SPARTA: Rise of a Warrior Nation

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Contemporaries portrayed the Spartans as the stereotypical macho heroes: noble, laconic, totally fearless, and impervious to discomfort and pain.To a large extent,the Spartans lived up to this image. This focus is on the Spartan hoplite, who was respected and feared throughout Greece in his own day, and who has since become a legend and the society that produced such warriors.

Also examines the idea of ancient Sparta as a city of contrasts, with physical toughness and heroism in adversity but also systematically abused their children. Sparta gave rights to citizen women that were unmatched in Europe until the modern era, while subjecting their conquered subject peoples to a murderous reign of terror. Although idealized by the Athenian contemporaries of Socrates Sparta was almost devoid of intellectual achievement.