‘Pericles: Statesman, Demagogue, Eccentric’

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Abstract: Pericles ‘All-round Famous’ is one of the greatest ‘names’ of the ancient Greek world. His name has become a derivative adjective: ‘Periclean Athens’, even ‘Periclean Greece’. But given the available evidence – literary (Thucydides, Plutarch), epigraphical, and material-cultural (the building programme) – have his overall achievement and legacy been correctly assessed? In this lecture using the same title as his recent book Paul Cartledge will re-examine his illustrious career under three main subtitular rubrics: statesman (did Thucydides get that right?), demagogue (was Pericles really so different from his rival would-be ‘leaders of the demos’?) and eccentric (just how odd were his public-facing career and private life?).

Short biography: Paul Cartledge has published solo and jointly over 30 books, the latest Pericles: Statesman, Demagogue, Eccentric (Reaktion Books, 2026) in the series he edits ‘Great Lives of the Ancient World’. Prof. Cartledge first joined the BSA as a Student in 1970 and is a longstanding Friend. He is a Commander of the Order of Honour (Hellenic Republic) and an Honorary Citizen of Sparta. He holds honorary degrees from the Universities of Thessaloniki and Thessaly.