Athens and Sparta: The Rivalry That Shaped Ancient Greece with Adrian Goldsworthy

In a warring world of thousands of city-states, where honour, prestige, and survival were constantly at stake, two names would rise above the rest – Athens and Sparta. Though once allied together against the Persians, the powers would end up locked in a rivalry, the Peloponnesian War.

In this episode of the podcast, Adrian Goldsworthy joins ⁠Zeb Baker-Smith⁠⁠⁠⁠, Editor of ⁠⁠⁠⁠Aspects of History⁠⁠⁠⁠, to discuss his latest book, ⁠Athens and Sparta: The Rivalry that Shaped Ancient Greece⁠. His stimulating account runs from its mythic origins to the Peloponnesian War, exploring their contrasting identities and ideologies – militaristic Sparta as a conquering elite and democratic Athens as an autochthonous society – and quite how these shaped their politics and ambitions. Our conversation also considers the challenges of sources like Herodotus and Thucydides, the fragile alliances of the Persian Wars, and what descent into this enduring conflict reveals about power, warfare, and strategy.

Episode Links

Athens and Sparta: The Rivalry that Shaped Ancient Greece

Adrian Goldsworthy Links

Adrian ⁠⁠online⁠⁠

Adrian on Twitter/X

Adrian on YouTube

Aspects of History Links

AoH ⁠⁠⁠⁠online⁠⁠⁠⁠

AoH on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Twitter /X⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

AoH on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Substack⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Zeb Links

Zeb on ⁠⁠⁠⁠Twitter /X⁠⁠⁠⁠

Zeb on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Substack⁠

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices