Athenian democracy reached its greatest height, under the leadership of Pericles. He was a great radical in politics. He was the great-grandson of Clisthenes. It was he who completed the work of laying the foundation for democracy in Athens. He deprived the ‘Areopagus’ the legislative body of its political powers and transferred the same to the council of five hundred.

This body suggested measures to the Acclesia- the Assembly. It was freely discussed by all the citizens of Athens and laws were passed. A board of ten Generals elected by the Assembly acted as a kind of Cabinet. Pericles was the President of this board. The generals were responsible to the Assembly and thus could not become Dictators.

Another important feature of the Periclean age was the jury system. Every year about 5000 jurors were elected for a term of one year. Being a great lover of democracy, he wanted even the poorest citizen to take interest in the political affairs of the State. This was the forerunner for the present day’s Direct Democracy.

Athens which was destroyed during the Persian war was rebuilt by Pericles. Athens became a centre of progress in Art and Architecture. Very large public buildings were constructed, which beautified Athens. The famous Parthenon or the temple of Virgin was built of coloured marble stones. It was the most beautiful temple. To protect this beautiful city from foreign invaders, he built ‘Longwalls’ connecting the city with the port Piraeus.

Pericles patronised music and artistes. The age of Pericles produced great Philosophers like Socrates and his pupil, Plato. It was the Golden age of Greek plays. Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides were the great dramatists who wrote tragic plays. Hippocrates who is regarded as the Father of Medicine, Herodotus who is regarded as the Father of History and Thucycidides another famous historian all lived under the patronage of Pericles.