Sparta

The empire that the Athenians established in the years after 478 BC was an entirely new phenomenon in the history of Greece, and the basis of much of the brilliant development of Athenian culture in the fifth century. Its growth and collapse was the key event in the history of the period, after the defeat of the Persian invasion. Yet this important historical phenomenon remains baffling to study. New developments in various fields have made urgent a revision of existing approaches, which largely originated in the first half of the last century. Advances in archaeology have hugely extended the possibilities of writing an archaeology of the empire. The accepted chronology of many key inscriptions has been powerfully challenged, so that new narrative reconstructions become possible. Relevant new documents in languages such as Lycian have become available. Understanding of the Persian empire which was the parallel, and in a sense the model, with which the Athenian empire interacted has been transformed in the last quarter century. Broader developments in historiography (microhistory; history from below; and, post-colonial theory) invite us to pose new questions.The aim of this collection is not to offer a final word on any of the problems, but to give a sense of the possibility of a new generation of studies of the empire.

The expansion of Sparta (Lacedaimon) (с. 750—550 В. С.), having influenced the process of the Spartan polis formation, was a determinant historical factor. The necessity to carry out a wide territorial aggression that was an analogue of the Greek colonization and was provoked by the same causes, set Sparta a task of finding new basis of army organization. This task was fulfilled by a clear distinction of the main functions between social categories and by establishing a military stratum.

This research strives to analyze the reasons behind the discrepancies in gender equality between classical Athens and Sparta.  I do so by analyzing the values and beliefs in these societies, and have come to the conclusion that the militaristic society of Sparta heavily influenced the equality of Spartan women.

De Tirteu, poeta espartano arcaico do século VII a.C., restaram-nos apenas poemas elegíacos fragmentários. Seus fragmentos dividem-se entre aqueles que narravam a história e os preceitos espartanos, instituídos por reis descendentes dos deuses, e aqueles que exortavam a uma moralidade guerreira que privilegiava a morte heroica em combate e condenava a fuga. Este trabalho consiste na tradução integral e no comentário desses fragmentos remanescentes, analisando a constituição do gênero elegíaco e seus contextos de performance no período arcaico grego (séculos VII-V a.C), bem como a relação entre a poesia de Tirteu e a tradição épica grega.

Les manumissions dont il est question chez Thucydide concernent essentiellement des hilotes. Ce sont des promotions sociales liées au temps de la guerre et à ses nouvelles nécessités, donc des manumissions militaires, dictées entre autres par le besoin d'un contrôle social qui était rendu plus précaire ou bien plus délicat par la concentration de l'effort de guerre. Ce sont des manumissions octroyées, finalisées à l'intégration, non demandées ou bien revendiquées, avec ou sans violence. La seule révolte des esclaves, sûrement crainte par les Spartiates qui en firent mention lors de l'alliance avec Athènes, dans une clause exceptionnellement unilatérale qui engageait les Athéniens à les aider en cas de soulèvement de la classe servile (douleia), paraît consister, tout au long de la guerre du Péloponnèse, dans la désertion des hilotes que les Athéniens encouragèrent avec les épiteichismoi de Pylos, de Cythère et du cap Malée, avec l'espoir, de répliquer le modèle de la défection de l'Ithôme 1 . Thucydide est intéressé davantage par la politique de ces affranchissements que par leur phénoménologie. Il n'offre pas une analyse ou une description de leurs modalités, sinon de rares détails, incohérents et insuffisants tendant à reconstituer le fonctionnement de la société spartiate contemporaine. Lorsqu'il 'décrit' la manumission des hilotes ensuite massacrés en IV 80, il nous offre les détails du couronnement ainsi que le tour des sanctuaires, qui d'ailleurs ne font pas partie de la cérémonie d'affranchissement, car ils sont accomplis à la fin de celle-ci. De plus, il ne fait qu'une simple mention, en V 34, des neodamodes, une catégorie d'affranchis qui va jouer un rôle très important à Sparte dans les années qui vont suivre. Il ne donne pas non plus d'informations exhaustives sur leur condition sociale. À la limite, il ne les classe parmi les 'libres' qu'à leur avant-dernière mention, en VII 58.3, dans un passage qui a été suspecté. Comme Hérodote, Thucydide n'est pas vraiment intéressé par l'affranchissement hilotique : ce genre d'intérêt historiographique est d'ailleurs plus tardif et ne concerne que des historiens qui ont fait l'expérience de la fondation de Messène par Epaminondas en 369, l'heureuse conclusion d'un long processus de 'libération' et d'agrégation politique des hilotes de Messénie.

Resumen: La conquista de la vecina región de Mesenia, después de dos durísimas guerras, permitió a Esparta poner las bases de su hegemonía política y militar en la Hélade ya desde el Arcaísmo. En este trabajo se ofrece una reconstrucción del proceso de conquista y se analizan las fuertes tensiones que, como consecuencia del mismo, vivió la sociedad lacedemonia. Para ello se ha hecho uso del testimonio esencial, aunque fragmentario, del poeta contemporáneo Tirteo, de unas fuentes literarias tardías plagadas de elementos legendarios y sometidas al debate ideológico sobre la esclavización del pueblo mesenio y de la parca información aportada por la arqueología. Palabras clave: Esparta, Mesenia, guerras mesenias, Tirteo, tradición épica.

Abstract: The two Messenian wars, culminating in the Spartan conquest of the fertile neighboring region of Messenia and the enslavement of its inhabitants, who became helots, remain largely unknown, mainly due to the lack of sources. Apart some verses of Tyrtaeus, the Spartan poet of the mid-seventh century BC, the literary sources are belated and gather suspicious and contaminated ancient traditions riddled with legendary elements and subjected to the ideological debate about the enslavement of Greek people (and as Dorian as their Spartan conquerors). This has caused sharp controversies in modern historiography, which affect both the chronology and the credibility (and even the historicity) of certain episodes. According to an hypercritical posture, the possibility of reaching a minimum reconstruction and understanding of the historical events has even been denied, in such a way that the need to obviate them has been postulated. From our point of view, the historian himself/herself can (and should) perform this task of analysis and interpretation, but while taking extreme caution with these sources and, whenever possible, approaching the data provided by Archaeology; it is also essential to insert the two Messenian wars in structural problems and developments of the early Archaic Age, and not to isolate them, as has often been done. In this way, the conquest of Messenia emerges as an enterprise undertaken by the recently unified Lacedaemonian state as part of its process of territorial, identity and ideological definition. With the completion of the conquest, Sparta reaches the recognition as a model

In the opinion of some researchers, the family was not highly valued in Sparta. Nevertheless, certain pieces of evidence confirm that the Spartans appreciated their families more than we previously thought. The author who most influenced the ancient and modern image of Spartan mothers and their role in society is Plutarch. Unfortunately, his accounts on Sparta are in part a figment of literary imagination and present the Spartan mirage. Plutarch depicts members of both the royal families and of the elite as they rear their offspring, indicating the essential role the mothers played in both the private and public spheres. The question is whether Plutarch's works are a reliable source for Spartan history. This paper focuses on Plutarch's portrayal of the Spartan mother in Sayings of Spartan Women, as compared to the one in the rest of his works. Most apophthegms focus on a relationship between a mother and a son-on the role a mother plays in creating a Spartan citizen. Her attitude to her offspring supposedly mirrors the customs and expectations of their state and society. Thus, in this paper I present the Spartan mother, a literary composite of virtues and a model parent, as not necessarily equal to actual women of Sparta who lived in the complex realities of that city-state.

Link to download: https://hdl.handle.net/11299/220694

This article makes three arguments regarding the Battle of Thermopylae. First, that the discovery of the Anopaea path was not dependent upon Ephialtes, but that the Persians were aware of it at their arrival and planned their attacks at Thermopylae, Artemisium, and against the Phocians accordingly. Second, that Herodotus’ claims that the failure of the Phocians was due to surprise, confusion, and incompetence are not convincing. And third, that the best explanation for the Phocian behavior is that they were from Delphi and betrayed their allies as part of a bid to restore local control over the sanctuary.

Counselors, councilors and ambassadors are often complementary figures, but from Homeric Greece to classical Sparta we know of certain characters like the hero Odysseus or the Spartiate Lichas who perform all of these tasks (i.e. deliberating, deciding and delivering the decision) personally. Starting off with the analysis of the relevant literary sources, this paper proposes to address the following questions: what does the triple function of these figures imply for their respective duties? Can these cases be considered to be representative for Homeric Greece and Classical Sparta?

This paper assesses Thucydides' thoughts on the causes and inevitability of conflict in the Peloponnese by incorporating realist theories of interstate relations in addition to a sound analysis of Athenian imperial policy and the role of kinship in ancient Greek warfare.

The paper seeks to examine in depth all the epigraphical (mainly some passages of the Law Code of Gortyn) and narrative (chiefly some passages of the Aristotleʼs „Politics“) sources in order to establish an inventory with respect to the exceptional clemency of the legislation and the jurisdiction of Cretan cities towards individuals of slave status. In the second step, the aim is to bring elements of explanation, by using also archaeological data.
https://www.degruyter.com/view/j/klio.2017.99.issue-1/klio-2017-0003/klio-2017-0003.xml?format=INT

¡ Hola a todos! Aquí seguimos, en la brecha, con vosotros y presentando nuestro séptimo número de la revista. Pues sí, los problemas superados y con muchas ganas de continuar, juntando fi las y cargando sobre el enemigo, todo por el bien de nuestra disciplina y por supuesto, por vosotros, que sois nuestro leit motiv.

Im Peloponnesischen Krieg (431 bis 404 v. Chr.) standen sich die Machtblöcke des Ersten Attischen Seebundes unter Führung Athens und des Peloponnesischen Bundes unter seinem Hegemon Sparta gegenüber. Dank Thukydides sind wir über den Verlauf dieses antiken Weltkriegs wie über kaum ein zweites Ereignis des Altertums informiert. Bruno Bleckmann erläutert die Kriegsgründe, die verschiedenen Etappen der Auseinandersetzung, den Ausgang sowie die historische Bedeutung dieses Konflikts.

One of the most romanticized, idealized and thought about Ancient Greek city seems to have been the legendary Sparta, with its ‘flawless’ military system due to a central focus by the society on combat. The wonderful and most interesting aspect of this legendary image portrayed, is the ‘behind the scenes’ in-formation that have been supplied by many Ancient historians whom also admired Sparta, where we have come to realize there may not be more to the city than just a strong army; there is a fairly successful political structure, as well as many social features which make Sparta unique to other Greek cities, most importantly Athens, but all these features concentrate on building the strength of the military. However, the information modern historians can gather and access today that originate from the Ancient historians such as Plutarch, Aristotle and Xenophon, must be assessed carefully by a critical eye before receiving the information as pure fact, because history is all interpretation which the historians are guilty of, subconsciously changing and playing with the facts to match their personal and political perspective and to fit with the history they are desiring to create. Therefore it may not be completely possible to explain the concepts of Spartan society and politics in great detail and as actual fact, but more as an interpretation of the materials we have available to us currently, which shape our understanding.

This course presents a broad survey of historical forces at work over the past 6,000 years, examining the manners in which human societies have organized themselves along categories of race, ethnicity, class, and gender to meet the challenges of the increasing human population and its demands on natural resources: thus, it examines continuity and change in societies over time, in different places, and among various peoples.

Sparta’s naval victory in the Peloponnesian War depended on ship contributions from Peloponnesian and central Greek allies and funding from the Persian empire.  At the end of the war, Lysander’s acquisition of captured enemy triremes allowed Sparta to break free from its reliance on allied warships, but not without long-term consequences.  In the Persian War of the following decade, although Sparta was now able to launch a fleet without Corinthian or Theban participation, it lacked resources to maintain its aging ships’ seaworthiness, and its loss of Persian financial support doomed its efforts to recruit and pay adequate naval crews.  The logistical and financial consequences of the breakdown of Sparta’s Peloponnesian War alliances brought about the collapse of its short-lived naval dominance.

This is the 3rd volume from the International Sparta Seminar, in the series begun in 1989 by Anton Powell with Stephen Hodkinson. Crucial to the understanding of Athenian literature and the political history of numerous Greek states, the history of Sparta is, at last, receiving due attention. Here are fourteen original pieces of historical and archaeological research from eminent scholars Han van Wees, Jean Ducat, H W SIngor, Nicolas Richer, Ephraim David, Stephen Hodkinson, Nigel Kennell, Thomas Figueira, Massimo Nafissi, P-J Shaw, Paul Cartledge, Noreen Humble, Ellen Greenstein Millender and Anton Powell, first presented at a conference in Hay-on-Wye in September 1997.

This paper attempts to define, more precisely than has previously been attempted, the ways in which prolonged foreign warfare and the experience of empire precipitated the crisis of Spartiate society in the early fourth century. It includes an examination of the statistics of the number of Spartiates serving abroad between 431 and 371 BC and the frequency and duration of their commands. It concludes that Sparta's sixty years of foreign warfare and empire were a major factor in accelerating the onset of Sparta's internal crisis and in conditioning the particular way in which it evolved.

Im 6. Kapitel seiner Vita des Lykurg überliefert und kommentiert Plutarch zwei der interessantesten und umstrittensten Verfassungstexte: die sog. Rhetra des legendären spartanischen Gesetzgebers und einen späteren Zusatz. Beide Dokumente regeln das Zusammenspiel der politischen Körperschaften - von Königen, Ältestenrat und Volksversammlung. Zwar kann als communis opinio gelten, daß es sich um authentische Schriftstücke der archaischen Zeit handelt, aber über Interpretation, Verhältnis zueinander und historische Einordnung herrscht kein Konsens. Das liegt einerseits an der komplizierten Quellenlage und andererseits an der Unklarheit der Dokumente, die zudem an entscheidender Stelle verderbt sind. Bisher wurde die entscheidende letzte Zeile der Rhetra immer so wiederhergestellt, daß sie dem Volk Allmacht zuspricht. Aber das widerspricht den Machtverhältnissen in anderen archaischen Poleis und Plutarchs Angabe, die Rhetra stärke den Ältestenrat. Um diese demokratische Tendenz abzuschwächen, hat man den (späteren) Zusatz, der dem Ältestenrat ein Vetorecht verleiht, zu einem ursprünglichen Bestandteil der Rhetra erklärt. Hier wird eine andere Lesart vorgeschlagen: Es geht nicht um die Allmacht des Volks, sondern um die bindende Kraft der Anträge des Ältestenrats, die das Volk per Akklamation ratifiziert. Der Zusatz stammt aus späterer Zeit, als die Gerusie das Initiativrecht mit dem neuen Ephorat teilen muss. Er stattet die Gerusie mit einem Veto gegen die Ratifikation der Anträge der Ephoren aus.

The standard image of Sparta is of an egalitarian, military society which disdained material possessions. Yet property and wealth played a critical role in its history. Classical Sparta's success rested upon a compromise between rich and poor citizens. Economic differences were masked by a uniform lifestyle and a communal sharing of resources. Over time, however, increasing inequalities led to a plutocratic society and to the decline of Spartan power. Using an innovative combination of historical, archaeological and sociological methods, Stephen Hodkinson challenges traditional views of Spartan isolation from general Greek culture. This volume is the first monograph-length discussion of a subject on which the author is recognised as the leading international authority.

A batalha das Termópilas, travada em Agosto de 480 a.C. entre Persas e seus aliados contra um pequeno punhado de Gregos, tem sido apresentada, nas representações historiográficas dos últimos vinte e cinco séculos, como um símbolo da velha temática do «choque de civilizações», entre um Oriente «bárbaro» e um Ocidente «civilizado», uma luta que opõe simples homens livres/proprietários de terras, aos servos regidos por um autocrata. Contudo, nem os orientais eram, de todo, os bárbaros de que Heródoto nos deixou o testemunho nas Histórias, nem tão‐pouco todos os Gregos eram homens livres. Quem foram, afinal, os contendores das Termópilas? Qual o seu verdadeiro número? Apenas os míticos trezentos Espartanos? Enfim, quais as motivações por detrás destes homens? Teriam os Gregos – tradicionalmente desunidos, como no‐lo diz a historiografia mais romântica (ainda hoje visível, de certo modo, em filmes como 300, de Zack Snyder) –, tido a real percepção de que constituíam uma unidade nacional, e que somente na união de todos os seus membros poderia residir a sua vitória, acabando tal triunfo por ser vital para a salvação de alguns dos conceitos que tributamos à Grécia Clássica ser a fundadora, tais como a democracia ou a filosofia? Estas são apenas algumas das questões que abordaremos neste ensaio.

En el presente trabajo ampliaré un ámbito de la educación espartana poco tratado en la recopilación de fuentes sobre la educación griega y en el seminario en el que estuve presente el 20 de septiembre de este mismo año; la llamada Syssitia o comida en común y su influencia en la agoge.

This paper examines the various types of governments that existed in the numerous city-states of Ancient Greece. It explains what each type of government was/is, and what city-states held the particular philosophies. It is a perfect paper to get an overall view on the governmental structure of Greece as a whole when comparing its substructures.

de (NEA/UERJ) O homem, na visão aristotélica, pode ser compreendido enquanto um "animal político" (πολιτικόν ζ ον), que devido a sua essência, encontra-se apto a viver em uma comunidade politicamente organizada (ARISTÓTELES, I, 1253a). No entanto, esse conjunto de instituições que possibilitam que o homem viva em sociedade, varia de grupo para grupo, e deve ser ensinado a cada indivíduo, no intuito de permear os interesses do corpo social. Endossando nosso ponto de vista, o filólogo alemão Werner Jaeger pontua que o homem seria dotado de duas naturezas, uma corpórea e outra espiritual. Nas palavras de Jaeger, a esse aglomerado de informações consideradas como a memória social de um grupo de indivíduos nós damos o nome de educação (JAEGER, 1994:03). Esses apontamentos nos permitem elucidar a proposta de nosso artigo, no qual a formação educacional do jovem lacedemônio estaria diretamente relacionada com as tradições culturais de sua sociedade. Através de tais afirmações, objetivamos analisar a maneira como a educação do jovem em Esparta era organizada, possibilitando que o mesmo alcançasse a condição social de cidadão com plenos direitos político-sociais, mediante ao cumprimento dos deveres e das obrigações que essa instituição exigia. Tal processo estava diretamente atrelado com a manutenção dos interesses políticos da cidadeestado espartana.

The study of the Spartans is now pursued more widely and intensively than ever. Indeed, no longer is Sparta the 'second city' of ancient Greece. This volume, the fourth in the established series on which Powell and Hodkinson have collaborated, breaks fresh ground, not least in the range of its contributors. The authors of the fourteen new papers represent nine different countries and demonstrate many of the fertile modern approaches to the history, the archaeology -and the still-influential imageof the city on the Eurotas.

La bataille d'Amphipolis (421 av. J.-C.) oppose les deux grands États-cité de Grèce continentale, Athènes et Sparte, en plein cœur de la guerre du Péloponnèse. Amphipolis est le théâtre de la lutte entre deux personnalités brillantes. Cléon est un brillant homme politique athénien à qui tout réussit jusque là. Brasidas, général spartiate audacieux et innovant, est devenu le chantre de la liberté des cités et peuples de Grèce du Nord, face à l'oppression athénienne.
La bataille d'Amphipolis est également un parfait exemple d'articulation des systèmes de l'ethnos et de l'État-cité à travers un cadre militaire. A la tête d'une armée hétéroclite, Brasidas a rendu possible la cohabitation et l'usage combiné de soldats de l'ethnos (infanterie légère et cavaliers) et de soldats de l'État-cité (hoplites), pratiquant des modes de combat différents. Ce compromis entre  hoplites, infanterie légère et cavaliers préfigure celui de Philippe II de Macédoine et d'Alexandre le Grand. Brasidas est ainsi parvenu à mettre à profit l'hétérogénéité de leur armée pour obtenir une victoire totale contre Athènes.
Enfin, la bataille d'Amphipolis est un événement « accélérateur de l'histoire », favorisant largement l'inversion des rapports de force entre la Grèce du Nord et la Grèce du Sud. Athènes perd progressivement toute prétention hégémonique en Grèce du Nord, puis son empire est démantelé en 404. Le recul d'Athènes en Grèce du Nord permet au royaume de Macédoine de s'affirmer. En 357 Philippe de Macédoine s'empare d'Amphipolis et opère l'unification politique de la Grèce du Nord.  Ainsi, l'ethnos macédonien est à la tête de cités et d'autres ethnê au sein d'un royaume ethnique). La victoire des armées de Philippe à Chéronée est l'acte de soumission de la Grèce du Sud au profit de la Grèce du Nord. Les petites entités politiques que sont les États-cités perdent leur indépendance au profit d'entités politiques plus vastes et englobantes que sont les royaumes.