Athens destroys Melos
416 BCE · Event
A small neutral island refuses to join the Athenian empire, and Athens kills its men and enslaves its women and children. Thucydides stages the argument first — the Melian Dialogue, where the Athenians state the doctrine baldly: the strong do what they can, the weak suffer what they must. It remains the coldest page in Greek literature.
On these timelines: The Peloponnesian War, Ancient Greece, Arts and Thoughts, Master
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Around 416 BCE
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