Socrates (film)
His enemies, led by a young man named Meletus, accuse him in court, arguing that the philosopher preaches crazy doctrines to the youth, and does not believe in the gods, but demons. Socrates makes his "apology" (i.e., legal defense), but the citizens are against him; so Socrates is sentenced to death, and held in prison, awaiting execution. His disciples are desperate, and one of them, Crito, tries to help him by encouraging him to flee. Socrates rejects this idea, saying he must obey the rulers of the city. Socrates then resolves to die, and dies as soon as he is forced to drink hemlock.
Persecution of philosophers
The trial of Socrates took place in 399 BC. Attended by the Ancient Greek philosophers Plato (who was a student of Socrates') and Xenophon, it resulted in the death of Socrates, who was sentenced to drink the poison hemlock. The trial is chronicled in the Platonic dialogues "Euthyphro", "Apology", "Crito", and "Phaedo".