371 BC

Millennium:	1st millennium BC
Centuries:	5th century BC – 4th century BC – 3rd century BC
Decades:	400s BC 390s BC 380s BC – 370s BC – 360s BC 350s BC 340s BC
Years:	374 BC 373 BC 372 BC – 371 BC – 370 BC 369 BC 368 BC

371 BC by topic
Politics
State leaders – Sovereign states
Birth and death categories
Births – Deaths
Establishments and disestablishments categories
Establishments – Disestablishments

371 BC in other calendars
Gregorian calendar	371 BC
Ab urbe condita	383
Armenian calendar	N/A
Assyrian calendar	4380
Bahá'í calendar	-2214–-2213
Bengali calendar	-963
Berber calendar	580
English Regnal year	N/A
Buddhist calendar	174
Burmese calendar	-1008
Byzantine calendar	5138–5139
Chinese calendar	己酉年 (2266/2326) — to — 庚戌年 (2267/2327)
Coptic calendar	-654–-653
Ethiopian calendar	-378–-377
Hebrew calendar	3390–3391
Hindu calendars
- Vikram Samvat	-314–-313
- Shaka Samvat	N/A
- Kali Yuga	2731–2732
Holocene calendar	9630
Iranian calendar	992 BP – 991 BP
Islamic calendar	1022 BH – 1021 BH
Japanese calendar
Korean calendar	1963
Minguo calendar	2282 before ROC 民前2282年
Thai solar calendar	173

Year 371 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time, it was known as the Fifth year without Tribunate or Consulship (or, less frequently, year 383 Ab urbe condita). The denomination 371 BC for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Events

By place

Greece

A fresh peace congress is summoned at Sparta. At the peace conference, the Spartan King Agesilaus II (with the support of Athens) refuses to allow the Thebans to sign the treaty on behalf of all Boeotia. The Theban statesman Epaminondas, who is boeotarch (one of the five magistrates of the Boeotian federation), maintains Thebes' position, even when it leads to the exclusion of Thebes from the peace treaty.
Thebes' actions at the peace congress lead to a war between Sparta and Thebes. The Spartans have an army stationed on Thebes' western frontier, waiting to follow up their diplomatic success by a crushing military attack. However, at the Battle of Leuctra, the Theban generals, Epaminondas and Pelopidas, win a decisive victory over the Spartans under the other Spartan king, Cleombrotus I (who is killed in the battle). Epaminondas wins the battle with a tactical innovation which involves striking the enemy first at their strongest, instead of their weakest, point, with such crushing force that the attack is irresistible. As a result of this battle, the Boeotian federation is saved.
Athens does not welcome the Theban victory, fearing the rising aggressiveness of Thebes. After the Theban victory, the old alliance between the Persians and the Thebans is restored.
With the unexpected defeat of Sparta by the Thebans, the Arcadians decide to re-assert their independence. They rebuild Mantinea, form an Arcadian League and build a new federal city, Megalopolis.
Agesipolis II succeeds his father Cleombrotus I as king of Sparta.

By topic

Astronomy

It is suggested that the original comet associated with the Kreutz Sungrazers family of comets passes perihelion at this time. It is thought to have been observed by Aristotle and Ephorus during this year.

Births

Deaths

Cleombrotus I, king of Sparta (killed in the Battle of Leuctra)