Latest / Ancient Greece: Philosophy, Democracy, and Endless War — Fexingo History / Alcibiades: The Most Dangerous Man in Athens
Transcript
- Lucas: So far on this show we've traced Athens from its democratic birth, through the Persian Wars, to the golden age under Pericles. But the Peloponnesian War didn't end with Pericles' death in 429 BCE — it dragged on for another quarter-century, and the second half of that war belongs to one man more than any other: Alcibiades. Luna: Alcibiades — I've heard his name, but I don't know much about him. Wasn't he a student of Socrates? Lucas: Exactly right. He was a young aristocrat, dazzlingly handsome, immensely wealthy, and a ward of Pericles after his father died. Plato wrote a whole dialogue, the Symposium, where Alcibiades bursts in drunk and praises Socrates' virtue. But unlike Socrates, Alcibiades had zero interest in virtue for its own sake — he wanted power, glory, and influence. Luna: A Socrates who actually wanted to win. That's a dangerous combination. Lucas: It really was. And it's no exaggeration to say that Alcibiades single-handedly changed the course of the Peloponnesian War — not once, but several times, by switching sides. He was an Athenian general, then a Spartan commander, then a Persian advisor, then an Athenian general again. All within about eight years. Luna: He defected to Sparta? That's a huge betrayal. Lucas: It gets worse. In 415 BCE, Athens launched the Sicilian Expedition — a massive naval invasion of Syracuse. Alcibiades was one of three commanders. But just before the fleet sailed, someone mutilated the Hermai, which were sacred stone busts of Hermes placed around Athens. It was seen as a terrible omen, and Alcibiades' political enemies accused him of orchestrating it. Lucas: Instead of standing trial, he fled to Sparta, the enemy. And once there, he did something that changed the war completely: he told the Spartans exactly how to defeat Athens. He advised them to send a Spartan general to Syracuse to help the Sicilians resist the Athenian siege, and he urged them to fortify a permanent base in Athenian territory at Decelea, which would cut off Athens from its silver mines and farmland. Luna: So he gave Athens' enemies the playbook. That's devastating. Lucas: It was. The Sicilian Expedition ended in total disaster — the entire Athenian army and navy were destroyed. Thousands of Athenians died in the quarries of Syracuse. And the fort at Decelea meant Athens could no longer access its own countryside. The war turned decisively against Athens. Luna: And Alcibiades just stayed in Sparta, living as a hero? Lucas: For a while, yes. He fought alongside the Spartans and even had a son with the Spartan queen, according to some sources. But his charisma and ambition made him enemies there too. Soon he had to flee again — this time to Persia, where he became an advisor to the satrap Tissaphernes. Luna: Now he's advising Athens' other enemy. This man really did play all sides. Lucas: And here's where it gets really complicated. While in Persia, Alcibiades started negotiating with the Athenian fleet that was based on the island of Samos. He convinced them that if they restored him from exile, he could bring Persian money and support to Athens. The fleet was desperate, so they agreed. Lucas: In 411 BCE, the Athenian democracy was overthrown in a coup — the oligarchy of the Four Hundred — but the fleet on Samos remained democratic. They elected Alcibiades as their general. Over the next few years, he led the Athenians to a string of naval victories, including a major one at Cyzicus in 410 BCE, which effectively destroyed the Spartan fleet. Luna: So he came back as a savior. Did Athens welcome him? Lucas: Triumphantly. In 407 BCE, after nearly eight years in exile, Alcibiades returned to Athens. He was greeted as a hero. The charges against him were dropped, his property was restored, and he was given supreme command of the Athenian forces. But his luck didn't hold. Lucas: He went on a campaign, but while he was away, his second-in-command lost a naval battle at Notium. Alcibiades was blamed — not entirely fairly — and he was removed from command. Rather than face another trial, he went into voluntary exile again. He never returned to Athens. Luna: So he ended up in Persia again? Lucas: Essentially, yes. He lived in a fortress in Phrygia, in northwestern Anatolia, under the protection of the Persian satrap Pharnabazus. But the Spartans, who now dominated the Aegean, wanted him dead. They pressured the Persians, and in 404 BCE — the same year Athens finally surrendered — Alcibiades was assassinated. His house was set on fire, and he died trying to escape. Luna: He was only in his forties, I think. What a life. Lucas: About 45. And his death was anticlimactic, but his impact on the war was enormous. It's hard to imagine the Peloponnesian War ending the way it did without Alcibiades' interventions. He gave Sparta the strategy to win, then he nearly gave Athens the means to recover. His personal ambition made him a wild card that neither side could fully trust. Luna: Thucydides must have had a field day with him. Lucas: Thucydides devotes a lot of space to Alcibiades, and his verdict is fascinating. He says that Alcibiades' private conduct was lawless and self-indulgent, which made people suspicious, but that his military brilliance was unmatched. Thucydides also notes that the Athenians, in their democracy, were quick to distrust their best leaders — a pattern that Socrates also fell victim to a few years later. Luna: So was he a traitor or a patriot? Lucas: That's the question. He clearly loved Athens — or at least he loved the glory that Athens could give him. But when Athens turned on him, he had no loyalty to the city itself, only to his own advancement. In that sense, he's a perfect symbol of the tensions in Athenian democracy: the brilliant individual who can't be contained by the system, and the system that can't decide whether to embrace or destroy him. Luna: I guess that tension is still with us. Lucas: Absolutely. Alcibiades remains a warning about what happens when talent and ambition outrun any sense of shared purpose. He was the most gifted Athenian of his generation, and he may have done more than anyone to bring Athens down.