Greek Depth Study - Topic 2, Social Structure in Sparta

Plutarch Lycurgus 8

Plutarch Lycurgus 8

How did this redistribution of land happen? Crisis? Second Messenian war, no mention of Messenia at all, however.

Divided the land of Lakonia into 30,000 allotments allocated to the perioikoi

9000 allotments for the 9000 Spartiates. Sufficient to produce an annual crop of 70 measures of barley, 12 for his wife.

Uncertainty as to Polydoros' later adding of 3000. 'some say'. Clearly uncertainty within the sources

Comparable with Herodotus 7 where it states that there are 8000 Spartans

Disputed by Xenophon Lac Pol 15? Royal household high quality land in many of the territories of the periokoi

Plutarch Lycurgus  9

Lakonia used to be very rich and there was a change so maybe we should buy into this

Coinage is bazaar and anachronistic

Plutarch Lycurgus 10

Mess system. Ate boiled meat and cereals

Made wealth "an irrelevance". Created an "un-plutocracy".

Sense of community apparently at dinner. People would be abused for not eating together.

We can read, from the similarities in terms of phrasing and content that Plutarch was highly likely to have been using Xenophon as a source for this

Plutarch Lycurgus 12

"comrade's halls" Groups of 15, supposed to bring food (see the source for what they supposedly brought)

Even the king was bound by the rules of the mess system. Supposedly king Agis wanted to eat at home and they refused to bring him it. Fined him for not performing food

How were they supposed to bring money if they supposedly didn't have money? Internal discrepancy

Voting to allow mess members in

Plutarch Lycurgus 15

Condemnatory to people who did not birth a child

Marriage by capture.

It cannot be that women were full of licence and subjected to this awful marriage ceremony (as is suggested by Aristotle) at the same time.

Wife swapping.

Trying to make the woman look as much like a boy?

Plutarch Lycurgus 24

Supposedly the Spartiates were not permitted to work. Helots and the Perioikoi did this?

Helots do all of the manual work

Who is doing the crafts? Thought that the perioikoi were supposed to be working the land.

Agrees with Xenophon Lac Pol 7

Xenophon Lac Pol 5

Controlled conduct by setting up the system of open public messes in order to cut down on gluttony

• Specific level of nutrition designed so nobody starved

• Mixed age groups within these public messes so that they would behave better.

• Propaganda

• Put a stop to the custom of compulsory drinking.

• Implication that it is purely a dinner evening meal. Ends by nightfall assuming

• Spending time at the gymnasium, not that out of the ordinary

Xenophon Lac pol 7

Supposed Lycurgan attempts to urb wealth and greed:

In Sparta, Spartiates were not permitted to work.

Apparently a Spartiate who helped in terms of physical labour was more well-thought of than one who spent money

Searches made for gold and silver and anyone found with it was fined

Is this different to other Greek states? Aristocracy never works. However, maybe the pool of non-workers was slightly larger.

Corroborates with Plutarch Lycurgus 24

Aristotle Politics 1269

Live luxuriously

Many things were controlled by women apparently

Implication that women control men in Sparta. "What difference does it make whether the women rule or the rulers are ruled by women"

Contrary to the image of women’s position stressed by Plutarch’s account of Marriage by capture (Plutarch Lycurgus 15)

Contradiction by Xenophon in terms of the comment about Spartan women being useless. Xenophon states that Spartan women did not have a meltdown.

Herodotus' account of Gorgo corroborates with this point that women had control behind the scene.

Directly refuted by Plutarch

Aristotle - 1269 (Slavery)

Tells us that helots were continually lying in wait for disasters to befall the Lakedaimonians

Condemnatory of the Helot system

Perhaps he is purely contradicting Plato who is favourable to the Spartan system

Herodotus 9.28

At Plataea there were 5,000 Spartiates and 35,000 helots - 1:7 ratio

Aristotelian Spartan Constitution: 373.10

Aristotle condemns the Krypteia as a practice

Writing from a period where the Spartan state has already failed and is therefore giving a depiction of that society, not the 5th century one we are interested in

Thucydides 1.101-103

Some of the Perioikoi revolted after the earthquake! Shows that not all were happy with Spartan leadership.

Thucydides 4:08

The Perioikik communities closest to Sparta were more loyal to Sparta. Indeed this account of the relief of Pylos states that the Perioikik communities closest to Sparta immediately supported them while the others followed more slowly

Thucydides 5:23

One of the terms of the peace of Nicias stated that - ‘In case of a rising of the slaves, the Athenians are to come to the aid of Sparta with all their strength, according to their resources’

Helots are not slaves, however, who else could the slaves be? Wrong term perhaps?

Thucydides 5:34

The Spartans decree that the helots who fought with Brasidas should be given their freedom and allowed to live where they liked. Joined the previously freed helots at Lepreum - not an extraordinary occasion either. Neodamodeis…

Thucydides 5:64

States that the Spartans moved to support Tegea with their entire force of citizens and helots in greater numbers than on any other occasion.

Really? what about Plataea? Hyperbole…

Thucydides 5:67

Mantinea there were the Brasideans and the “Neodamodeis” fighting separately to the Helots

Thucydides 1:79-84

Archidamus points out in his speech that the Spartans have no public funds, and it is no easy matter to secure contributions from private sources

Diodorus Siculus Library of History 11.63.1-4

Helots and Messenians revolt after the earthquake

Corroborates with Thucydides 1.101-103

Myron of Priene

Imposed every demeaning task on Helots apparently. Insistence that they wore dog-skin caps, dressed in animal skins , received beatings each year.

Apparently they were assigned land

His work was criticised as inaccurate by Pausanias

Plato Laws 633

Stresses the importance of endurance at the Gymnopaidiai (mid-summer festival), and the Krypteia

Strabo Geography, 8.5.4

The Perioikoi supposedly were subject, but had equal rights, to Spartiates, sharing citizenship and offices of state.

Confusing apparently all were originally Perioikoi and their equality was stripped from them under Eursthenes. Everyone aside from the Helots submitted, but the helots revolted and were condemned to be slaves

Great deal of inconsistencies within its text itself and the rest of out information

Tyrtaeus 6

Maltreatment of Messenians - are they helots? Presented as serfs not slaves.

States that half of their produce was given to the Spartan state

Comes from Pausanias’ largely invented history of the Messenians in which he quotes Tyrtaeus.

Plutarch Sayings of Gorgo 6

As she was encouraging her husband Leonidas […] to show herself worthy of Sparta, she asked what she should do; and he said, “Marry a good man, and bear good children.”

Highlights the role of women within Sparta

Likely to be inaccurate, however. Very much play into the Spartan mirage in these sayings.

Thucydides 4:80

Spartans apparently glad to send out helots as they feared a revolution .

States that ‘Spartan policy with regard to the helots had always been based almost entirely on the idea of security’

Strange story of killing off 2,000 of the best helots before sending them 700 less good off to battle with Brasidas.

Plutarch Lycurgus 28

Description of the Krypteia:

Plutarch sceptical of Aristotle’s account of the Krypteia, highlighting that he is using him as a source. Recounts what Aristotle says including the murdering of Helots

References Thucydides’ 4:80 in which 2,000 of the best helots are killed off

References Aristotle’s claim that annual war was made on helots

Forced drinking of wine and the compulsory performance of songs and dances which were vulgar and ludicrous.

Plutarch states that he thinks that the mistreatment of helots only came after the Great Earthquake of c.464BCE

Plutarch Lycurgus 14

Lycurgus put women through a physically tough curriculum of running, wrestling, discus and javelin throwing . Eugenical reasons

Took part in naked processions and singing and dancing at festivals - would shame those who did poorly and praised those who succeeded encouraging competitiveness in men

Foreign woman supposedly said that Lakonian women rule men and Gorgo agrees saying “we are the only women who give birth to real men”

Xenophon Lac Pol 15

king had high quality land sufficient enough to sustain the royal household adequately but without excessive wealth

Xenophon Lac Pol 1

Spartiate women did not make clothing . Physical fitness was key. Competed against each other .

Marriage customs in Sparta:

A man should not be seen entering or leaving his wife’s room. Men could not marry when they chose and could only do so when at the height of their physical powers.

elderly man can marry young wife was required to allow a younger man to have sex with his wife for the purpose of producing children. Women, in this situation, ran two households