Thucydides ‎The greatest Greek historian and novelist, Thucydides (born 460 BC or earlier; died after 404 BC), wrote the History of the Peloponnesian War, which describes the conflict between Sparta and Athens in the fifth century BC. He provided the first documnted political and moral analysis of a nation's military tactics in his books. What Thucydides exposes about himself throughout his account of his life is everything that is undeniably known-and possibly all that ancient scholars knew-about his existence. He was an Athenian who was old enough at the start of the war to assess its significance, determine that it would likely last a long time, and write an account of it while keeping track of and taking notes throughout. Therefore, he was most likely born no later than 460, possibly a few years before given that his in-depth account starts immediately before 431 with the circumstances that led to the conflict. He was undoubtedly older than 30 when he was chosen as strategos, a significant military magistrate, in 424. He belongs to a younger generation than the Greek historian Herodotus because of this. Olorus, his father's name, was not a well-known Attic name; Olorus was likely of Thracian ancestry on his mother's side. Read More Read Less