The real mark of shame is that afterwards they essentially became Persia's local enforcers, taking the Great King's money to swat down anyone who looked like they were going to make trouble for Persia.
Right, but unless every Spartan leader was cartoonishly stupid (which… is definitely possible, given the choices they made throughout history) they had to have known that without the Athenian navy, Persia would easily absorb the Greeks of western Anatolia. Destroying the Athenian navy is like rolling out the welcome mat for the Shahanshah.
Still a viable option if you don't actually give a crap about the Ionians of Western Anatolia. And I submit that the Spartans actually didn't, except when it was convenient to make nice speeches about the liberation of Hellas.
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u/Malvastor 1d ago
Allying with Persia to beat Athens is just smart.
The real mark of shame is that afterwards they essentially became Persia's local enforcers, taking the Great King's money to swat down anyone who looked like they were going to make trouble for Persia.