can found that the appearance and the development of the Graeco-Persian relations were conditioned by many factors. The Graeco-Persian relations arose from two ways: problems about the Greeks in Asia Minor and the conflicts among the city-states in mainland Greece. The former was one of the main conflicts between Greece and Persia, and joined them together. But the latter made the Graeco-Persian relations developing profoundly and intimately. The inner struggle among the Greek world continuously drew Persia into the conflicts among the Greek city-states, and brought an advance in Graeco-Persian relations. Although the direction of the Graeco-Persian relations on the whole was determined by all the powers' pursuit of their respective benefit, its course of development was conditioned not only by the change of military situation... |
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