Ancient Greek History – Year 12 Revision Notes

Student: Maxi Course: A-level Ancient History, Year 12 (Greek component) Exam board: OCR A Level Ancient History (H407). Your outline's final exam matches OCR component H407/11 "Sparta and the Greek World": 2 hours 30 minutes, 98 marks.

The two sections of the paper:

Section	Content	Questions
A: Period study	"Relations between Greek states and between Greek and non-Greek states, 492–404 BC" (your Greece in conflict / Persian Wars topics)	One of two 30-mark essays (AO1 5 / AO2 10 / AO3 15), plus one compulsory 20-mark interpretation question (AO1 5 / AO4 15)
B: Depth study	"The Society and Politics of Sparta, 478–404 BC"	One compulsory 12-mark source question (AO1 6 / AO3 6), plus one of two 36-mark essays (AO1 6 / AO2 12 / AO3 18)

Assessment objectives:

• AO1: knowledge.
• AO2: analysis and evaluation of events and issues.
• AO3: use and evaluation of ancient sources.
• AO4: analysis and evaluation of modern historians' interpretations.

How to use these notes. They follow your outline in order:

• Autumn: background, sources and the Spartan political structure; then Spartan society.
• Spring: education, the military and the "Spartan mirage"; then foreign policy.
• Summer: Herodotus and Persia, the Ionian Revolt; then Marathon, Xerxes, Greek preparations, Thermopylae and Artemisium.

Each topic has Key ideas → Glossary → Ancient sources (what they say + reliability) → Historians' debate → Exam technique → Self-test.

⚠️ On quotations: where words appear in quotation marks, they are standard, well-known renderings. Translations differ, so learn the sense and the reference. Most source content is paraphrased and marked as such. References are to the OCR-prescribed passages (OCR prescribes the Penguin translations of Herodotus and Thucydides and LACTOR 21 Sparta; LACTOR numbers are in brackets).

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0. Exam technique for the Greek paper

0.1 The 12-mark source question (Sparta depth study)

Typical question: "How useful is this passage for our understanding of [topic]?"

• Marks: AO1 6 (knowledge) and AO3 6 (source evaluation).
• Time: about 15–18 minutes.
• Method:
  1. Content: what the passage tells us about the topic. Quote short phrases from it.
  2. Knowledge: confirm, extend or challenge the passage with your own knowledge, i.e. facts and other sources such as Xenophon, Thucydides or Aristotle.
  3. Provenance (usefulness and limitations):
     • Author: e.g. Athenian or Spartan; contemporary or later; admirer or critic.
     • Date: e.g. Plutarch wrote around AD 100, more than 500 years after the events.
     • Purpose and genre: e.g. a moral biography, a political treatise, a comedy, poetry.
     • Sources used.
  4. Judgement: how useful the passage is, and for what aspect. "Useful for the ideal of the agoge, less so for its reality in the 5th century."
• ✅ Do: link the provenance point to the content. Example: "Because Xenophon admired Sparta, his claim that the boys were never idle may idealise."
• ❌ Don't: write generic comments like "it might be biased" without explaining how and why.

0.2 The 36-mark essay (Sparta depth study)

Example question: "'The ephors were the most powerful element in the Spartan constitution.' How far do you agree?"

• Marks: AO1 6 / AO2 12 / AO3 18. Half the marks are for using and evaluating the ancient sources.
• Time: about 50 minutes.
• Structure:
  • Introduction: your line of argument, the criteria you will judge by (e.g. legal power versus actual influence), and the main sources.
  • Four or five thematic paragraphs. Each should contain:
    • a point;
    • evidence from an ancient source, with a reference (e.g. Hdt. 6.56; Thuc. 1.87; Arist. Pol. 2.9);
    • evaluation of that source (author, date, purpose, reliability);
    • analysis back to the question.
  • Counter-argument paragraphs.
  • Conclusion: a sustained judgement.
• Top-band answers use a range of sources and evaluate them critically and in context, and they reach a substantiated judgement.

0.3 The 30-mark essay (period study)

Example question: "How far were Xerxes' motives for invading Greece in 480 BC driven by revenge?"

• Marks: AO1 5 / AO2 10 / AO3 15.
• Time: about 45 minutes.
• Structure: the same as the 36-mark essay, but focused on events, causes and consequences across the period. Integrate source evaluation, mainly of Herodotus and Thucydides.

0.4 The 20-mark interpretation question (period study, mainly Year 13)

Format: you are given a passage by a modern historian, e.g. on the reasons for Greek victory in 480–479 BC. The question asks: "How convincing is the interpretation in this passage?"

• Marks: AO1 5 / AO4 15.
• Method:
  1. Identify the historian's argument.
  2. Test it against your knowledge and the ancient evidence.
  3. Consider what the historian omits, and alternative views.
  4. Reach a judgement on how convincing it is.
• The three prescribed debates:
  • the reasons for victory over Persia, 480–479;
  • the cause of the Peloponnesian War;
  • the reasons for Athenian failure in the Peloponnesian War.

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Topic 13: Xerxes' motives for invasion (480 BC)

Background

• Darius' death: Darius planned a new expedition (7.1), but an Egyptian revolt (486) and his death intervened.
• Xerxes (r. 486–465) first reconquered Egypt (7.7).

Herodotus' account of the decision (7.5–19)

• Mardonius:
  • He urged revenge on Athens and praised Europe as a beautiful, fertile land fit for the king alone (7.5).
  • Herodotus says Mardonius wanted to become governor of Greece (7.6).
• Greek exiles:
  • The Aleuadae of Thessaly invited Xerxes.
  • The Peisistratids, with the oracle-monger Onomacritus, recited favourable oracles (7.6).
• Xerxes' speech to the Persian nobles (7.8, paraphrased):
  • He would follow the Persian tradition of expansion, established by his predecessors.
  • He would avenge the burning of Sardis and Marathon.
  • He would extend the empire until it bordered "the sky of Zeus", so the sun would see no land beyond Persian rule.
• Artabanus, Xerxes' uncle, warned against the risks, citing Darius' failure in Scythia and the dangers of the sea and the bridge (7.10).
• The dreams:
  • Xerxes changed his mind. Then a dream-figure repeatedly threatened him if he abandoned the campaign.
  • Artabanus, wearing the king's clothes and sleeping in his bed, saw the same dream, and was converted (7.12–18).
  • This is divine compulsion: a tragic pattern of hubris.
• At Abydos (7.45–52):
  • Xerxes weeps at the brevity of human life as he views his army (7.46).
  • Artabanus warns that land and sea are his greatest enemies (7.49).
  • Xerxes replies that great things are achieved by taking great risks (7.50).

Motives: an evaluation

Motive	Evidence	Assessment
Revenge for Sardis and Marathon	Hdt. 7.5, 7.8; Darius' wish (5.105)	Prominent in Herodotus. Plausible as a public justification, and personal honour mattered.
Imperial expansion and royal ideology	Hdt. 7.8 ("tradition"); the Xerxes and Naqsh-e Rustam inscriptions (universal kingship)	Briant and others stress that expansion was a duty of kingship for a new king proving himself. Strong.
Personal ambition and glory	Xerxes' desire to match his ancestors (7.8); his need to establish his authority after his accession and the revolts	Plausible.
Influence of advisers	Mardonius' ambition; the Aleuadae and Peisistratids (7.6)	Herodotus emphasises court politics. Probably secondary.
Divine will / fate	The dreams (7.12–18)	A literary and religious explanation typical of Herodotus. Not a historical cause in modern terms, but it shows Greek perceptions.
Strategic security	Mainland Greeks had supported the Ionian Revolt; Greek resistance encouraged unrest	A modern explanation; consistent with Persian frontier policy.

Historians:

• Peter Green emphasises Xerxes' strategic and imperial motives, and his need to complete his father's work.
• Holland contrasts Herodotus' "tragic" Xerxes with Persian evidence for a capable ruler.
• Briant places the expedition within normal Achaemenid imperial policy.

Exam technique: model 30-mark plan

Question: "Revenge was the main reason why Xerxes invaded Greece in 480 BC." How far do you agree?

• Introduction: revenge was the stated reason, but royal ideology and expansion were more fundamental.
• Paragraph 1: the case for revenge, from Herodotus 7.5 and 7.8 and the Darius tradition (5.105). Evaluate Herodotus' dramatising and his use of speeches.
• Paragraph 2: expansion and ideology. Use 7.8 ("tradition"), the inscriptions (DNa/DNb; the Xerxes inscription) and the scale of the preparations (the Athos canal, the bridges), which suggest conquest, not mere punishment of Athens.
• Paragraph 3: advisers and exiles (7.6). Weigh their importance.
• Paragraph 4: divine compulsion (7.12–18). Herodotus' worldview; how to treat it.
• Conclusion: revenge provided the justification; expansion and royal prestige provided the underlying motive.

Self-test

Q1: Who urged Xerxes to invade, according to Herodotus? A: Mardonius (who hoped to govern Greece), the Aleuadae of Thessaly, and the Peisistratids with Onomacritus (7.5–6).

Q2: What role do dreams play in Herodotus' account? A: After Xerxes decided against war, a recurring dream threatened him if he did not invade. Artabanus saw it too. This presents the invasion as divinely compelled, fitting Herodotus' theme of fate and hubris.

Q3: Why do the scale of Xerxes' preparations suggest that revenge was not his only aim? A: A canal through Athos, bridges over the Hellespont, supply depots and a vast army indicate a plan to conquer Greece and expand the empire, not just to punish Athens and Eretria.

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SOURCE BANK (quick reference)

Source	Key passages	Use for	Reliability in one line
Herodotus	5.49–51, 5.75, 5.97, 5.105; 6.56–60, 6.94–124; 7.5–19, 7.104, 7.133, 7.139, 7.144–152, 7.202–234; 8.1–22, 8.144; 9.28	Persian Wars; kings; Thermopylae	Near-contemporary inquiry; oral sources; pro-Greek, pro-Athenian tendency; moralising
Thucydides	1.10, 1.68–88, 1.101–103, 1.128–135; 4.38–41, 4.80–81; 5.34, 5.63–75	Spartan politics and military 478–404	Contemporary, rigorous; speeches reconstructed; Athenian exile
Xenophon, Lak. Pol. and Hellenica	Lak. Pol. 1–4, 11, 13–15; Hell. 2.1–2	Agoge; women; army; kings; Lysander	Insider but laconophile; 4th-century; idealising
Aristotle, Politics 2.9	Ephors, gerousia, women, oliganthropia	Critique of the constitution	Analytical; hostile; post-371 perspective
Plutarch, Lycurgus, Lysander, Sayings	Lyc. 6, 8, 12, 14–18, 26, 28	Rhetra, agoge, syssitia, krypteia, women	Very late; moralising; preserves earlier material; mirage
Tyrtaeus; Alcman	Tyrtaeus fr. 6, 10–12; Alcman 1–3	Helots; martial values; girls' choruses	Authentic Spartan; 7th century; poetic
Kritias; Myron; Plato	D40, D41, Laws 633b–c	Helots; krypteia	Outsiders; agenda-driven
Aelian; Phylarchus	D31, D30	Mothakes	Late compilers
Archaeology	Serpent Column; Spartan epitaph; bronze running girl; Naqsh-e Rustam; Xerxes inscription	Greek alliance; Spartan values; girls; Persian ideology	Contemporary, but limited and needs interpretation

MODERN HISTORIANS TO NAME

• Sparta:
  • Paul Cartledge (Sparta and Lakonia; The Spartans; Thermopylae);
  • Stephen Hodkinson (Property and Wealth in Classical Sparta);
  • Anton Powell (ed., Classical Sparta);
  • Nigel Kennell (The Gymnasium of Virtue);
  • François Ollier (Le Mirage spartiate);
  • Sarah Pomeroy (Spartan Women);
  • Ellen Millender;
  • Jean Ducat (Spartan Education);
  • Michael Flower.
• Persian Wars:
  • Pierre Briant (From Cyrus to Alexander);
  • Tom Holland (Persian Fire);
  • Peter Green (The Greco-Persian Wars);
  • J. F. Lazenby (The Defence of Greece);
  • Peter Krentz (The Battle of Marathon);
  • A. R. Burn (Persia and the Greeks).