The work continues Greek history after the great fifth-century interstate conflict, narrating successive military campaigns, naval engagements, sieges, and diplomatic maneuvers that redistributed power among rival city-states. It chronicles internal political turbulence within communities, including coups, restorations, and popular upheaval, while noting the role of outside patrons and shifting alliances. Organized as a chronological narrative across several books, the account intersperses concise battle reportage with speeches and political commentary, showing how battlefield outcomes and diplomatic choices gradually reshape hegemony on the mainland and along the Aegean coast.