History of the Peloponnesian War

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History of the Peloponnesian War is an account of the battles, conflicts, and politics of the Peloponnesian War, fought between the Peloponnesian League (Sparta) and the Delian League (Athens), written by an Athenian general who served in the war, Thucydides. It is widely considered a classic and was one of the earliest scholarly works of history.

Thucydides' History begins almost exactly where Herodotus' Histories leaves off. Unlike Herodotus, who openly admitted to recounting popular beliefs in cases when evidence was lacking or insufficient, Thucydides aimed to provide an accurate and detailed account, thoroughly citing his sources whenever he could not provide a first-hand account. Additionally, the gods play no role in Thucydides' work, unlike the many appearances they make in the writings of Herodotus (and their near ubiquity in Homer's work).

Thucydides' masterpiece is divided into eight books and is roughly chronological, though the action jumps around sometimes between the various theaters of conflict. One major feature of the work are the dozens of speeches by the principle figures in the war. These include addresses given to troops by their generals before battles and numerous political debates, both amongst Athenian and Spartan leaders and between them. Of the speeches, the most famous is the funeral oration of Pericles, which is found in Book Two. Thucydides undoubtedly heard some of these speeches himself while for others he relied on eye witness accounts. Some of the speeches are probably fabricated according to his expectations of what must have been said.

Despite being an Athenian and a participant in the conflict, Thucydides is regarded as having written an unbiased account of the conflict and all the sides involved in it. In Book One he states that he wrote his History "not as an essay which is to win the applause of the moment, but as a possession for all time."

The History of the Peloponnesian War is unfinished, ending literally in the middle of a sentence. It is possible that Thucydides died before he could complete the work (in which case other sections would likely have been changed and edited had he lived longer) but other alternatives have also been proposed by scholars for the abrupt end of the work.

The book concentrates on military and political matters, largely leaving social issues and things like art and architecture untouched. The History is usually viewed as being an early promoter of realpolitik or power politics.