Page 181 - Il Mediterraneo quale elemento del Potere Marittimo - Atti 16-18 settembre 1996

ATHENS IN THE 5th CENTURY B.C. THE REPUBLIC OF VENICE
IN 1479 A.D. ERRORS IN POLITICO MILITARY STRATEGY

ODYSSEUS N. KAPETOS

In the past, before the discovery of the New World, two greac powers were
similar in ·fundamental ways, the Periclean Athens and the .Venetian Republic.
They were first-race military powers, commerciai and polically open entities
that relied heavily upon their navies and seaborne trade. ·
They were commerciai powers, maritime powers, maintaining first-class na-
vies and looking overseas for prosperity and security; military powers by virtue
of armed forces drawing upon great wealth and exerting direct or indirect influen-
ce over foreign countries.
Also, they were open (even if not, by the most exacting modern definition,
democratic) - to public debace, and co new ideas.
The dominance of each of the two came to an end in a major war fought against
a la n d power.

Athens

Four factors stand out in the failure of athenian strategy in the 5th century B.C.
Mistreacment of allies
an imprudent and disastrous campaign in Sicily
a chronic lack of adequate ground forces
diplomati c policies that brought the Persia n expelled from Greece in 4 79
B.C., back into Hellenic politics.

Athens and the Allies
Among the most serious failures was the treacment of allies. The Delian League,
which Athens headed, started out well enough; it was a voluntary organization, ics
members invited Athens to be the leader, and che alliance was qui te effective against
the threat of Persia n hegemony. Bue i t gra:dually became less a collective security
coalition than a vehicle of Athenian domination. When member states attempted
co dissolve their ties co che league, Athens responded with brutal force. The Lea-
gue's creasury, originally on che island ofDelos, was moved co Athens in 453 B.C.
The move made the treasury safe from Persian attack but also, gave Athens
.complete contro! of the League' s finances.