Birthdate: c. 460 BC
Nationality: Greek
Bio:
Thucydides was an Athenian historian and general. He is regarded as one of the earliest scholarly historians due to his rigorous standards of evidence-gathering and analysis in The History of the Peloponnesian War.
He was born in Athens around 460 BC to a wealthy family. His father’s name was Olorus and he was likely related to the historian Cimon. Thucydides was educated in history, philosophy, and rhetoric which prepared him for his future career. He developed an early interest in politics and military strategy. During the Peloponnesian War, Thucydides served as an Athenian general in 424 BC. However, he failed to prevent the Spartan general Brasidas and his army from taking Amphipolis, so he was exiled from Athens.
While in exile, Thucydides devoted himself fully to researching and writing his history of the Peloponnesian War. He traveled extensively, interviewing participants and eyewitnesses on both sides of the conflict to verify his information. His rigorous approach of cross-examining evidence and insisting on definitive proof set a new standard for historical research. Thucydides organized vast amounts of information into a chronological, geographically-based narrative.
In his book, Thucydides sought to create a possession for all time by documenting the events that led up to the war and chronicling its progression. He analyzed the speeches that he recorded and tried to represent the various arguments fairly. His examination of the causes of conflict and the behaviors of individuals and states in wartime had a large influence on subsequent Western thought. Upon completion around 411 BC, The History of the Peloponnesian War stood as a landmark in historical literature.
Thucydides lived to see the eventual defeat of Athens in 404 BC, which marked the end of the Peloponnesian War. However, he did not live to revise his work further. He died sometime after 400 BC, with his book remaining the most authoritative source for the history of the period. Thucydides is still considered one of history’s greatest historians due to his systematic, skeptical, and unbiased methodology.
