Sparta

- According to Spartan tradition their

social system was created between
900 and 600 BC by a man named
Lycurgus.
- Spartan Society was dominated by
military.
- Spartans believed military power
was the best way to provide security
and protection in the city.
Boys and Men in
Sparta
- At birth Spartan boys were inspected if they
were not healthy they would be taken out of
the city and left to die.
- At an early age boys were trained to be
soldiers
- They enured hardship, boys weren't given
shoes or heavy clothes for winter.
- Soldiers between ages of 20 and 30 lived in
army barracks and occasionally visited their
families, Spartan men stayed in the army
until the age of 60
Spartan Girls and
Women
- Sine Spartan men were often away
at war Spartan women had more
rights than other Greek women.
- Spartan didn't spend time spinning
cloth or weaving they thought that
was for the slaves.
- Women also received physical
training, they thought a healthy
mother would produce a healthy
baby.
Athens
- The main rival of Sparta
- Athens had been a leader in the
Persian wars ad developed a
powerful army.
- Athens like Sparta believed in
physical training but put more
emphasis on education and the
arts.
Boys and Men in
Athens
- Athenian boys from rich families worked
on their bodies and their minds.
- Training was not as harsh as Spartans.
- All men joined the army but only had to
serve for 2 years.
- They put more emphasis on education
boys learned to read, write, and count.
- If you were poor you wouldn't receive
much education but still some and
typically would become a farmer.
Girls and Women
in Athens
- Girls received no education
- Athens was known for freedom
and democracy but women had
very few rights.
- Women could not serve in the
city's government, leave their
home except for special occasions,
and could not disobey their
husbands or fathers.
The Peloponnesian War

- Athens and Sparta were former alliances in the Persian

Wars.
- A group called the Peloponnesian league formed which
was a group of southern Greece cities.
- The growth of Athens worried the Peloponnesian league
so Sparta decided to declare war.
- The Spartan army marched north and surrounded the
Athens but the Athenians stayed in the city and hoped
that the Spartans would leave.
- The Spartans burned the crops in Athens hoping to cut
The Peloponnesian War

- The Athenian ships brought food to Athens

and attacked Spartas allies forcing Sparta
to send troops out of Athens.
- No one could gain an advantage for 10
years. So they agreed to a truce.
- A few years later Athens tried to expand
again by conquering Sicily but failed.
- Sparta took advantage of Athens weakness
and declared war, Sparta eventually won the
war by cutting off Athens food supply and
Athens surrendered and Sparta won the war.
 After the War
- With the defeat of Athens Sparta
became the most powerful city
state in Greece.
- Sparta controlled Greece for
nearly 30 years.
- Other city states began to resint
Sparta and this led to war.
- Fighting went on for many years
until Greece was left open for an
attack from the outside.