Page "Peloponnesian War" Paragraph 21

The Battle of Mantinea was the largest land battle fought within Greece during the Peloponnesian War.

The Lacedaemonians, with their neighbors the Tegeans, faced the combined armies of Argos, Athens, Mantinea, and Arcadia.

In the battle, the allied coalition scored early successes, but failed to capitalize on them, which allowed the Spartan elite forces to defeat the forces opposite them.

The result was a complete victory for the Spartans, which rescued their city from the brink of strategic defeat.

The democratic alliance was broken up, and most of its members were reincorporated into the Peloponnesian League.

With its victory at Mantinea, Sparta pulled itself back from the brink of utter defeat, and re-established its hegemony throughout the Peloponnese.