Upvote:2
Question:
can one give a good account of the decline of Athenian democracy, in the approximately hundred year span between the Peloponnesian War and conquest by Macedon, that explains it in terms internal systemic socioeconomic weaknesses, building over time, comparable to though clearly not the same as the above example of the decline of republican Rome? What, at least in a brief sketch, does such an account look like?
Athenians lost the Peloponnesian war to Sparta and endured decades of occupation and tribute in favor of Sparta afterwards. She lost her empire, her wealth, a generation of fighting men and even self rule for a time ( the rule of "Thirty Tyrants"). She never regained her former leadership and glory falling to King Philipe II of Macedon, something Sparta resisted. Sparta fell to Alexander the Great after Philip's death.
The overall effect of the war in Greece proper was to replace the Athenian Empire with a Spartan empire. After the battle of Aegospotami, Sparta took over the Athenian empire and kept all of its tribute revenues for itself; Sparta's allies, who had made greater sacrifices for the war effort than had Sparta, got nothing.
Although the power of Athens was broken, it made something of a recovery as a result of the Corinthian War and continued to play an active role in Greek politics. Sparta was later humbled by Thebes at the Battle of Leuctra in 371 BC, but the rivalry between Athens and Sparta was brought to an end a few decades later when Philip II of Macedon conquered all of Greece except Sparta, which was later subjugated by Philip's son Alexander in 331 BC.