But the Spartans living on the Mani peninsula, sheltered from the rest of the Peloponnese by the Taygetos mountains, held strong, defending their territory for centuries from the Thebans, and later Ottoman, Egyptian and Franc forces, among others.
The Maniots as they became known were just as treacherous on the sea as they were on land, dabbling in small-time piracy and frequently travelling to other coastal nations as mercenaries. They were reputed to be so ruthless that many conquerors simply steered clear.
During its time as an autonomous region, the peninsula was governed by different families, or clans; as these clans struggled for power, violent vendettas erupted that could last for years. Such was the Maniot sense of pride. Maniots now devote their lives to more peaceful endeavours such as olive farming. The adage is still commonly used today, both as a vote of strength and as a warning. The Spartans trained rigorously and progressed through this training system until the age of 20 when they were allowed to join a communal mess and hence become a full citizen of the community.
Each member of the mess was expected to provide a certain amount of foodstuffs and to keep training rigorously. Those who could not fight due to disability were mocked by the Spartans. If he is strong and of sound body, they command that he be raised, and they assign him an allotment of land from the 9, plots.
If he is ill born and misshapen, they throw him into the pit at the place called Apothetae, below Mt. Taygetus, as it is better neither for him nor for the city to remain alive, as from the beginning he does not have a good start towards becoming healthy and strong" wrote Plutarch, a Greek writer who lived in the first century A.
Girls, while not trained militarily, were expected to train physically. This included running, wrestling, discus and javelin throwing. Spartan woman even competed in the Olympic games , at least in the chariot racing competition, according to ancient writers. In the fifth century B. After Cynisca other women, especially women of Lacedaemon, have won Olympic victories, but none of them was more distinguished for their victories than she," wrote the ancient writer Pausanias who lived in the second century A.
Jones and H. Spartan women likely did not engage in any public nudity. Thucydides also wrote that the Spartans preferred to dress modestly and that "the richer citizens conducted themselves in a fashion that as much as possible put them into an equal position with the general populace. Spartan poetry also showed a desire for equality among the male Spartans.
This desire for some level of equality applies to something as simple as a bowl of soup. It has not been over a fire yet, but soon it will be full of soup, the kind that Alcman, who eats everything, loves hot after the solstice: he doesn't eat any confections, but seeks common, available food just like the people do," reads a poem by Alcman. Sparta in time developed a system of dual kingship two kings ruling at once. Their power was counter-balanced by the elected board of ephors who may only serve a single one-year term.
There was also a Council of Elders Gerousia , each member of which was over the age of 60 and could serve for life. The general assembly, which consisted of each citizen, also had the chance to vote on legislation. The legendary lawmaker Lycurgus is often credited in ancient sources with providing the groundwork for Spartan law.
Kennell notes, however, that he probably never existed and was in fact a mythical character. Initially, Sparta was hesitant to engage with Persia.
When the Persians threatened Greek cities in Ionia, on the west coast of what is now Turkey, the Greeks who lived in those areas sent an emissary to Sparta to ask for help. The Spartans refused but did threaten King Cyrus, telling him to leave Greek cities alone. The Persians did not listen. The first invasion by Darius I took place in B. The second invasion was launched by Xerxes in B. Sparta and one of their kings, Leonidas, became head of an anti-Persian coalition that ultimately made an ill-fated stand at Thermopylae.
Located beside the coast, Thermopylae contained a narrow passage, which the Greeks blocked and used to halt Xerxes' advance. Ancient sources indicate that Leonidas started the battle with a few thousand troops including Spartans at its core. He faced a Persian force many times its size.
After spying on the Spartan-led force, and waiting to see if they would surrender, Xerxes ordered an attack. The "Medes rushed forward and charged the Greeks, but fell in vast numbers: others, however, took the places of the slain, and would not be beaten off, though they suffered terrible losses.
In this way it became clear to all, and especially to the king, that though he had plenty of combatants, he had but very few warriors. The struggle, however, continued during the whole day," wrote Herodotus. Translation by George Rawlinson.
After this beaten force withdrew, Xerxes sent an elite unit called the "Immortals" after the Spartan-led force but they too failed. Herodotus noted the battle tactics the Spartans employed. Others learned to dance or play an instrument, although a good family did not consider musical instruments to be proper for girls.
A young girl was to assist her mother in the home. Also, if asked to help, she was required to work in the fields. Instructing a young girl on her future role as a mother was very important.
All girls learned domestic jobs such as weaving, working with textiles, taking care of children, embroidering, and cooking. The boys of ancient Athens went to school at seven. They did their work on waxed-covered tablets and a stylus.
Subjects were similar to those taught today — boys in Athens were taught math, including fractions, addition, subtraction, division, and multiplication. They learned the words of Homer and how to read and write, and they had music instruction that usually included learning to play the lyre.
Physical education and sports included the use of the bow and arrow and the sling, while competitions in wrestling and swimming were also included.
The more wealthy learned to ride horses. By age 14, boys were promoted to another school for their teenage years. By age 18, all boys were expected to attend military school, from which they graduated at From the age of 30 and onward they could participate in politics. It was also around this age that they usually married. Men were the only people considered citizens, so they were frequently seen around the town conducting their business, along with slaves.
Known as the Agoge, the system emphasized duty, discipline and endurance. Although Spartan women were not active in the military, they were educated and enjoyed more status and freedom than other Greek women.
Because Spartan men were professional soldiers, all manual labor was done by a slave class, the Helots. Sparta, also known as Lacedaemon, was an ancient Greek city-state located primarily in the present-day region of southern Greece called Laconia. All healthy male Spartan citizens participated in the compulsory state-sponsored education system, the Agoge, which emphasized obedience, endurance, courage and self-control. Spartan men devoted their lives to military service, and lived communally well into adulthood.
Spartans, who were outnumbered by the Helots, often treated them brutally and oppressively in an effort to prevent uprisings. Spartans would humiliate the Helots by doing such things as forcing them to get debilitatingly drunk on wine and then make fools of themselves in public.
This practice was also intended to demonstrate to young people how an adult Spartan should never act, as self-control was a prized trait. Methods of mistreatment could be far more extreme: Spartans were allowed to kill Helots for being too smart or too fit, among other reasons.
Unlike such Greek city-states as Athens, a center for the arts, learning and philosophy, Sparta was centered on a warrior culture.
Male Spartan citizens were allowed only one occupation: soldier. Indoctrination into this lifestyle began early. Spartan boys started their military training at age 7, when they left home and entered the Agoge.
The boys lived communally under austere conditions. They were subjected to continual physical, competitions which could involve violence , given meager rations and expected to become skilled at stealing food, among other survival skills. The teenage boys who demonstrated the most leadership potential were selected for participation in the Crypteia, which acted as a secret police force whose primary goal was to terrorize the general Helot population and murder those who were troublemakers.
At age 20, Spartan males became full-time soldiers, and remained on active duty until age In the phalanx, the army worked as a unit in a close, deep formation, and made coordinated mass maneuvers.
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