Ancient Thebes is a Boeotian city-state (polis), situated to the north of the Cithaeron range, which divides Boeotia from Attica, and on the southern edge of the Boeotian plain.

It plays an important role in the fabric of Greek myth, as the site of the stories of Cadmus, Oedipus, Dionysus and others.It is the largest city of the region of Boeotia and is the leader of the Boeotian confederacy.

It is a major rival of Athens, and sides with the Persians during the 480 BCE invasion of Xerxes.

Theban forces under the command of Epaminondas end the power of Sparta at the battle of Leuctra in 371 BCE.

The Sacred Band of Thebes (an elite military unit) famously falls at the battle of Chaeronea in 338 BCE against Philip II and Alexander the Great.The central position and military security of the city naturally tends to raise it to a commanding position among the Boeotians, and from early days its inhabitants endeavor to establish a complete supremacy over their kinsmen in the outlying towns.