Describe the Social, Cultural and Political Features of Classical Athens and Ancient Sparta

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.

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 known in Greek as Sparti. The city lied at the southern end of the central Laconia plain, on the right bank of the Eurotas River. Its population was about 100,000 and it was located in the Laconia region. It had a fairly temperate but very dry climate. Sparta’s also depended on agriculture for their sustenance. They had a mandatory military service. Their system of leadership was Oligarchic and their descendants were mostly the descendants of the Dorian invaders. Athens, on the other hand, was the largest capital city of Greece. Its citizens were about 140,000. The region in which Athens was situated was Attica. The city of Athens had a Mediterranean climate. Athenians depended on trade and agriculture for survival. They did not have a military based system. They practiced Democracy and their descendants were mostly from Ionian descent. (Diffen, n.d).

During the Fifth century, Greece was controlled by two main powers; Athens and Sparta. These city-states were very different. Sparta was known for their strength, discipline, individuality, beauty, sports, and learning (Beck et al. 131). Athens was known for education, fitness, art, literature, and wealth. Not to overlook the rights of women, which were a little elevated in Sparta, the city that had an overall greater respect for human rights, would be Athens.

Athens and Sparta are two powerful city-states, different from each other in such way that

Ancient Greece was comprised of small city-states, of which Sparta and Athens were two. Athens was renowned as a center of wisdom and learning. The people of Athens were interested in arts, music, and intellectual pursuits. Sparta, on the other hand, was recognized for its military strength. A Spartan's life was centered on the state, because he 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.

​There are two main periods in Greece history, Hellenic and Hellenistic period. They have some similarities but they are significantly different. Many people believe that the Classical era is the most impressive due to the success in literature, science, philosophy and architecture, which does not mean that the Ancient Greece is less significant. While in Hellenic era they saw rising and falling of the polis in Hellenistic era it was more about war and fighting for among the prevailing dynasties. The thing that they have in common is that they were consistent in discovering new philosophies and science also decreasing the role of gods.

In the period known as classical Greece in the years 800-323 BCE, Greece comprised of small city states (poleis) which were considered and operated as independent small countries. Amongst those city states Athens and Sparta were two of the most powerful and considered in Greek history as the most influential states to western civilisation. These two city states shared some common characteristics whilst in some instances they were very different from each other. Sparta and Athens had differences and similarities in the way they governed their city states, in how they established their military forces, how they treated women, their marriage customs and social gatherings

Athens and Sparta were two of the most powerful and well known cities among all the Greek nations. Most would find it easier to find more similarities among these two groups of mighty people. But there are some differences between these two power houses. For instance the way that these cities were governed and their political procedures and functions were quite different from each other.

     Another characteristic that set the differences between Sparta and the Athens were their societies. Although

Athens and Sparta, the two largest and most powerful cities in ancient Greece (between 800 and 323 BCE) were two different models of polis, their social, political and cultural values and ways of life were dramatically different. (Brand, n.d.)

Sparta was a militaristic state that kept to themselves and only attacked when they felt necessary.Spartans didn’t fight offensive battles for no reason.Spartans farmed their own food and didn’t have a need for trade. Spartans were highly independent and only depended on themselves and people they conquered to farm.

Spartan society itself changed after its transition tot a military state. The center of Spartan life was the military and the polis. Children were systematically determined at birth whether they were weak or strong and left to die of exposure if deemed unfit to serve the state 's army. This had been performed before in Greece, but the state institutionalized it and made it a common practice. At the age of seven the Spartan male was sent to military and athletic school. There they were taught survival skills, endurance of pain, discipline, and toughness. This continued for 13 years when the Spartan was 20 and became a soldier. A soldier would live in his barracks with fellow soldiers, eat with his fellow soldiers, fight with his fellow soldiers and even die with them. The life of a Spartan male was one of simplicity, discipline, and self-denial. The Spartan ideology was state oriented, the life of a male was designed to serve the state from birth to the age of 60. This ideology, the rigorous military training, and the disciplined maintenance of the Spartan armies gave the polis a stability that was threatened by the Messenian revolt. This stability was seen in the government of the Spartans, which was composed of a dual monarchy at the top with two kings and 28 nobles. This council debated over issues and set legislative and foreign policy. All of the Spartan males

Sparta was one of the most powerful city-states in Greece and in order to increase a food supply, the Spartans turned to their bordering country Messenia. In the eighth century B.C. the Spartans conquered the Messenians and set up a new type of social system. The Messenians would work the soil to supply the Spartans with the food supply, which would leave the dominating class available for a life of military training. The Messenians outnumbered the Spartans and without a strong hold the lower-class citizens would eventually overtake them by physical force.

Sparta and Athens were formed in two different ways. Sparta was originally four small villages in Southwestern Peloponnesus that became unified into one polis. They conquered two neighboring areas known as Laconia and Hessenia. These people were then forced to work in Sparta. Athens had established a unified polis on the peninsula of