Lysander was a Spartan military and political leader. He destroyed the Athenian fleet at the Battle of Aegospotami in 405 BC, forcing Athens to capitulate and bringing the Peloponnesian War to an end. He then played a key role in Sparta's domination of Greece for the next decade until his death at the Battle of Haliartus.
Lysander outside the walls of Athens, ordering their destruction. 19th century lithograph.
Encounter between Cyrus the Younger (left), Achaemenid satrap of Asia Minor and son of Darius II, and Spartan admiral Lysander (right) in Sardis. The encounter was related by Xenophon. Francesco Antonio Grue (1618–1673).
The assassination of the exiled Athenian general Alcibiades was organized by Pharnabazes, at the request of Lysander.
The Battle of Aegospotami was a naval confrontation that took place in 405 BC and was the last major battle of the Peloponnesian War. In the battle, a Spartan fleet under Lysander destroyed the Athenian navy. This effectively ended the war, since Athens could not import grain or communicate with its empire without control of the sea.
Meeting between Cyrus the Younger and Lysander, by Francesco Antonio Grue (1618-1673).
View across the Hellespont to Aegospotami.
