Contrary to Aristotle’s assertion, Spartan women had nothing to do with the decline of the city-state. Sparta was at its height, even after decades of warfare, when it challenged the strength of Thebes. At the Battle of Leuctra in 371 BCE, Sparta was defeated by the Theban army under the command of Epaminondas (l. c. 420-362 BCE), a force which included The Sacred Band of Thebes – a unit of 150 same-sex male couples – under the brilliant leader Pelopidas. Epaminondas and Pelopidas inflicted heavy casualties on the Spartans who lost 400 of their 700 hoplite foot soldiers and their king Cleombrotus in the battle.
Prior to Leuctra, Sparta had seemed invincible and so Greek writers, before and after Aristotle, had to find some reason for their defeat other than the obvious - that Epaminondas and Pelopidas had outmaneuvered and outfought Cleombrotus – because that was somehow just unacceptable. The reason these later writers came up with was the autonomy of the Spartan women, which had weakened the state to the point where it was bound to fall.
In reality, Sparta was at its best when men and women were regarded as equals. The female Spartan was honored as the equal of the male in her own sphere of power and authority and, even in the accounts of detractors, performed admirably. It could be argued, in fact, that the strength of the Spartan women allowed for the formidable reputation of the same in the Spartan men.
womenfromhistory_bot ~ Women in Sparta, part VI ~
Show moreContrary to Aristotle’s assertion, Spartan women had nothing to do with the decline of the city-state. Sparta was at its height, even after decades of warfare, when it challenged the strength of Thebes. At the Battle of Leuctra in 371 BCE, Sparta was defeated by the Theban army under the command of Epaminondas (l. c. 420-362 BCE), a force which included The Sacred Band of Thebes – a unit of 150 same-sex male couples – under the brilliant leader Pelopidas. Epaminondas and Pelopidas inflicted heavy casualties on the Spartans who lost 400 of their 700 hoplite foot soldiers and their king Cleombrotus in the battle.
Prior to Leuctra, Sparta had seemed invincible and so Greek writers, before and after Aristotle, had to find some reason for their defeat other than the obvious - that Epaminondas and Pelopidas had outmaneuvered and outfought Cleombrotus – because that was somehow just unacceptable. The reason these later writers came up with was the autonomy of the Spartan women, which had weakened the state to the point where it was bound to fall.
In reality, Sparta was at its best when men and women were regarded as equals. The female Spartan was honored as the equal of the male in her own sphere of power and authority and, even in the accounts of detractors, performed admirably. It could be argued, in fact, that the strength of the Spartan women allowed for the formidable reputation of the same in the Spartan men.
Painting : The Rape of Helen by Tintoretto
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