Spartan Society to The Battle of Leutra
A) Name 2 Geographical features in the region of Sparta
- Eurotas River/ The river Sparta is located on
- Close to the Isthmus connecting them to the rest of Greece
B) What are TWO roles of Spartan women?
- Lycurgus states that physical fitness is the "most important activity of freeborn women", producing healthy offspring being Spartan women's most prominent role. According to Xenophon childbearing was their most important function.
- Spartan women maintained the household while men were absent training for military service, which was the main aim of the education system. This was an important role, which enabled Spartan men to become professional military soldiers, whilst the family and household were still maintained.
C) Describe the roles of Krypteia in Spartan society
- The Krypteia were the Spartan secret police. They were made up of young Spartan warriors aged around 19-20.
Aerial view of Spartan Stadium.
Statue of Spartan king Leonidas I, erected by Pano...
English: Marble statue of a helmed hoplite (5th ce...Their main role was to intimidate and control troublesome helots. They were to keep a helot uprising form occurring. Some historians argue that as part of training young men were sent into the country to deal with the helots, others to control the population and some believed it was a right of passage.
D) Outline the roles and privileges of Spartan Kings
- Kings were the supreme commanders of the army. One king led the campaign, while the other stayed in Sparta. "These large powers were always limited by the double nature of kinship". This originated in 507BC when two kings disagreed over the expedition against Athens. The Kings had the right to declare war on the battlefield and could decide between life and death. The kings were supervised by the Ephors and had a bodyguard of 100 men. However, the kings could be heavily punished if their...