city state · Greece and the Aegean
Megara
Origins
Megara occupied the small plain of the Megarid between Attica and Corinth. Dorian settlers formed the city in the early Iron Age, and it may once have been subject to Corinth before becoming independent. Its limited farmland pushed it to the sea, and from the 8th century BCE it founded colonies.
Rule and society
Megarians founded Megara Hyblaea in Sicily, Chalcedon, Byzantium and later Heraclea Pontica. Theagenes ruled as tyrant c. 640 BCE and backed his son-in-law Cylon's failed coup at Athens. Megara lost the island of Salamis to Athens in the 6th century BCE. The poet Theognis and the philosopher Euclid of Megara were citizens. It belonged to the Peloponnesian League.
Decline and legacy
The Megarian Decree of c. 432 BCE barred it from Athenian markets and helped start the Peloponnesian War. Megara joined the Achaean League in 243 BCE and passed under Roman control in 146 BCE.
On the connections map
Open the full map →Connections (3)
- Megara was part of Peloponnesian League550 BCE – 366 BCE
- Megara was part of Achaean League243 BCE – 146 BCE
- Megara was conquered by Roman Republic146 BCE
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Cite this page
- APA
- The Epoch Institute. (2026). Megara. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/megara
- MLA
- “Megara.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/megara. Accessed .
- Chicago
- The Epoch Institute. “Megara.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/megara.
- Harvard
- The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Megara’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/megara (Accessed: ).
Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻