Plato’s classical political philosophical thought grows out of ancient Greek city state experience， with his ideal political community limited to the scale of the polis. Still， he did reflect on large states， empires and universal societies. The Trojan War， the Greco Persian Wars and the Peloponnesian War drove Plato to probe imperial issues and reconsider the vital connections between virtue， freedom， empire and universal society. Drawing on the historical account of ci

ty state and constitutional origins in

Laws

Book III， and the geographical analysis of land sea contexts and virtue in Book IV， this paper unpacks Plato’s critical reflection on empire and the Athenian Empire. Empire is inherently defective and bound to collapse even if founded. The Athenian Empire， resting on maritime hegemony instead of virtue， exemplifies such corruption and downfall.