82 THE SPLENDOUR OF GREECE 



The further political development is a long story, 

 which we must make short. With the growth of 

 commerce and industry a class of rich men sprang 

 up, and the fight of " haves " and " have-nots " began. 

 It was a small world, we must remember, and struggles 

 were possible there which would at once have been 

 sternly crushed in Egypt or Babylonia. The whole 

 sixth century was filled with the revolt of the people 

 against aristocracy and plutocracy, ending in complete 

 democracy. Although there was what we should call 

 " manhood suffrage," the State was so small that even 

 in the year 400 b.c. it was possible to gather the whole 

 of the citizens of Athens in one field (the Pnyx) and 

 debate in common. Small nations have their uses. 



This was a very rapid political development com- 

 pared with what we have hitherto seen. Progress in 

 other matters — art, science, industry, etc. — was not 

 so rapid. But an event now occurred which was 

 fateful for Athens. 



The Greeks in Asia Minor had fallen under the 

 power of Persia. They rebelled, and the Athenians 

 assisted them, so the Persian king sent a " punitive 

 expedition " against these audacious barbarians. He 

 probably regarded the Athenians much as we regard 

 the Pathans to-day. The first Persian expedition was 

 broken by the Athenians at the Battle of Marathon. 

 Then Xerxes sent the army of half a million men 

 to which I have referred previously, and, as the 

 Athenians retreated before it, the old city of Athens 

 was utterly destroyed by the Persians. 



It was a melancholy sight for the Athenians when, 

 after (with the help of the other Greeks) driving off 

 the Persians, they returned to their city. It was a 

 bed of ashes and rubbish. But the reconstruction 



