Whatever happened to ancient Athens? It was really on a roll there for a while, wasn't it?

Answer 1

Athens was a city-state meaning that it ruled itself. In the 3rd century BC a country called Macedonia was coming to power. In 338 Phillip II won a battle at Chaeronea and this brought around the end of Athens as a city-state as Macedon now ruled over it. Phillip's son, Alexander the Great, further expanded Macedon ending the Greek city-state altogether. This age was know as the Hellenistic age.

After this Athens didn't really stop being a rich city of knowledge and culture. Personally I feel people thought it declined because the loss of its autonomy. It isn't like the Macedonia enacted crushing laws. Also, as this is going on Rome is becoming a major force and is starting to overshadow Greece.

Athens also fell under the control of the Byzantines and Turks but I'm not qualified to discuss that.

Answer 2

Such is the nature of things.

All the great early civilisations have fallen apart, the city states, Empires etc.

Timbuktu, Jericho, Babylon, Troy, Athens, Rome, and countless others... add to that list the Empires of the Mongols, Dutch, Germans, Spanish, Portuguese, British, Soviets and so on and so forth.

I wonder how long the current power of the United States will last... probably not too long, China is going to be far more powerful soon enough but give it another few centuries and they'll be in decline again too.

Perhaps then people will be looking back on these as the last of the "terrestrial" Empires and the new powers will be based on the Moon or Mars. Who knows.

Answer 3

Yeah, but then the neighborhood went to hell and you know the rest.