Sparta sends an army against the Persians in Asia Minor in 399 BCE.

Sparta's old helot problem recurs in 399 BCE with the attempted revolt of Cinadon.

This demonstrates Sparta's insecurity even in its local dominance in Laconia and Messenia, despite the glory of Sparta's victory over the Athenian fleet at Aegospotami, duly commemorated at Delphi, and the personal prestige of Lysander, who may even receive at this time some kind of cult at Samos (though perhaps only after his death in 395 BCE).

Moreover, Sparta's former Peloponnesian and extra-Peloponnesian allies are unhappy with what they see as alarming extensions of Spartan territorial interests.

Lysander, having failed in his efforts to make the Spartan kingship an elective monarchy, supports the Eurypontid Agesilaus in his claim to the disputed throne.

Succeeding his half-brother Agis II as Agesilaus II, one of the two Spartan kings in 399 BCE, he ignores Lysander once he is safely enthroned.

Ephesus serves in 396 BCE as the headquarters of Agesilaus, who directs from Anatolia Sparta's campaign against the Persians, who in 397 BCE had begun to build a new fleet to deal with the menace of a Spartan army in Asia. (It may be a further irritant that Sparta is helping another anti-Persian rebel in Egypt; this threatens a serious economic loss to the Persian landowners who have been exploiting it at a distance.)

Agesilaus makes a three months' truce with the Persians; during this interim, he manages to shake off Lysander's control over him.

Agesilaus then raids Phrygia and …

…Lydia.

The expedition of Dercyllidas (399 BCE -397 BCE) had followed that of Thibron in support of the Anatolian Greeks, but the new Spartan king, Agesilaus, leads the most ambitious of all.

When Agesilaus prepares to leave for Anatolia, …

Agesilaus defeats Tissaphernes at Sardis in 395 BCE, but the powerful Persian navy drives him back.

Tissaphernes is subsequently assassinated on the orders of Artaxerxes, due to the persuasions of Parysatis, mother of Cyrus.

Spartan King Agesilaus raids Phrygia again in 394 BCE, but he has been unable to prevent the formation of the huge Persian fleet.

Sparta, with little to show for its campaign against the Persians, recalls Agesilaus' army from Asia Minor in order to battle the anti-Spartan coalition formed in 395 by Argos, Corinth and Thebes, with Athens, their former enemy in the Peloponnesian War.

Agesilaus, on his return to Greece, defeats the Thebans and their allies at Coronea in 394, but suffers such heavy casualties that he is forced to withdraw to the Peloponnesus.

The outnumbered Spartans' skill in hoplite warfare (use of heavily armored foot soldiers) enables them to encircle and crush the Athenians on the battlefield in the Nemea River valley (near modern Neméa) before turning against the other opponents.

The Spartans' defeat of the troops from Thebes, Corinth, Athens, and Argos temporarily breaks the force of the coalition.