Similarities and differences between Athens and Sparta By kirk kanjian In 5th century Greece Spartan and Athenian society was very different in many ways. However, at the same time, the two shared a number of characteristics in common. The differences are what set the two apart, while the things they shared in common are what united them as Greek city-states. Sparta and Athens shared similarities and differences in their systems of government, military focuses, education and rights of women. One of the bigger differences between Sparta and Athens was there systems of government.
All of the citizens could belong to the Assembly, and they voted by lottery because they thought election favored the rich, and they wanted it to be equal. They also had a system called the ostracism, in which the citizens would write the name of an undesirable politician and if they person's name appeared more than 6,000 times, he could be removed. The conflicts Athens and Sparta caused many important events in World History. Their lack of unity as a region hurt, but also at the same time helped both city-states and the region. Even though the city-states had many differences eventually they united as and are still united
Some questionable facts are how many men really fought in this battle, how did the Greeks triumph against the juggernaut force of the Persian armada, and what strategies they would have used. What really happened in the Persian wars was immeasurable Persian forces attacked Greek islands and Greek city states for attacks to happen certain variables must be in place. For starters the Persians and Greeks were large empires in that dynasty and were very close together; consequently this would have caused great conflict between the two ancient super powers. Ancient Greece is located roughly 200km east of the Asian Minor where Persia was set. At this point in history the Persian Empire was colossal it was the largest ancient Empire ever known and it was looking to expand its territory into Greece.
The Athenian ownership of the Delos treasury, suppression of revolts as well as the challis decree marks the transformation of the delian league into the Athenian empire. The role of the delian league was to protect those Greek states which had already revolted from Persia and to liberate those still under Persian rule. The league was very active in overthrowing Persian power and consolidating the role of Athens as hegemon’s in the Greek world. It was clear that the alliance was unequal from the beginning because, the leadership was Athenian, they had the largest fleet and they were also superior in resources. This was a result from their successes in the Persian wars, in particular the battle of Salamis.
Although the Han Dynasty and the Roman Empire were similar, they also had differences. The interactions with other empires were different. Imperial Rome interacted with more empires because it was located near bodies of water which facilitated trade with North Africa, Middle East, and Europe. Another difference between is their government structure. The Roman Republic was republic and only wealthy men could be emperors while Han China was a dynasty were the son of the previous king would take the throne.
This law shows the flaw of Athens and its democracy based government because it infringed on the freedom of speech that most democracies have. The Assembly was made up of all men that were eligible to serve on the council. The Life in Athens may have been sophisticated and nimble. This made Athens a target to other countries since they thought that Athens was a week country. If Athens had more of a military based government then they wouldn’t have been attacked as many of times and maybe never lost their power in Ancient
An example of this is how Giolitti was in office 5 separate times between 1892 - 1921. This shows how even with a very limited electorate no real leaders could take control. The politicians at the time were also corrupt as there were often allegations of buying votes or fixing the results of elections. Some proof of this is when Giolitti says “Laws are applied to enemies, but only interpreted as regards friends”. This corruption also added to the instability of government and its mandate to rule Italy.
A Spartan's life was centered on the state, because they lived and died to serve the state. Although the competing city-states of Sparta and Athens were individually different as well as governmentally diverse, they both managed to become dominating powers in Ancient Greece. The political power of Athens is based on economic power. Democracy is based on middle class economic power. In slow evolution towards democracy, as their trade increased, Athenian craftsmen and merchants had enough money to purchase their own weapons.
Tensions between the Peloponnesian League and the Delian League eventually led to the Peloponnesian war. Thucydides believed that Sparta was afraid of the growing power of Athens, which had essentially resulted in the creation of an Athenian empire. Sparta felt that Athens was meddling in their business, and Athens would not agree to avoid interference. After twenty-seven years of war, and the participation in one way or another of many of the city-states belonging to the two leagues, both Sparta and Athens were in ruins. Sparta claimed the victory, and the city-states continued their bickering and fighting.
HIS103: World Civilizations Instructor Stuart Collins December 5, 2011 In the Mediterranean society there are two societies that we associate with, they are the Greek society and the Roman society. Many people believe that these two societies are the same when in fact they are different in more ways than they are alike. Roman society was greatly impacted by the Greek society; taking from them their governing methods, religions and architectural skills elaborating on them and incorporating them into their society. Through all the differences and similarities, the western world has been greatly influenced by both of these societies and without their influences things, in today’s world, may not be the same. The Greeks and Romans were two strong societies that brought great things to the Mediterranean.