Pelopidas (; ; died 364 BC) was an important Theban statesman and general in Greece, instrumental in establishing the mid-fourth century Theban hegemony.

Biography

Athlete and warrior

Pelopidas was a member of a distinguished family and possessed great wealth, which he expended on his friends and on public service while he himself was content to lead the rough life of an athlete.T Duff ed., ''Plutarch: The Age Of Alexander'' (Penguin 2011) p. 48-9 In 384 BC, he served in a Theban contingent sent to the support of the Spartans during the

Siege of Mantinea The siege of Mantinea occurred in 385 BC, and resulted in a victory of the Spartans over the city of Mantinea, which was defeated and dismembered. Spartans wanted to ensure that Mantinea could not be a threat, and forced them to take down their ...

, where he was dangerously wounded by the Arcadians, but was saved by

Epaminondas Epaminondas (; ; 419/411–362 BC) was a Greeks, Greek general and statesman of the 4th century BC who transformed the Ancient Greece, Ancient Greek polis, city-state of Thebes, Greece, Thebes, leading it out of Spartan subjugation into a pre ...

and Agesipolis. ::Pelopidas, after receiving seven wounds in front, sank down upon a great heap of friends and enemies who lay dead together; but Epaminondas, although he thought him lifeless, stood forth to defend his body and his arms, and fought desperately, single-handed against many, determined to die rather than leave Pelopidas lying there. And now he too was in a sorry plight, having been wounded in the breast with a spear and in the arm with a sword, when Agesipolis the Spartan king came to his aid from the other wing, and when all hope was lost, saved them both.Plutarch, ''Life of Pelopidas'', 4.

Plutarch Plutarch (; , ''Ploútarchos'', ; – 120s) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo (Delphi), Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for his ''Parallel Lives'', ...

says that this incident firmly cemented their friendship, and Pelopidas would be Epaminondas's partner in politics for the next 20 years. Epaminondas defending Pelopidas

According to Plutarch's Life of Pelopidas (from Plutarch's ''

Parallel Lives * Culture of ancient Greece Culture of ancient Rome Ancient Greek biographical works Ethics literature History books about ancient Rome Cultural depictions of Gaius Marius Cultural depictions of Mark Antony Cultural depictions of Cicero ...

'' in which Pelopidas's life was paired with the life of Marcellus), he lessened his inherited estate by showing constant care for the deserving poor of Thebes, taking pleasure in simple clothing, a sparse diet, and the constant hardships of military life. People said that he was ashamed to spend more on himself than the lowest of the Thebans spent on himself. Once, when friends argued that he needed to care for his finances since he had a wife and children, and that money was a necessary thing, Pelopidas pointed to a blind, crippled pauper named Nicodemus and said, "Yes, necessary for Nicodemus." Upon the seizure of the Theban citadel by the

Sparta Sparta was a prominent city-state in Laconia in ancient Greece. In antiquity, the city-state was known as Lacedaemon (), while the name Sparta referred to its main settlement in the Evrotas Valley, valley of Evrotas (river), Evrotas rive ...

ns (382 BC), Pelopidas fled to

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

and took the lead in a conspiracy to liberate Thebes. The Spartans, though royalists in their own state, installed

oligarchic Oligarchy (; ) is a form of government in which power rests with a small number of people. Members of this group, called oligarchs, generally hold usually hard, but sometimes soft power through nobility, fame, wealth, or education; or throug ...

governments in the city-states they conquered in pursuit of the

Spartan hegemony Spartan hegemony refers to the period of dominance by Sparta in Greek affairs from 404 to 371 BC. Even before this period the polis of Sparta was the greatest Spartan army, military land power of classical Ancient Greece, Greek antiquity and govern ...

. In 379 BC, Pelopidas' democratic faction rose in a surprise revolt and killed many of the corrupted Theban aristocrats supporting Spartan rule. The Spartan garrison surrendered to an army gathered by Pelopidas.

Boeotarch

Charon placed his only son in the arms of Pelopidas

In this and 12 subsequent years, he was elected ''

boeotarch Boeotarch (, ''Boiotarches'') was the title of the chief officers of the Boeotian Confederacy, founded in 379 BC after a rebellion freed the cities of Boeotia from Spartan dominance. There were seven Boeotarchs, democratically elected from seven e ...

'', or warleader, and around 375 BC, he routed a much larger Spartan force at the Battle of Tegyra (near Orchomenus). This victory he owed mainly to the valour of the Sacred Band, an elite corps of 300 seasoned soldiers. At the

Battle of Leuctra The Battle of Leuctra (, ) was fought on 6 July 371 BC between the Boeotians led by the Thebes (Greece), Thebans, and the History of Sparta, Spartans along with their allies amidst the post–Corinthian War conflict. The battle took place in the ...

(371 BC), he contributed greatly to the success of

's new tactics by the rapidity with which he made the Sacred Band close with the Spartans. At Leuctra, Epaminondas, a brilliant and intuitive general, used the oblique order for the first time. After the battle at Leuctra, Thebes began to replace Sparta as the leading city of Greece. In 370 BC, he accompanied his close friend Epaminondas as ''boeotarch'' into the Peloponnese, where, by re-founding as an independent city

Messene Messene (Greek language, Greek: Μεσσήνη 𐀕𐀼𐀙 ''Messini''), officially Ancient Messene, is a local community within the regional unit (''perifereiaki enotita'') of Messenia in the region (''perifereia'') of Peloponnese (region), P ...

Sparta's former dependency, they were able to consolidate their success and permanently deprive Sparta of its hegemonic power.J Griffin et al eds., ''The Oxford History of the Classical World'' (Oxford 1986) p. 149 On their return, both generals were accused, unsuccessfully, of having retained their command beyond the legal term. In fact, the democrats and some aristocrats of Thebes acknowledged that Pelopidas and Epaminondas were the two most capable and important personalities of their city. Both were trying to establish a state that would unite Greece under the Theban hegemony – what

Xenophon Xenophon of Athens (; ; 355/354 BC) was a Greek military leader, philosopher, and historian. At the age of 30, he was elected as one of the leaders of the retreating Ancient Greek mercenaries, Greek mercenaries, the Ten Thousand, who had been ...

called a policy "continuously direct towards securing supremacy in Greece".Xenophon, '' A History of my Times: Hellenica'' (Penguin 1966) p. 309

Embassy to Persia

In 367 BC, Pelopidas went on an embassy to the Persian king

Artaxerxes II Arses (; 445 – 359/8 BC), known by his regnal name Artaxerxes II ( ; ), was King of Kings of the Achaemenid Empire from 405/4 BC to 358 BC. He was the son and successor of Darius II () and his mother was Parysatis. Soon after his accession, Ar ...

. Backed by the prestige of his Leuctra victory, Pelopidas was able to induce the king to prescribe a settlement of Greece according to the wishes of the Thebans, with particular reference to the continuing independence of Messene.

Thessalian campaign and death

Pelopidas leading the Thebans at the battle of Leuctra

The 360s saw Pelopidas leading a military/diplomatic advance by Theban power into Central and Northern Greece. In 369 BC, in response to a petition of the

Thessalians Thessaly ( ; ; ancient Thessalian: , ) is a traditional geographic and modern administrative region of Greece, comprising most of the ancient region of the same name. Before the Greek Dark Ages, Thessaly was known as Aeolia (, ), and appears ...

, Pelopidas was sent with an army against Alexander of Pherae. After driving Alexander out, he passed into

Macedon Macedonia ( ; , ), also called Macedon ( ), was an ancient kingdom on the periphery of Archaic and Classical Greece, which later became the dominant state of Hellenistic Greece. The kingdom was founded and initially ruled by the royal ...

and arbitrated between two claimants to the throne. In order to secure the influence of Thebes in Macedon, he brought home hostages, including the king's younger brother

Philip Philip, also Phillip, is a male name derived from the Macedonian Old Koine language, Greek (''Philippos'', lit. "horse-loving" or "fond of horses"), from a compound of (''philos'', "dear", "loved", "loving") and (''hippos'', "horse"). Prominen ...

, a young man who would one day become king himself. In Thebes, Philip learned about the military tactics and politics of the Greeks. The next year, Pelopidas was again called upon to interfere in Macedonia, but being deserted by his mercenaries, was compelled to make an agreement with

Ptolemy of Aloros Ptolemy of Aloros (), was sent by King Amyntas III of Macedon as an envoy to Athens c. 375–373 BC. After Amyntas' death, he began a liaison with his widow, Eurydice. In 368 BC, he assassinated her son, Alexander II, in order to gain control of ...

. On his return through Thessaly, he was seized by Alexander of Pherae, and two expeditions (the second expedition, the successful one, was led by his friend Epaminondas) from Thebes were needed to secure his release. In 364 BC, he received another appeal from the Thessalian towns against Alexander of Pherae. Although an eclipse of the sun prevented his bringing with him more than a handful of troops, he overthrew the tyrant's far superior force on the ridge of Cynoscephalae. However, wishing to slay Alexander with his own hand, he rushed forward too eagerly and was cut down by the tyrant's guards. Plutarch considered him a prime example of a leader who threw away his life through recklessness and anger.T Duff ed., ''Plutarch: The Age of Alexander'' (Penguin 2011) p. 48

References

External links

Pelopidas
{{Authority control 364 BC deaths 4th-century BC Greek people Ancient Theban generals Ancient Greek generals Ancient Greeks killed in battle Military history of ancient Thessaly Theban hegemony Year of birth unknown