Athens and Sparta: Different, Yet the Same



Athens and Sparta: Different, Yet the Same

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The two rivals of ancient Greece that made the most noise and gave us the most traditions were Athens and Sparta. They were close together on a map, yet far apart in what they valued and how they lived their lives.

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One of the main ways they were similar was in their form of government. Both Athens and Sparta had an Assembly, whose members were elected by the people. Sparta was ruled by two kings, who ruled until they died or were forced out of office. Athens was ruled by archons, who were elected annually. Thus, because both parts of Athens' government had leaders who were elected, Athens is said to have been the birthplace of democracy.

Spartan life was simple. The focus was on obedience and war. Slavery made this possible by freeing the young men from household and industrial duties and allowing them to focus on their military duties. Young boys were trained to be warriors; young girls were trained to be mothers of warriors.

Athenian life was a creative wonderland. As an Athenian, you could get a good education and could pursue any of several kinds of arts or sciences. You could serve in the army or navy, but you didn't have to. (This applied only to boys, however: Girls were restricted to other pursuits, not war or business or education.)

For many years, Spartan armies provided much of the defense of the Greek lands. The Spartan heroism at the Battle of Thermopylae, during the Persian Wars, inspired all of Greece to fight back with all their might against the invading Persians. Athenian and Spartan fought side by side in the Battle of Plataea, which ended Persian invasions of Greece.

One way that Athens and Sparta really differed was in their idea of getting along with the rest of the Greeks. Sparta seemed content to keep to itself and provide army and assistance when necessary. Athens, on the other hand, wanted to control more and more of the land around them. This eventually led to war between all the Greeks. This was the Peloponnesian War. After many years of hard fighting, Sparta won the war. In true Greek spirit, Sparta refused to burn the city of Athens. Rather, the culture and spirit of Athens was allowed to live on, as long as the Athenians no longer desired to rule their fellow Greeks. In this way, the influence of Athens remained and grew stronger. Other city-states had the same kinds of temples, buildings, and meeting-places, but it was Athens that became most famous.

ATHENS and Sparta were both Greek cities and their people spoke a common language. In every other respect they were different. Athens rose high from the plain. It was a city exposed to the fresh breezes from the sea, willing to look at the world with the eyes of a happy child. Sparta, on the other hand, was built at the bottom of a deep valley, and used the surrounding mountains as a barrier against foreign thought. Athens was a city of busy trade. Sparta was an armed camp where people were soldiers for the sake of being soldiers. The people of Athens loved to sit in the sun and discuss poetry or listen to the wise words of a philosopher. The Spartans, on the other hand, never wrote a single line that was considered literature, but they knew how to fight, they liked to fight, and they sacrificed all human emotions to their ideal of military preparedness.

What would it have been like if you had lived in ancient Sparta or in ancient Athens?

In ancient times the Greeks lived in city states. Each state had its own laws, government and money but they shared the same language and religion. The two most important city states were Athens and Sparta. We know much about Athens because it produced many writers and artists, whose work has survived to this day.

At first both Athens and Sparta were ruled by Kings. Then both were ruled by small groups of powerful people (oligarchies). Later Athens came to be ruled by the people as a democracy whilst Sparta remained an oligarchy.

Athens

Athens was the most powerful Greek state. It was a city with lots of beautiful public buildings, shops and public baths.

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Parthenon, a temple

The people of Athens lived below the Acropolis (rocky hill). The marble Parthenon, a temple, (see picture above) was built on the highest part of the Acropolis.

Inside the Parthenon stood a large gold and ivory statue of Athena.

Athena was the goddess of wisdom and war and was the patron of Athens. The legend says that Athene and Poseidon had a contest to have the city named after them. Poseidon promised the riches of the sea, but Athena’s gift of an olive tree was felt to be more valuable.

In Athens boys went to school but girls were taught at home.

Government

Athens did not have a king, it was ruled by the people as a democracy. The people of Athens believed that no one group of people should make the laws and so citizens could choose the government officials, and vote for or against new laws. The people of Athens chose their ruler.

They held a large meeting on the slopes of a hill in Athens where any citizen could speak, and tell the government what it should be doing. This was called the Assembly, and there had to be at least 6,000 citizens at every Assembly.

Athenian democracy was not like modern democracy. Only citizens over 18 could vote. Women, slaves and foreigners could not become citizens. So democracy in Athens meant rule by the men of Athens.

Slavery

Slaves made up about a quarter of the working population on Athens. Most were people who had been captured in warfare and sold to slave dealers. They were then put on sale in the slave market.

Sparta

Much less evidence survives about Sparta than Athens, but we do know that it was a military state. Sparta was surrounded by mountains which protected it from invaders.

Sparta was the only city state which had a full time army. The Spartan men were well known for being brave and fierce, and they spent their whole lives training and fighting. 

Spartans lived in harsh conditions, without luxuries, to make them tough fighters.

Physical training and fitness was considered to be an important part of a Spartan child’s education. Girls did not fight in wars but they took part in physical activities because Spartans believed fit and strong women would have healthy babies that would be good soldiers. Boys went to live at an army barracks at the age of 7.

Government

• Sparta had its own system of government which was very different from the other city states. Rule was shared between two kings, the Gerousia and the Assembly. Oligarchy (rule by a small group)

Most citizens in Sparta were either Perioeci (citizens who paid taxes, served in the army and were protected by Spartan laws) or Helots (people from lands conquered and ruled by Sparta who had no rights).

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