The Prosperous Greek Golden Age Throughout the history of Greek civilization, the Greek people have endured many hardships, as well as peace and triumphs. However, one Greek period stands out most as being peaceful and aggressive, the Golden Age. During the Golden Age, Greece and its surrounding colonies flourished in wealth and power, were influenced by several key players, and even participated in wars and battles. The Greek Golden Age was one of the highest moments of Greek society and influenced it years later. Around 500 BC Greek civilization experienced a period of peace. Because of the quiet times, civilization society had more time to focus on writing, mathematics, astronomy, and artistic fields, as well as trade and metallurgy. Of all the city-states of Greece, two excelled above all others, Sparta and Athens. Even though they were the most advanced and strongest civilizations, they were bitter enemies. While Athens focused primarily on popular democracy and citizens' rights, Sparta was ferocious and enslaved its original inhabitants, leaving them unable to leave. Starting in 492 BC, a series of wars broke out, appropriately titled the Persian Wars, which lasted about thirteen years. Due to the constant battles between the Persians, led by Xerxes, and Greece, both civilizations began to weaken more and more. When the wars ended, the Greeks managed to defeat the Persians. However, being in a weakened state caused the Greek city-states (mainly Athens versus Sparta) to fight among themselves to have more influence over the rest of the city-states. This type of war was called the Peloponnesian War and continued from 431 BC to 404 BC (History of Greece: The Golden Age of Greece) and