Originally published on February 10, 2022 (Episode 248)
Introduction
In 510 BC, an obscure Greek city located literally on a backwater revolted against its tyrant. This was not extraordinary; such things happened regularly in the many Greek city-states. What followed, however, was extraordinary—and even world-changing. Athens became a democracy. Seventeen years later, Athens and its tiny ally of Plataea defeated a raid by the mighty Persian Empire. The great century of Athenian glory had begun.
Yet the history of Athens did not end with Spartan victory in the Peloponnesian War, or with the supremacy of Macedon, or even with conquest by Rome. While never quite attaining its heights under Pericles, Athens was often important; and even when it was relatively unimportant, it always remained fascinating.
The long story of Athens—from its origins, to Periclean democracy; from medieval Athens when the Parthenon was the castle of the Duke of Athens, to Ottoman conquest; to Greek independence, and Athens as the capital of a new kingdom, and on into the 21st century—is told by Bruce Clark in Athens: City of Wisdom.
About the Guest
Bruce Clark is a writer for The Economist, where he covers European affairs and religion.
For Further Investigation
Bruce Clark, Athens: City of Wisdom (Pegasus Books, 2022)
Bruce Clark, Twice a Stranger: The Mass Expulsions That Formed Modern Greece and Turkey (Harvard University Press, 2007)
💬 Listen & Discuss
Athens was never just a city of marble ruins. Across millennia, it has been remade again and again by new rulers and new ideas. How do you see the legacy of Athens today—glory, continuity, or reinvention? Share your reflections in the comments below, and consider forwarding this post to a friend who loves history.
