First Syracusan War (Athenian Legacy)

The First Syracusan War was a Military Conflict that occured in the Late Classical period of Ancient Greece, between the Athenian Empire and her allies and the City-State of Syracuse and her allies. The First Syracusan War is usually divided amongst Historians into five sections, Advance of Syracuse (398 BCE-397 BCE), Athenian Reconquest (397 BCE-396 BCE), Stalemate (396 BCE-393 BCE), and Wars of Conon (393 BCE-392 BCE). The Syracusan War was the most destructive conflict in the entire world since the Peloponnesian War, and historians usually argue that had the war dragged on, it would have continued to surpass the casualty rate of its predecessor.

Despite the Athenian Victory in the end, Syracuse effectivley kept Athens at bay for several years, defeating them on several occasions. It is universally accepted that the war exploited the weakness in the Athenian Empire, a factor that would later throw Athens to the brink of destruction.