sparta at war in the 5th century Flashcards
What two main peoples did sparta conquer?
The regions were Laconia and Messina.
What did Spartans call their slaves?
Helots, who worked the land that was allotted to Spartan citizens.
Why could Spartan men spend more time on warfare than in other Greek cities?
The conquered allotment of land that was given to Spartan citizens was designed to be big enough to live off its income, which would be produced by helots. So Spartans could afford to dedicate more time to warfare.
Who would Spartans eat a daily meal with?
They would eat with their syssitia, which were the men they would share tents with at war.
What was the puropus of eating with a syssitia every night?
As the men would trust each other more than if they had never met, and by fighting alongside their friends they would be less likely to run away in battle as they would feel adutyto fight alongside their friends.
What happened in the second messenian war, in summary?
After an earthquake in sparta the helots, who vastly out numbered the Spartans, tried to rebel against the Spartans. It took many years to quash the rebellion
Who were the perioeci?
The perioeci were a class of people within spartan society who were left to control small areas of land as long as they recognised Spartans authority in terms of war and matters of state.
What does perioeci mean?
‘Those who live around’
What is the name of the spartan state school? And when would a young boy start going there?
The agoge was attended by boys from age 7 until their late teens
Where do most of our sources on spartan education come from?
From Plutarch, whos view was that the Spartan education system was designed to prepare boys to be highly trained and unquestionably loyal
What kind of punishments could boys receive in the agoge?
Beating and whipping were often given out by prefects who supervised boys in their training
