The Peloponnesian War kicked off again in 415 B.C. through a series of blunders. An Athenian defector told the Spartans that Athens planned to attack Italy. At the same time, an ally of Athens in Sicily reached out for help against forces from Syracuse. The Athenians came to their ally's aid, and the Spartans sided with Syracuse, writes History. The Athenians lost the battle, signaling a change for the once-powerful city-state. Even so, the war continued for nearly a decade.
Over the years, Sparta, knowing Athens' advantage at sea, strengthened their naval forces, says National Geographic, and at the same time, Persia began funding the Spartan war efforts (per Columbia University). The conflict came to a head at the battle of Aegospotami. General Lysander led the Spartans to victory with strengths on land and at sea, as History notes. The Athenians surrendered, and their defeat officially ended both the Peloponnesian War and the Golden Age of Greece (via National Geographic).
A short-lived Spartan rule followed, seeking out military conquest that led to nearly another decade of war, known as the Corinthian Wars. A century later, both regions submitted to the kingdom of Macedon under King Phillip II, according to History. Greece was unified for the first time as one political entity, as the League of Corinth, sometimes called the Hellenic League. A generation later, Phillip's son Alexander the Great realized his father's dream of conquering all of the Persian Empire.
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