Thebes, the Boeotian League, and central Greece : political and military development and interaction in the fourth century B.C.

Abstract

The history of central Greece in the fourth century BC has long been viewed through the lens of Athenian and Spartan interests which distorts the historical narrative and often misleads the reader regarding the causes and effects of events in this region. The following examination rejects this view and instead uses a regional approach to achieve new and unique understandings of major events in central Greece during the first half of the fourth century BC. The main focus of the examination is the internal developments of the Boeotian League and its interaction with the other states of central Greece. This refers to the relationship between Thebes and the other cities of Boeotia within the federal state as well as between the Boeotian League and Locris, Phocis, and Thessaly. These relationships, when assessed from a regional perspective using both literary and archaeological evidence, craft a new narrative for the political and military history of central Greece, a narrative which can be defined as ‘Boeotian.’ In doing so, many long-standing ideas regarding this period will be challenged including ideological shifts within the government of Boeotia, motivations for the beginning of the Corinthian War, the historical importance of Pelopidas and Epaminondas, and the mechanisms of Boeotian supremacy in central Greece.