Comparison Of Xenophon 's ' Constitution Of Sparta ' And Its Army

The spartan military was one of the most feared militaries in the greek society. They trained their citizens in discipline and honor. Their entire culture was based on war. The spartans began in the mycenaean age(1600 Bce to 1100 Bce).

Ancient Greece is commonly acknowledged as one of the greatest societies to ever exist. Two of the most known civilizations in ancient Greece were Athens and Sparta. However, both of these civilizations were known for completely different reasons. Sparta was recognized for its military above anything else. The Spartan military was an unparalleled fighting force of its time, with its high-end weaponry, organization, and impressive methods of fighting. This is primarily because the Spartan military was the only full-time fighting force in ancient Greece which compelled it to sustain an elite status.

Spartans were very strict and set high expectations for their men in war. Taken from their families at the young age of 7 to train, the boys were whipped and starved. Spartans also enslaved people, called helots. The innocent helots were killed without warning. Spartans were so

In this research paper I am going to talk about how the Spartan Military influenced our society. You are sure to expect to learn about how it affected how we live on an everyday basis. Also, on how it affected the way the U.S military runs/works. Sparta's military has caused many influences on our modern-day society. This includes on how our military works and fights to how we live every day. In the next paragraph I am going to give a little back ground on how Sparta's military training went.

The army was responsible for maintaining the reputation of Sparta, arguably the most important role it played. Knows as the best warriors of the Peloponnese the Spartans used their strong military tactics in order to conquer neighbouring lands in order to further expand Sparta and gain larger areas of fertile land. Sparta lead the untied Peloponnese army and was greatly feared throughout the Mediterranean due to their title as the greatest army throughout Greece. This title in itself made the thought and task of attacking or declaring war on the spartiates a feared happening, further defending them from attacks dismissed as useless and never carried out by neighbouring states. The army was the main defence of Sparta keeping the citizens safe and

The government in Sparta followed a very different coarse than that of the Athenians. It was controlled by an oligarchy in which the power was held by a group of five men called ephors. Working below the ephors was the Council of Elders and an Assembly. Male citizens over age sixty could serve on the Council while anyone, male or female, over the age of twenty could be a member of the Assembly. Though the citizens had little say in the decisions made by the government, the system worked effectively. Over the years, the Spartan's brutal reputation in war grew so great that other nations and city-states were too frightened to attack Sparta even though the Spartan army was no larger then eight thousand men. The Spartan Constitution called for all men to begin their military education at the age of seven, where they were trained to be tough and self-sufficient. Every man in the army fought with a great deal of passion for his country. Life in Sparta may have been rough, but the rest of the Greeks envied the Spartans for their simplicity, straight forwardness, and fanatical dedication. The beliefs of Sparta were oriented around the state. The individual lived and died for the state. The combination of this philosophy, the education of Spartan males, and the discipline of their army gave the Spartans the stability needed to survive in Ancient Greece.

Sparta was surrounded by

Spartan elders and kings were also very serious about the preservation of the Spartan’s history, culture and way of life. This is why they did not encourage foreigners to visit Sparta or anything that may corrupt their way of life. Sparta did not leave behind much art, literature or historic artifacts; but they considered their everyday life or the way that they lived to be a masterpiece all its own.

In the fifth century BCE, Sparta developed in the Eastern Mediterranean. Sparta was limited in size (population), but its military was famous for its toughness. Even with a small population of an army of about 8,000 men, they managed to defend Sparta from incoming attacks. Unfortunately, Spartan boys were forced to join and receive training from age 7. Like the battle of Thermopylae, Sparta was able to shield itself, but all the warriors died.

And lastly, the teamwork and survival skills of the Spartans was a major key factor to how they were so effective in battle. They were not something to mess with as they tend to have a powerful standpoint on how it should be for themselves of surviving. According to document B, it is stated that they were told to steal food for themselves as they live off of having hungry stomachs but if they get caught then they would be disciplined by being whipped, enforcing that they need to work fast and efficient, because getting caught in the real world is not an option, which is why it makes them hardened warriors that almost never fail at what they do as they keep the consequences under check. However, in document A, they were trained from ages 8-21 which makes their bond for each other be at its peak. as they take this brotherly bond into battle then they would have more effectiveness of getting things done as a group, making them a force to be reckoned with. The thing as it may be is that they train their Spartans to the max in order to have the utmost effective soldiers fighting for their own beliefs, which is why their powerful

The Agoge was a harsh, tough education program which all men of Sparta were required to participate in. The agoge would begin when a Spartan boy was at the age of seven. All boys would receive the same education which was harsh, brutal, and torturing. It was designed to condition the boys to become ready to fight rather than learning about traditional subjects. In the end, some Spartan boys turned into strong hoplite soldiers while unsuccessful boys were outcast from society. Despite the hardships many Spartan boys had to endure, the agoge would prove very useful for Sparta. Out of all the Greek poleis, Sparta was the one known for having the strongest army.

The people of Sparta didn’t keep a written record of their history, events or customs, instead, it was orally shared. However, Non-Spartans, usually Athenians, did write about what they knew about Sparta and some of the events the Spartans were involved in. Much speculation has occurred as to the reliability of these accounts, not just because of the writers own predisposition, but also because of the secretive tendencies of the Spartans and their own form of propaganda that created a reputation known as the “Spartan Mirage”. Due to inconsistencies in the archaeological evidence and written sources, it is theorised that the Spartans formed a reputation for themselves that may or may not be completely accurate.

     In the military community of the rulers and soldiers of Sparta there was a very strict

Sparta was, above all, a military state, and emphasis on military fitness began at birth, imprinted through society and the political system. The education of the Spartan male children prove that the military and war was constantly a huge part of Spartan society, and the laws and systems that Sparta was governed by, only enforced the militaristic attitude into the society of Sparta. That the Spartans needed to be ready for war is proved by the discord between the Spartiate and the helots, who outnumbered and under ranked the Spartans.

The Spartans lived and breathed war. They learned to fight when they were children, and trained hard for it when they were adults.