7804fc+Sparta

Spartan Warriors and Weapons.

 Finn Caspersen 

 Did you know that Sparta was the dominant city state of ancient Greece. It even conquered Athens. Sparta’s culture was all about training for warfare then joining the army, which was a typical person’s job. Sparta was located far up in land in ancient Greece the high altitude had thinner air which made it harder to breath that helped them to not get tired fast in battle. Sparta started in the year 650 BCE and ended in the year 146 BCE. We remember them today for their ability in warfare.

One reason that Spartans were dominant was their strategies and weapons. A Spartan soldier carried a huge spear called a Dory. They had a choice for their sword which was a back up weapon. They could choose either a Kopis or an Xiphos. Their shield usually had a upside down v on it. They wore a helmet with dyed horse hair.

To be more specific about a Spartans weapons. The Dory was 6-9 feet long. The xiphos was a short iron sword that was 12-18 inches long. Like the Dory it delivered clean wounds. Unlike the Dory and the Xiphos Kopis delivered messy wounds. The Kopis was the other choice of a sword that the Spartan hoplite carried. The Kopis was more like an axe because it was more of a hacking weapon. It could deliver nasty blows that could chop off limbs or make wounds so nasty you’d puke. A Spartan shield could also be used to hit the enemy and stun them then the Spartan would kill them. Finally a Spartans helmet had horse hair that was dyed red on it. The idea of it was to make the Spartan look taller and fiercer. [[]]

To be more specific about the Spartan battle strategies. The Spartans used a strategy called a Phalanx. In a Phalanx the hoplites would guard them selfs with their shields and stick out their spears. When the enemy came rushing into them bye bye. The enemy would get stabbed and lose a lot of men. The phalanx was a dominant strategy.

Work comes before success except in the dictionary. In Sparta the men would train for hours every day. The training was military related things. They would dance in the sun for hours. Not dance but practice combat. At age 7 boys were taken to train in for the army. At age 20 they joined the army. At age 30 they were allowed to marry. And finally at age 60 they could retire from the army. But barely any Spartan made it to 60. Life was pretty tough at Sparta.

In Sparta life may have been tough but it turned Sparta into the dominant city state in ancient Greece. As I said before success only comes before work in the dictionary. We remember Sparta for their ability in warfare. There has never been any other group so dedicated to warefare. This Is Sparta!

image credits [] []

 Glossary Kopis: Deadly Spartan sword Xiphos: Short Spartan sword <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 18px;">Dory :Huge Spartan Spear

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 18px;"> Work cited <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 18px;"> "Spartan Weapons." Spartan Weapons. 07 June 2012 <http://www.ancientmilitary.com/spartan-weapons.htm>.