Ancient Sparta

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

On the occasion of Kynouria and in order to achieve the protection and projection of antiquities, a web-based model is proposed for highlighting individual monuments and archaeological sites, having in mind the historical and archaeological evidence of the region, the topography, the demographic profile and the tourist infrastructure, and combining them with the development programs for cultural routes. Therefore, creating suitable databases and mapping the monuments in the area are key prerequisites of the process, as they contribute to an objective assessment of the current situation and then to make rational decisions. In this frame, modern technology provides some important planning tools (GIS, GPS, and OMS) which allow recording and mapping of data, viewing the relationships between them in the area where they appear and managing their projection. The complete study of Kynouria’s archaeological routes contains the implementation of a website using free or open-source soft...

ABSTRACT: This documentary response sheet contains a series of 112 sequential questions drawn from the video, PBS: Helen of Troy (115 minutes; presented by Bettany Hughes).  The documentary examines what we know about Helen of Troy from Homer's Iliad and the mixed opinions and assessments of later writers and popular folklore. Bettany Hughes also places Helen of Troy within the broader perspective of what we know about elite Late Bronze Age women in Mycenaean Greece and Anatolia (e.g., Hittites), and other aspects of the circumstances revolving around the Trojan War, similar situations known from the Late Bronze Age, and other aspects of this period (e.g., warfare; trade; etc.). These sequential questions aim to maximize both student attention to various pertinent points made throughout the documentary and greater retention of the materials covered by the documentary.  In addition, the documentary has been vetted for overall content accuracy (albeit updated and/or corrected in-class), and selected to provide supplementary visual aids (e.g., images of regions, sites, finds, and other materials), additional specialist views (e.g., interviews), and other data to aid in student comprehension of the course lectures and readings from the textbooks.

Nell’arco di tempo tra la fase iniziale della guerra del Peloponneso e quella finale dell’egemonia spartana (più esattamente tra il 430/29 e il 373/2 a.C.) troviamo nelle fonti antiche la maggiore concentrazione di riferimenti all’esistenza di navarchi in attività come comandanti della flotta spartana. Questo arco cronologico corrisponde con la fase di massimo potere per la polis peloponnesiaca ed è interessante evidenziare come scorrano in parallelo la parabola del potere dei navarchi e quella dell’egemonia da parte di Sparta, polis dalla vocazione certo preminentemente terrestre, ma non in modo esclusivo.
Si intende dunque con questo lavoro cercare di approfondire questa parabola, esaminando in dettaglio le occorrenze e le attività dei navarchi sopravvissute fino a noi, per poi elaborare riflessioni più accurate e generali sulle discusse caratteristiche della navarchia.

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.

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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.

El objetivo del presente trabajo es calibrar la influencia del pensamiento médico en la República de los lacedemonios de Jenofonte. Para ello presentaremos las ideas sobre la naturaleza del hombre en dicha obra y las cotejaremos en una selección del Corpus hipocrático. Mediante este método advertiremos que la medicina hipocrática, como referente en los estudios sobre el ser humano, ofreció un marco interpretativo para otros intelectuales de la época que la utilizaron en la construcción literaria de sistemas políticos y sociales. Palabras clave: Jenofonte, Corpus hipocrático, Esparta, paideía.

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.
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¡ 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.

It is well known that several Greek leaders, for various reasons, after falling in disgrace in their homeland, found refuge in Persia: typical examples are the Spartan Demaratus and the Athenians Themistocles and Alcibiades. The opposite case, that of Persian leaders who fled to Greece and lived there as refugees, though attested, is much less known. Jakob Seibert’s important study of political refugees in ancient Greece devotes only a brief reference to this issue. This paper aims at exploring this topic more deeply, by identifying common and different features in the cases examined, focusing on the period between the Persian Wars and the Kingdom of Philip II of Macedonia.

List of cases
- Athens: Rhoesaces, Zopyrus, Amorges;
- Peloponnese: the son of Pharnabazus;
- Macedonia: Artabazus, Amminapes, Sisines.

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.

IG V 1,1 should not be dated to the beginning of the Archidamian War. Connections with an
allusion in Thuc. 2,8,4 and the explication of the beginning of the War in the Peace of Aristophanes are not
very firm. Datation at the Decelean War remains possible.

I consider the problematic reception of ancient women by modern society. I take Gorgo, the queen of Sparta in Zack Snyder’s film '300' (2007), as the principle case study. Snyder’s Gorgo is problematic, I argue, because her character partakes both of modern expectations about liberated women as well as ancient depictions of “liberated” Spartan women, value systems that contradict one another.

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.

L'Antiquité dans l'univers du bodybuilding : une injonction à quelle(s) virilité(s) ? De nombreuses études ont abordé le bodybuilding sous l'angle de la construction des rôles sexuels, masculin ou féminin 1. Construction problématique, dans la mesure où le body / building, comme son nom l'indique, est une pratique visant à modeler un corps construit qui s'éloigne souvent du corps naturel de départ dans l'optique de le rendre conforme à une image mentale de corps idéal. La pratique du bodybuilding peut en effet intervenir comme une réponse concrète à l'insatisfaction éprouvée devant un corps au naturel jugé trop faible, ancrant l'individu dans les limites de sa part la plus animale et la moins contrôlable. Cette insatisfaction est encore majoritairement le fait de la gent masculine (même s'il existe un bodybuilding au féminin de plus en plus actif), influencée par une sorte de « mythe viril » (J-J Courtine) qui lie la virilité à la masse musculaire : l'homme n'est pas qu'un pénis, il est aussi du muscle. L'influence de ce mythe est aujourd'hui mesurable à l'aune de la fréquentation croissante des salles de musculation par les jeunes gens et surtout les jeunes hommes avides de transformer leur corps pour acquérir une stature plus virile. Les réseaux sociaux, surtout Facebook et Instagram, servent de plate-formes autothuriféraires à ces jeunes bodybuilders 2. Ils y postent des photos témoignant des différentes étapes de leur progression, ou bien des parallèles choc présentant leur corps « avant » et « après » leur transformation physique (parfois qualifiée d' « extrême » tant les résultats sont spectaculaires). Deux tendances s'observent : il s'agit soit de perdre la graisse en trop, qui donne au corps masculin des caractéristiques féminines (seins, poignées d'amour), soit au contraire de gagner en masse musculaire ; un corps trop frêle et fin pourrait là encore s'apparenter à une morphologie plus féminine. Pour être un vrai mec, travaille tes pecs (au risque de trop travailler le haut du corps et pas assez les jambes : on croise ainsi régulièrement des hommes qui sont de véritables armoires au niveau du torse et des épaules, mais avec des jambes à la Donald Duck). L'exaltation de ce nouveau corps est également l'occasion d'une promotion de valeurs traditionnellement associées à la virilité : force, courage, détermination, goût de l'effort, capacité à supporter la douleur sans pleurer (boys don't cry, c'est bien connu). « No pain no gain » est la maxime qui pourrait figurer au fronton de tous les gymnases des temps modernes : tout le monde n'a pas la chance de Peter Parker, qui se réveille un beau matin et découvre, à la place de son corps rachitique d'adolescent geek binoclard, un physique d'athlète aux abdominaux bien dessinés plus adapté à ses aventures en tant que Spiderman. Pour devenir « énorme et sec » (et non plus « énorme et gras »), selon l'expression fort distinguée du youtubeur Tibo Inshape (jeune bodybuilder toulousain donnant des conseils de musculation sur sa chaîne), la discipline personnelle doit donc être à la mesure de l'ambition. Les méthodes proposées pour parvenir à de telles fins ne manquent pas, et sont surtout centrées sur l'utilisation du poids de son propre corps : méthode Lafay, Callisthenics, pour développer à la fois la beauté (κάλλος / kallos) et la force (σθένος / sthenos), tiens tiens, déjà du grec. Un exemple avec ce jeune homme : https://www.youtube.com/watchv=4K7w0uw9syQ&index=23&t=106s&list=LLZSFMNUa20tDg2 1n-_HBCuw Le youtubeur Kévin Tran, cofondateur de la chaîne « Le rire jaune » est quant à lui plutôt adepte de la méthode américaine Insanity, qui, comme son nom l'indique, exige un entraînement assez sale (avalanche de pompes, burpees, squats, étirements...). C'est qu'il était las de son surpoids : il a ainsi lancé le très évocateur hashtag #frombouddhatoapollon. La vidéo bilan donne une idée de son 1 Comme le remarque Taina Kuninnen dans son article « Bodybuilding et sacralisation de l'identité » , Ethnologie française (vol.34), p. 320. 2 Le bodybuilding ne se confond pas avec la musculation, qui est un moyen et non une fin : on peut vouloir acquérir du muscle pour pouvoir accomplir une tâche pénible (certains métiers exigent de soulever de lourdes charges), ou bien travailler un muscle en particulier dans le cadre d'une autre pratique sportive (rugby, football, tennis...). Le bodybuilding quant à lui permet de construire un corps musculaire esthétique, où l'apparence du muscle en soi et en-dehors de toute utilisation concrète est l'objectif à atteindre. Dans cette perspective, les adolescents ou jeunes hommes qui construisent leur corps en se rendant à la salle de sport peuvent être considérés comme des bodybuilders amateurs.

Neste artigo discutimos as possibilidades metodológicas do uso de Histórias em Quadrinho para o Ensino de História Antiga. Para tanto, nos utilizamos da HQ "Os 300 de Esparta" da autoria de Frank Miller e Lynn Varley, na qual as representações e os anacronismos podem ser compreendidos como instrumentos para se problematizar a História de Esparta.

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.

In this article I review the many prior interpretations of Herodotus' description (9.85) of the tombs of the Lakedaimonians at Plataia and consider the implications for our knowledge of Spartan burial customs.

This is a polished draft of an essay that will appear in "Classica et Mediaevalia."

In this essay I explore Xenophon's views of ancient Sparta. The essay begins by exploring four traits of Sparta and Spartans that Xenophon seems to have found particularly praiseworthy: military competence, dedication to physical fitness, respect (aidos), and self-restraint. (enkrateia). It then considers what Xenophon saw as three crucial flaws
in Sparta and Spartans: a predilection for coerced rather than willing obedience,
a lack of prudence (sophrosyne), and a tendency to privilege their own interests at the expense of their allies (pleonexia). In Xenophon's opinion, those flaws proved disastrous when Sparta found itself in the position of hegemon of much of the Greek world after the end of the Peloponnesian War.

El mirage espartano en la historia The Spartan mirage in history Reseña de: Fornis, César: El mito de Esparta. Madrid, Alianza Editorial. 2019, 386 pp. ISBN: 978-84-9181-6126. JOSÉ MANUEL ALONSO DAPICA Docente de secundaria y bachillerato [email protected] Toda aquella persona que se ha enfrentado a la investigación sobre Esparta se ha topado con un importante problema: la escasez de fuentes escritas de los espartanos. Esta situación conlleva la dependencia en exceso de fuentes externas, principalmente atenienses, lo que nos ofrece una imagen contaminada, siendo positiva o negativa dependiendo de la afinidad del autor. Esto fue denominado por François Ollier en los años 30 y 40 como el Mirage espartano 1 , ya que el uso de los textos ha creado una imagen distorsionada, un espejismo de Esparta, transformándola más en un mito que en una realidad. Este mito se ha adaptado en función de las mentalidades del momento histórico, adecuándose y sobreviviendo a todo tipo de circunstancias hasta llegar a la actualidad. La evolución de dicha imagen mítica espartana, así como su peso en la sociedad, en la política y en la historiografía, es el objeto de estudio de César Fornis en su último libro, El mito de Esparta (2019). Fornis, helenista especializado en Esparta, es uno de los mayores expertos en esta polis a nivel internacional. Autor de gran cantidad de artículos sobre este tema y de dos manuales de referencia sobre los espartanos (uno de 2003 2 y otro actualizado en 2016 3 , en el que se incluye un pequeño adelanto de la presente obra), ha dirigido su labor de investigación principalmente al estudio de la historia política de esta polis, así como los usos, costumbres y religión de sus habitantes. En los últimos diez años ha enfocado su producción a la investigación sobre la recepción de Esparta en los diferentes periodos 1 Ollier, Françcois, Les mirage Spartiate. Étude sur l´ ideálisation de Sparta dans l´antiquité grecque. 2

Xenophon (ca. 430-354), ein wohlhabender Athener und Schüler von Sokrates, verließ Athen in 401 und nahm an einer Expedition mit zehntausend Hellenen teil, die von dem persischen Gouverneur Kyros gegen seinen Bruder König Artoxerxes angeführt wurde. Nach der Niederlage brachte Xenophon das Heer zurück an die Schwarzmeerküste, worauf er sich dem spartanischen König Agesilaos anschloß, der durch sein Erfolg im Krieg gegen Artoxerxes den Staat der Lakedämonier in den Abgrund stürzte. Als sein Freund Winter 360/359 starb, schrieb Xenophon vorliegende Lobrede.