At a time when cities grew in mighty Greece, philosophers pondered the nature of things, warlike Sparta lived its daily life. The main occupation of the inhabitants of the city has always been preparation for attacks. The specter of war hovered tirelessly over Sparta. The inhabitants were not going to make new trips, they wanted peace, but at the same time, in case of danger from other cities and countries, they wanted to be prepared. All the forces of the Spartans went to protect the conquered lands: the plains of Messenia and the valley of Evrota. Moreover, they guarded these areas not from their neighbors, from whom they were taken away, but from the slaves living in these territories and always ready for an uprising.

Ancient Sparta, numbering 9,000, had 200,000 helot slaves who bowed their heads to the ground, but never lost hope of liberation. So, for example, in 464, when the city was destroyed by an earthquake, the helots rushed there, but not in order to save the lives of their masters, but in order to kill them. But, thanks to the foresight of King Archidamus, who built a phalanx of the surviving soldiers, the slaves retreated. After that, it took more than 10 years of bloody war in order to bring the helots back into submission.

After the subjugation of the slaves, Ancient Sparta, which had Dorian kindred communities, Megara and Corinth, was involved in a war with Athens. After long battles, long battles, the militant state defeated the state of thinkers and philosophers. However, this brought not only great fame, but also great trouble. The fact is that immediately after the victory, hoplites came to power in Sparta, who despised the "rabble" and recognized only their own kind. Big merchants and representatives of the lower classes did not like this very much, they constantly made attempts to change the government. Therefore, the government of Sparta was forced to defend itself from the people.

Ancient Sparta, whose history keeps many military victories, was first defeated in 371 by the Thebans. In this battle, a new system of building phalanxes ("oblique formation") was applied. During the battle, the king of the Spartans, Cleombrot, died, and the once fearless army succumbed to panic and fled from the battlefield. But the Thebans did not stop there. They moved to Sparta and showed the Spartans their combat power. As a result, the Thebans retook the Messenian Plain.

We can say that after this battle, Ancient Sparta began to lose its power. Among the once "equal" Spartans, "smaller" began to appear. Many citizens began to sell their lands, because. were in need. While men tried to maintain the military power of Sparta, women began to engage in usury. They bought land for debts. Thus, the stratification of society began, a prosperous aristocracy appeared. Less and less importance was given to the military training of the younger generation.

Only a hundred years later, the leaders of Sparta realized that there was no one to defend the city, and they made attempts to return the orders of bygone times. The land was redistributed, debts canceled, the ranks of the warriors were replenished with strong helots and parieks. But the aristocracy of the city was afraid of the new order, a revolution began, which called for the Macedonians. So in 221, the Spartans suffered another defeat, but not at the hands of the Thebans.

Spartan education system

In a warlike state, much attention was paid to protecting the city from internal and external enemies. For this, a system of education was developed, which consisted of 3 stages:

Teaching boys from 7 to 12 years old. At this stage, the children were divided into groups. They played and learned. But constantly the mentors made the children fight among themselves. So they revealed the strengths and weaknesses of their wards.

From 12 to 20 years old, the boys were united in detachments, where they were led by older boys. At this stage, there were no games, all attention was paid to military training.

From 20 to 30 years old, the Spartans united in sissitia - groups that usually included about 15 people. They continued to engage in military training in their circle, but now they could start a family, do some household chores.

As you can see, Ancient Sparta paid great attention to the training of real warriors to protect their state.

In the II millennium BC. e. Greek tribes invade the south of the Balkan Peninsula. Within the narrow framework outlined by the nature of the country (small valleys fenced with high mountains), a special Greek civilization developed in the form of city-states ( policy ). In historical times, the Greeks have never been a single state: their relations with each other were built as international relations. However, at some point, among the numerous policies, Sparta and Athens began to play an important role. Therefore, in the discipline "History of the state and the law of foreign countries" Sparta is studied as an example of the Greek monarchy and Athens as an example of democracy.

State of Sparta

The emergence of the state in Sparta

On the Peloponnesian peninsula, Sparta became the earliest polis state. Compared with other Greek policies, the formation of the state here had significant features. In the IX century. BC e. Dorian tribes invade Laconia and displace or enslave the local population - the Achaeans, which subsequently leads to the unification of the tribal elite of the conquerors and the conquered.

The conquerors were divided into three clan tribes, each of which was subdivided into nine phratry(“brotherhoods”) representing religious and legal associations with internal self-government.

The Dorians settled in independent villages (there were about a hundred of them), organized into six kingdoms. They were divided into three genera phyla, further divided into five groups (villages) that received topographic names. Then there is a union of five villages in the Spartan state. The territory of Laconia was divided into districts ( obam), whose number and organization are unknown. Five "kings" made up the Council of the policy. In the period 800-730 BC. e. the Spartans conquered all the other villages, and their inhabitants became vassals - perieks (lit. "living around").

This was followed by the conquest of Messenia (740-720 BC) and the annexation of the country, which was divided into shares for the Spartans, and the perieks were pushed into the highlands. Thanks to these conquests, Sparta became the potentially richest and most powerful state in Greece in the 8th century. BC e.

Under the conditions of the wars of conquest, the state structure of Sparta underwent some changes. The social development of Sparta took on a stagnant character: elements of the communal system remained for a long time, urban life and craft developed poorly. The inhabitants were mainly engaged in agriculture.

Maintaining order and dominance over the enslaved population determined the military system of the entire life of the Spartans. Legislator Lycurgus (VIII century BC) are credited with establishing public order and the state system through the issuance of a treaty ( Retras). He creates Council of Elders– Gerousia ("older", "elder"). Then he took up redistribution of land, which had socio-political significance, and, according to the ancient Greek writer Plutarch (second half of the 1st century BC), the reformer did this “in order to expel impudence, envy, malice, luxury and even older, even more formidable the ailments of the state are wealth and poverty. To this end, he persuaded the Spartans to unite all the lands, and then divide them again. He divided the lands belonging to the city of Sparta into 9,000 plots according to the number of Spartans, and the Laconian lands into 30,000 plots between the perieks. Each allotment was supposed to bring 70 medimnov(one medimn - about 52 liters of loose bodies) barley.

His third reform was the division of movable property in order to abolish all inequality. To this end, he removes gold and silver coins from use, replacing them with iron ones (of huge size and weight). According to Plutarch, "to store an amount equal to ten mines (one mine - an average of 440 to 600 grams), a large warehouse was required, and for transportation - a pair of teams." In addition, this iron could not be used for other purposes, because it was hardened by dipping in vinegar, and this deprived the metal of its strength, it became brittle. The Spartans lost their desire to steal and take bribes, because the uncleanly acquired could not be hidden, so many types of crimes disappeared in Laconia. Lycurgus expelled useless and superfluous crafts from the country, which was also directed against luxury, and therefore houses were made only with the help of an ax and a saw. And gradually, according to Plutarch, luxury "withered and disappeared."

In order to destroy the passion for wealth among the Spartans, the reformer establishes common meals ( sissy), where adult citizens of 15 people gathered together and ate the same simple food. Each companion made monthly contributions of food and money. It was forbidden to eat at home. During the meal, the Spartans vigilantly watched each other, and if they saw that a person was not eating or drinking, they blamed him, calling him “unbridled and pampered.” Meals not only fought against wealth, but also contributed to the rallying of the soldiers, since the comrades-in-arms did not separate from each other even on the battlefield, entering into one military unit.

In everyday life, the Spartans retained many customs dating back to ancient times. For example, unions by age groups, which apparently represented a kind of teams that had places of constant meetings ( leshi), where not only common meals were held, but also entertainments were arranged, where young people and mature warriors spent most of their time not only during the day, but also at night.

To combat wealth and establish equality, the rich were ordered to marry the poor, and wealthy women to marry the poor.

Lycurgus establishes a mandatory uniform education and training of the Spartans. This extended to girls as well. The reformer also regulated the marriage and family sphere, and women were largely equalized with men, going in for sports and military affairs.

social order

The ruling class were the Spartans, enjoying all political rights. They were provided with land allotments transferred to them along with slaves ( helots), who processed them and actually kept the Spartans. The latter lived in the city of Sparta, which was a military camp. Plutarch wrote that “no one was allowed to live the way he wanted, just like in a military camp; everyone in the city obeyed strictly established rules and did what was assigned to them useful for the state.

The state took care of the upbringing of children: from the age of 7, boys were separated from the family and they were trained under the guidance of special persons ( pedonomists) and in special schools - agelah(lit. "cattle"). At the same time, special attention was paid to physical education, to the development of the qualities of a staunch and enduring warrior, to discipline, the habit of obeying elders and authorities. They even had to speak briefly, laconically.“They learned literacy only to the extent that it was impossible to do without it,” Plutarch noted.

With age, the requirements became tougher: children walked barefoot, from 12 to 16 years old they were taught to walk naked (including girls), receiving only one raincoat for a year. Their skin was tanned and rough. They slept together on beds of reeds. From the age of 16, a young man (epheb) was included in the lists of full citizens. Training ended at the age of 20, and until the age of 60 the Spartans remained liable for military service. They were allowed to marry only from the age of 30, when the Spartan was considered an adult and acquired political rights. The number of Spartans was small, by the 5th century. BC e. there were no more than 8 thousand of them, and later - much less - about 1,000 people.

In the process of conquest, part of the conquered population was turned into slaves ( helots). They were attached to claram, on the territory of which they were to manage the economy under the control of persons specially authorized by the state. They were considered state property and were placed at the disposal of the Spartans, who could kill them, transfer them to another fellow citizen, or sell them abroad. With the permission of the authorities, the master could release the helot to freedom, and in this case the released was called neodamodom. The helots did not have their own land, but cultivated the land plots of the Spartans, paying them half the harvest. Helots were drafted into the army as lightly armed warriors.

The Spartans maintained their dominance over the helots with terror: every year they declared war ( cryptia), during which strong and courageous helots were killed. The master who sheltered a strong helot was punished. In addition, helots received a certain number of blows every year without any guilt, so that they would not forget how to feel like slaves. The ancient Greek historian Xenophon wrote that they were ready to eat their masters with skin and hair. Therefore, the Spartan warriors always went armed. The number of helots was several times greater than the number of Spartans.

Subjugated inhabitants of the mountainous regions of Sparta - perieki also did not enjoy political rights, but were free, occupying an intermediate position between the helots and the Spartans. They could acquire property and make transactions. Their main occupations were trade and craft. They carried military service as heavily armed warriors. Perieki were under supervision garmostov. The highest officials of Sparta - the ephors - were given the right to put the perieks to death without trial.

Political system

He was a monarchist and was a model of the slave-owning aristocracy. People's Assembly(apella) did not play a big role and met once a month. It was attended by citizens who had reached the age of 30 and retained their land allotments and the political rights associated with their possession. The meeting was convened by the kings, and then by the ephors, who presided. In addition to regular meetings, emergency meetings were also convened, in which only citizens who were in the city at the time took part. Such meetings were called small meetings ( mikra appell). Only officials and ambassadors of foreign powers could make speeches and proposals in the assembly.

The competence of the people's assembly included lawmaking; election of officials and ambassadors; issues of alliance with other states; issues of war and peace (during the war, it decided which of the two kings to go on a campaign); questions of the Peloponnesian Union; accepted new citizens or deprived individual Spartans of the rights of citizenship. The assembly also acted as a judicial body when it came to the deposition of an official for his crimes. In the event of a dispute over the succession to the throne, it made its decision. Voting was carried out by a shout or a divergence of the participants of the meeting on the sides. Aristotle called this way of conducting a people's assembly "children's."

royal power carried out by two kings archagetes or basileus) and was hereditary. The dual royal power, apparently, arose as a result of the unification of the top tribes of the Dorians and Achaeans. However, royal power was basically real only in wartime, when the basileus could issue all orders, and they were reported on all affairs; they acquired the right of life and death over the warriors. Every eight years a college of senior officials in Sparta ( ephors) conducted divination by the stars, as a result of which the kings could be put on trial or removed from office. The ephors accompanied the king on a military campaign and watched him. Monthly, the ephors and the kings swore an oath to each other: the basileus swore that they would reign according to the laws, and the ephors swore on behalf of the state that if the kings observed their oath, the state would unshakably observe their power.

In addition to military power, the kings had priestly and judicial power, were part of gerousia- council of elders The kings also oversaw the correct distribution and use of land allotments. In later times, they also ordered the marriage of girls who became heirs of ancestral clans. The kings were surrounded by honor, various fees were established in their favor, everyone had to stand before them.

Gerousia(council of elders) consisted of 28 members and two kings. It originates from the tribal organization, from the council of elders. Gerousia members ( gerontes) were, as a rule, from representatives of noble families and from the age of 60, since they had already been exempted from military service. Their election took place in the popular assembly by shouting, and the one who was shouted louder than other candidates was considered elected. They held the position for life. The Gerousia was originally convened by the kings, and later by the ephors. Its competence was as follows: a preliminary discussion of cases that were to be considered in the national assembly; negotiations with other states; court cases (state and criminal offenses), as well as against kings; military issues. However, the council of elders did not have legislative initiative. Cases on property disputes were under the jurisdiction of the ephors. The role of gerusia decreased with the increase in the role of ephors.

ephors("observers") - a board of senior officials, which occupied a completely exceptional position in the state. Initially, they were the deputies of the kings in the civil court, later their power expanded so much that the kings bowed to it. The ephors were annually elected by the popular assembly by a shout in the amount of five people. At the head of the college was the first ephor, whose name denoted the year. The powers of the ephors: convening the gerousia and the national assembly, leading them; internal management; monitoring officials and checking their reports, as well as removal from office for misconduct and referral to the court; supervision of morals and observance of discipline; external relations; civil jurisdiction. During the war, they led the mobilization of troops, gave the order to march, and two ephors accompanied the king on a military campaign. They also declared cryptia against the helots and perieks. The ephors constituted a single board and made their decisions by a majority of votes. They reported to their successors after a one-year term.

Such a state-political system among the Spartans remained almost unchanged for many centuries. The Spartans exercised military leadership among the Greek policies, for this purpose in the VI century. BC e. they led the Peloponnesian League to fight for supremacy in Hellas. After the victory in the Peloponnesian War over Athens and its allies, other Greek policies, the Spartan society, having grown rich, began to stratify. As a result, the number of full-fledged citizens is decreasing, which at the end of the 4th century. BC e. there were about 1,000 people. In the next century, as a result of another political crisis in Sparta, the old institutions of power are almost eliminated, and the kings become dictators. In the II century. BC e. the rebellious helots seize power, and in the middle of this century the state of Sparta becomes part of the province of the Roman Empire.

Sparta was the main state Dorian tribe. Her name already plays a role in the legend of the Trojan War, since Menelaus, Helen's husband, because of which the war of the Greeks with the Trojans flared up, was the Spartan king. The history of later Sparta began with Dorians conquest of the Peloponnese under the leadership of the Heraclides. Of the three brothers, one (Temen) received Argos, the other (Cresfont) - Messenia, the sons of the third (Aristodem) Proclus and Eurysthenes - Laconia. There were two royal families in Sparta, who descended from these heroes through their sons. Agisa and Eurypont(Agides and Eurypontides).

Genus Heraclides. Scheme. Two dynasties of Spartan kings - in the lower right corner

But all these were only folk tales or conjectures of Greek historians, which do not have full historical authenticity. Among such legends, one should also include most of the legend, which was very popular in antiquity, about the legislator Lycurgus, whose life time was attributed to the 9th century. and to whom directly attributed the entire Spartan device. Lycurgus, according to legend, was the youngest son of one of the kings and the guardian of his young nephew Charilaus. When the latter himself began to rule, Lycurgus went on a wandering trip, and visited Egypt, Asia Minor and Crete, but had to return to his homeland at the request of the Spartans, who were dissatisfied with internal strife and with their king Harilaus himself. Lycurgus was instructed draw up new laws for the state, and he took up the matter, asking the advice of the Delphic oracle. The Pythia told Lycurgus that she did not know whether to call him a god or a man, and that his decrees would be the best. Having finished his work, Lycurgus took an oath from the Spartans that they would fulfill his laws until he returned from a new trip to Delphi. The Pythia confirmed her previous decision to him, and Lycurgus, having sent this answer to Sparta, took his own life, so as not to return to his homeland. The Spartans honored Lycurgus as a god, and built a temple in his honor, but in essence Lycurgus was originally a deity who later turned into a popular fantasy in the mortal legislator of Sparta. The so-called legislation of Lycurgus was kept in memory in the form of short sayings (retros).

102. Laconia and its population

Laconia occupied the southeastern part of the Peloponnese and consisted of the river valley Eurota and limiting it from the west and east of the mountain ranges, of which the western one was called Tayget. In this country there were arable lands, and pastures, and forests in which a lot of game was found, and in the mountains of Taygetus there were a lot of iron; from it the locals made weapons. There were few cities in Laconia. In the center of the country near the bank of the Eurotas lay Sparta, otherwise called Lacedaemon. It was a combination of five settlements, which remained unfortified, while in other Greek cities there was usually a fortress. In essence, however, Sparta was the real a military camp that held the whole of Laconia in obedience.

Laconia and Sparta on the map of the ancient Peloponnese

The population of the country consisted of descendants Dorian conquerors and the Achaeans they conquered. First, spartans, were alone full citizens states, the latter were divided into two classes: some were called helots and were serfs, subordinate, however, not to individual citizens, but to the entire state, while others were called perieks and represented personally free people, but standing to Sparta in relation subjects without any political rights whatsoever. Most of the land was considered common property of the state, of which the latter gave the Spartans separate plots for subsistence (clear), originally former approximately the same size. These plots were cultivated by the helots for a certain dues, which they paid in kind in the form of the greater part of the collection. The Periecs were left part of their land; they lived in cities, engaged in industry and trade, but in general in Laconia these studies were underdeveloped: already at the time when other Greeks had a coin, in this country, as an instrument of exchange, were used iron bars. Perieki were obliged to pay tax to the state treasury.

Theater ruins in ancient Sparta

103. Military organization of Sparta

Sparta was military state, and its citizens were primarily warriors; the perieks and helots were also involved in the war. Spartans, divided into three phyla with division into phratries, in an era of prosperity there were only nine thousand for 370 thousand perieks and helots, whom they by force kept under their power; The main occupations of the Spartans were gymnastics, military exercises, hunting and war. Education and lifestyle in Sparta were directed to be always ready against the possibility helot uprisings, which actually flared up from time to time in the country. The mood of the helots was monitored by detachments of youth, and all suspicious were ruthlessly killed. (cryptia). The Spartan did not belong to himself: the citizen was above all a warrior, all life(actually up to the age of sixty) obligated to serve the state. When a child was born in the family of a Spartan, he was examined whether he would later be fit for military service, and frail babies were not left to live. From the age of seven to eighteen, all the boys were brought up together in state "gymnasiums", where they were taught gymnastics and exercised in military affairs, as well as taught singing and playing the flute. The upbringing of the Spartan youth was severe: boys and youths were always dressed in light clothes, walked barefoot and bareheaded, ate very poorly and were subjected to cruel corporal punishment, which they had to endure without screaming and groaning. (They were flogged for this on purpose in front of the altar of Artemis).

Spartan army warrior

Adults also could not live as they wanted. And in peacetime, the Spartans were divided into military partnerships, even having dinner together, for which the participants in common tables (sissy) they brought in a certain amount of different products, and their food was necessarily the most coarse and simple (the famous Spartan stew). The state observed that no one deviated from the implementation of the general rules and did not deviate from the way of life prescribed by law. Each family had their own allotment from common state land, and this plot could neither be divided, nor sold, nor left under a spiritual will. Between the Spartans was to dominate equality; they so bluntly called themselves "equal" (ομοιοί). Luxury in private life was pursued. For example, when building a house, it was possible to use only an ax and a saw, with which it was difficult to make anything beautiful. Spartan iron money could not buy anything from the products of industry in other states of Greece. Moreover, the Spartans were not allowed to leave their country, and foreigners were forbidden to live in Laconia (xenelasia). The Spartans did not care about mental development. Eloquence, which was so valued in other parts of Greece, was out of use in Sparta, and Laconian laconic ( conciseness) even became a proverb among the Greeks. The Spartans became the best warriors in Greece - hardy, persistent, disciplined. Their army consisted of heavily armed infantry (hoplites) with lightly armed auxiliary detachments (from the helots and part of the perieks); they did not use cavalry in their wars.

Ancient spartan helmet

104. The structure of the Spartan state

105. Spartan conquests

This military state set out on the path of conquest very early. The increase in the number of inhabitants forced the Spartans look for new lands from which one could make new allotments for citizens. Having gradually mastered the whole of Laconia, Sparta in the third quarter of the 8th century conquered Messenia [First Messenian War] and its inhabitants too turned into helots and perieks. Part of the Messenians moved out, but the rest did not want to put up with someone else's domination. In the middle of the 7th century they rebelled against Sparta [Second Messenian War], but were again subdued. The Spartans made an attempt to extend their power towards Argolis, but were at first repulsed by Argos and only later took possession of part of the coast of Argolis. They had more luck in Arcadia, but having already made the first conquest in this area (the city of Tegea), they did not annex it to their possessions, but entered into with the inhabitants military alliance under its leadership. This marked the beginning of a great Peloponnesian Union(symmachy) under Spartan supremacy (hegemony). To this symmachy, little by little, all the parts arcadia, and also Elis. Thus, by the end of the VI century. Sparta stood at the head of almost the entire Peloponnese. Symmachy had an allied council, in which issues of war and peace were decided under the chairmanship of Sparta, and Sparta also owned the very leadership in the war (hegemony). When the Persian Shah undertook the conquest of Greece, Sparta was the most powerful Greek state and therefore could become the head of the rest of the Greeks in the fight against Persia. But already during this struggle she had to yield superiority to Athens.

In the southeast of the largest Greek peninsula - the Peloponnese - the powerful Sparta was once located. This state was located in the region of Laconia, in the picturesque valley of the Evros River. Its official name, which was most often mentioned in international treaties, is Lacedaemon. It was from this state that such concepts as "Spartan" and "Spartan" came. Everyone has also heard about the cruel custom that has developed in this ancient policy: to kill weak newborns in order to maintain the gene pool of their nation.

History of occurrence

Officially, Sparta, which was called Lacedaemon (the name of the nome, Laconia, also came from this word), arose in the eleventh century BC. After some time, the entire area on which this city-state was located was captured by the Dorian tribes. Those, having assimilated with the local Achaeans, became Spartakiates in the sense known today, and the former inhabitants were turned into slaves, called helots.

The most Doric of all the states that Ancient Greece once knew, Sparta, was located on the western bank of the Eurotas, on the site of the modern city of the same name. Its name can be translated as "scattered". It consisted of estates and estates that were scattered across Laconia. And the center was a low hill, which later became known as the acropolis. Initially, Sparta had no walls and remained true to this principle until the second century BC.

Government of Sparta

It was based on the principle of unity of all full-fledged citizens of the policy. For this, the state and law of Sparta strictly regulated the life and life of its subjects, restraining their property stratification. The foundations of such a social system were laid by the agreement of the legendary Lycurgus. According to him, the duties of the Spartans were only sports or military art, and crafts, agriculture and trade were the work of helots and perieks.

As a result, the system established by Lycurgus transformed the Spartan military democracy into an oligarchic-slave-owning republic, which at the same time still retained some signs of a tribal system. Here it was not allowed to land, which was divided into equal plots, considered the property of the community and not subject to sale. Helot slaves also, as historians suggest, belonged to the state, and not to wealthy citizens.

Sparta is one of the few states headed by two kings at the same time, who were called archagetes. Their power was hereditary. The powers that each king of Sparta possessed were limited not only to military power, but also to the organization of sacrifices, as well as participation in the council of elders.

The latter was called gerousia and consisted of two archagetes and twenty-eight gerontes. The elders were elected by the people's assembly for life only from the Spartan nobility who had reached sixty years of age. Gerusia in Sparta performed the functions of a certain government body. She prepared issues that needed to be discussed at public meetings, and also led foreign policy. In addition, the council of elders considered criminal cases, as well as state crimes directed, among other things, against the archagets.

Court

Judicial proceedings and the law of ancient Sparta were regulated by the board of ephors. This organ first appeared in the eighth century BC. It consisted of the five most worthy citizens of the state, who were elected by the people's assembly for only one year. At first, the powers of the ephors were limited only to litigation of property disputes. But already in the sixth century BC, their power and authority are growing. Gradually, they begin to displace gerusia. The ephors were given the right to convene a national assembly and gerousia, regulate foreign policy, and exercise internal control of Sparta and its legal proceedings. This body was so important in the social structure of the state that its powers included the control of officials, including the archaget.

People's Assembly

Sparta is an example of an aristocratic state. In order to suppress the forced population, whose representatives were called helots, the development of private property was artificially restrained in order to maintain equality among the Spartans themselves.

Apella, or popular assembly, in Sparta was distinguished by passivity. Only full-fledged male citizens who had reached the age of thirty had the right to participate in this body. At first, the people's assembly was convened by the archaget, but later its leadership also passed to the college of ephors. Apella could not discuss the issues put forward, she only rejected or accepted the decision she proposed. The members of the people's assembly voted in a very primitive way: by shouting or dividing the participants on different sides, after which the majority was determined by eye.

Population

The inhabitants of the Lacedaemonian state have always been class unequal. This situation was created by the social system of Sparta, which provided for three estates: the elite, perieks - free residents from nearby cities who did not have the right to vote, as well as state slaves - helots.

The Spartans, who were in privileged conditions, were engaged exclusively in war. They were far from trade, crafts and agriculture, all this was given as a right to be farmed out to the perieks. At the same time, the estates of the elite Spartans were processed by the helots, whom the latter rented from the state. During the heyday of the state, the nobility was five times less than the perieks, and ten times less than the helots.

All periods of existence of this one of the most ancient states can be divided into prehistoric, ancient, classical, Roman, and each of them left its mark not only in the formation of the ancient state of Sparta. Greece borrowed a lot from this history in the process of its formation.

prehistoric era

Lelegs originally lived on the Laconian lands, but after the capture of the Peloponnese by the Dorians, this area, which has always been considered the most infertile and generally insignificant, as a result of deceit went to the two minor sons of the legendary king Aristodem - Eurysthenes and Proclus.

Soon Sparta became the main city of Lacedaemon, the structure of which for a long time did not stand out from the rest of the Doric states. She waged constant external wars with neighboring Argive or Arcadian cities. The most significant rise occurred during the reign of Lycurgus, the ancient Spartan legislator, to whom ancient historians unanimously attribute the political structure that subsequently dominated Sparta for several centuries.

ancient era

After winning the wars lasting from 743 to 723 and from 685 to 668. BC, Sparta was able to finally defeat and capture Messenia. As a result, its ancient inhabitants were deprived of their lands and turned into helots. Six years later, Sparta, at the cost of incredible efforts, defeated the Arcadians, and in 660 BC. e. forced Tegea to recognize her hegemony. According to the contract, stored on a column placed near Alfea, she forced her to conclude a military alliance. It was from this time that Sparta in the eyes of the peoples began to be considered the first state of Greece.

The history of Sparta at this stage boils down to the fact that its inhabitants began to make attempts to overthrow the tyrants that appeared from the seventh millennium BC. e. in almost all Greek states. It was the Spartans who helped expel the Cypselides from Corinth, the Peisistrati from Athens, they contributed to the liberation of Sicyon and Phokis, as well as several islands in the Aegean Sea, thereby gaining grateful supporters in different states.

History of Sparta in the classical era

Having entered into an alliance with Tegea and Elis, the Spartans began to attract the rest of the cities of Laconia and neighboring regions to their side. As a result, the Peloponnesian Union was formed, in which Sparta assumed hegemony. These were wonderful times for her: she led the wars, was the center of meetings and all meetings of the Union, without encroaching on the independence of individual states that retained autonomy.

Sparta never tried to extend its own power to the Peloponnese, but the threat of danger prompted all other states, with the exception of Argos, during the Greco-Persian wars to come under its protection. Having eliminated the danger directly, the Spartans, realizing that they were unable to wage war with the Persians far from their own borders, did not object when Athens assumed further leadership in the war, limiting itself only to the peninsula.

Since that time, signs of rivalry between these two states began to appear, which subsequently resulted in the First, ending with the Thirty Years' Peace. The fighting not only broke the power of Athens and established the hegemony of Sparta, but also led to a gradual violation of its foundations - the legislation of Lycurgus.

As a result, in 397 BC, there was an uprising of Cinadon, which, however, was not crowned with success. However, after certain setbacks, especially the defeat at the battle of Knidos in 394 BC. e, Sparta ceded Asia Minor, but became a judge and mediator in Greek affairs, thus motivating its policy with the freedom of all states, and was able to secure primacy in alliance with Persia. And only Thebes did not obey the conditions set, thereby depriving Sparta of the advantages of such a shameful world for her.

Hellenistic and Roman era

Starting from these years, the state began to decline rather quickly. Impoverished and burdened with the debts of its citizens, Sparta, whose system was based on the legislation of Lycurgus, turned into an empty form of government. An alliance was made with the Phocians. And although the Spartans sent them help, they did not provide real support. In the absence of King Agis, with the help of money received from Darius, an attempt was made to get rid of the Macedonian yoke. But he, having failed in the battles of Megapolis, was killed. Gradually began to disappear and became a household spirit, which was so famous for Sparta.

Rise of an empire

Sparta is a state that for three centuries was the envy of all Ancient Greece. Between the eighth and fifth centuries BC, it was a collection of hundreds of cities, often at war with each other. One of the key figures for the formation of Sparta as a powerful and strong state was Lycurgus. Before its appearance, it was not much different from the rest of the ancient Greek policies-states. But with the advent of Lycurgus, the situation changed, and priorities in development were given to the art of war. From that moment on, Lacedaemon began to transform. And it was during this period that he flourished.

From the eighth century B.C. e. Sparta began to wage aggressive wars, conquering one by one its neighbors in the Peloponnese. After a series of successful military operations, Sparta moved on to establishing diplomatic ties with its most powerful opponents. Having concluded several treaties, Lacedaemon stood at the head of the union of the Peloponnesian states, which was considered one of the most powerful formations of Ancient Greece. The creation of this alliance by Sparta was to serve to repel the Persian invasion.

The state of Sparta has been a mystery to historians. The Greeks not only admired its citizens, but feared them. One type of bronze shields and scarlet cloaks worn by the warriors of Sparta put opponents to flight, forcing them to capitulate.

Not only the enemies, but the Greeks themselves did not really like it when an army, even a small one, was located next to them. Everything was explained very simply: the warriors of Sparta had a reputation for being invincible. The sight of their phalanxes caused even the worldly-wise to panic. And although only a small number of fighters participated in the battles in those days, nevertheless, they never lasted long.

The beginning of the decline of the empire

But at the beginning of the fifth century BC. e. a massive invasion, undertaken from the East, was the beginning of the decline of the power of Sparta. The huge Persian empire, always dreaming of expanding its territories, sent a large army to Greece. Two hundred thousand people stood at the borders of Hellas. But the Greeks, led by the Spartans, accepted the challenge.

King Leonidas

Being the son of Anaxandrides, this king belonged to the Agiad dynasty. After the death of his older brothers, Dorieus and Klemen the First, it was Leonidas who took over the reign. Sparta in 480 years before our era was at war with Persia. And the name of Leonid is associated with the immortal feat of the Spartans, when a battle took place in the Thermopylae Gorge, which has remained in history for centuries.

It happened in 480 BC. e., when the hordes of the Persian king Xerxes tried to capture the narrow passage connecting Central Greece with Thessaly. At the head of the troops, including the allied ones, was Tsar Leonid. Sparta at that time occupied a leading position among friendly states. But Xerxes, taking advantage of the betrayal of the dissatisfied, bypassed the Thermopylae Gorge and went into the rear of the Greeks.

Upon learning of this, Leonid, who fought on a par with his soldiers, disbanded the allied detachments, sending them home. And he himself, with a handful of warriors, whose number was only three hundred people, stood in the way of the twenty thousandth Persian army. The Thermopylae Gorge was strategic for the Greeks. In the event of a defeat, they would be cut off from Central Greece, and their fate would be sealed.

For four days, the Persians were unable to break the incomparably smaller enemy forces. The heroes of Sparta fought like lions. But the forces were unequal.

The fearless warriors of Sparta died one and all. Together with them, their king Leonid fought to the end, who did not want to abandon his comrades.

The name of Leonid has gone down in history forever. Chroniclers, including Herodotus, wrote: “Many kings have died and have long been forgotten. But Leonid is known and honored by everyone. His name will always be remembered by Sparta, Greece. And not because he was a king, but because he fulfilled his duty to his homeland to the end and died like a hero. Films have been made and books written about this episode in the life of the heroic Hellenes.

The feat of the Spartans

The Persian king Xerxes, who did not leave the dream of capturing Hellas, invaded Greece in 480 BC. At this time, the Hellenes held the Olympic Games. The Spartans were preparing to celebrate Carnei.

Both of these holidays obligated the Greeks to observe a sacred truce. This was one of the main reasons why only a small detachment opposed the Persians in the Thermopylae Gorge.

A detachment of three hundred Spartans, led by King Leonidas, headed towards the army of Xerxes with thousands of men. Warriors were selected on the basis of having children. On the way, a thousand Tegeans, Arcadians and Mantineans, as well as one hundred and twenty from Orchomenus, joined the militias of Leonidas. Four hundred soldiers were sent from Corinth, three hundred from Phlius and Mycenae.

When this small army approached the Thermopylae pass and saw the number of Persians, many soldiers were frightened and began to talk about retreat. Part of the allies proposed to withdraw to the peninsula in order to guard Isthm. Others, however, were outraged by the decision. Leonid, ordered the army to remain in place, sent messengers to all the cities asking for help, since they had too few soldiers to successfully repel the attack of the Persians.

For four whole days, King Xerxes, hoping that the Greeks would take flight, did not start hostilities. But seeing that this was not happening, he sent the Cassians and Medes against them with orders to take Leonidas alive and bring him to him. They quickly attacked the Hellenes. Each attack of the Medes ended in huge losses, but others came to replace the fallen. It was then that it became clear to both the Spartans and the Persians that Xerxes had many people, but there were few warriors among them. The fight lasted all day.

Having received a decisive rebuff, the Medes were forced to retreat. But they were replaced by the Persians, led by Gidarn. Xerxes called them the "immortal" detachment and hoped that they would easily finish off the Spartans. But in hand-to-hand combat, they did not succeed, just like the Medes, to achieve great success.

The Persians had to fight in tight quarters, and with shorter spears, while the Hellenes had longer ones, which in this fight gave a certain advantage.

At night, the Spartans again attacked the Persian camp. They managed to kill many enemies, but their main goal was to defeat Xerxes himself in the general turmoil. And only when dawn broke, the Persians saw the small number of the detachment of King Leonidas. They threw spears at the Spartans and finished off with arrows.

The road to Central Greece was open to the Persians. Xerxes personally inspected the battlefield. Finding the deceased Spartan king, he ordered him to cut off his head and put it on a stake.

There is a legend that King Leonidas, going to Thermopylae, clearly understood that he would die, therefore, when his wife asked him what the orders would be, he ordered him to find a good husband and give birth to sons. This was the life position of the Spartans, who were ready to die for their Motherland on the battlefield in order to receive a crown of glory.

Beginning of the Peloponnesian War

After some time, the Greek policies that were at war with each other united and were able to repulse Xerxes. But, despite the joint victory over the Persians, the alliance between Sparta and Athens did not last long. In 431 BC. e. The Peloponnesian War broke out. And only a few decades later, the Spartan state was able to win.

But not everyone in ancient Greece liked the supremacy of Lacedaemon. Therefore, half a century later, new hostilities broke out. This time, Thebes became his rivals, who, together with their allies, managed to inflict a serious defeat on Sparta. As a result, the power of the state was lost.

Conclusion

This is what ancient Sparta was like. She was one of the main contenders for primacy and supremacy in the ancient Greek picture of the world. Some milestones in Spartan history are sung in the works of the great Homer. A special place among them is occupied by the outstanding Iliad.

And now from this glorious policy now there are only the ruins of some of its buildings and unfading glory. Legends about the heroism of its warriors, as well as a small town of the same name in the south of the Peloponnese peninsula, have reached contemporaries.

Spartans are residents of one of the ancient Greek policies (city-states) on the territory of Ancient Greece, which existed from the 8th century BC. BC. Sparta ceased to exist after the Roman conquest of Greece in the 2nd half of the 2nd century BC. BC, but the decline of Sparta began already in the 3rd century. BC. The Spartans created an original and original civilization, strikingly different from the civilization of other ancient Greek policies, and still attracting the attention of researchers. The basis of the Spartan state was the laws of Lycurgus, the Spartan king who lived in the 7th century BC.

Nature

The Spartan state was located in the southern part of the Greek Peloponnese peninsula. The geographical position of Sparta was isolated. Sparta was located in a valley sandwiched between a river and mountains. The valley contained a large amount of fertile land, and the foothills abounded with wild fruit trees, rivers and streams.

Lessons

The main occupation of the Spartans was military affairs. Craft and trade were engaged in perieks - personally free, but deprived of political rights, the inhabitants of Sparta. Helots were engaged in agriculture - the inhabitants of the lands conquered by the Spartans, turned into state slaves. In connection with the focus of the Sparatan state on the equality of all free citizens (moreover, equality not in the legal, but in the literal - everyday sense), only the manufacture of the most necessary items - clothes, utensils and other household utensils - was distributed from crafts. In connection with the military orientation of Sparta, only the manufacture of weapons and armor was at a high technical level.

Means of transport

The Spartans used horses, wagons and chariots. According to the laws of Lycurgus, the Spartans did not have the right to be sailors and fight at sea. However, in later periods, the Spartans had a navy.

Architecture

The Spartans did not recognize excesses and therefore their architecture (both external and internal decoration of buildings) was extremely functional. Naturally, with this approach, the Spartans did not create outstanding architectural structures.

Warfare

The Spartan army had a rigid organizational structure, which evolved and differed in different time periods. Heavily armed foot soldiers - hoplites were recruited from the citizens of Sparta and formed the basis of the army. Each Spartan went to war with his own weapon. The set of weapons was clearly regulated, and consisted of a spear, a short sword, a round shield and armor (bronze helmet, armor and greaves). Each hoplite had a helot squire. The army also served perieks, armed with bows and slings. The Spartans did not know fortification and siege work. In the later periods of history, Sparta had a navy and won a number of naval victories, but the Spartans never paid much attention to military affairs at sea.

Sport

Spartans have been preparing for war since childhood. From the age of 7, the child was taken away from the mother, and a long and complex learning process began, lasting 13 years. This made it possible to bring up a strong, skillful and experienced warrior by the age of 20. Spartan warriors were the best in Ancient Greece. In Sparta, many types of athletic activities and competitions were practiced. Spartan girls also underwent military and athletic training, which included such sections as running, jumping, wrestling, discus and javelin throwing.

Art and literature

The Spartans despised art and literature, recognizing only music and singing. Spartan dances had a military rather than an aesthetic focus.

The science

The Spartans studied only the basics of literacy - reading, writing, military and religious songs; history, religion and traditions of Sparta. All other types of science and education (including people involved in them) were expelled from the country and banned.

Religion

In general, the Spartans adhered to the ancient Greek polytheistic religion, with the difference that fewer religious holidays were celebrated in Sparta, and they celebrated with less fanfare. To a certain extent, the role of religion in Sparta was taken over by Spartan morality.