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•Sparta was a
military culture
•The entire
Spartan culture
went towards
developing and
fielding a strong
army
•This was to
preserve itself as
well as to keep
down the helots
•Helot -Land-bound serfs that worked Spartan land (if all
the citizens are going to be soldiers, somebody’s gotta
be the farmers).
•Were from the surrounding land of Laconia and Messenia
that they conquered.
•Owned by the state and not individual masters and the
masters couldn’t sell them
•Sparta got half of the helot’s crops
•Significantly outnumbered the citizens.
•The potential threat they presented was another reason
why the Spartans had such a potent army (gotta keep ‘em
down) and the Spartans were reluctant to fight too far
from Sparta lest the helots act up
•Engaged in pederasty (what
we would now call
pedophilia).
To help ensure the
physical superiority
of their people,
babies were bathed in
wine shortly after
birth. If they
survived, they were
taken to elders. If
the elders deemed the
baby unfit, it was
left exposed to die
on a hillside (other
city-states practiced
exposure).
•Older men were expected to
have erotic loving
relationships with boys
(and were fined if they
didn’t). This was also a
mentor relationship.
•With the Spartans, it was a
“chaste” pederasty – actual
coitus was not allowed, but
other behavior was.
•Even in this, self-control
was paramount.
•Many other city-states
engaged in pederasty of
some form or another and
those forms also changed
over time. They were all
officially stamped out by
the Roman emperor Justinian
•Children were taught at home
until they were seven and
they began their training
•Exercises for them and all
ages were always done in the
nude… and oiled up
•At 13, they were dropped off
in the woods in groups with
nothing and had to survive
(without theft)
•Began military service at 20
•Soldiers were not allowed to trade or hold nonmilitary occupations.
•These were done by a class called the periokoi,
free non-citizen inhabitants of Sparta.
•Exercised full rights and duties of citizens at
30.
•Weren’t free from military service until 60.
•Were more independent than in
other city-states.
•Learned reading and writing and
girls were also given similar
harsh physical training to the
boys (many domestic tasks were
left to the helots and periokoi)
•Girls also received same amount
and quality of food as boys,
which wasn’t the case
everywhere.
•Could own and control property
and FARM
•could overtake husband’s
property while he was at war.
Were expected to defend it too
and to put down revolts.
•Were not rushed into sex and
bearing children and were not
forced or compelled to marry men
considerably older than them.
•Husbands also allowed other men
to bed their wives and produce
children. May have practiced
polyandry.
•Sparta also fought many wars against Athens, these
wars became known as the Peloponnesian Wars
•Athens and her allies formed the Athenian League
•Sparta led the Peloponnesian League
These wars are the main example of Greece’s
constant inner conflict
•Eventually Greece was weakened by all the war
going on between Greeks
•Sparta and Athens became allies only to defeat the
Persian invasion of Xerxes
•Sparta was eventually left weak by
•constantly battling other Greek City-States and
putting down Helot revolts
•The Macedonians then ascended from the north
and conquered all of the great Greek City-States
including Athens and Sparta
•The Macedonians were led by Philip II, father
to Alexander the Great
More info on Philip II