History of the Peloponnesian War

Which also I have therefore written both because this place hath been pretermitted by all that have written before me (for they have either compiled the Grecian acts before the invasion of the Persians or that invasion only, of which number is Hellanicus, who hath also touched them in his Attic history, but briefly and without exact mention of the times), and also because they carry with them a demonstration of how the Athenian empire grew up.

And first, under the conduct of Cimon the son of Miltiades they took Eion upon the river Strymon from the Medes by siege and carried away the inhabitants captives.

Then the isle Scyros, in the Aegean sea, inhabited by the Dolopes, the inhabitants whereof they also carried away captives and planted therein a colony of their own.

Likewise they made war on the Carystians alone without the rest of the Euboeans, and those also after a time came in by composition.

After this they warred on the revolted Naxians and brought them in by siege. And this was the first confederate city which contrary to the ordinance they deprived of their free estate; though afterwards, as it came to any of their turns, they did the like by the rest.

Amongst other causes of revolts the principal was their failing to bring in their tribute and galleys and their refusing (when they did so) to follow the wars. For the Athenians exacted strictly and were grievous to them by imposing a necessity of toil which they were neither accustomed nor willing to undergo.

They were also otherwise not so gentle in their government as they had been, nor followed the war upon equal terms, and could easily bring back to their subjection such as should revolt.