"Military history of Sparta" redirects here. For other uses, see Military history of Sparta (disambiguation). Spart
The Spartan army stood at the center of the Spartan state, citizens trained in the
disciplines and honor of a warrior society.[1] Subject to military drill from early manhood, the Spartans
became one of the most feared military forces in the Greek world. At the
height of Sparta's power – between the 6th and 4th centuries BC – it was
commonly accepted by other Greeks that "one Spartan was worth several men of
any other state".[1] According to Thucydides,
the famous moment of Spartan surrender on the island of Sphacteria, off
Pylos, in 425 BC, was highly unexpected. He wrote that
"it was the common perception at the time that Spartans would never lay down
their weapons for any reason, be it hunger, or danger."
Tradition states that the semi-mythical Spartan legislator
Lycurgus first founded the
iconic army.[2] Referring to Sparta as having a "wall of men, instead of
bricks", he proposed to reform Spartan society to develop a military-focused
lifestyle "Lifestyle (sociology)") in
accordance with "proper virtues" such as equality for
the male citizens, austerity, strength, and fitness. A Spartan male's
involvement with the army began in infancy when he was inspected by the
Gerousia. Any baby judged weak or deformed was
left at Mount Taygetus to die, since
the world of the Spartans was no place for those who could not fend for
themselves. (The practice of discarding children at birth took place in
Athens as well.) Those deemed strong
entered the agoge regime at the age of seven. Under
the agoge the young boys or Spartiates
underwent intense and rigorous military training.[3] Their education focused
primarily on cunning, sports and war
tactics, but also included poetry,
music, academics, and sometimes politics. Those who passed the agoge by the
age of 30 achieved full Spartan citizenship.
The term "spartan"
became in modern times synonymous with simplicity by design.[4] During
classical times Lacedaemonian or Laconian was used for attribution, referring
to the region of the polis instead of one of the decentralized settlements
called Sparta. From this derives the already ancient term
"laconic" such as in laconic
phrase or
laconophilia.
History[[edit](/w/index.php?title=Spartan_army&action=edit§ion=1 "Edit
section: History")]
Mycenaean age[[edit](/w/index.php?title=Spartan_army&action=edit§ion=2
"Edit section: Mycenaean age")]
The first reference to the Spartans at war is in the Iliad , in which they featured among the other Greek contingents. Like the
rest of the Mycenaean-era armies,
it was depicted as composed largely of infantry, equipped with short swords,
spears, and Dipylon-type ("8"-shaped simple round bronze
shields). This was the Golden Age of Warfare.
Each opposing army tried to fight through the other line on the right (strong
or deep) side and then turn left; wherefore they would be able to attack the
vulnerable flank. When this happened, it as a rule caused the army to be
routed. The fleeing enemy were put to the sword only as far as the field of
battle extended. The outcome of this one battle would determine the outcome of
a particular issue. In the Golden Age of War defeated armies were not
massacred; they fled back to their city and conceded superiority to the
victors. It wasn't until after the Peloponnesus War that indiscriminate
slaughter, enslavement and depredations were countenanced among the Greeks.[
_citation needed_ ]
War chariots were used by the elite, but
unlike their counterparts in the Middle East, they appear to have been used
for transport, with the warrior dismounting to fight on foot and then
remounting to withdraw from combat, although some accounts show warriors
throwing their spear from the chariot before dismounting.[5]
Archaic Age and
expansion[edit]
Mycenaean Sparta, like much of Greece, was engulfed in the Dorian
invasions, which ended the Mycenaean
civilization and ushered in the so-called "Greek Dark Ages". During this time,
Sparta (or Lacedaemon) was merely a Doric
village on the banks of the river Eurotas in
Laconia. However, in the early 8th century BC,
Spartan society was transformed. The reforms, which were ascribed by later
tradition to the possibly mythical figure of Lycurgus, created new
institutions and established the military nature of the Spartan state.[6] This
"constitution of Lycurgus" remained
essentially unchanged for five centuries.[6] From c. 750 BC, Sparta embarked
on a steady expansion, first by subduing Amyclae
and the other settlements of Laconia, and later, in
the First Messenian War,
conquering the fertile country of Messenia. By
the beginning of the 7th century BC, Sparta was, along with
Argos, the dominant power in the
Peloponnese.
Establishment of Spartan hegemony over the
Peloponnese[edit]
Inevitably, these two powers collided. Initial Argive successes, such as the
victory at the Battle of Hysiae "Battle of
Hysiae (669 BC)") in 669 BC, led to an uprising of the
Messenians, which tied
down the Spartan army for almost 20 years.[7] Over the course of the 6th
century, Sparta secured her control of the Peloponnese peninsula: Arcadia was forced to
recognize Spartan overlordship; Argos lost Cynuria
(the SE coast of the Peloponnese) in about 546 and suffered a further
crippling blow from Cleomenes I at the
Battle of Sepeia in 494, while
repeated expeditions against tyrannical regimes
throughout Greece greatly raised their prestige.[8] By the early 5th century,
Sparta was the unchallenged master in southern Greece, as the leading power (
hegemon ) of the newly established Peloponnesian
League (which was more
characteristically known to its contemporaries as "the Lacedaemonians and
their allies").[9]
Persian and Peloponnesian
Wars[edit]
By the late 6th century BC, Sparta was recognized as the preeminent Greek
city-state. King Croesus of Lydia
established an alliance with the Spartans,[10] and later, the Greek cities of
Asia Minor appealed to them for help during the Ionian
Revolt.[10] In the second Persian
invasion of Greece, under
Xerxes, Sparta was assigned
the overall leadership of Greek forces on land and at sea. The Spartans played
a crucial role in the repulsion of the invasion, notably at the battles of
Thermopylae and
Plataea. In the aftermath,
however, due to the plottings of Pausanias
"Pausanias (general)") with the Persians and their unwillingness to campaign
too far from home, the Spartans withdrew into a relative isolation, leaving
the rising power of Athens to lead the continued
effort against the Persians. This isolationist tendency was further reinforced
by the revolts of some of her allies and a great
earthquake in 464,
which was followed by a large scale revolt of the Messenian
helots.[8]
The parallel rise of Athens as a major power in Greece led to friction with
Sparta, and to two large-scale conflicts, (the
First and Second
Peloponnesian Wars), which
devastated Greece. Sparta suffered several defeats during these wars,
including, for the first time, the surrender of an entire Spartan unit at
Sphacteria in 425 BC, but
ultimately emerged victorious, primarily through the aid it received from the
Persians. Under its admiral Lysander, the
Persian-funded Peloponnesian fleet captured the cities of the Athenian
alliance, and a decisive naval victory at
Aegospotami forced
Athens to capitulate.[8] The Athenian defeat left Sparta and its military
forces in a dominant position in Greece.
End of
Hegemony[edit]
Spartan ascendancy did not last long. By the end of the 5th century BC, Sparta
had suffered serious casualties in the Peloponnesian Wars, and its
conservative and narrow mentality alienated many of its former allies. At the
same time, its military class – the Spartiate
caste – was in decline for several reasons:
- Population decline due to Sparta's frequent wars in the late 5th century. Since Spartiates were required to marry late, birth rates remained low, making it difficult to replace their losses.
- One could be demoted from Spartiate status for a number of reasons such as cowardice in battle or the inability to pay for membership in the syssitia. Inability to pay became such an increasingly severe problem because commercial activity had started to develop in Sparta. Because of this, commerce had become uncontrollable, leading to the complete ban of commerce in Sparta. This led to lesser ways of earning income; consequently, some Spartiates had to sell the land from which they drew their income. As the constitution made no provisions for promotion to Spartiate caste, numbers gradually dwindled.
As Sparta's military power waned, Thebes repeatedly challenged its authority. The ensuing Corinthian
War led to the humiliating Peace of
Antalcidas that destroyed
Sparta's reputation as the protector of the independence of Greek city-states.
At the same time, Spartan military prestige suffered a severe blow when a
[mora](/wiki/Mora(militaryunit) "Mora (military unit)") of 600 men was
decimated "Decimation (Roman army)") by
peltasts (light troops) under the command of the
Athenian general Iphicrates. Spartan authority finally collapsed after their disastrous
defeat at the Battle of Leuctra
by the Thebans commanded by Epaminondas in
371 BC. The battle, in which large numbers of Spartiates were killed, resulted
in the loss of the fertile Messenia region
"Messenia (ancient region)").
Army
organization[edit]
Social
structure[edit]
"... the allies of the Lacedaemonians were offended at
Agesilaus, because ... they themselves
[provided] so many [soldiers], and the Lacedaemonians, whom they followed, so
few. ... Agesilaus, wishing to refute their argument with numbers ... ordered
all the allies to sit down by themselves promiscuously, the Lacedaemonians
apart by themselves. Then his herald called upon the potters to stand up
first, and after them the smiths, next, the carpenters in their turn, and the
builders, and so on through all the handicrafts. In response, almost all the
allies rose up, but not a man of the Lacedaemonians; for they were forbidden
to learn or practice a manual art. Then Agesilaus said with a laugh: 'You see,
O men, how many more soldiers than you we are sending out.'"
Plutarch, The Life of Agesilaus ,
26
The Spartan people (the "Lacedaemonians")
were divided into three classes:
- Full citizens, known as the Spartiates proper, or Hómoioi ("equals" or peers), who received a grant of land ( kláros or klēros , "lot") for their military service.
- Perioeci (the "dwellers nearby"), free non-citizens, generally merchants, craftsmen and sailors, who were used as light infantry and on auxiliary roles on campaign.[9]
- The third and most numerous class were the Helots , state-owned serfs used to farm the Spartiate klēros. By the 5th century BC, the helots, too, were used as light troops in skirmishes.[1]
The Spartiates were the core of the Spartan army: they participated in the
Assembly ( Apella ) and provided the hoplites in
the army. Indeed, they were supposed to be soldiers and nothing else, being
forbidden to learn and exercise any other trade.[1] To a large degree, the
constant war footing of Spartan society was needed to keep the vastly more
numerous helots subdued.[11] One of the major problems of later Spartan
society was the steady decline in fully enfranchised citizens, which also
meant a decline in available military manpower: the number of Spartiates
decreased from 6,000 in 640 BC to 1,000 in 330 BC.[12] The Spartans were
therefore forced to use helot hoplites, and occasionally they freed some of
the Laconian helots, the neodamōdeis (the
"newly enfranchised"), and gave them land to settle in exchange for military
service.[13]
The Spartiate population was subdivided into age groups. The youngest at 20
were counted as weaker due to lack of experience, and the oldest, up to 60 or
in a crisis 65, were only called up in an emergency, to defend the baggage
train.
Tactical
structure[edit]
Spartan helmet on display at the
. The helmet has been damaged and the top has sustained a blow, presumably
from a battle.
The principal source for the organization of the Spartan Army is
Xenophon, who admired the Spartans and whose
Constitution of Sparta offers a detailed overview of the Spartan state and
society at the beginning of the 4th century BC. Other authors, notably
Thucydides, also provide information, but it
is not always as reliable as Xenophon's first-hand accounts.[14]
Little is known of the earlier organisation, and much is left open to
speculation. The earliest form of social and military organization (during the
7th century BC) seems to have been the three tribes ( phylai : the
Pamphyloi , Hylleis and Dymanes ), who appear in the Second Messenian
War (685–668 BC). A
further subdivision was the "fraternity" ( phratra ), of which 27, or nine
per tribe, are recorded.[15] Eventually this system was replaced by five
territorial divisions, the obai ("villages"), which supplied a
lochos of c. 1,000 men each.[16] This system was
still used during the Persian Wars, as implied by references to the lochoi
made by Herodotus in his history.[17]
The changes that occurred between the Persian and the Peloponnesian Wars are
not documented, but according to Thucydides, at
Mantinea "Battle of Mantinea (418
BC)") in 418 BC there were 7 lochoi present, each subdivided into four
pentekostyes of 128 men, which were further subdivided into four enōmotiai
of 32 men, giving a total of 3,584 men for the main Spartan army.[18] By the
end of the Peloponnesian War, the structure had evolved further, both to
address the shortages in manpower and to create a more flexible system that
allowed the Spartans to send smaller detachments on campaign or to garrisons
outside their homeland.[19] According to Xenophon, the basic Spartan unit
remained the enōmotia , with 36 men in three files of twelve under an
enōmotarches.[20] Two enōmotiai formed a pentēkostys of 72 men under a
pentēkontēr , and two pentēkostyai were grouped into a lochos of 144 men
under a lochagos. Four lochoi formed a
[mora](/wiki/Mora(militaryunit) "Mora (military unit)") of 576 men
under a polemarchos , the largest single
tactical unit of the Spartan army.[21] Six morai composed the Spartan army
on campaign, to which were added the Skiritai
and the contingents of allied states.
The kings and the hippeis
[edit]
The full army was normally led in battle by the two
kings; initially, both went on
campaign, but after the 6th century BC only one, with the other remaining at
home.[6] Unlike other states, their authority was severely circumscribed;
actual power rested with the five elected ephoroi.[1] The kings were
accompanied by a select group of 300 men as a royal guard, who were termed
hippeis ("cavalrymen"). Despite their title, they
were infantry hoplites like all Spartiatai. Indeed, the Spartans did not
utilize a cavalry of their own until late into the Peloponnesian
War, when small units of 60
cavalrymen were attached to each mora.[21] The hippeis belonged to the
first mora and were the elite of the Spartan army, being deployed on the
honorary right side of the battle line. They were selected every year by
specially commissioned officials, the hippagretai , from among experienced
men who had sons, so that their line would continue.[17]
Training[[edit](/w/index.php?title=Spartan_army&action=edit§ion=11
"Edit section: Training")]
Further information:
"Ὦ ξεῖν’, ἀγγέλλειν Λακεδαιμονίοις ὅτι τῇδε
κείμεθα, τοῖς κείνων ῥήμασι πειθόμενοι."
"Go tell the Spartans, thou that passest by, that here,
obedient to their laws, we lie."
Simonides of Ceos, Epitaph on
the burial mound of the Spartans who fell at Thermopylae[22]
At first, in the archaic period of 700–600 BC, education for both sexes was,
as in most Greek states, centred on the arts, with the
male citizen population later receiving military
education. However, from the
6th century onwards, the military character of the state became more
pronounced, and education was totally subordinated to the needs of the
military.[23]
Both boys and girls were brought up by the city women until the age of seven,
when boys ( paidia ) were taken from their mothers and grouped together in
"packs" ( agelai ) and were sent to what is almost equivalent to present-day
military boot camp. This military camp was known as the Agoge. They became
inured to hardship, being provided with scant food and clothing; this also
encouraged them to steal, and if they were caught, they were punished – not
for stealing, but for being caught.[11] There is a characteristic story, told
by Plutarch: "The boys make such a serious matter of their stealing, that one
of them, as the story goes, who was carrying concealed under his cloak a young
fox which he had stolen, suffered the animal to tear out his bowels with its
teeth and claws, and died rather than have his theft detected."[24] The boys
were encouraged to compete against one another in games and mock fights and to
foster an _esprit de corps_. In
addition, they were taught to read and write and learned the songs of
Tyrtaios, that celebrated Spartan exploits in the
Second Messenian War. They learned to read and write not for cultural reasons,
but so they could be able to read military maps.[25] At the age of twelve, a
boy was classed as a "youth" ( meirakion ). His physical education was
intensified, discipline became much harsher, and the boys were loaded with
extra tasks. The youths had to go barefoot, and were dressed only in a tunic
both in summer and in winter.[11]
Adulthood was reached at the age of 18, and the young adult ( eiren )
initially served as a trainer for the boys. At the same time, the most
promising youths were included in the Krypteia.
If they survived the two years in the countryside they would become full blown
soldiers. At 20, Spartans became eligible for military service and joined one
of the messes ( syssitia ), which included 15
men of various ages.[26] Those who were rejected retained a lesser form of
citizenship, as only the soldiers were ranked among the homoioi. However,
even after that, and even during marriage and until about the age of 30, they
would spend most of their day in the barracks
with their unit. Military duty lasted until the 60th year, but there are
recorded cases of older people participating in campaigns in times of
crisis.[15]
Throughout their adult lives, the Spartiates continued to be subject to a
training regime so strict that, as Plutarch says, "... they were the only men
in the world with whom war brought a respite in the training for war."[27]
Bravery was the ultimate virtue for the Spartans: Spartan mothers would give
their sons the shield with the words "[Return] With it or [carried] on it!" (Ἢ
τὰν ἢ ἐπὶ τᾶς),[28] that is to say, either victorious or dead, since in
battle, the heavy hoplite shield would be the first thing a fleeing soldier
would be tempted to abandon –- rhipsaspia , "dropping the shield", was a
synonym for desertion in the field.[29]
The army on
campaign[edit]
Tactics[[edit](/w/index.php?title=Spartan_army&action=edit§ion=13
"Edit section: Tactics")]
Modern reconstruction of a
advancing in close ranks.
Like the armies of the other Greek states, the Spartan army was an infantry-
based army that fought using the phalanx formation. The Spartans themselves did not introduce any
significant changes or tactical innovations in hoplite warfare, but their
constant drill and superb discipline made their phalanx much more cohesive and
effective. The Spartans employed the phalanx in the classical style in a
single line, uniformly deep in files of 8 to 12 men. When fighting alongside
their allies, the Spartans would normally occupy the honorary right flank. If,
as usually happened, the Spartans achieved victory on their side, they would
then wheel left and roll up the enemy formation.[30]
During the Peloponnesian War, engagements became more fluid, light troops
became increasingly used and tactics evolved to meet them, but in direct
confrontations between two opposing phalanxes, stamina and "pushing ability"
were what counted.[31] It was only when the Thebans, under
Epaminondas increased the
depth of a part of their
formation at the Battle of Leuctra that the Spartan phalanx broke.
On the march[[edit](/w/index.php?title=Spartan_army&action=edit§ion=14
"Edit section: On the march")]
According to Xenophon, the army was mobilized by
the ephors, and after a series of religious ceremonies
and sacrifices, the army assembled and set out.[32] The army proceeded led by
the king, with the skiritai and cavalry detachments acting as an advance
guard and scouting parties.[33] The necessary provisions (barley, cheese,
onions and salted meat) were carried along with the army, and each Spartan was
accompanied by a helot manservant.[34] Each mora marched and camped
separately, with its own baggage train.[35] Sacrifice was given every morning
and before battle by the king and the officers; if the omens were not
favourable, a pious leader might refuse to march or to engage the enemy.[36]
Clothing, arms, and
armor[edit]
The Spartans used the same typical hoplite
equipment as the other Greek neighbors; the only distinctive Spartan features
were the crimson tunic ( chitōn ) and cloak ( himation ),[37] and long
hair, which the Spartans retained to a far later date than most Greeks. To the
Spartans, long hair retained its older Archaic meaning as the symbol of a free
man; to the other Greeks, by the 5th century, its peculiar association with
the Spartans had come to signify pro-Spartan sympathies.[38]
Classical
period[edit]
The letter lambda (Λ), standing for
Laconia or Lacedaemon, which was painted on the Spartans' shields, was first adopted in the 420s BC, and quickly became a widely known
Spartan symbol.[39] Military families passed on their shields to each
generation as family heirlooms. The technical evolution and design of Spartan
shields evolved from bashing and shield
wall tactics, and were of such great
importance in the Spartan army that while losing a sword and a spear was an
exception, to lose a shield was a sign of disgrace. Not only does it protect
the user, but it also protects the whole phalanx formation. To come home
without the shield was the mark of a deserter; rhipsaspia or "dropping the
shield", was a synonym for desertion in the field. Mothers bidding farewell to
their sons would encourage them to come back with their shields, often saying
goodbyes like "Son, either with this or on this" (Ἢ τὰν ἢ ἐπὶ τᾶς), meaning
they should return only in victory, a controlled retreat, or death, their body
being carried on the shield.[40][41]
Spartan hoplites were often depicted bearing a transverse horsehair crest on
their helmet, which was possibly used to identify officers.[42] In the Archaic
period, Spartans were armored with flanged bronze
cuirasses, leg greaves,
and a helmet, often of the Corinthian type. It is often disputed which torso armor the Spartans wore during
the Persian Wars, though it seems likely they either continued to wear bronze
cuirasses of a more sculptured type, or instead had adopted the
linothōrax. During the later 5th century
BC, when warfare had become more flexible and full-scale phalanx
confrontations became rarer, the Greeks abandoned most forms of body armor.
The Lacedaemonians also adopted a new tunic, the exōmis , which could be arranged so that it left the right arm and
shoulder uncovered and free for action in combat.[43]
The Spartan's main weapon was the [dory](/wiki/Dory(spear) "Dory
(spear)")_ spear. For long range, they carried a
javelin. The Spartiates were always
armed with a xiphos as a secondary weapon. Among
most Greek warriors, this weapon had an iron blade of about 60 centimeters;
however, the Spartan version was typically only 30–45 centimetres. The
Spartans' shorter weapon proved deadly in the crush caused by colliding
phalanxes formations – it was capable of being thrust through gaps in the
enemy's shield wall and armor, where there was no room for longer weapons. The
groin and throat were among the favorite targets. In one account, an Athenian
asked a Spartan why his sword was so short and after a short pause he replied,
"It's long enough to reach your heart." In another, a Spartan complained to
his mother that the sword was short, to which she simply told him to step
closer to the enemy. As an alternative to the xiphos, some Spartans selected
the kopis as their secondary weapon. Unlike the
xiphos, which is a thrusting weapon, the kopis was a hacking weapon in the
form of a thick, curved iron sword. In Athenian art, Spartan hoplites were
often depicted using a kopis instead of the xiphos, as the kopis was seen as a
quintessential "bad guys" weapon in Greek eyes.[44] The Spartans retained the
traditional hoplite phalanx until the reforms of Cleomenes
III, when they were re-equipped with the
Macedonian sarissa and trained in the style of
the phalanx.
Spartans trained in pankration , a famous
martial art in Ancient Greece that
consisted of boxing and grappling. Spartans were so adept in pankration that, when it was
inducted in the Olympic Games, they were mostly forbidden to compete.[ _citation
needed_ ]
Hellenistic
period[edit]
During the Hellenistic period
Spartan equipment evolved drastically. Since the early 3rd century BC the
pilos helmet had become almost standard within the
Spartan army, being in use by the Spartans until the end of the Classical era[
_citation needed_ ]. Also after the "Iphicratean reforms" peltasts became a much more common sight on the Greek battlefield and
themselves became more heavily armed. In response to
Iphicrates' victory over Sparta in 392
BC, Spartan hoplites started
abandoning body armour and eventually wore almost no armour apart from a
shield, leg greaves, bracelets, helmet and a robe. In later periods Spartans
did start to readopt armour, but on a much lesser scale than during the
Archaic period. Finally during 227 BC, Cleomenes' reforms introduced updated
equipment to Sparta, including the Macedonian sarissa (pike). However pike-men armed with the sarissa never
outnumbered troops equipped in the hoplite style. It was also in that time
Sparta adopted its own cavalry and archers.
Philosophy, education, and the Spartan
code[edit]
Spartan
philosophy[edit]
Contrary to popular belief, Spartans valued knowledge and education more than
the Athenians did.[45] Spartan philosophers
include Lycurgus and Chilon of Sparta. Although Athens has been praised as the "inventor" of democracy and
philosophy, Sparta often has been viewed in popular culture as a society
characterized by brutal, mindless discipline and merciless emphasis on
physical fitness.[ _citation needed_ ] Sparta, however, had its own democratic
government. In the Appella or Demos as early as 700
BC, Spartans elect leaders and voted by range voting and shouting. Every male age 30 and above could participate.
Aristotle called the Spartan electoral process
"childish" in contrast to the stone ballots cast by the Athenians. Sparta
adopted its procedure for the sake of simplicity, and to prevent any bias
voting, bribing, or cheating that was predominant in the early democratic
elections.[46]
Spartan
education[edit]
The Spartan public education system, the agoge ,
trained the mind as well as the body. Spartans were not only literate, but
admired for their intellectual culture and poetry. Socrates said the "most ancient and fertile homes of philosophy among the
Greeks are Crete and Sparta, where are found more sophists than anywhere on
earth."[47] Public education was
provided for girls as well as boys, and consequently literacy rate was higher
in Sparta than in other Greek city-states.[48] In education, sports was given
the most emphasis in teaching.[48]
Self-discipline, not kadavergehorsam (mindless obedience) was the goal of
Spartan education. Sparta placed the values of liberty, equality, and
fraternity at the center of their ethical system. These values applied to
every full Spartan citizen, immigrant, merchant, and even to the
helots, but not to the dishonored. Helots are unique
in the history of slavery in that unlike traditional slaves, they were allowed
to keep and gain wealth. They could keep half their agricultural produce and
presumably sell it; thus accumulating wealth. There are known to have been
some occasions that a helot with enough money was allowed to purchase their
freedom from the state.[49]
Spartan code of
honor[edit]
The Spartan hoplite followed a strict
laconic code of
honor. No soldier was considered superior
to another.[48] Suicidal recklessness, berserkery, and rage were prohibited in
a Spartan army, as those behaviors endangered the phalanx. Recklessness could
lead to dishonor, as in the case of Aristodemus.[50] Spartans regarded those who fight, while still
wishing to live, as more valorous than those who don't care if they die.[50]
They believed that a warrior must not fight with raging anger, but with calmed
determination.[51] By the laconic way of life, Spartans must walk without any
noise, and speak only with few words.[48] Other ways for Spartans to be
dishonored were dropping the shield ( rhipsaspia ), failing to complete the
training, and deserting in battle. Dishonored Spartans were labeled outcasts,
and were forced to wear different clothing for public
humiliation.[48] In battle,
stories of valor were told to inspire troops and, before a major
confrontation, they sang soft songs to calm the nerves.[52]
Spartan navy[[edit](/w/index.php?title=Spartan_army&action=edit§ion=22
"Edit section: Spartan navy")]
Throughout their history, the Spartans were a land based force par
excellence. During the Persian Wars, they contributed a small navy of 20
triremes, and provided the overall fleet commander,
but they largely relied on their allies, primarily the
Corinthians, for naval power. This fact meant that,
when the Peloponnesian War
broke out, the Spartans were supreme on land, but the Athenians supreme at
sea. The Spartans repeatedly ravaged Attica, but the
Athenians kept being supplied by sea, and were able to stage raids of their
own around the Peloponnese with their navy. Eventually, it was the creation of
a navy that enabled Sparta to overcome Athens. With Persian gold, Lysander,
appointed navarch in 407 BC, was able to master a
strong navy, and successfully challenge and destroy Athenian predominance in
the Aegean Sea.[8] The Spartan engagement with the sea would be short-lived,
however, and did not survive the turmoils of the Corinthian
War: in the Battle of
Cnidus of 394 BC, the Spartan navy
was decisively defeated by a joint Athenian-Persian fleet, marking the end of
Sparta's brief naval supremacy. The final blow would be given 20 years later,
at the Battle of Naxos in 376 BC. A
small fleet was periodically maintained thereafter, but its effectiveness was
limited; the last revival of Spartan naval power was under Nabis, who, with aid from his Cretan allies, created
a fleet to control the Laconian coastline.
The fleet was commanded by navarchs , who were appointed for a strictly one-
year term, and apparently could not be reappointed. The admirals were
subordinated to the vice-admiral, called epistoleus. This position is
seemingly independent of the one-year term clause, because it was used, in 405
BC to give Lysander command of the fleet after he was already an admiral for a
year.
Wars and
battles[edit]
Messenian
Wars[edit]
Wars with
Argos[edit]
In popular
culture[edit]
- In the Halo universe "Halo (series)"), the SPARTAN program is a project designed to produce genetically augmented, power armored supersoldiers. The SPARTANs serve as the protagonists of several works and as major characters in many others; the main character of the Halo trilogy is John-117 "Master Chief (Halo)"), a SPARTAN-II supersoldier, and the protagonist of _Halo: Reach is SPARTAN-B312, a SPARTAN-III supersoldier. Twice in the novel Halo: Ghosts of Onyx_ , companies of 300 SPARTAN-IIIs are sent against numerically superior Covenant forces and succeed in their objective, but suffer almost 100% casualty rates, similar to the Battle of Thermopylae.
- The _Gates of Fire_ , a novel by Steven Pressfield, which provides a gritty, first-person account of the Battle of Thermopylae from the view of a Helot.
- 300 , a graphic novel "300 (comics)") and a movie "300 (film)") based on the graphic novel, both interpreting the Battle of Thermopylae.
- Many colleges and universities have the Spartan as a school mascot, some of which include Michigan State University (see also Sparty, Michigan State's costumed mascot), Case Western Reserve University, and San Jose State University. The Spartan South Midlands Football League is an English football league named after them.
- [Kratos](/wiki/Kratos(God_ofWar) "Kratos (God of War)") , the main protagonist in _God of War "God of War (franchise)")_ is a legendary Spartan demigod warrior and hero who also served the Spartan army as a high-ranking officer.
- A number of military aircraft have been named after the Spartans, including the Alenia C-27J Spartan, C-27A Spartan, and the Simmonds Spartan.
- On Season 1 of the television program _Deadliest Warrior_ , the Spartan defeated the Ninja while in Season 2, the Spartan was brought back to defeat the Samurai.
- The Spartan army is the inspiration for a popular branded Obstacle Race, Spartan Race.
- The 2018 video game Assassin's Creed Odyssey depicts Sparta during the Peloponnesian War.
See also[[edit](/w/index.php?title=Spartan_army&action=edit§ion=34
"Edit section: See also")]
Notes and
references[edit]
- ^ a b c d e Connolly (2006), p. 38
- ^ Plutarch, The Life of Lycurgus (written 75, trans. John Dryden 9999), The Internet Classics Archive
- ^ Hodkinson, Stephen (1996). "Agoge". In Hornblower, Simon (ed.). _Oxford Classical Dictionary_. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
- ^ Compare: Oxford Dictionary: "Showing or characterized by austerity or a lack of comfort or luxury".
- ^ Warry (2004), pp. 14–15.
- ^ a b c Sekunda (1998), p. 4.
- ^ Sekunda (1998), pp. 6–7
- ^ a b c d Sekunda (1998), p. 7.
- ^ a b Connolly (2006), p. 11.
- ^ a b Holland, Tom. Persian Fire: The First World Empire and the Battle for the West. Anchor. ISBN "ISBN (identifier)") 0-307-27948-0.
- ^ a b c Connolly (2006), p. 39
- ^ Lane Fox, Robin. The Classical World: An Epic History from Homer to Hadrian. Basic Books. ISBN "ISBN (identifier)") 0-465-02496-3.
- ^ Sekunda (1998), pp. 16–17
- ^ Connolly (2006), pp. 38–39
- ^ a b Sekunda (1998), p. 13.
- ^ Sekunda (1998), p. 14
- ^ a b Connolly (2006), p. 41.
- ^ Thucydides, _History of the Peloponnesian War_ 5.68.2
- ^ Sekunda (1998), p. 15.
- ^ Until the late 5th century, however, each file seems to have had a depth of only 8 men. Connolly (2006), p. 40
- ^ a b Connolly (2006), p. 40.
- ^ Herodotus, 7.228.1
- ^ Encyclopædia Britannica 15th Edition
- ^ Plutarch, The Life of Lycurgus , 18.1
- ^ Sekunda (1998), pp. 10–11
- ^ Sekunda (1998), p. 12
- ^ Plutarch, The Life of Lycurgus , 22.2
- ^ Plutarch, Moralia , Sayings of Spartan Women 241.F
- ^ Miller, William Ian (2002). The mystery of courage. Harvard University Press. p. 98. ISBN "ISBN (identifier)") 978-0-674-00826-7.
- ^ Sekunda (1998), p. 19.
- ^ "Spartan armor". Marvel Comics. July 16, 2012. Retrieved May 9, 2018.
- ^ Sekunda (1998), p. 17.
- ^ Sekunda (1998), p. 18
- ^ Connolly (2006), p. 44.
- ^ Connolly (2006), pp. 46–47.
- ^ Connolly (2006), p. 47.
- ^ Sekunda (1998), p. 20
- ^ Sekunda (1998), p. 24.
- ^ Sekunda (1998), p. 27; disputed by Campbell (2012)
- ^ Spartan Quotes
- ^ History of the Spartan Shield (ERRONEOUS LINK?)
- ^ Sekunda (1986), pp.3 & 6.
- ^ Sekunda (1998), p. 21.
- ^ Spartan Weaponry
- ^ Soriano (2005), pp. 84–85.
- ^ Full historical description of the Spartan government
- ^ Plato, Protagoras, 343b:366.
- ^ a b c d e Soriano (2005), p. 85.
- ^ Cleomenes III in 223/2 BC allowed Helots to become free by paying 500 drachmas; 6000 helots paid.
- ^ a b Schmitz vol 1. p304
- ^ Soriano (2005), pp. 87–89
- ^ Soriano (2005), pp. 90–91.
Sources[[edit](/w/index.php?title=Spartan_army&action=edit§ion=36 "Edit
section: Sources")]