Showing results by author "Plutarch" in All Categories

Phocion is one of the many Grecian politician’s lives detailed in Plutarch’s Parallel Lives stories. Phocion, also known as “The Good”, was known for being one of the most beloved and change-inspiring Greek politicians of his time. Elected a military stratego many times, his prowess within the army was highly regarded. His fierce opposition to many of the ruling classes and his willingness to fight for what he believed in was ultimately what lead to his execution. 

The Life of Cimon is just one of many notable biographies in Plutarch’s informative Parallel Lives series. Cimon, an Athenian Statesman, was the son of the general who won Greece’s battle of Marathon. Battling and defeating the Persian Empire on water, Cimon was crucial in the construction of the Athenian Maritime Empire. However, like so many others in the series, Cimon was eventually ostracized from the empire when his political views took a radical turn.   

In this entry of Parallel Lives, Plutarch tells the true story of Lysander, the great Spartan leader. Lysander led a fleet of Spartan ships to victory against the Athenians in the battle at Aegospotami. History also credits him with forcing the Greeks to surrender at the end of the Peloponnesian War.  

The Life of Aratus is one of the many biographies detailed in Plutarch’s integral work, Parallel Lives. In The Life of Aratus, Plutarch details the dynamic work done by the successor of Nicocles and talks about his advocacy to turn Greece into a united country. Working as a soldier first and then a diplomat, he fought for the betterment of his fellow countrymen. Disaster hit during his later reign, as it so often did, and though many wanted him dead, the great Oracle at Delphi had other plans.   

We all know the founder of Rome, but do we know much about the widely-proclaimed second founder of Rome? The monarchy, tyranny, and victorious battles of Marcus Furius Camillus, the second founder, are documented in Plutarch’s Parallel Lives. After the destruction of Veii, Camillus returned to Rome as a pompous victor and dictator, causing quite a stir when he refused to follow the wishes of the senate when it came to dealing with Veii. Sensing banishment was in his future, Camillus’s time in Rome was much less bloody than many of his predecessors.   

One of the more hotly contested lives documented in Plutarch’s Parallel Lives, the Life of Dion investigates the intense politics of the tyrant of Syracuse. Starting out in politics, he initially was one of Dionysus’ most trusted advisors. But after Dionysus expressed that he no longer wanted to be a tyrant, which went against the advisement of Dion, his most trusted advisor was banished.  

When it came to Athens and their leaders, few were as influential as the politician and Stratego Nicias. In Plutarch’s Parallel Lives, he documents the Peloponnesian War and other great achievements of the time through the life of Nicias. Most importantly, he helped negotiate peace after a decades-long war, which made him popular after an unsuccessful start in politics. However, after many years of political truces and actions, his life took a turn for the worse.   

Though Sparta and Greece were once bitter rivals, this did not stop Plutarch from writing about Spartan figureheads in his book, Parallel Lives. Cleomenes was one of these Spartan figureheads - and was the King of Sparta for many years. From involvement in many wars to his effort to maintain the Spartan state, Cleomenes was still not free from drama. His life ended tragically at his own hands after one final Spartan defeat, but his legacy lived on through the works of Plutarch and others.   

Smart, resourceful, and cruel - three words that might describe Titus Quinctius Flamininus, the subject of Plutarch’s The Life of Flaminius. Brother to the later-to-be-exiled Senator Lucius Quinctius Flamininus, the former Flamininus was a well-known general and state politician. As a general, he occupied many overthrown Greek and Macedonian lands, becoming quite well-known. Although his political prowess was well known, he became cruel during his latter life - even being pivotal in the death of a harmless citizen.   

The life of Philopoemen is one of the many lives described in Plutarch’s famous Parallel Lives series. Philopoemen, whose father died when he was very young, was adopted by a notable Megalopolan figurehead and studied under the local Greek philosophers. Not only was he smart, but he went on to advise and help defend Greece from Cleomenes III and the many people attempting to gain control of the powerful empire. But as Sparta began to rise in his later years, his political actions became more and more risky - which ultimately lead to his demise.