the Delian League was formed right after the victory of Greece in the battle against a second invasion by Persia. Many of the southern Greek city-states did not participated in the agreement made in the Delian League because of concerns at home. Those that did participate were some of the city-states in the north of Ancient Greece, as well as Athens and the city-states won back in the fight against Persia. Everyone that was a member was required to give ships and money to Athens, to keep up the naval fleet and the protection (Brand, n.d., 28). This was how the Delian League was formed. Third, the Delian League had both a negative and positive impact within the Ancient Greek world.
In the beginning, the impact was mostly positive. Northern Greece was more unified, especially those within the Delian League and there was a strong naval presence in the Mediterranean that protected all their territories. Everyone shared the weight of the League. However, the negative results came soon after. Athens quickly grew used to their newfound power, and began to abuse it. City-states that tried to leave the agreement found themselves with a reduction to just contributing money to the League, as well as Athenian citizens living in the city, and Athenian coins and democracy being distributed into these cities. Eventually, Athens overexerted itself, trying to expand its territory too far, while also taking on a war with Persia in Egypt. This proved to be too much and they lost the war in Egypt, as well as letting go of most of its territories, except for the Aegean empire. The positive that came from the Athenian empire was a development in art, architecture, and philosophy during this time, as well as great plays and dramas that are still known today (Butler, 2017). These were the negative and positive effects on Ancient
Greece. In conclusion, the Delian League was very successful. It did what it was designed to do for at least a decade before collapsing into an empire situation. However, even then, the development was not all bad, as it gave Athens the chance to spread its culture and ideas far and wide, while also developing new ideas and forms of the arts. Despite all the negatives, the Delian League was incredibly successful.
Resources
Brand, P. (n.d.). Athens & Sparta: Democracy Vs. Dictatorship.
Butler, C. (2017). FC23: The Delian League and the Athenian Empire (478-431 BCE) - The Flow of History. [online] Flowofhistory.com. Available at: http://www.flowofhistory.com/units/birth/3/FC23 [Accessed 27 Sep. 2017].