Hellenic Navy - History - Classical Period
In the Classical Period the naval activities and arts were blossoming. The transition from the Archaic to the Classical periods was marked by the repulsing of the Persian threat. At the beginning of the 5th century, in 480 B.C., the long manoeuvrable Athenian triremes defeated the large, clumsy ships of the Persian king in the straits of Salamis, illuminating the dawn of Athens' domination of the sea and the beginning of Classical civilization. Athens became the leading naval power in Greece, with Piraeus as its port, and its defences were strengthened by the construction of the Long Walls connecting the two cities. The decision to create the harbor at Piraeus was due to Themistokles, the brilliant victor of Salamis. His work was continued by Pericles, who succeded in creating a perfectly designed port that was an important naval and commercial center. Down to 86 B.C. when it was destroyed by the Roman general Sulla, Piraeus was one of the most populous and vital harbours in the Mediterranean. Characteristically, the phrase of Pericles that "A Sea State is a great State", is quoted inalterably on the emblem of the modern Hellenic Navy.Thanks to its naval superiority and flourishing trade, Athens experienced unprecedented growth.
Democracy was established on a firm basis, intellectuals and artists achieved greatness in their fields, and the city evolved into the greatest commercial, social, intellectual, and artistic center in the ancient world. Thanks to the prestige and influence of Athens at this period, the 5th century B.C. is known in history as the "Golden Age of Perikles". The rivalry between the Greek cities, however, and the apprehension of the more conservative of them at the innovative ideas of Athens led to the creation of two rival camps under the leadership of Athens and Sparta respectively. This, in turn, led to the outbreak of the Peloponesian War, which lasted from 431 to 404 B.C. and brought terrible suffering to Greece. At the outset, the Athenian Confederacy possessed the material and military strength that should have secure them victory.
The death of Perikles in the third year of the war, however, proved to be a mortal blow. His successors were unable to continue with his plans. Rivalries, realignments, and passions undermined the mighty Athenian empire and led to defeat. One result of this war, apart from the loss of forces that seriously affected the history of both rivals in the years that followed, was to protract the division of Greece into city-states and short-lived confederations. It was not until thirty years later that the Athenians succeeded in reconstituting the Athenian Confederacy, and they never recovered their previous strength.
In the 5th and 4th centuries, a period when military strength was directly related to to naval superiority, the typical ship was the trireme, which probably first appeared in the Mediterranean at the end of the 6th century. During the Percian Wars, the trireme was the only ship used. It was only after the middle of the 4th century that other types of ships made their appearance. Athenian inscriptors have preserved some interesting evidence as to the number of men carried on triremes. The number of oarsmen could be as large as 170, and there were also 30 officers, as well as specialist crew members and warriors. The oarsmen took up position in three rows corresponding to the three banks of oars. The men of the lower level were called thalamitae ("those that sit in the hold"), those in the middle zygitae ("those that sit on the thwarts"), and those on the top bank thranitae ("benchmen"). The last seem to have been held in greater esteem than the others and to have enjoyed better rowing conditions. They at least had access to sunlight and air. Each oarman used to carry his own oar, a cushion to sit on, and a twisted leather thong with which to tie his oar to the thole pin.
The 4th century B.C., which foreshadowed the Hellenism of the three continents, was the century of the overseas success of the Greek powers. This period, which is called Hellenistic period, was dominated by the Macedonian kings, first Philip II, followed by Alexander the Great. Despite the conflicts between the city-states of Greece, these rulers attempted to bring reconciliation to the Greeks, so that they could follow a shared destiny. In 334 B.C. Alexander the Great began with a Pan-Hellenic army of infantry and cavalry his great Eastern expedition up to the borders of India. With the conquest of Asia and Africa by Alexander the Great, the eastern Mediterranean became literally a Greek sea.
The many ships he built sailed along the coast of India under their admiral Nearchos, who covered 1,000 miles in five months. Nearchos's log was so detailed that it could be used by any captain who wanted to sail along this route. At the same period, Pytheas of Massalia, like his compatriot Eurhymenes, sailed into the Atlantic ocean and reached the British isles and the island of Thule. He gave an account of his great voyage, with comments, in his book Ges periodos ("Tour of the world"), which was for centuries the only source for the navigation of these seas.
A major feature of the Hellenistic period, however, was the creation of Greek cities by Alexander himself on his campaign to the east, beginning with Alexandria in Egypt and ending with Alexandria Eschate in Sogdiane. After the death of Alexander the Great, in 323 B.C., this new, mighty empire was divided into three parts by his successors, the Diadochi: Antigonos took Greece and Macedonia, Ptolemy took Egypt, and Seleukos took Asia Minor and Syria. Although one would have expected Ptolemy to make himself master of the sea, with Egypt becoming the leading naval power, it was in fact Antigonos who, after a long interval, became "lord of the seas". The rivalry and conflicts among the Successors led to the construction of ever larger ships. For half a century, these warships struggled for domination of the sea and control of the Eastern Mediterranean.
In 360 B.C., Antigonos's son, Demetrios Poliorketes, won a comprehensive victory in a naval battle against the Ptolemaic fleet for control of Salamis in southern Cyprus. For two decades, Demetrios was master of the seas. When he was obliged by political conflicts to return to Greece, however, the baton passed to the Ptolemies and the Egyptian fleet. The ships of this period were larger, broader, and heavier. A variety of needs led to the building of new typew of ship from as early as the 4th century B.C. Tetrereis, pentereis, heptereis ("seven-fitted"), and octereis ("eight-fitted") made their appearance on the seas of the Mediterranean, which were dominated by the Greeks. An octereis, which had 1,600 oarsmen, had a crew ten times greater than that of the triremes, and could carry 1,200 soldiers.
The Romans that prevailed later were the successors of the same naval traditions that rejuvenated in the Byzantine years with new achievements. New types of boats and pioneering arms as the famous "Greek fire", ensured for the Byzantine fleet the sovereignty of the sea. Neglecting though their naval force was for Byzantium the main factor for the decline of its military supremacy.
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