Pericles never held a crown or claimed a throne, yet he dominated Athenian politics for over thirty years and turned a war-scarred city-state into the cultural and intellectual capital of the ancient world. Under his leadership, Athens built the Parthenon, nurtured the golden age of philosophy and drama, and forged an empire that rivaled any monarchy.

This episode explores how Pericles wielded democratic institutions to exercise near-monarchical power, funded Athenian grandeur with tribute from subject allies, and led his city into the Peloponnesian War whose plague would claim his own life.

• How Pericles used Athenian democracy’s own rules to dominate the city for decades
• The construction of the Parthenon and the controversial use of allied treasury funds
• The golden age of Athenian culture under Pericles — philosophy, drama, and art
• The outbreak of the Peloponnesian War and the plague that killed Pericles