Who held power in Sparta?

Topic 1: Background to Ancient Greece and working with ancient sources

Enquiry question: Who held power in Sparta?

Key ideas

• The polis (city-state): Greece was not a single country but hundreds of independent poleis, each with its own laws, army and gods. They shared language, religion (e.g. the Olympic Games, Delphi) and a sense of being Hellenes as opposed to barbaroi (non-Greek speakers).
• Types of government:
  • Monarchy: rule by one, usually hereditary.
  • Tyranny: one man seizes power unconstitutionally. In Greek, tyrannos did not necessarily mean cruel. Example: Peisistratus in Athens (6th century).
  • Oligarchy: rule by the few, e.g. the wealthy. Example: Corinth.
  • Democracy (demos = people, kratos = power): rule by the citizen body. Example: Athens after Cleisthenes' reforms (508/7 BC).
  • Demagogue: a "leader of the people". The term was often used pejoratively for populist politicians who swayed the assembly, e.g. Cleon in Athens (according to Thucydides and Aristophanes).
• Sparta's "mixed constitution":
  • Ancient writers saw Sparta as a mixture:
    • kings (a monarchic element);
    • the gerousia (oligarchic);
    • the ephors and the assembly (democratic).
  • Aristotle (Politics 2.9) discusses this.
• Geography:
  • Sparta lay in Laconia in the southern Peloponnese, in the Eurotas valley. It was protected by the Taygetus and Parnon mountains.
  • It conquered neighbouring Messenia in the Messenian Wars of the 8th–7th centuries BC.
  • Lacedaemon was the official name of the state. "Lacedaemonians" covered both Spartiates and perioikoi.
• Lycurgus: the legendary lawgiver credited with Sparta's institutions. Even Plutarch begins his Life of Lycurgus by admitting that nothing about him is undisputed.

Working with ancient sources

Source	Who/when	Genre and purpose	Reliability issues for Sparta
Herodotus, Histories	Born in Halicarnassus, c. 484 BC; wrote c. 440s–420s BC	Inquiry (historia) into the Persian Wars; uses oral tradition and his own travels	Close to the events; open about his sources ("I report what is said"). But he includes legend and moralising, and relied on informants of uneven quality.
Thucydides, History of the Peloponnesian War	An Athenian general, exiled in 424 BC (Thuc. 5.26), which gave him access to both sides	Rigorous, contemporary political and military history	Generally very reliable on events. But the speeches are reconstructions (1.22). He saw Spartan secrecy as a problem (5.68: hard to know Spartan numbers).
Xenophon, Constitution of the Spartans (Lak. Pol.), Hellenica	An Athenian (c. 430–c. 354 BC); exiled; lived on an estate near Olympia granted by the Spartans; friend of King Agesilaus	A treatise praising Lycurgan institutions	Insider knowledge, but laconophile (pro-Spartan). The Lak. Pol. is idealising and largely describes 4th-century Sparta.
Aristotle, Politics 2.9	A philosopher, 4th century BC	Political analysis of constitutions	Critical and analytical. But he wrote after Sparta's decline (post-371 BC), so he may read later problems back.
Plutarch, Lycurgus, Lysander, Sayings	A Greek from Chaeronea, c. AD 46–120	Moralising biography	Uses earlier sources now lost. But he wrote more than 500 years later, when Sparta was a Roman-era "theme park". Much is idealised and anecdotal.
Tyrtaeus and Alcman	Spartan poets, 7th century BC	Poetry: martial elegy (Tyrtaeus) and choral song (Alcman)	Genuine early Spartan voices, but too early for 478–404 and fragmentary.
Aristophanes, e.g. Lysistrata	An Athenian comic playwright, 5th century BC	Comedy for an Athenian audience	Contemporary, but exaggerates for laughs and shows Athenian stereotypes.
Kritias, Plato	Athenians, late 5th/4th century BC	Philosophical and political writing	Admirers of Sparta (Kritias was an oligarch), so they idealise.

Key problem: the Spartans themselves wrote almost nothing in our period. Most evidence comes from outsiders, later writers or admirers. This is the root of the "Spartan mirage" (see Topic 7).

Glossary

Term	Definition
Polis (pl. poleis)	An independent Greek city-state and its territory.
Demos / democracy	"The people" / rule by the citizen body.
Oligarchy	Rule by a small group, usually the wealthy or well-born.
Tyrant	A ruler who seized power unconstitutionally (not necessarily cruel).
Demagogue	A popular leader who sways the assembly; often used negatively.
Lacedaemon	The official name of the Spartan state; Lacedaemonians = Spartiates + perioikoi.
Lycurgus	The legendary Spartan lawgiver.
Laconophile	An admirer of Sparta.

Self-test

Q1: Why is Plutarch's evidence for 5th-century Sparta problematic? A: He wrote around AD 100, more than 500 years later. He wrote moralising biography rather than history. He relied on earlier sources of varying quality, and he describes a Sparta that had been "restored" as a tourist attraction under Rome. So his account may be idealised or anachronistic.

Q2: Distinguish oligarchy from tyranny. A: Oligarchy is rule by a small group, usually the wealthy, through constitutional institutions. Tyranny is rule by one man who seized power unconstitutionally.

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Topic 2: The political structure of Sparta

Prescribed OCR content:

• The roles, duties and responsibilities of the kings, gerousia, ephors and assembly.
• The debates of the 470s (Hetoemaridas) and 432 BC.
• The influence of individuals:
  • Pausanias;
  • Hetoemaridas;
  • Sthenelaidas;
  • Archidamus;
  • Alcibiades;
  • Brasidas;
  • Agis II;
  • Lysander.

The Great Rhetra

• According to Plutarch (Lycurgus 6), this was an oracle from Delphi given to Lycurgus. It established:
  • two kings plus 28 elders (the gerousia of 30);
  • regular assemblies, held "between Babyka and Knakion";
  • that the people should have the final decision.
• A later rider, attributed to Kings Theopompus and Polydorus, said that if the people decided "crookedly", the elders and kings could set the decision aside.
• Reliability: it is archaic and its dating and wording are disputed, but it is widely taken as authentic in essence.

The Kings

• Two hereditary kings, from the Agiad and Eurypontid families, both claiming descent from Heracles.
• Powers and privileges: Herodotus 6.56–60 lists them.
  • Religious: priesthoods of Zeus, sacrifices on behalf of the state, and links with Delphi (the Pythioi).
  • Military: command of the army on campaign.
    • Herodotus says the kings could make war on whatever land they chose (6.56).
    • After the quarrel between Cleomenes and Demaratus at Eleusis (c. 506 BC), a law said only one king should lead an army (Hdt. 5.75).
  • Judicial: decisions about unmarried heiresses, adoptions and public roads.
  • Members of the gerousia.
  • Honours: double portions at meals, and elaborate royal funerals with compulsory mourning (6.58).
• Limits on royal power:
  • The ephors could summon, fine and even prosecute kings.
  • Xenophon (Lak. Pol. 15) describes a monthly exchange of oaths: the king swears to rule according to the laws, and the ephors swear to keep the kingship secure if he does.
  • Two ephors accompanied a king on campaign.
  • Kings were tried and fined, e.g. Pleistoanax (exiled in 446 BC, accused of being bribed) and Agis II after his failure in 418 BC.
  • Thucydides 5.63: the Spartans nearly fined Agis 100,000 drachmas and pulled down his house, then instead appointed ten advisers (xymbouloi) to accompany him.

The Gerousia (council of elders)

• Membership: 28 men over 60, plus the two kings. Members served for life.
• Election by acclamation: candidates walked through the assembly, and judges in a closed building assessed which received the loudest shout (Plutarch, Lycurgus 26).
• Functions:
  • probouleusis: preparing the business for the assembly;
  • acting as the supreme court for capital cases, including trials of kings.
• Aristotle's criticisms (Politics 2.9):
  • The election method is "childish".
  • Lifelong tenure is unwise because the mind ages.
  • Members were open to bribery and favouritism.
• Hetoemaridas (Diodorus 11.50, c. 475 BC): a respected member of the gerousia. He persuaded the Spartans not to go to war to take control of the sea from Athens, even though the younger men and the assembly were keen. This shows the gerousia's influence through prestige.

The Ephors

• Five elected annually from all Spartiates. The eponymous ephor gave his name to the year.
• Powers:
  • presided over the assembly and the gerousia;
  • foreign affairs: received embassies and ordered mobilisations;
  • supervised the agoge and public morals;
  • civil justice;
  • could arrest and fine any citizen, even kings;
  • accompanied kings on campaign;
  • declared war on the helots annually, so killing a helot was ritually clean (Plutarch, Lycurgus 28, citing Aristotle).
• Aristotle (Politics 2.9):
  • Their power is "excessive and equal to a tyranny".
  • Because they are chosen from the whole people, poor men often hold office and are open to bribery.
  • But the office keeps the people content, because it gives them a share in the highest office.
• Sthenelaidas (Thuc. 1.86–87, 432 BC): the ephor whose short, blunt speech urged war against Athens, in contrast to King Archidamus' long, cautious speech.
  • He claimed he could not tell which shout was louder, so he made the assembly physically divide. This was arguably a tactic to pressure the voters.
  • The majority voted that Athens had broken the treaty.

The Assembly (Apella / ekklesia)

• Membership: all adult male Spartiates. The traditional view is that members had to be over 30, but this is debated.
• Voting: by shouting, not by counted votes.
• Powers:
  • voted on war and peace, treaties and laws proposed by the gerousia and ephors;
  • elected the gerontes and ephors.
• Limits:
  • The people could not initiate proposals or debate freely: speakers were magistrates and kings.
  • The Rhetra's rider allowed the gerousia and kings to override "crooked" decisions.
• Key debate: 432 BC (Thuc. 1.79–87).
  • The Corinthians and others complained about Athens.
  • Archidamus warned that Athens was rich, had a navy, and that the war could last for generations: "we may leave it to our children".
  • Sthenelaidas spoke bluntly for war.
  • The assembly voted for war.

Influence of individuals

Individual	Role	Evidence and significance
Pausanias (regent)	Victor of Plataea (479)	He led the Hellenic fleet but was arrogant and despotic at Byzantium. He was recalled, accused of medism and of plotting with helots, and starved to death in the temple of Athena of the Bronze House (Thuc. 1.128–135). His story shows Spartan fear of commanders abroad being corrupted, and the ephors' power.
Hetoemaridas	Elder (geron)	Persuaded the Spartans against war for sea-power in the 470s (Diodorus 11.50), so Sparta accepted Athenian leadership of the Delian League.
Archidamus II	Eurypontid king (r. c. 469–427)	Cautious; argued against war in 432 (Thuc. 1.80–85). Led the invasions of Attica (the "Archidamian War" is named after him).
Sthenelaidas	Ephor, 432	Swung the vote for war (Thuc. 1.86–87).
Brasidas	Commander	Bold; won over Athens' allies in Thrace (424–422) through "justice and moderation" (Thuc. 4.81). Used helot soldiers. Died at Amphipolis (422).
Agis II	Eurypontid king (r. c. 427–400)	Criticised in 418, then won the Battle of Mantinea (418). From 413 he commanded the fort at Decelea in Attica, with wide independent powers (Thuc. 8.5).
Alcibiades	An Athenian defector (415–412)	Advised Sparta to send Gylippus to Syracuse and to fortify Decelea (Thuc. 6.89–93). Shows outsiders could influence Spartan policy.
Lysander	Navarch (407)	Won Persian funding through his friendship with Cyrus the Younger. Destroyed the Athenian fleet at Aegospotami (405). Installed decarchies (boards of ten pro-Spartan oligarchs) and harmosts across the Aegean. He was a mothax according to Aelian and Phylarchus. His personal power worried the Spartan authorities.

Debate: Who held power in Sparta?

• Kings:
  • Prestige and military command made individual kings powerful, e.g. Cleomenes I.
  • But they were constrained by the ephors and by the law of 506 BC (only one king leads an army).
  • Paul Cartledge emphasises that a king's influence depended on personal qualities and patronage, especially within the gerousia.
• Ephors:
  • They had broad executive power, and Aristotle saw them as near-tyrannical.
  • But they served for one year and could not be re-elected, so their power was temporary.
• Gerousia:
  • Its probouleutic role and its control of capital trials gave it real power.
  • Some modern historians (e.g. Anton Powell, Stephen Hodkinson) stress that a body of older, wealthy, lifelong members gave Sparta an essentially oligarchic character.
• Assembly:
  • It was formally sovereign: it voted for war in 432.
  • But it was limited: it voted by shouting, could not initiate proposals, and could be overridden.
• Judgement: power was shared and balanced, which explains Sparta's famous stability (eunomia, "good order"). But in practice it rested with a small elite of kings, gerontes and annual ephors, so it was an oligarchy in practice with democratic forms.

Glossary

Term	Definition
Kings	Two hereditary kings (Agiad and Eurypontid) with religious, military and some judicial powers.
Ephors	Five annually elected magistrates with wide executive and supervisory power.
Gerousia	The council of 28 elders over 60, plus the two kings; probouleutic and judicial.
Apella / assembly	The assembly of adult male Spartiates; voted by shouting.
Great Rhetra	The founding "constitution" of Sparta, preserved by Plutarch.
Probouleusis	Preparing proposals for the assembly.
Eunomia	"Good order" under good laws; a Spartan ideal (the title of a Tyrtaeus poem).
Navarch	An admiral; a Spartan office held for one year.
Harmost	A Spartan governor or military commander placed in a subject city.

Exam technique: model 12-mark answer plan

Question: Herodotus 6.56–58 on the privileges of the kings. "How useful is this passage for our understanding of the power of the Spartan kings?"

• Content:
  • religious priesthoods;
  • the right to wage war;
  • a bodyguard of 100;
  • double portions;
  • lavish funerals.
• Knowledge:
  • It is confirmed by Xenophon (Lak. Pol. 13, 15).
  • But it is qualified by the law of 506 BC on one king leading an army (Hdt. 5.75), the ephors' control, and the trials of Pleistoanax and Agis.
• Provenance:
  • Herodotus wrote in the 5th century and had Spartan informants, perhaps including the Demaratus tradition.
  • He focuses on honours rather than constraints, and describes the archaic position.
• Judgement: very useful for royal status and religious and military roles, but limited as evidence of the kings' actual political power, which was checked by the ephors and the gerousia.

Self-test

Q1: How many members did the gerousia have, and what were the qualifications? A: 30 in total: 28 elders aged over 60, elected for life by acclamation, plus the two kings.

Q2: Give two powers of the ephors. A: Any two of: they presided over the assembly; received foreign embassies and ordered mobilisation; could arrest, fine and prosecute citizens including kings; supervised the agoge; declared war on the helots annually.

Q3: What happened in the Spartan assembly in 432 BC? A: After speeches by the Corinthians, the Athenians, King Archidamus (who urged caution) and the ephor Sthenelaidas (who urged war), the assembly voted, by physically dividing at Sthenelaidas' request, that Athens had broken the peace (Thuc. 1.79–87).

Q4: What did Aristotle criticise about the ephorate? A: It had excessive, almost tyrannical power, and because ephors were chosen from the whole people, poor men held the office and could be bribed.

Q5: What was the significance of Hdt. 5.75? A: After Cleomenes and Demaratus quarrelled during the invasion of Attica (c. 506), a law was passed that only one king should lead an army. This limited royal power.

Assessment checkpoints: 12-mark source question (with guidance); a further 12-mark question as homework.

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