Overview

Sparta is one of the best-documented states of ancient Greece. Its political and social systems have fascinated and perplexed generations of classical scholars, as well as having a powerful influence on European civilization to this day. In this fully revised and updated edition of his groundbreaking study, Paul Cartledge uncovers the realities behind the potent myth of Sparta. The book explores both the city-state of Sparta and the territory of Lakonia which it unified and exploited. Combining the more traditional written sources with archaeological and environmental perspectives, its coverage extends from the apogee of Mycenaean culture, to Sparta's crucial defeat at the battle of Mantinea in 362 BC. One of the major themes examined is the relationship between the Spartans, the Perioikoi (the free but politically disenfranchised) and the Helots (unfree peoples). Cartledge demonstrates convincingly that the system of land-tenure based on the exploitation of the helots carried within it the seeds both of Spartan grandeur, and of Spartan decadence.

Full Product Details

Author:   Paul Cartledge
Publisher:   Taylor & Francis Ltd
Imprint:   Routledge
Edition:   2nd edition
Dimensions:   Width: 15.60cm , Height: 1.90cm , Length: 23.40cm
Weight:   0.680kg
ISBN:  

9780415262767

ISBN 10:   0415262763
Pages:   372
Publication Date:   22 November 2001
Audience:   College/higher education ,  Professional and scholarly ,  Tertiary & Higher Education ,  Undergraduate
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   In Print  
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Table of Contents

Part I. Introduction Preface 1. Boundaries 2. The Physical Setting 3. Climate 4. The Stone and Bronze Ages to c. 1300 Part II. Pre-classical Lakonia c. 1300-500BC 5. Greek Oral Tradition as History 6. The Last Mycenaeans c.1300-1050 7. The First Dorians c. 1050-775 8. The Lakonian Renascence c. 775-650 9. The Consolidation of Lakonia c. 650-490 10. Helots and Perioikoi Part III Classical Lakonia c. 500-362BC 11. The Crisis of Lakonia 490-460 12. The Athenian Wars c.460-404 13. The Reduction of Lakonia 404-362 Part IV Results and Prospects 14. The Decline of Spartiate Manpower 15. Epilogue Appendix 1. Gazetteer of sites in Lakonia and Messenia Appendix 2. The Homeric Poems as History Appendix 3. The Spartan King-lists Appendix 4. The Helots: Some Ancient Sources in Translation Appendix 5. The Sanctuary of (Artemis) Orthia

Reviews

'...scholarship is presented with a nice fusion of panache and elegant prose.' - Terence Mullaly, Rivista, no. 283, 2003

Author Information

Cartledge, Paul

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