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Very Short Introductions #706
The Spartans: A Very Short Introduction
Very Short Introductions : Brilliant, Sharp, Inspiring
The myths surrounding Sparta are as old as the city itself. Even in antiquity, Sparta was a unique society, and considered an enigma. The Spartans who fought for freedom against the Persians called themselves 'equals' or peers, but their equality was reliant on the ruthless exploitation of the indigenous population known as helots. The Spartans' often bizarre rules and practices have the capacity to horrify as much they do to fascinate us today. Athenian writers were intrigued and appalled in equal measure by a society where weak or disabled babies were said to have been examined carefully by state officials before being dumped off the edge of a cliff. Even today their lurid stories have shaped our image of Sparta; a society in which cowards were forced to shave off half their beards, to dress differently from their peers, and who were ultimately shunned to the extent that suicide seemed preferable. The legend of Sparta was even perpetuated by later Spartans, who ran a thriving
tourist industry that exaggerated the famed brutality of their ancestors.
This Very Short Introduction separates myth from reality to reveal the best--and the worst--of the Spartans. Andrew Bayliss explores key aspects of Spartan society, including their civic structure, their day-to-day lifestyle, and traditions such as the krypteia, a brutal rite of passage where teenagers were sent into the countryside and ordered to eliminate the biggest and most dangerous helots. Alongside this, Bayliss also sheds light on the many admirable qualities of ancient Sparta, such as their state-run education system, or the fact that this society was almost unparalleled in the pre-modern world for the rights given to Spartan women.
ABOUT THE The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.
The myths surrounding Sparta are as old as the city itself. Even in antiquity, Sparta was a unique society, and considered an enigma. The Spartans who fought for freedom against the Persians called themselves 'equals' or peers, but their equality was reliant on the ruthless exploitation of the indigenous population known as helots. The Spartans' often bizarre rules and practices have the capacity to horrify as much they do to fascinate us today. Athenian writers were intrigued and appalled in equal measure by a society where weak or disabled babies were said to have been examined carefully by state officials before being dumped off the edge of a cliff. Even today their lurid stories have shaped our image of Sparta; a society in which cowards were forced to shave off half their beards, to dress differently from their peers, and who were ultimately shunned to the extent that suicide seemed preferable. The legend of Sparta was even perpetuated by later Spartans, who ran a thriving
tourist industry that exaggerated the famed brutality of their ancestors.
This Very Short Introduction separates myth from reality to reveal the best--and the worst--of the Spartans. Andrew Bayliss explores key aspects of Spartan society, including their civic structure, their day-to-day lifestyle, and traditions such as the krypteia, a brutal rite of passage where teenagers were sent into the countryside and ordered to eliminate the biggest and most dangerous helots. Alongside this, Bayliss also sheds light on the many admirable qualities of ancient Sparta, such as their state-run education system, or the fact that this society was almost unparalleled in the pre-modern world for the rights given to Spartan women.
ABOUT THE The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.
176 pages, Paperback
First published July 10, 2020
35 people are currently reading
404 people want to read
About the author
Andrew J. Bayliss
5 books4 followersAndrew J. Bayliss is Associate Professor in Greek History in the Institute of Archaeology and Antiquity at the University of Birmingham.
Bayliss studied Ancient History at Macquarie University in Australia and stayed on there for his PhD. He has taught and studied in Australia, Greece (British School) and the UK (Department of Classics at Nottingham). He has published extensively on Sparta and Ancient Greece.
Bayliss studied Ancient History at Macquarie University in Australia and stayed on there for his PhD. He has taught and studied in Australia, Greece (British School) and the UK (Department of Classics at Nottingham). He has published extensively on Sparta and Ancient Greece.
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews
May 23, 2020
Sparta has always been this mystical warrior city, and it turns out to be for good reason. The Spartans left no legacy: not paintings, not writings, not monuments or cultural achievements. No one recorded its glories in books, scrolls or stories. This is the first clue as to how odd Sparta really was.
What little we know is legendary, contradictory, and error-prone. Now Andrew Bayliss has written The Spartans with extraordinary care. He has weighed the ancient Greek writers, looked for nuance in word choice, and rejected the fake news. The result is revealing, and not necessarily in a good way.
Sparta was actually a group of small villages around a tiny town core. It was about 60 miles southwest of Athens, in the hills of Laconia, and landlocked. It claimed to be founded by invading Dorians and everything about life in Sparta was battle. The book goes to remarkable lengths to describe the men, women, boys, girls and slaves and how they lived their lives, which were unlike any others in history.
Boys were taken from their families and raised together, to be warriors. They learned pride and nationalism and self-sacrifice. To die for Sparta was the goal, and there were always opportunities. Boys were beaten regularly, just for the sake of beatings, and also when they transgressed. The sexual abuse of boys is well known. As they got into adolescence they were allowed to have hair, and finally by age 30 they were deemed trained enough and responsible enough to have things like mustaches and wives. Growing up, they did not have enough to eat, which forced them to learn to steal, and critically, not be caught. These were the values Sparta instilled in its males.
Girls stayed home, but spent all their time outdoors, becoming athletic, tanned, large women, who ate a diet with 50% more calories than modern women. They competed with boys as equals, with one winning the Olympic Gold in chariot racing – twice. They also learned to raise warriors, and seemed to have no problem giving up their own children for Sparta. If one came back from battle alive, it was almost shameful. Men married by grabbing a woman and carrying her off, first come, first served. Dowries were accounted for later. When women married, they cut off their hair, so as not to distract their husbands from the business of war, but good enough to produce new Spartans. They wore unattractive manly clothes, as compared to when they were girls and wore skimpy, open and short tunics and played or performed naked. The men shared the women, so women had many lovers, openly. In these social aspects, Sparta was a kind of commune.
Men were all about physique. They exercised and competed, often naked, played sports and were in general, bros. Their military uniform was a simple, blood red cloak and they were naked beneath. The red served to make them fiercer-looking and also served to hide the blood from hand to hand combat. Because all they had were a short sword, an easily broken spear/staff, and a shield. In Sparta, they ate together in messes. They had to provide a huge amount of food annually to the mess (3000 kg), a boring, monotonous menu of barley, olives, pork, wine and cheese. In order to produce this required bounty, they had to have a lot of property, and numerous slaves to work it.
The Helots were the slaves. They were other Greeks, captured during wars and enslaved. Their owners kept them underfed, lest one should grow as big and strong as a Spartan. They could be killed just for being big and strong, and their masters fined for it. Helots needed to be weak and submissive. They were beaten savagely, and every year the leadership would declare war on the Helots, so that murdering them was legal, and would not result in punishment or even shame. Helots were murdered for any reason and no reason. They were hunted down for sport or killed for crimes such as being out at night, so there was always need for more. The population of Sparta never exceeded 20,000, but there were between seven and fifteen times as many Helots that kept the system working.
The political structure was bizarre. There were co-kings, who were followed and monitored by ephors, kind of prefects. The five ephors were elected by adult males. They were elected by cheering. The loudest cheer determined who won. Kings could be fined, deposed or exiled, and had to be sworn in monthly. Finally, a council called the gerousia was where the laws were made and changed. The gerousia declared the wars and the kings led them.
Above all else, every man was a soldier. It was a high pressure society, where superficial traits counted more than substance. Being overweight would bring shame and fines. Being lame brought shame and ostracism. Babies judged to be weaklings, lame or diseased were tossed out and left to die; there was no place for them in Spartan society. Those who proved unequal to battle were called tremblers. They were made to shave off half their beards and humiliated all day and in every aspect of their lives. No one wanted them at their mess, on their team, and certainly not in their family. The best thing a trembler could possibly do was plunge into battle for Sparta, and be killed.
Sparta was constantly at war. It was forever attacking and enslaving, or being beaten back, making and breaking alliances, backstabbing partners, and watching their own backs among their slaves and their so-called allies. So Spartans had no time for culture or luxury. They buried their soldiers on the battlefields, not at home. Everyone had to be fit and ready for the call, which came often. They even spoke little, making few words go far. This is where our word laconic comes from; Sparta was in Laconia.
Altogether, it made for an enormously rigid and tense society, with everyone always having to be “on”, while also looking back at their slaves and out to the city for demands that they fight. It is remarkable that it lasted the few hundred years that it did.
No examination of the Spartans would be complete without the telling of the martyrs of Thermopylae. King Leonidas was supposed to lead an allied army, but only his own 300 men showed up. They held off the invading Persians, killing possibly 20,000 of them because they were safely in the hillside that overlooked the access from the sea. On the third day they were betrayed and Xerxes’ men took the goat path around and behind the Spartans, killing all of them. The story has been twisted many ways by Hollywood and novels, making the Spartans heroes and Leonidas on a suicide mission totally foretold by oracles, so that he knew his fate and that of all his men well in advance. It was with great pride that he carried on regardless. It’s the only full-fledged Sparta story that survived the ages. And that is what made the Sparta legend.
Today, Sparta is an international brand, as Bayliss points out in his closing chapter. There are innumerable towns, sports teams and endurance tests named for Sparta, worldwide. The most in thrall seemed to have been the Nazis, who actively implemented similar programs, philosophies and regimens for the good Aryan burghers of Germany. Everyone had to be fit, trained, armed, inspired and ready to die for the Fatherland, from the Hitler Youth to the massive political rallies, and turning all radios on towards the street to broadcast Hitler’s instructions so that everyone was always on the same page. Sparta still has terrific right-wing appeal. In Greece itself, the extreme right Golden Dawn party takes its ideals from Sparta as being the true and pure Greek way, even though the Spartans claimed to be an invasive species.
As with anything, the details of the Sparta legend make it out to be a far different society than we pretend. Bayliss has done a terrific job in a compact and jam-packed book putting the scene together for all to understand at long last. Sparta is both much less and far more than the name alone implies.
David Wineberg
What little we know is legendary, contradictory, and error-prone. Now Andrew Bayliss has written The Spartans with extraordinary care. He has weighed the ancient Greek writers, looked for nuance in word choice, and rejected the fake news. The result is revealing, and not necessarily in a good way.
Sparta was actually a group of small villages around a tiny town core. It was about 60 miles southwest of Athens, in the hills of Laconia, and landlocked. It claimed to be founded by invading Dorians and everything about life in Sparta was battle. The book goes to remarkable lengths to describe the men, women, boys, girls and slaves and how they lived their lives, which were unlike any others in history.
Boys were taken from their families and raised together, to be warriors. They learned pride and nationalism and self-sacrifice. To die for Sparta was the goal, and there were always opportunities. Boys were beaten regularly, just for the sake of beatings, and also when they transgressed. The sexual abuse of boys is well known. As they got into adolescence they were allowed to have hair, and finally by age 30 they were deemed trained enough and responsible enough to have things like mustaches and wives. Growing up, they did not have enough to eat, which forced them to learn to steal, and critically, not be caught. These were the values Sparta instilled in its males.
Girls stayed home, but spent all their time outdoors, becoming athletic, tanned, large women, who ate a diet with 50% more calories than modern women. They competed with boys as equals, with one winning the Olympic Gold in chariot racing – twice. They also learned to raise warriors, and seemed to have no problem giving up their own children for Sparta. If one came back from battle alive, it was almost shameful. Men married by grabbing a woman and carrying her off, first come, first served. Dowries were accounted for later. When women married, they cut off their hair, so as not to distract their husbands from the business of war, but good enough to produce new Spartans. They wore unattractive manly clothes, as compared to when they were girls and wore skimpy, open and short tunics and played or performed naked. The men shared the women, so women had many lovers, openly. In these social aspects, Sparta was a kind of commune.
Men were all about physique. They exercised and competed, often naked, played sports and were in general, bros. Their military uniform was a simple, blood red cloak and they were naked beneath. The red served to make them fiercer-looking and also served to hide the blood from hand to hand combat. Because all they had were a short sword, an easily broken spear/staff, and a shield. In Sparta, they ate together in messes. They had to provide a huge amount of food annually to the mess (3000 kg), a boring, monotonous menu of barley, olives, pork, wine and cheese. In order to produce this required bounty, they had to have a lot of property, and numerous slaves to work it.
The Helots were the slaves. They were other Greeks, captured during wars and enslaved. Their owners kept them underfed, lest one should grow as big and strong as a Spartan. They could be killed just for being big and strong, and their masters fined for it. Helots needed to be weak and submissive. They were beaten savagely, and every year the leadership would declare war on the Helots, so that murdering them was legal, and would not result in punishment or even shame. Helots were murdered for any reason and no reason. They were hunted down for sport or killed for crimes such as being out at night, so there was always need for more. The population of Sparta never exceeded 20,000, but there were between seven and fifteen times as many Helots that kept the system working.
The political structure was bizarre. There were co-kings, who were followed and monitored by ephors, kind of prefects. The five ephors were elected by adult males. They were elected by cheering. The loudest cheer determined who won. Kings could be fined, deposed or exiled, and had to be sworn in monthly. Finally, a council called the gerousia was where the laws were made and changed. The gerousia declared the wars and the kings led them.
Above all else, every man was a soldier. It was a high pressure society, where superficial traits counted more than substance. Being overweight would bring shame and fines. Being lame brought shame and ostracism. Babies judged to be weaklings, lame or diseased were tossed out and left to die; there was no place for them in Spartan society. Those who proved unequal to battle were called tremblers. They were made to shave off half their beards and humiliated all day and in every aspect of their lives. No one wanted them at their mess, on their team, and certainly not in their family. The best thing a trembler could possibly do was plunge into battle for Sparta, and be killed.
Sparta was constantly at war. It was forever attacking and enslaving, or being beaten back, making and breaking alliances, backstabbing partners, and watching their own backs among their slaves and their so-called allies. So Spartans had no time for culture or luxury. They buried their soldiers on the battlefields, not at home. Everyone had to be fit and ready for the call, which came often. They even spoke little, making few words go far. This is where our word laconic comes from; Sparta was in Laconia.
Altogether, it made for an enormously rigid and tense society, with everyone always having to be “on”, while also looking back at their slaves and out to the city for demands that they fight. It is remarkable that it lasted the few hundred years that it did.
No examination of the Spartans would be complete without the telling of the martyrs of Thermopylae. King Leonidas was supposed to lead an allied army, but only his own 300 men showed up. They held off the invading Persians, killing possibly 20,000 of them because they were safely in the hillside that overlooked the access from the sea. On the third day they were betrayed and Xerxes’ men took the goat path around and behind the Spartans, killing all of them. The story has been twisted many ways by Hollywood and novels, making the Spartans heroes and Leonidas on a suicide mission totally foretold by oracles, so that he knew his fate and that of all his men well in advance. It was with great pride that he carried on regardless. It’s the only full-fledged Sparta story that survived the ages. And that is what made the Sparta legend.
Today, Sparta is an international brand, as Bayliss points out in his closing chapter. There are innumerable towns, sports teams and endurance tests named for Sparta, worldwide. The most in thrall seemed to have been the Nazis, who actively implemented similar programs, philosophies and regimens for the good Aryan burghers of Germany. Everyone had to be fit, trained, armed, inspired and ready to die for the Fatherland, from the Hitler Youth to the massive political rallies, and turning all radios on towards the street to broadcast Hitler’s instructions so that everyone was always on the same page. Sparta still has terrific right-wing appeal. In Greece itself, the extreme right Golden Dawn party takes its ideals from Sparta as being the true and pure Greek way, even though the Spartans claimed to be an invasive species.
As with anything, the details of the Sparta legend make it out to be a far different society than we pretend. Bayliss has done a terrific job in a compact and jam-packed book putting the scene together for all to understand at long last. Sparta is both much less and far more than the name alone implies.
David Wineberg
February 13, 2022
A brief and extensive overview of the Spartan society that helps to debunk some rather vivid myths and misconceptions about this city-state. The final chapter briefly discussing the reception of Sparta through modern centuries in Western culture is particularly intriguing. However, there is one thing that annoyed me to quite some extent. The author refers to a wast corpus of antique sources and modern academic researches but there are no notes (!) or direct quotes. This is especially disturbing when other researchers are referred to as ‘some researchers say…’ or ‘one researcher says…’
January 31, 2021
Great intro to Spartan society. An ideal starting place as everything is just laid out, end to end, with no highbrow academic funny business. That said, it does offer enough critical analysis to give the reader an understanding of how modern scholars have come to their conclusions of the Spartans.
February 23, 2024
I listened to this as an audiobook and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I didn't feel like the author was swaying from one opinion more than the other it was really about delivering the facts and the information and he made sure to provide a variety of accounts that really gave a full picture of what might have been and the counter facts as well. It was just a really interesting book that took a deeper look at the lives of the Spartans and their culture and the fact that a lot about them were glorified because of the movie 300 so this really kind of started off with that and went deeper in relaying more facts about them to give a more in-depth Fuller picture.
December 14, 2025
3.0/5
A brief summary of Spartan history and culture. Most of the information presented feels somewhat romanticized and is based on accounts from the Greek historians Plutarch and Herodotus.
A brief summary of Spartan history and culture. Most of the information presented feels somewhat romanticized and is based on accounts from the Greek historians Plutarch and Herodotus.
January 28, 2024
This is a good one.
It’s straight to the point and clarifies popular misconceptions about the Spartiates and does a great job of describing their culture/civilization.
Happy Reading, everybody!
It’s straight to the point and clarifies popular misconceptions about the Spartiates and does a great job of describing their culture/civilization.
Happy Reading, everybody!
August 17, 2023
Although Spartans called themselves equals, Sparta was actually a very hierarchical society comprising citizens that lived in the city (Spartiates), an intermediate class of subordinate people living in the surrounding territory (Perioikoi) and their servile labourers (Helots). The homoioi or Spartiate status was accorded only to sons of Spartiates who had been trained in the brutal Spartan upbringing. To maintain their citizenship all Spartiates up to the age of 60 had to serve in the army.
The Spartans use of a uniform was unusual at the time and focused the enemy’s attention on their intimidating conformity and unity. The Spartans were also projecting an image of gentlemanly status. Their famous long hair would have required considerable maintenance and was thought appropriate only for the leisured classes. The Spartans scarlet clothing was also a sign of wealth because producing the red dye for each cloak required harvesting thousands of murex shellfish. Spartans swore an oath of citizenship, which bound them not to leave the ranks and they were expected to fight to the death if necessary.
The Spartiates who served at Thermopylae with Leonidas stood apart from their fellow Greeks because they did not need to work and could spend their days training. The only work that was permitted for Spartiates was that which promoted “freedom for the polis”. Some sources state outright that Spartiates were debarred from manual labour altogether.
Although Spartans were presenting a collective image of rich men, there was significant disparity of wealth among the so called “equals” in Sparta. This inequality problem ultimately destroyed Sparta from within. Ultimately, the number of citizens declined steeply as many citizens found themselves no longer able to make the substantial food contributions required to retain their place in a common mess.
Spartans who had shown cowardice in battle were compelled to shave off half their beard and to wear patchwork clothes in order to make them look ridiculous and to mark them out.
The Perioikoi
Sparta gained the allegiance of various communities, living around them in Lakonike, who became known as the perioikoi. Although the perioikoi were ethnically and linguistically indistinguishable from the Spartans, they were subordinates to them. The perioikoi were free to trade with the outside world, but they had no control over foreign policy, and were required to follow the homoioi into war, without any say in the matter. For this reason, some academics categorise the perioikoi as second-class citizens of Sparta. It seems that without the perioikoi Sparta would’ve been no more than an average power because the wealthiest of the perioikoi boosted Sparta’s armies by serving alongside the homoioi. Some academics believe that the perioikoi who served in the Spartan army must have undergone part of the harsh Spartan upbringing.
The lowest rung of the Spartan ladder was occupied by the servile population of helots, who were brutally treated and whose labour made the Spartans’ gentleman-warrior lifestyle possible. Whereas slaves in ancient Greece were typically heterogeneous foreign captives purchased from slave traders, the helots were said to be the descendants of the original Greek inhabitants of Laconia and Messenia, who had been enslaved by the Spartans.
Some helots were able to gain their freedom, usually in exchange for military service. These new men did not become Spartans, or even perioikoi but rather free men who were still very much subject to the Spartans.
Spartan government
Sparta had a mixed constitution which blended kingship, oligarchy and democracy. Unlike most other Greek states Sparta had kings. But Sparta was not a monarchy, but a dyarchy with two kings from two separate royal houses, the Agyads and the Eurypontids.
Unlike the stories told in the film 300 [in which Leonidas unilaterally brings about war against the Persians by kicking Xerxe’s ambassador down a well], Spartan kings were not absolute monarchs. Their main role was as military commanders, although they were also priests of Zeus and keepers of oracles from Delphi.
Spartan kings could not declare war or even muster an army on their own. The elected magistrates did that for them and two magistrates accompanied the Kings on campaign to keep an eye on them. Spartan kings could be fined, exiled and deposed, and were even obliged to swear a monthly oath that they would reign according to the laws of the state.
Sparta, had a small ruling council made up of 28 men aged over 60 years of age, who were elected for life, plus the two kings.
The Spartan lifestyle
Life in Sparta was notoriously hard. The Spartan lifestyle was distinctly masculine and to a considerable extent, communal, with Spartans exercising or hunting together during the day and dining together in the evenings. Although the way of life in Sparta was austere, there were some clear signs of wealth to be seen, like its prominent equestrian culture or objects of decorative art. Spartan austerity was probably more about uniformity and conformity than economic restraint, a compromise between the rich and the poor.
Gymnastic exercises kept Spartans fit, strong and agile. Spartan ball games were notoriously brutal. Gymnastic competition in ancient Greece included not only regular athletic events like sprinting, jumping and throwing but also combat and foot races in full armour.
Spartan, dietary staple consisted of barley groats (an unpalatable option for many non-Spartans, more typically consumed by slaves). There was a daily main course which consisted of baked barley burgers, the notorious black broth, a blood soup made from pork cooked in salt and blood, and there was also an after course, which was actually another meat portion, either wild game from hunting expeditions, lamb or goat. Each person was supplied with a cup of mixed wine, which was filled again when required, although drunkenness was not tolerated.
The Spartans were so devoted to the gods, that divine matters took precedence over human once like all ancient Greeks, the Spartans were polytheistic worshipping, the standard Greek deities, for example, Zeus, Poseidon, Apollo, Athena, amongst many. Spartans were notorious for needing to consult the gods before making any major decision.
Spartan girls were compelled to exercise outside in the believe that healthier babies would be produced if both parents were physically strong. Spartan men were discouraged from sleeping with their wives whenever they wished in the believe that too much sex would leave men exhausted and unable to conceive sturdy offspring.
Spartan education was unique in the ancient world in being both organised by the state and compulsory for all citizens. The state appointed an official to manage this brutal process. His title meant rather “boy-herder”, which is perhaps linked to the separation of boys into herds at age 7. There were three stages to the spartan education process: It started around age 7. Around age 14, the boys became “youths”. At age 20 youths became “young men in their prime”. Only one spartan males reached the age of 30 “their education be said to be complete.
The behaviour of spartan boys and youths was strictly controlled, and they were under a constant observation. Any infractions were met with beatings. The diet was strictly controlled to ensure that the boys did not become sluggish by being too full and to give them taste of what it is like to not have enough. Sometimes spartan boys would attend the adult communal dinners. This was not for eating, but so that the boys could be questioned by their elders.
The meagre diet forced spartan boys to steal food to avoid starvation Sometimes they went hunting in teams targeting the adults communal dinners and gardens with older boys stealing while the youngsters acted as lookouts. The whip was used on any boys caught in the act, but not because they had been stealing (since they were actually encouraged to steal), but rather to teach them to become better thieves. This training had a military function, thus making Spartans more resourceful and better fighters in the long-term.
The need to develop sturdy bodies, combined with the desire to keep the youths occupied, meant that a considerable part of spartan education involved body exercises. Spartans practised running, wrestling, jumping, throwing (javelin and discus), and perhaps also boxing. If spartan boys were wealthy enough to own horses, they might also participate in equestrian sports. Spartans will also have played team ball sports; a kind of rugby that would have required a combination of agility, cooperation and strength.
There are in fact strong grounds for thinking that the majority of the Spartans did learn to read and write. But Sparta was society were written expression was very much secondary to oral expression. From childhood Spartans were taught to speak briefly. This Spartan, practice of using as few words as possible, is the origin of the English term laconic. But the Spartans linguistic austerity, was not a sign of intellectual poverty. Spartan brevity was both profound and graceful. Brevity of speech has been described as Sparta’s own form of rhetoric, designed not only to be intelligent, but ultimately unanswerable. For Spartans, actions were what mattered, not speechmaking.
Only at age 30 years of age could at Spartan truly consider himself one of the homoioi. With his training now complete, he could sleep in his own home.
Spartan girls strengthened their bodies in preparation for the future role as childbearers. Spartan women could be heard as well as seen. The wordiness of spartan women stands in stark contrast to the rest of the Greek world. In particular Athens, where women were kept comparatively secluded. Spartan girls also married later than their Athenian counterparts which would help in the production of sturdy children.
Helots
It is difficult to overstate the importance of the helots to the Spartan way of life. Put simply, exploiting helot’s labour in Laconia and Messinia allowed the Spartans to become what modern scholars call “absentee landlords”, freeing them to pursue their Spartan gentlemanly lifestyle.
Helots were primarily agricultural labourers. They supplied the barley, wine, olive oil, cheese and pork that Spartans required for membership of the common messes. Some sources claimed that the Helots were required to hand over a fixed payment from the produce of the land, but others suggest it was a proportion. Some helots performed domestic tasks or were involved in making clothes. The Spartans also made considerable use of Helots in warfare. We know that Helots were present with Leonidas and his 300 at Thermopylae. The use of helots as soldiers suggests a certain degree of trust in them by the Spartans.
The Spartans use of a uniform was unusual at the time and focused the enemy’s attention on their intimidating conformity and unity. The Spartans were also projecting an image of gentlemanly status. Their famous long hair would have required considerable maintenance and was thought appropriate only for the leisured classes. The Spartans scarlet clothing was also a sign of wealth because producing the red dye for each cloak required harvesting thousands of murex shellfish. Spartans swore an oath of citizenship, which bound them not to leave the ranks and they were expected to fight to the death if necessary.
The Spartiates who served at Thermopylae with Leonidas stood apart from their fellow Greeks because they did not need to work and could spend their days training. The only work that was permitted for Spartiates was that which promoted “freedom for the polis”. Some sources state outright that Spartiates were debarred from manual labour altogether.
Although Spartans were presenting a collective image of rich men, there was significant disparity of wealth among the so called “equals” in Sparta. This inequality problem ultimately destroyed Sparta from within. Ultimately, the number of citizens declined steeply as many citizens found themselves no longer able to make the substantial food contributions required to retain their place in a common mess.
Spartans who had shown cowardice in battle were compelled to shave off half their beard and to wear patchwork clothes in order to make them look ridiculous and to mark them out.
The Perioikoi
Sparta gained the allegiance of various communities, living around them in Lakonike, who became known as the perioikoi. Although the perioikoi were ethnically and linguistically indistinguishable from the Spartans, they were subordinates to them. The perioikoi were free to trade with the outside world, but they had no control over foreign policy, and were required to follow the homoioi into war, without any say in the matter. For this reason, some academics categorise the perioikoi as second-class citizens of Sparta. It seems that without the perioikoi Sparta would’ve been no more than an average power because the wealthiest of the perioikoi boosted Sparta’s armies by serving alongside the homoioi. Some academics believe that the perioikoi who served in the Spartan army must have undergone part of the harsh Spartan upbringing.
The lowest rung of the Spartan ladder was occupied by the servile population of helots, who were brutally treated and whose labour made the Spartans’ gentleman-warrior lifestyle possible. Whereas slaves in ancient Greece were typically heterogeneous foreign captives purchased from slave traders, the helots were said to be the descendants of the original Greek inhabitants of Laconia and Messenia, who had been enslaved by the Spartans.
Some helots were able to gain their freedom, usually in exchange for military service. These new men did not become Spartans, or even perioikoi but rather free men who were still very much subject to the Spartans.
Spartan government
Sparta had a mixed constitution which blended kingship, oligarchy and democracy. Unlike most other Greek states Sparta had kings. But Sparta was not a monarchy, but a dyarchy with two kings from two separate royal houses, the Agyads and the Eurypontids.
Unlike the stories told in the film 300 [in which Leonidas unilaterally brings about war against the Persians by kicking Xerxe’s ambassador down a well], Spartan kings were not absolute monarchs. Their main role was as military commanders, although they were also priests of Zeus and keepers of oracles from Delphi.
Spartan kings could not declare war or even muster an army on their own. The elected magistrates did that for them and two magistrates accompanied the Kings on campaign to keep an eye on them. Spartan kings could be fined, exiled and deposed, and were even obliged to swear a monthly oath that they would reign according to the laws of the state.
Sparta, had a small ruling council made up of 28 men aged over 60 years of age, who were elected for life, plus the two kings.
The Spartan lifestyle
Life in Sparta was notoriously hard. The Spartan lifestyle was distinctly masculine and to a considerable extent, communal, with Spartans exercising or hunting together during the day and dining together in the evenings. Although the way of life in Sparta was austere, there were some clear signs of wealth to be seen, like its prominent equestrian culture or objects of decorative art. Spartan austerity was probably more about uniformity and conformity than economic restraint, a compromise between the rich and the poor.
Gymnastic exercises kept Spartans fit, strong and agile. Spartan ball games were notoriously brutal. Gymnastic competition in ancient Greece included not only regular athletic events like sprinting, jumping and throwing but also combat and foot races in full armour.
Spartan, dietary staple consisted of barley groats (an unpalatable option for many non-Spartans, more typically consumed by slaves). There was a daily main course which consisted of baked barley burgers, the notorious black broth, a blood soup made from pork cooked in salt and blood, and there was also an after course, which was actually another meat portion, either wild game from hunting expeditions, lamb or goat. Each person was supplied with a cup of mixed wine, which was filled again when required, although drunkenness was not tolerated.
The Spartans were so devoted to the gods, that divine matters took precedence over human once like all ancient Greeks, the Spartans were polytheistic worshipping, the standard Greek deities, for example, Zeus, Poseidon, Apollo, Athena, amongst many. Spartans were notorious for needing to consult the gods before making any major decision.
Spartan girls were compelled to exercise outside in the believe that healthier babies would be produced if both parents were physically strong. Spartan men were discouraged from sleeping with their wives whenever they wished in the believe that too much sex would leave men exhausted and unable to conceive sturdy offspring.
Spartan education was unique in the ancient world in being both organised by the state and compulsory for all citizens. The state appointed an official to manage this brutal process. His title meant rather “boy-herder”, which is perhaps linked to the separation of boys into herds at age 7. There were three stages to the spartan education process: It started around age 7. Around age 14, the boys became “youths”. At age 20 youths became “young men in their prime”. Only one spartan males reached the age of 30 “their education be said to be complete.
The behaviour of spartan boys and youths was strictly controlled, and they were under a constant observation. Any infractions were met with beatings. The diet was strictly controlled to ensure that the boys did not become sluggish by being too full and to give them taste of what it is like to not have enough. Sometimes spartan boys would attend the adult communal dinners. This was not for eating, but so that the boys could be questioned by their elders.
The meagre diet forced spartan boys to steal food to avoid starvation Sometimes they went hunting in teams targeting the adults communal dinners and gardens with older boys stealing while the youngsters acted as lookouts. The whip was used on any boys caught in the act, but not because they had been stealing (since they were actually encouraged to steal), but rather to teach them to become better thieves. This training had a military function, thus making Spartans more resourceful and better fighters in the long-term.
The need to develop sturdy bodies, combined with the desire to keep the youths occupied, meant that a considerable part of spartan education involved body exercises. Spartans practised running, wrestling, jumping, throwing (javelin and discus), and perhaps also boxing. If spartan boys were wealthy enough to own horses, they might also participate in equestrian sports. Spartans will also have played team ball sports; a kind of rugby that would have required a combination of agility, cooperation and strength.
There are in fact strong grounds for thinking that the majority of the Spartans did learn to read and write. But Sparta was society were written expression was very much secondary to oral expression. From childhood Spartans were taught to speak briefly. This Spartan, practice of using as few words as possible, is the origin of the English term laconic. But the Spartans linguistic austerity, was not a sign of intellectual poverty. Spartan brevity was both profound and graceful. Brevity of speech has been described as Sparta’s own form of rhetoric, designed not only to be intelligent, but ultimately unanswerable. For Spartans, actions were what mattered, not speechmaking.
Only at age 30 years of age could at Spartan truly consider himself one of the homoioi. With his training now complete, he could sleep in his own home.
Spartan girls strengthened their bodies in preparation for the future role as childbearers. Spartan women could be heard as well as seen. The wordiness of spartan women stands in stark contrast to the rest of the Greek world. In particular Athens, where women were kept comparatively secluded. Spartan girls also married later than their Athenian counterparts which would help in the production of sturdy children.
Helots
It is difficult to overstate the importance of the helots to the Spartan way of life. Put simply, exploiting helot’s labour in Laconia and Messinia allowed the Spartans to become what modern scholars call “absentee landlords”, freeing them to pursue their Spartan gentlemanly lifestyle.
Helots were primarily agricultural labourers. They supplied the barley, wine, olive oil, cheese and pork that Spartans required for membership of the common messes. Some sources claimed that the Helots were required to hand over a fixed payment from the produce of the land, but others suggest it was a proportion. Some helots performed domestic tasks or were involved in making clothes. The Spartans also made considerable use of Helots in warfare. We know that Helots were present with Leonidas and his 300 at Thermopylae. The use of helots as soldiers suggests a certain degree of trust in them by the Spartans.
January 23, 2023
A fascinating and perhaps perfect introduction to the Spartans for those who either know nothing or very little about them. For someone who has only heard of them through certain modern cultural references, I was left with just the right amount of interest to want to find out more.
August 10, 2020
Very enjoyable, short Primer which gives a great overview and introduction to the topic.
April 28, 2021
Very knowledgeable author, he is careful not to blindly accept all the sources there are about spartans, but to carefully present the views and beliefs of the modern historians too.
June 27, 2025
'Stranger, go tell the Spartans, that here, obedient to their words we lie.
When warned that there were so many archers in Xerxes' army that their arrows would darken they sky, the Spartan Dieneces responded tersely, 'good, we'll fight in the shade
Spartans
1. Spartan education was unique in the ancient world, in being both organized by the state and compulsory for all citizens.
2. Spartan Olympic victors were accorded the honour of fighting in the front rank alongside the king, and the (admittedly fragmentary) evidence we possess suggests that the Spartans were particularly successful at Olympic athletic events in the seventh and sixth centuries bce, at the time of Sparta's greatest territoria expansion
3. Demaratus warned Xerxes that 'fighting together Spartans are the best men of all', because they have the law as their 'despot', and the law demands that they 'not flee from the fight before any multitudes of men, but stand firm in their ranks and either conquer or die.
4. Xerxes lost his temper he demanded that the Spartans surrender their arms to him, to which
Leonidas retorted môlon labe, which means 'You come take them'. Sadly the fact that Herodotus does not mention this suggests that it is a later embellishment; Herodotus had too much sense of drama to have omitted such a magnificent line.
Ancient commentators
1. On occasion Spartan girls would dance and sing naked in front of a the young men so that, as Plutarch puts it, they would be 'ashamed to be fat or weak'.; Plutarch says 'the ability to take a joke would seem to be very Spartan'; Plutarch describes Spartan brevity as both 'profound' and 'graceful',
2. Socrates observed with obvious admiration, that if you choose to speak to an ordinary Spartan at first you will find him simple in words, 'But then he throws up valuable words short and terse like a javelin, so that you will seem no better than a child'.
3. Plato claimed the Spartans taught 'not by persuasion but by violence
4. Aristotle (384322 bce)-normally no fan of Sparta-praised the fact that at Sparta
the sons of the rich and poor were raised in identical manner. Only the immediate heirs to the two Spartan thrones were exempt from what Plutarch calls 'training in obeying rules
Modern Commentators
1. In March 1976 the soon-to-be US president Ronald Reagan (19112004) complained that Henry Kissinger (1923) 'thinks of the United States as Athens and the Soviet Union as Sparta', dismissing Kissinger's fears that effete' Athens would be defeated by 'vigorous and disciplined' Sparta
2. Many of the Founding Fathers of he USA were also critical of Sparta, including Thomas Jefferson (1743
1826) who dismissed the Spartans as 'military monks' ruling over helots reduced to abject slavery', and Alexander Hamilton (17551804), who wrote disparagingly, “Sparta was little better than a well-regulated camp'
3. In the Middle Ages Martin Luther (14831546) noted the toughness of the Spartan 'ironmen'
4. Machiavelli (14691527) was 'firmly convinced' that the way to set up a long-lasting republic was to constitute it like Sparta.
When warned that there were so many archers in Xerxes' army that their arrows would darken they sky, the Spartan Dieneces responded tersely, 'good, we'll fight in the shade
Spartans
1. Spartan education was unique in the ancient world, in being both organized by the state and compulsory for all citizens.
2. Spartan Olympic victors were accorded the honour of fighting in the front rank alongside the king, and the (admittedly fragmentary) evidence we possess suggests that the Spartans were particularly successful at Olympic athletic events in the seventh and sixth centuries bce, at the time of Sparta's greatest territoria expansion
3. Demaratus warned Xerxes that 'fighting together Spartans are the best men of all', because they have the law as their 'despot', and the law demands that they 'not flee from the fight before any multitudes of men, but stand firm in their ranks and either conquer or die.
4. Xerxes lost his temper he demanded that the Spartans surrender their arms to him, to which
Leonidas retorted môlon labe, which means 'You come take them'. Sadly the fact that Herodotus does not mention this suggests that it is a later embellishment; Herodotus had too much sense of drama to have omitted such a magnificent line.
Ancient commentators
1. On occasion Spartan girls would dance and sing naked in front of a the young men so that, as Plutarch puts it, they would be 'ashamed to be fat or weak'.; Plutarch says 'the ability to take a joke would seem to be very Spartan'; Plutarch describes Spartan brevity as both 'profound' and 'graceful',
2. Socrates observed with obvious admiration, that if you choose to speak to an ordinary Spartan at first you will find him simple in words, 'But then he throws up valuable words short and terse like a javelin, so that you will seem no better than a child'.
3. Plato claimed the Spartans taught 'not by persuasion but by violence
4. Aristotle (384322 bce)-normally no fan of Sparta-praised the fact that at Sparta
the sons of the rich and poor were raised in identical manner. Only the immediate heirs to the two Spartan thrones were exempt from what Plutarch calls 'training in obeying rules
Modern Commentators
1. In March 1976 the soon-to-be US president Ronald Reagan (19112004) complained that Henry Kissinger (1923) 'thinks of the United States as Athens and the Soviet Union as Sparta', dismissing Kissinger's fears that effete' Athens would be defeated by 'vigorous and disciplined' Sparta
2. Many of the Founding Fathers of he USA were also critical of Sparta, including Thomas Jefferson (1743
1826) who dismissed the Spartans as 'military monks' ruling over helots reduced to abject slavery', and Alexander Hamilton (17551804), who wrote disparagingly, “Sparta was little better than a well-regulated camp'
3. In the Middle Ages Martin Luther (14831546) noted the toughness of the Spartan 'ironmen'
4. Machiavelli (14691527) was 'firmly convinced' that the way to set up a long-lasting republic was to constitute it like Sparta.
July 2, 2024
exellent book on the spartans, i mean lets be completely honest. when it comes to ancient history, we dont have a awfull lot of documentation on the times. i find that alot of authors write massive books but most of it is none sensical becouse they are essentially just re writting books that were written either at the times or not to long afterwoods millenia ago, a majority of infomation we know is predominantly based of current archaelogical methods. however there is still plenty of historical documentation to go on that has luckily survived over millenia. however with the spartans there is very little either archaelogical or historical text to go from to really know the spartans. with that being said i find this book a very good listen that sums up the majority of what we know of the spartans. sure theres still alot maybe to be added but this books does a exellent job of bundelling infomation into a short listen. i will listen to this a few times i would imagine
July 5, 2025
Well structured overview of Sparta, that starts out with the general problem of the topic: the sources are few, they're coming from outside Sparta and they have their own agendas in writing about them. Thus it's perhaps fitting that the book is brief. There's still time to discuss the highlights as well as breaking down issues by topic; the government and lifestyle get their own chapters, as do the helots and the status of women, rounding out with a chapter on the perception of and use of Sparta as an ideal or symbol.
The main problem is that outside the stories and facts people tend to know, there's only so much the sources can say and after that it's academic interpretations that go from creative interpretations to creative writing. Helped by the short length things don't really have time to run off the rails, but you're still presented with a number of academic alternative views.
The main problem is that outside the stories and facts people tend to know, there's only so much the sources can say and after that it's academic interpretations that go from creative interpretations to creative writing. Helped by the short length things don't really have time to run off the rails, but you're still presented with a number of academic alternative views.
September 29, 2023
“Stranger, go back to Sparta and tell our people
that we who were slain obeyed the code.”
- Simonides of Keos
The lycurgan regime in the city-state known as Lacedaemon seems to have only persisted about 250 years. This is by no means a short amount of time, but I had been under the impression that the austere Spartiates had a much longer period of preeminence. Lacedaemon was 1 of only 4 poleis to never budge from the oligarchic form of governance that seemed to come so naturally to certain Greek aristocracies.
that we who were slain obeyed the code.”
- Simonides of Keos
The lycurgan regime in the city-state known as Lacedaemon seems to have only persisted about 250 years. This is by no means a short amount of time, but I had been under the impression that the austere Spartiates had a much longer period of preeminence. Lacedaemon was 1 of only 4 poleis to never budge from the oligarchic form of governance that seemed to come so naturally to certain Greek aristocracies.
August 20, 2020
An interesting but somewhat basic introduction to the Spartans, covering most aspects of their lives and culture.
I did enjoy this book as it introduced me to a society I hadn't known much about previous. If one already has knowledge on the Spartans and wishes to build upon this, sadly this is not the book for you.
A good introduction to the Spartans and their culture, but not great if you already have knowledge of Sparta, and wish to build upon it.
I did enjoy this book as it introduced me to a society I hadn't known much about previous. If one already has knowledge on the Spartans and wishes to build upon this, sadly this is not the book for you.
A good introduction to the Spartans and their culture, but not great if you already have knowledge of Sparta, and wish to build upon it.
November 6, 2023
Rather disappointing. Not too many new things compared to what we are taught in school and high school (I did not graduate a History university ;)). Too scarce to be a historic paper, too pretentious to be an essay. Especially the last part shows for me how American is the view...to consider a movie as the perception of modern people on Sparta....it is like considering X-men the future of mankind, because, you know, there is a movie about it....
November 12, 2025
What a marvellous little book with an astonishing amount of information packed into it 166 pages often including notes as to when modern academics disagree with ancient 'sources' and with each other. As a primer covering all aspects of Sparta from Helots to Hoplites to Religion to Women, etc. I don't think you will ever do better than this book. Perhaps the nest recommendation is that I have already ordered Bayliss's longer study of Sparta - just on teh basis of how excellent this work is.
August 10, 2020
This IS Sparta
An excellent scholarly and thoroughly readable introduction to Sparta. Well written and easily read. This is the real Sparta. If you enjoyed 300, read this and enjoy the real story
An excellent scholarly and thoroughly readable introduction to Sparta. Well written and easily read. This is the real Sparta. If you enjoyed 300, read this and enjoy the real story
January 9, 2025
This book is extremely graphic and not recommended for someone younger. I think for me this book begins to lay the line for what so many within New Testament biblical text faced from a cultural standpoint. There are some things this book describes that are difficult to digest.
September 30, 2025
A good introduction to the Spartans. I wish the author included more in text citations to his references without just saying “one scholar said…”. It would help to be able to know what references are cited where for further reading.
May 1, 2020
This was a short, informative read for those wanting a bit of quick history looking at what is fact and what is myth about ancient Spartans.
July 11, 2022
A reasonable very short introduction. Didn't make Spartans much clearer for me, since it turned out we actually do not know much about them.
August 3, 2023
This was fine. I mostly already knew these things about the Spartans.
December 6, 2023
Worthwhile read, serves as an entertaining and informative introduction to the Spartan polis and how it differs from the other greek city-states. Check it out if you find it for a good price.
October 14, 2024
WHAT IS YOUR PROFESSION?
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 7, 2024
Great revisionist view of Sparta. Short and easy to read.
February 17, 2025
E bună ca să îți faci o idee despre spartani.
În schimb, mă așteptam la mai mult din partea unui profesor universitar.
În schimb, mă așteptam la mai mult din partea unui profesor universitar.
March 2, 2025
Racist as they come
December 28, 2025
Bine structurată din punct de vedere al conținutului. Urmărește datele istorice fără a apăsa pe pedala senzationalului. Frumos prezentate informațiile. Bine coordonată din punct de vedere al echilibrului . O carte care poate pune bazele unei solide informații despre spartani. O mențiune specială legată de prima copertă care este absolut superbă.
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