Callias ( gr, Καλλίας, Kallias) was an

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic p ...

statesman, soldier and diplomat, active in 5th century BC. He is commonly known as Callias II to distinguish him from his grandfather, Callias I, and from his grandson, Callias III, who apparently squandered the family's fortune. Born to the wealthy

Athenian Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh List ...

family which provided slaves to the state-owned

silver mine Silver mining is the extraction of silver from minerals, starting with mining. Because silver is often found in intimate combination with other metals, its extraction requires elaborate technologies. In 2008, ca.25,900 metric tons were consumed ...

of Laurion, he was one of the richest men in Athens. Callias fought at the

Battle of Marathon The Battle of Marathon took place in 490 BC during the first Persian invasion of Greece. It was fought between the citizens of Athens, aided by Plataea, and a Persian force commanded by Datis and Artaphernes. The battle was the culmination ...

(490) in priestly attire.

Plutarch Plutarch (; grc-gre, Πλούταρχος, ''Ploútarchos''; ; – after AD 119) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for his ...

relates that after the battle, an enemy soldier confused Callias for a king and showed him where a large quantity of gold had been hidden in a ditch. Callias is said to have killed the man and secretly taken the treasure, though afterward rumor spread of the incident and comic poets gave his family the name ''Laccopluti'', or "enriched by the ditch." His son,

Hipponicus Hipponicus (; el, Ἱππόνικος; ±485 – 422/1 BCE) was an Athenian military commander. He was the son of Callias II of the deme Alopece and Elpinice of Laciadae (sister of Cimon). He was known as the "richest man in Greece". Shortly ...

, was a military commander. Around the time of the death of

Miltiades Miltiades (; grc-gre, Μιλτιάδης; c. 550 – 489 BC), also known as Miltiades the Younger, was a Greek Athenian citizen known mostly for his role in the Battle of Marathon, as well as for his downfall afterwards. He was the son of Cim ...

, Callias offered to pay the debt

Cimon Cimon or Kimon ( grc-gre, Κίμων; – 450BC) was an Athenian '' strategos'' (general and admiral) and politician. He was the son of Miltiades, also an Athenian ''strategos''. Cimon rose to prominence for his bravery fighting in the naval Bat ...

had inherited from his father in exchange for Cimon's sister Elpinice's hand in marriage and Cimon agreed. A supporter of

Pericles Pericles (; grc-gre, wikt:Περικλῆς, Περικλῆς; c. 495 – 429 BC) was a Greeks, Greek politician and general during the Fifth-century Athens, Golden Age of Athens. He was prominent and influential in Athens, Athenian politi ...

, who was the effective leader of Athens during this period, Callias took on the role of diplomat and ambassador for Athens and the

Delian League The Delian League, founded in 478 BC, was an association of Greek city-states, numbering between 150 and 330, under the leadership of Athens, whose purpose was to continue fighting the Persian Empire after the Greek victory in the Battle of Pl ...

. In about 461 BC he made at least one journey as ambassador to the

Persia Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkme ...

n king

Artaxerxes I Artaxerxes I (, peo, 𐎠𐎼𐎫𐎧𐏁𐏂𐎠 ; grc-gre, Ἀρταξέρξης) was the fifth King of Kings of the Achaemenid Empire, from 465 to December 424 BC. He was the third son of Xerxes I. He may have been the "Artasyr ...

. Some time after the death of Cimon, probably about 449 BC he went to

Susa Susa ( ; Middle elx, 𒀸𒋗𒊺𒂗, translit=Šušen; Middle and Neo- elx, 𒋢𒋢𒌦, translit=Šušun; Neo-Elamite and Achaemenid elx, 𒀸𒋗𒐼𒀭, translit=Šušán; Achaemenid elx, 𒀸𒋗𒐼, translit=Šušá; fa, شوش ...

to conclude with Artaxerxes I a treaty of peace which became known as the

Peace of Callias The Peace of Callias is a purported peace treaty established around 449 BC between the Delian League (led by Athens) and Persia, ending the Greco-Persian Wars. The peace was agreed as the first compromise treaty between Achaemenid Persia and a Gree ...

. This treaty ended the Greco-Persian War and safeguarded the Greek

city-state A city-state is an independent sovereign city which serves as the center of political, economic, and cultural life over its contiguous territory. They have existed in many parts of the world since the dawn of history, including cities such as ...

s in

Asia Minor Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The ...

from Persian attacks. Callias may also been responsible for peace treaties with Rhegion and

Leontinoi Lentini ( scn, Lintini, historically Liuntini; la, Leontīnī; grc, Λεοντῖνοι) is a town and in the Province of Syracuse, South East of Sicily (Southern Italy). History The city was founded by colonists from Naxos as Leontini in ...

, as well as the later peace treaty with

Sparta Sparta (Doric Greek: Σπάρτα, ''Spártā''; Attic Greek: Σπάρτη, ''Spártē'') was a prominent city-state in Laconia, in ancient Greece. In antiquity, the city-state was known as Lacedaemon (, ), while the name Sparta referred ...

known as the

Thirty Years' Peace The Thirty Years' Peace was a treaty signed between the ancient Greek city-states of Athens and Sparta in 446/445 BC. The treaty brought an end to the conflict commonly known as the First Peloponnesian War, which had been raging since c. 460 BC. B ...

. Callias' fate upon his return to Athens remains a mystery and information about his later years remain only fragmentary. Some sources allege that his mission to Artaxerxes does not seem to have been successful and that he was indicted for

high treason Treason is the crime of attacking a state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplo ...

on his return to Athens and sentenced to a fine of fifty talents. Others claim, that the Athenians dedicated an altar of peace and voted special honours to Callias. Callias' son

was also a notable military leader, and was to become known as the "richest man in Greece".

Notes

References

Herodotus Herodotus ( ; grc, , }; BC) was an ancient Greek historian and geographer from the Greek city of Halicarnassus, part of the Persian Empire (now Bodrum, Turkey) and a later citizen of Thurii in modern Calabria ( Italy). He is known for ...

vii. 151;

Diodorus Siculus Diodorus Siculus, or Diodorus of Sicily ( grc-gre, Διόδωρος ; 1st century BC), was an ancient Greek historian. He is known for writing the monumental universal history '' Bibliotheca historica'', in forty books, fifteen of which ...

xii. 4;

Demosthenes Demosthenes (; el, Δημοσθένης, translit=Dēmosthénēs; ; 384 – 12 October 322 BC) was a Greek statesman and orator in ancient Athens. His orations constitute a significant expression of contemporary Athenian intellectual pro ...

, ''De Falsa Legatione'', p. 428; Grote recognizes the treaty as a historical fact, ''History of Greece'', ch. xlv, while Curtius, bk. iii. ch. ii, denies the conclusion of any formal treaty; see also Ed. Meyer, ''Forschungen.'', ii.; JB Bury in ''Hermathena'', xxiv (1898). {{DEFAULTSORT:Callias 02 Battle of Marathon Ambassadors in Greek Antiquity 5th-century BC Athenians Athenians of the Greco-Persian Wars 5th-century BC diplomats