Sparta

Question	Answer
Spartans received a fresh supply of water from which river?	Eurotas
By 750 BCE, the five villages that unified to form Sparta were...	Amyklai, Kynosoura, Limnai, Mesoa and Pitana
In the 5th century BCE, who wrote that "Sparta was such an insignificant place that in future times there would be no ruins to remind people that it had ever existed"? *	Thucydides
Thucydides quote about significcance	"Sparta was such an insignificant place that in future times there would be no ruins to remind people that it had ever existed"? 5 CE
A market place for trade and social life was called an ?	Agora
Which Spartan port provided shellfish for dye to colour clothing?	Gytheum
An Athenian poet from 5CE was known as	Euripedes
The monarchic aspect of Spartan government was known as the:	Dual Kingship
The aristocratic aspect of Spartan government was known as the:	Gerousia
Which of the following kings was part of the Agiad royal family?	Cleomenes I
According to Herodotus, which TWO social groups attended the funeral of a Spartan king?	Spartiates and Periokoi
How many ephors (magistrates) were elected each year?	5
Another term that best describes a "Spartiate" (equal) is	Homoioi
What was the approximate ratio of Spartans to helots? *	10000: 200000
What were the THREE requirements that made someone a Spartiate?	Dorian Heritage, Educated in the Agoge and Syssition Member
What was the main purpose of the syssition?	To promote comradeship amongst the Spartans
What does the term perioikoi mean?	Dwellers around about
Why did the perioikoi most likely accept their inferior position in Sparta?	Had higher status than the helots, were left alone and had an important role in society
What does Thucydides suggest Spartan society was based on?	"Spartan policy with regard to the helots had always been based almost entirely on the idea of security."
How were helots different to Athenian slaves?	They were owned by the state and not by individuals
What institution was used to control the helots?	Krypteia
Why was helot bravery a mixed blessing?	Lead to freedom or death
Men who were denied full Spartan citizenship and excluded from the ranks of the homoioi, and who were the sons of an illegitimate union between a Spartiate and a helot woman were known as	Parthenaiai
Name 2 Spartan Festivals	Carnea Enyalia
Standard fighting formation	Phalanx - platoons of 8x4 - Shoulder to shoulder wall formation
Men carrying heavy armour and weappns, primary fighters	Hoplites
Shield	Hoplon - Argive shield was the shield with the leather strap and handle near the rim
Pressfield on paintings on hoplons	Speaks of a warrior who was known to have painted a fly on his hoplon, with the goal of "getting so close to the enemy that the fly would look like a lion"
Body Armour	Lanellar - layering of leather and linnen
Spear and sword	Dory and xiphos
Tyraeus poem on army	Let us fight with courage for our country, and for our children/ let us die and never spare our lives
Devisions of the army	morai - drawn from the five obai
Soldiers who guarded the king in battle	Heppei - 300 men
Euripides on Laconian geography	The area of Laconia has “much arable land but is not easy to cultivate, for it is hollow, surrounded by mountains, rugged, and difficult for enemies to invade..”
Bordering ranges of Laconia	Arcadeian ranges, mennenia, mt. Taygetos, Parnon ranges
Resources of Laconia	Limestone and marble from the mountains Port at Gytheon Wood from forests
Defensive centre for invasions	Acropolis - wasn't walled, like other greek city states Meeting place for gerousia Agore beside it
Sanctuary of Spartan goddess	Sanctuary of Artemis Orthia - Temple of artemis orthia is inside, cheese stealing happened within
Plutarch on the legitimacy of Lychurgus	- Concerning Lycurgus the lawgiver, in general nothing can be said which is not disputed, since indeed there are different accounts of his birth, his travels, his death, and above all, his work as lawmaker and statesman
Origins of dual kingship	Agiads, who lived around Sparta and the Eurypontids
Roles of the kings	Chief priest Military commander Judge Lawgiver
Gerousia	28 men over 60 + 2 kings Drafted laws and were able to refuse to pass a bill that has been voted for Tried cases involving the kings Elected for life
Ephors	5 members - one from each obai Thwart tyranny Decided on political issues put to the ekklasia Connecte with the 5 villiages and may have reported to the kings
Ekklesia/ apella	10000 homoios Voted on bills Met in open air on each full moon Elected gerousia and ephors
Plot of land	kleros
Plutarch - Women	"When an Ionian woman was priding herself on one of the tapestries she had made, a Spartan woman showed off her four most dutiful sons"
Xenophon - Lychurgus - Women	"Lycurgus considered slave girls adequate to produce clothing and thought that for free Spartan women, the most important job was for her to bear children"
Evidence of boars as natural resource	Kylix (cup or bowl) found depicting a spartiate hunting a wild boar
Euripedes on geography and resources of Sparta	The area of Laconia has “much arable land but is not easy to cultivate, for it is hollow, surrounded by mountains, rugged, and difficult for enemies to invade..”
Strabo on natural resources	"And there are quarries of very rich marble"
Sanctuary to spartan king and bride	Santuary of Menelaus and Helen - Based off the myth of Helen of Troy
Religious shrine that saw the hyakinthia	Shrine of Apollo Hyacinthus
Sources for Lychurgus	Herodotus and Aristotle
Lychurgus' inspiration for change	It is believed he consulted an oracle at Delphi
Author of the Life of Lychurgus	Plutarch
Most important changes made by Lychurgus, as accodring to Plutarch	-Establishment of the Gerousia - Redistribution of land
Term for good order and good government	Eunomia - emphasized by obedience to laws -What earned Sparta their admiration of other greeks
Herodotus on Lychurgus	“[Lycurgus] changed all the laws and made sure that these should not be transgressed"
Plutarch - Lychurgus - Arts	Plutarch - “In the next place, he [Lycurgus] declared an outcry of all needless and superfluous arts”
Xenophon - Lychurgus - general way of life	"For it was not by imitating other states but by conceiving a system utterly different from that of most others that he showed his country to excel in prosperity "[eudaimonia
Herodotus on role of kings	“They are responsible for the safe-keeping of all oracles and certain definite legal matters are left to their sole decision.” "Hereditary generals"
Herodotus on religious sacrifice - role of king	On the first and seventh days of every month…offer in sacrifice in the temple of Apollo…
Funeral of the king - As according to Herodotus	- Women beat cauldrons as a signal for people, one man and one woman from each household, to put on special mourning clothes - There were communal displays of public grief – men and women struck their foreheads – there was wailing and praise of the deceased king as ‘the best ever’.
Types of government in Sparta	Oligarcy, monarchy, aristocracy and democracy are all combined in this government
Xenophon on Ephors	So the ephors have the power to fine anyone they wish, the right to secure payment on the spot, the right also to dismiss office
Aristotle on gerousia and bribery/ corruption	[The gerousia] have manifestly been guilty of taking bribes and have been corrupt enough to give away a lot of public property"
Gerousia initiation	Once a candidate was declared, a procession to all temples in the city took place, followed by a special banquet and songs and verses were sung and cited in their honour. (Aristotle thought this was childish)
Requirements for male citizenship	• Male • Born from a father who is a citizen • Have gone through all stages of Spartan education system • Be 30 years old • Contribute to common meal
Privileges of homoios	• Take part and vote in ekklesia • Hold political office • Marry • Given land by the state • Given helots by the state
Plutarch - Spartiate - Kleros	“Lycurgus persuaded the citizens to pool all the land and then redistribute it afresh. Then they would all live on equal terms.”
Dwellers around	Periokoi - Free inhabitants of Laconia who did not have legal citizenship
Jobs and duties of Periokoi	Craftsmen, miners, traders
Periokoi archaelogical evidence	Bronze figurine of Hermes and an engraved gem found at Gytheum - trade and craft Bronze figurine of a bull
Herodotus on Periokic war inclusion	"with them went 5000 picked Lakedaemonian troops drawn from the outlying towns.”
Plutarch on inferiors	“Inferiors are required to give way in the street. And cannot be cheerful...if cheerful must be beaten by owners..
Thucydides - Helots	“constantly take most of their decisions with a view to precautions against the helots”
Plutarch - Helots	“helots tilled their ground for them, and paid them yearly in kind the appointed quantity”
Finely on Helots	they could keep surplus produce, they live with their own families and their own possessions, enjoyed their own cults “in general all the normal human institutions except their freedom”
Population of Helots	170000 to 2240000
Secret police	Krypteia
Evidence of Hoplite grooming and attire	Bronze statuette of a Spartan warrior wrapped in his military cloak displaying his carefully dressed hair.
Infantry attire	o Corinthian style helmet – very heavy and impared vision and hearing o Hoplon - shield o 3m spear o Stabbing Sword o Upper body armour and shin pacs
Aristotle on women and land management	"Nearly two fifths of the whole country are held by women; this owning to the number of heiresses and to the large dowries which were customary"
Xenophon on womens education	Physical training for the female sex was no less than for the male.... he arranged this... thinking that if both parents were strong their children would be more robust"
Archealogical evidence of women - religion and women's clothing	Relief showing a Spartan girls involved in a religious rite, lifting her veil and pouring wine into a cup
Plutarch on agoge and education	"The boys learned to read and write no more than was necessary. otherwise their whole education was aimed at developing smart obedience, perseverance under stress and victory in battle"
Plutarch - Agoge	“Each group individually aims at being outstanding, and collectively they protect the city with all their might if need arises. They are compelled to take care of their physical fitness.”
Aristotle on kleros and economy	“While some of the Spartan citizens have quite small properties, others have very large ones; hence the land has passed into the hands of a few. And this is due to faulty laws...”
Iron ore weapons	Ancient technologies in smelting ad casting metals were used the use of iron over bronze gave the spartans military advantage as it was stronger
Pottery	All pottery and crafts were made by Periokoi Mould-made reliefs of terracotta baked clay found at most religious sites.
Religion evidence	Dioscuri relief showing the two brothers (Castor and Polydeuces) standing on either side of two tall amphorae; on the pediment above the figures two snakes support Leda’s eggs. 1000s of votive offerings found to the Dioscuri at Amyclae.
City state patron	Apollo - Appears with spear in hand at Amyclae - Revered for his skills in archery and never missed his mark
Goddess concerned with growth and fertility	Artemis orthea - Cheese stealing ritual - Temple of artemis orthia - presided over childbirth and hunting
Evidence of Karneia festival	Coins depicting Apollo Karneois as a horned god; horns also found carved on a stone with the inscription ‘to the Karneios’
Stages of Hyakinthia	Sorrowful procession to amyklaion, a funeral meal and a day of griel Joyful stage, festive wreaths worn, a joyful humn to apollo was sung
Karneia	Held at sanctuary of karnos over 9 days 9 men lived in the woods to commemorate the early spartiates rafts were also paraded to represent early dorians Catch the runner race
Gymnopaedia	festival of "unarmed dancing" Served to commemorate the spartans who died in the battle of Thyrea Phyric dancing, military style Sporting activities and competitions
Evidence of bronze making	Weapons and armour found A bronze statue of Zeus described by Pausanias to be 5.5 metres of
Ivory and bone carving	200 found at the sanctuary of Artemis Orthia Bne and ivory was imported from Syria
Bronze making technique	Sparta was famous for their bronze figures made by hammering thin bronze sheets over a mould
Quote on pottery and painted vessels	"Never just imitators, strong character of its own"
Laconia 1 - Style of 7th century	Geometric decoration
Laconia 2 - Early 6th century	Decorative bands and friezes, made up of animals and birds
Laconia 3 - Late 6th century	Characterised by narrative from lifestyle or mythology
Source for architecture NOTE: architecture was minimal and merely functional	Pausanias in "Descriptions of Greece"
description of sanctuary of artemis orthia architecture	described it as resembling a frame house with a row of columns down the middle and timbers along the sides
Alkman quote	“No even the hair of Nanno is not enough/ Nor the goddess-like Areta”
Plutarch -View and validity	"Lycurgus successfully persuaded Spartans to pool their land and then redistribute it in a fairer manner” Wrote 6-800 years after the decline of Sparta
Herodotus - view and validity	"Good Greeks fighting Persia" Wrote about the dual monarchy, spartan superstitions, warfare and women “Before they went into battle, the Spartans exercised and spent much time combing their long hair”
Thucydides	Drew out the Sparta-Athens conflict as a key theme of his writing on the society “athens does not need to make its citizens spend their entire life training for the army to stand up and defend their land”
Aristotle - views and reliability	Explains the breakdown of the Spartan way of life, pointing to the decline in population and the gross inequality of property that developed as a major catalyst “When women are allowed to play such a major role in society, it is no wonder that that society is likely to decline”
Pausanias	Authored "description of Greece" - "There is a place established here for athena of the City. It is also known as the House of Athena"

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	Created by Brianna McCarthy over 8 years ago