The Spartan army: organization, tactics, and military culture

Spartan Army by Nick Sekunda attempts to give as in-depth account as possible of the ancient Spartan society's military code of conduct and way of life. Particular detail is given to military dress, weapons, and uniforms, as well as the history and geography of this ancient Greek city-state, and is methods of training its citizen-warriors. Sparta was one of the major powers of ancient Greece, but unlike its ally during the Persian Wars and adversary during the Peloponnesian Wars, Athens, it did not have a democratic system of government. Rather, it was a military, collective dictatorship where young men were reared from birth to be warriors and servants of a proud and cohesive military state. Spartan women were reared to be mothers of great soldiers, and were famously said to tell their sons leaving for battle to either come back with their shields (victorious) or on their shields (dead) (29).

Analysis

The author paints a thought picture of Spartan fighting techniques, lifestyle, and dress. There are many illustrations to substantiate his archeological claims about common dress, as well as citations from contemporary authors, many of whom were not Spartans themselves but were fascinated by the Spartan's apparently strange way of structuring and governing their lives. He analyzes how Spartans were alternately feared, despised, and respected by their fellow Greeks for their dedication to a military life. For example, During the Persian Wars for Greek freedom and independence from Persia, the Spartan war songs were said to be one of the most inspirational forces that led their fellow Greeks, despite the fact that the Greeks were vastly outnumbered by the Persians. The other Greeks placed tremendous confidence in the Spartan's ability to succeed, despite the odds.

Thus, despite Spartan's rough militarism, even though it was not democratic, did foster a sense of citizen loyalty. Sparta was not a monarchy like Persia, nor were its warriors forced to fight on penalty of death. This gave Sparta the legal and moral authority to be one of the key leaders of the Greek forces during the Persian Wars, as well as the military expertise the state had fostered in its warriors, through strict discipline. (5) The manpower shortage of the Greeks made the war of independence from Persia a difficult fight. But famously, even when a Spartan general sustained eye infection had blinded him, when he heard of the superior Persian attack, he asked for his arms and told his helot to take him into the middle of the fighting. (13) Even when foolhardy, the Spartans were always brave. Nick Sekunda suggests that the Persian Wars were the most glorious period in Spartan history, when Spartans were not fighting fellow Greeks as was frequent in future wars, but against the so-called barbarian Persian oppressors. He cites the battle of Thermopylae, as surely Sparta's "finest hour," fighting side by side their fellow Greeks for independence although many thought the Greeks were sure to fall. (51)

Sekunda also states that although the more intellectual Athenians and other Greeks occasionally mocked the Spartan intellect, the Spartans were not necessarily anti-intellectual, but placed a different value upon learning. For example, the Spartans were famous for short, witty aphorisms about bravery and state mottos about fighting, such as "finally, a Spartan woman, when her son complained that his sword was too small, advised him to add a step forward to it" (that is, to move into the front of the battle. (29) This reflected the values of Spartan society in a clear and effective fashion Sekunda suggests. Also contrary to some scholars that suggest that their fellow Greeks after the Persian wars despised the Spartans because of the closed nature of the society some Greek states were alternatively fascinated with and revered the discipline of this peculiar group of warriors. Even Athenians would reflect upon the training of the Spartan men. For instance, every Spartan young man would have to proceed through a specific and rigorous set of steps of training, such as to learn the pyrriche, a dance while carrying weapons which trained the young man "in his movements" from a young age, followed by having to "learn by heart all the songs of Tyrtaios which were sung on campaign." (8)