Ancient History By Sarah Buchanan Throughout history no other army has received as much attention as the Spartans. This formidable force held the mighty Persian army, with numbers so great that they drank rivers dry, off for 3 days until they were betrayed by a medizer (Greek traitor). Their brute strength, superior tactics and courage has ensured that Sparta’s reputation as a superior fighting force has dominated the history pages due to their sole focus on this pursuit. To fully understand this military focus and why this achieved acclaimed success, it is essential to explore their military training, and weapons, their involvement in the Persian wars, and finally the Peloponnesian war. This was a culture that achieved supremacy due to unyielding determination and greeted death on the battlefield with honour.
Boys learned the Iliad and songs of war and religion, running, wrestling, and wielding a weapon. They did it with grace and accuracy which was much more important to them. Between the ages of twenty and thirty, Spartan men served as cadets who monitored the country. They kept the helots in order, and disciplined obedience from the enslaved people. The Athenians on the other hand were very different.
Tough Love – Life in the Spartan Army The Spartan Army was the military force of Sparta, one of the leading city-states of ancient Greece. Sparta created one of the toughest and most disciplined armies in the world. Their soldiers were trained from being infants to be tough and obedient to their laws. Sparta enjoyed a period of supremacy after the Peloponnesian War until they met their first defeats against Iphicrates of Athens and Epaminondas of Thebes. The troops were citizens known as the Spartiates, the superior social class of Sparta; the others were the Helots, who were slaves and the Perioeci who were the upper-slave-class.
Herodotus’ account of Thermopylae is one of the most accurate and contemporary records we have on the battle, and the skills the Spartans implemented throughout. He outlines three main reasons how the Spartans were ‘successful’ in their attempt to stall the Persian invasion. The first reason is that their military experience and skill outmatched the Persian infantry, Herodotus states that Xerxes “had in his army many men, indeed, but few soldiers” while this is contrasted with the homoioi of Sparta who had years of training and were trained heavily in their Agoge, where the weak were punished and the strong praised. Herodotus shows us how their ‘victory’ showed ow fearless they were in battle as they battled over the body of Leonidas four times with finally succeeding against massive odds with their “valour” in fighting. Spartan’s role in the infamous battle of Thermopylae was one of great importance; I have stated before how they were ‘successful’, the reason I used this word is because they were successful in their objective in stalling the Persian invasion.
Throughout the years the roman army conquered most of Europe and lands all over the world, making them one of the most successful armies of their time. This essay will explain some of the things that made them so successful such as Organization and Equipment. The Roman soldiers were always well equipped for battle. They had a short sword, a dagger, a spear, flexible armour and a helmet. As well as the weapons the solders carried, there were other weapons such as the baluster used to catapult huge rocks at the opponent.
Male Spartan citizens were allowed only one occupation: solider. Indoctrination into this lifestyle began early. Spartan boys started their military training at age 7, when they left home and entered the Agoge. The boys lived communally under austere conditions. They were subjected to continual physical, competitions (which could involve violence), given meager rations and expected to become skilled at stealing food, among other survival skills.
The Battle Of Granicus: Alexander the great was a powerful leader and one of the greatest generals to have ever lived. His abilities are shown not just through his personality but through his military tactics and battle logistics. The battle that is a key example of Alexander’s military superiority is the battle of Granicus. This important battle not only shows the Alexander’s military abilities but it also shows all the key factors that helped him to win the battle. The key factors that eventually lead to Alexander winning this great battle are tactics, weapons & armour, topography, discipline and strategy.
The Spartan’s were a military oriented society. Spartan’s took great pride in their military training, even at an early age, and their developments in fighting would eventually set a new standard in combat through the ancient world. Spartan boys would first enter military school at age 7. The Spartan boys would train in harsh environments to enforce their ability to handle various weather conditions. The boys also were subject to train in various forms of combat and athleticism including; wrestling, boxing, swimming, discus throwing.
The Spartans took up a strong need in a military force, and war became a typical lifestyle for them. Men began to train as young as seven years old as they were required to join the army. Only strong belligerent men could serve in their army. Military force became the Spartans lifestyle, as creative inventions and art were unimportant. Named after Goddess of Athena, Athens were quite dynamic people who studied philosophy, science, and art.
It is the capitol of Laconia and the chief city of Greece: famous for strict discipline and training of soldiers. Athens is a flourishing city-state in ancient Greece; it was an important cultural center in the 5th century B.C. Some differences would be that Sparta was a society built entirely around military life. Spartan citizen males were taken at the age of seven to be trained as warriors. They were expected to spend their time in military training, and live in communal barracks.