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Thucydides was born in an Athenian suburb in circa 460 BC. His father Olorus is believed to be from the Athenian deme of Halimous. His family hailed from Thrace in northeastern Greece. The name of his father, “Olorus,” was connected to Thracian royalty. He was also related to the great Athenian General Miltiades.
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Thucydides is generally recognized as one of the first true historians.Thucydides is generally recognized as one of the first true historians.By introducing the method of historical causality, that is, the search for the deeper causes of an event, he was the first to approach history in a scientific way.
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Thucydides was probably trained by the Sophists, teachers and philosophers of classical Athens (Anaxagoras and Antiphon). It has also been affected by the tragedy, which can be seen from the dialogue between the Athenians and the Milians, which is written in the form of an answer question (verse myth). He also often contrasts opinion with luck, again influenced by tragedy.
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Little is known about Thucydides’ life apart from the few biographical references in his masterwork. He had a son named Timotheos.
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Thucydides was about 25-30 years old at the beginning of the Peloponnesian War (431 BC). He also fell ill during the plague that struck Athens between 430 and 427 BC. destroying a quarter of its population, including Pericles.
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In 424, he was given command of a fleet, but was then exiled for failing to reach the city of Amphipolis in time to prevent its capture by the Spartans.
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The secret of happiness is freedom and the secret of freedom is courage.
The strong do what they have to do and the weak accept what they have to accept. -
His narrative ends abruptly in the middle of 411 BC, suggesting that he may have died suddenly during the writing of the work. According to some tradition, his text was found to end with an incomplete sentence. His remains were returned to Athens and buried in the family tomb of Kimonas.Some peaople believe that there is evidence that he lived until 398 BC.But it is certain that he died in the decades of 390 BC.
