The plague of Athens

430 BCEAthens

2,455 years ago

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An epidemic that struck Athens in 430 BCE, the second year of the Peloponnesian War, killing an estimated quarter of its people.

was an epidemic that devastated the city-state of Athens in ancient Greece during the second year (430 BC) of the Peloponnesian War

The plague killed an estimated 75,000 to 100,000 people, around 25% of the population

From Wikipedia, Plague of Athens (opens en.wikipedia.org), as of 2026-09-23.

Short and sourced: tap any line to see the sentences it rests on.

What happened

Facing Sparta's land campaign from 431 BCE, Athens under Pericles retreated inside its walls, and the countryside crowded in.

In the face of a combined campaign on land from Sparta and its allies beginning in 431 BC, the Athenians, under the direction of Pericles, pursued a policy of retreat within the city walls of Athens
Unfortunately, the strategy also resulted in massive migration from the Attic countryside into an already highly populated city, generating overpopulation and resource shortage.
From Wikipedia, Plague of Athens (opens en.wikipedia.org), as of 2026-09-23.
Thucydides says it came from Ethiopia and first appeared in the port of Piraeus , from ships with infected passengers.

Thucydides says that the plague spread from Ethiopia to Athens, and that the plague first emerged in the port of Piraeus, from ships with plague-infected passengers
From Wikipedia, Plague of Athens (opens en.wikipedia.org), as of 2026-09-23.
Physicians, ignorant of its nature, were helpless and died fastest, having had the most contact with the sick.

physicians ignorant of its nature not only were helpless but themselves died the fastest, having had the most contact with the sick
From Wikipedia, Plague of Athens (opens en.wikipedia.org), as of 2026-09-23.
It returned in 429 BCE, and a third time in the winter of 427/426 BCE.

The plague returned in 429, and a third time in the winter of 427/426 BC.
From Wikipedia, Plague of Athens (opens en.wikipedia.org), as of 2026-09-23.
Plutarch, writing over four centuries later, says Pericles died in the 429 outbreak; Thucydides does not mention this.

Pericles, a leading Athenian statesman, is said by Plutarch (writing over four centuries later) to have died in the 429 plague; Thucydides (a contemporary and strong supporter of Pericles) does not mention this death.
From Wikipedia, Plague of Athens (opens en.wikipedia.org), as of 2026-09-23.

In the city

Thucydides says those who tended the sick were most likely to catch it, so many died alone. The dead were heaped up or shoved into mass graves.

Thucydides also describes violations of social norms motivated by the sheer contagiousness of the illness. For instance, he says that those who tended to the ill were most vulnerable to catching the disease, which meant that many people died alone because no one was willing to risk caring for them
The dead were heaped on top of each other, left to rot, or shoved into mass graves.
From Wikipedia, Plague of Athens (opens en.wikipedia.org), as of 2026-09-23.
Survivors, Thucydides among them, became immune and were the main carers of those who fell ill later.

Survivors of the plague, like Thucydides himself, developed an immunity, and so became the main caretakers of those who later fell ill.
From Wikipedia, Plague of Athens (opens en.wikipedia.org), as of 2026-09-23.
A mass grave and nearly 1,000 tombs dated 430–426 BCE have been found just outside the Kerameikos cemetery.

A mass grave and nearly 1,000 tombs, dated between 430 and 426 BC, have been found just outside Athens' ancient Kerameikos cemetery.
From Wikipedia, Plague of Athens (opens en.wikipedia.org), as of 2026-09-23.

Afterwards

Thucydides says it took 15 years for the population of Athens to recover.

Thucydides says that it took 15 years for the Athenian population to recover.
From Wikipedia, Plague of Athens (opens en.wikipedia.org), as of 2026-09-23.
He says many of the rich died and their fortunes passed to surviving relatives from the lower classes.

Thucydides says that the balance of power between citizens had changed due to many of the rich dying and their fortunes being inherited by remaining relatives of the lower classes.
From Wikipedia, Plague of Athens (opens en.wikipedia.org), as of 2026-09-23.

How we know

Thucydides caught the disease and survived, and left a detailed account of its symptoms.

the historian Thucydides, who was present and contracted the disease himself and survived, describes the epidemic
Thucydides left a detailed account of the plague's symptoms and epidemiology.
From Wikipedia, Plague of Athens (opens en.wikipedia.org), as of 2026-09-23.
Some 30 pathogens have been suggested as the cause, among them typhus, smallpox and measles; its exact nature may never be known.

Some 30 pathogens have been suggested as having caused the plague.
these include typhus, smallpox, measles, and toxic shock syndrome
the exact nature of the Athenian plague may never be known
From Wikipedia, Plague of Athens (opens en.wikipedia.org), as of 2026-09-23.

Events

Words about it

Every line here is ours, written from Wikipedia, Plague of Athens (opens en.wikipedia.org) (text CC BY-SA 4.0) and checked line by line against the sentences it cites. Where Wikipedia relies on Plutarch or another ancient writer, so do we, and we say so.