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About Athens and Sparta
Both Athens and Sparta hold historic value for Greece and the world. Athens is the capital and the largest city of Greece.
It is a center for economic, political, financial and culture life in Greece. Athens is the symbol of freedom, art, and
democracy in the conscience of the civilized world. Athens took its name from the goddess Athena, the goddess of
wisdom and knowledge.
Sparta, a beautiful town near the river Evrotas, located in the center of the Peloponnese in southern Greece. Sparta was
the Dorian Greek military state, considered as the protector of Greece as it was providing large army to Greece for many
years. At present, Sparta is the administrative capital of the prefecture of Laconia.
History
Athens has been continuously inhabited for at least 3,000 years, becoming the leading city of Ancient Greece in the first
millennium BC; its cultural achievements during the 5th century BC laid the foundations of western civilization. During
the Middle Ages, the city experienced decline and then recovery under the Byzantine Empire, and was relatively
prosperous during the Crusades, benefiting from Italian trade. After a long period of decline under the rule of the
Ottoman Empire, Athens re-emerged in the 19th century as the capital of the independent Greek state.
Tradition relates that Sparta was founded by its first king Lacedaemon, son of Zeus and Taygete, who named the city
after his wife, the daughter of Eurotas around 1000 BCE. Some eighty years after the Trojan War, according to the
traditional chronology, the Dorian migration from the north took place and eventually led to the rise of classical Sparta famous as a martial power, foe of the Persian Empire, and eventual conqueror of Athens. After conquering many
kingdoms and warring many communities Sparta spread to a major empire around 400 BCE. This was also the time of fall
of Athens which proclaimed Sparta superior in the constant war of the two empires. In medieval times, Sparta, the city
was destroyed by many invasions and modern day Sparta was rebuilt around 1834.
Ancient time
Belief and culture
Athens and Sparta differed in their ideas of getting along with the rest of the Greek empires. Sparta seemed to
be content with themselves and provided their army whenever required. That is why it considered itself as the
protector of the Greek. On the other hand, Athens wanted to take control of more and more land in Greece. This
idea eventually led to war between the Greeks. Sparta had a powerful army and Athens knew that they could not
beat them but they had the power of a naval unit which Sparta didn’t have.
What the two communities had in common was that they were both were thinkers. They worshipped their gods
and respected people. They loved beauty, music, literature, drama, philosophy, politics, and art and some even
loved battle and sports.
Where they differed was that while the Spartans had militaristic values, Athenians were democratic. The
Spartans emphasized only on expanding their power and gaining control over other kingdoms while the
Athenians also grew infrastructure wise in ancient times. They understood the importance of such growth and
concentrated on them besides on military strength.
Government
Statue of Leonidas, king of Sparta circa 540BC
The Athenian form of electing a government was called Limited Democracy while the Spartan form was called
oligarchy" (rule by a few), but it had elements of monarchy (rule by kings), democracy (through the election of
council/senators), and aristocracy (rule by the upper class or land owning class). Sparta has had two rulers in
recent times, who ruled until they died. On the other hand, the ruler of Athens is elected annually. Athens is said
to have been the birthplace of democracy. Sparta was an “Oligarchy”. The Ancient Greek “oligos” translates to
“few”, while “archia” means “rule” – ‘rule by the few’. Five Ephors were elected annually, accompanied by two
kings, who passed on the crowns to their chosen sons. The Spartan equivalent of the senate was its “gerousia”,
while Ephors and the Kings would regularly attend the “apella” (general assembly) to develop and try to pass
“rhetrai”, or motions and decrees. Other purposes of the general assembly were to vote on and pass legislation
and make civil decisions. The process by which this was undertaken was by a simple shouting of ‘yes’ or ‘no’.
As a whole, the five Ephors had the power to overrule the Kings, but tended to keep to religious and militaristic
duties. Sparta’s system of government was very exclusive and open to members of the only the highest social
standing. On the other hand, Athens was a democracy, which meant “rule by the people” – “demos” (people, or
the masses) and “kratis” (rule). 5000 to 6000 men were narrowed down to a group of 500, who would then be
divided into groups of 50. Each would take charge for about a month, and ten generals were automatically
elected due to their experience. Others were chosen by a method called ‘lot’ voting. The Athenian assembly,
known as the “ekklesia”, sat to discuss political, militaristic and social matters and agendas in the pnyx. This
was an area close by to the markets and social centre of Athens, the “agora”.
Lifestyle
Lakonian Black-Figure Kylix; Sparta c. 570 B.C.
Compared to the simple lifestyle of the Spartan people, Athenians had a very modern and open outlook. Unlike
Sparta, in Athens, boys were not forced to join the army. As an Athenian, one could get a good education and
could pursue several kinds of arts and sciences. Sparta people were not open to education and they only
concentrated on military strength and obedience and they didn't interact much with the outside world.
Interaction with other Greek states
Sparta was content to keep to itself and provided army and assistance when necessary to other states. Athens, on
the other hand, wanted to control more and more of the land around them. This eventually led to war between
all the Greeks.
Climate
Athens had a mediterranean climate with great amount of precipitation, whereas Sparta had fairly temperate but
very dry climate. Due to soil erosion and less vegetation water was a very scanty commodity in Sparta.
Women of Athens and Sparta
Family ties in Athens were stronger and women were legally the dependents of their husbands or their father.
They could own no property apart from the family. In Sparta, women had rights that other Greek women did not
have. In Sparta women were stronger and they formed liaisons with men as they chose. They could also own
property by themselves. In Athens women did chores such as weaving or cooking, but in Sparta the women
were free of all such chores.
War between Athens and Sparta
Athens and Sparta were two rival city-states, the latter had a very well trained military stength and soldiers and
the former boasted a good navy. Athens and its allies, known as the Delian League, came into conflict with the
Spartans and the Peloponnesian league, and in 431 BC a war broke out between the two cities - a war based on
trade routes, rivalries, and tributes paid by smaller dependent states.
This conflict, the Peloponnesian War, essentially was a 28-year period of on and off civil war among Greek
city-states. (A city-state was the city, such as Athens, and the surrounding country under its influence and
protection; Athens and its surrounding area, known as Attica, was about the size of Rhode Island). Sparta had a
clear military advantage on land, but the Athenian navy surpassed Sparta’s capabilities at sea; neither side was
able to seize and maintain the upper hand. Both sides experienced major victories and crushing defeats, and the
war was frequently interrupted by periods of negotiated peace. The war ended in 404 BC with the defeat of
Athens and its democracy.
Economy
Sparta was mainly an agricultural land because of its inland location. The most important imports were metals.
In Sparta, men were mainly warriors; others were slaves. Their economy was mainly based on agriculture.
Athens economy was dependent more upon trade. Athens became the foremost trading power of the
Mediterranean by the 5th century BC.
Claim to fame
Athens has found its name in Greek history for its undying wisdom and concentration on infrastructural
development and Sparta for its military power.