WI: Corinth as the premier Classical Greek power?

[SunKing105]

When many people think of Classical Greece, they think of the two most well-known city-states, Athens and Sparta. And although for good reason, they were far from the only ones to gain a position of power, and it is very plausible that another one might have achieved the same position of power. In particular, Corinth IOTL was quite a wealthy and powerful player, having control over trade through the Isthmus, serving many important diplomatic roles, having several colonies such as Syracuse, Corcyra, and Epidamnus, and being the site for the Pan-Hellenic Congress in 481 BC and later the site where Philip II inaugurated his Corinthian League. Despite this, they never seemed to achieve the position in Greek politics their position dictated, being effectively surrounded by blocs of different and powerful cities. What if Corinth had achieved much more power and influence than IOTL, becoming a regional or even Pan-Hellenic power? The tyranny is never formed, and as a result of indeterminate butterflies, Sparta never manages to consolidate control over the Peloponnesian league, Argos is discredited more heavily for a time as a result of much more open collaboration with the Achaemenids, as opposed to the attempts made IOTL, and the Achaemenids devastate Athenian olive production and manage to attack the main citizen body of Athens before they can be evacuated, and Athens is much more devastated than OTL as a result of the second Achaemenid invasion. Would Corinth triumph and bring the whole Peloponessus to heel? Would they be able to attack Athens, or even achieve hegemony over all of Hellas? What would be the effect?

 

[PNWKing]

I know Corinth for two things: playing them in a school project about ancient Greece, and leather. And that last one was created by a marketing executive for Chrysler who looked up a random city to promote the leather for a new sedan they were making, starring once and future Khan Noonien Singh (sp?) Ricardo Montalban. (He was also the titular kids grandfather in Spy Kids.)

 

[Falecius]

Corynth was indeed the economic powerhouse of Hellas before Athens overshadowed it. I think it had basically two interconnected problems: relative lack of a hinterland, and more intense civil unrest: it was important for trade and crafts, but had little room for agriculture relative to its population. Both factors explain how it became a very active colonial metropolis, but also why could not reach the level of military power and political stability of the bigger Classical players. Sparta had an essentially agrarian exploitative economy underpinning its militarism that Corynth could not imitate. Athens had a democratic system giving everyone a stake in it (though the upper classes really hated it) and extractive imperialism. Corynth should have gone a similar way, but with little hinterland and a relatively specialised trading economy, It might have trouble generating a sufficiently large hoplite class; a large navy was probably politically problematic too without democracy.

 

[SunKing105]

Corynth was indeed the economic powerhouse of Hellas before Athens overshadowed it. I think it had basically two interconnected problems: relative lack of a hinterland, and more intense civil unrest: it was important for trade and crafts, but had little room for agriculture relative to its population. Both factors explain how it became a very active colonial metropolis, but also why could not reach the level of military power and political stability of the bigger Classical players. Sparta had an essentially agrarian exploitative economy underpinning its militarism that Corynth could not imitate. Athens had a democratic system giving everyone a stake in it (though the upper classes really hated it) and extractive imperialism. Corynth should have gone a similar way, but with little hinterland and a relatively specialised trading economy, It might have trouble generating a sufficiently large hoplite class; a large navy was probably politically problematic too without democracy.

Well food was never plentiful in the best of times, we're talking about ancient Greece here, and could it do what Athens did and obtain grain from other sources, such as the Crimea, or even from an Egypt that manages to gain independence from the Achaemenids, perhaps due to Corinthian support?

 

[Falecius]

Well food was never plentiful in the best of times, we're talking about ancient Greece here, and could it do what Athens did and obtain grain from other sources, such as the Crimea, or even from an Egypt that manages to gain independence from the Achaemenids, perhaps due to Corinthian support?

Well, that would require a powerful navy, and the supporting political institutions thereof. Possible, but assumes a very different internal political development.