Lysander was the Spartan commander who captured Athens in 404 BCE after the Peloponnesian War.
Lysander directed Sparta’s final naval campaign against Athens. At the Battle of Aegospotami in 405 BCE, his fleet destroyed most of the Athenian navy. Athens then lost the ability to receive grain and defend its empire. After a siege, the city surrendered in 404 BCE, ending the long conflict that had begun in 431 BCE.
Lysander imposed terms that dismantled Athens’ empire and required the city to accept Spartan influence. He supported the establishment of the Thirty Tyrants, an oligarchic government backed by a Spartan garrison. This arrangement soon became unpopular and was overthrown by Athenian democrats.
Lysander is sometimes described simply as the victor over Athens, but his success was part of a wider Spartan effort involving Persian financial support and naval warfare. His career also shows that Sparta could compete effectively at sea when its commanders secured external resources.