How Is Sparta Successful

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The Greek Polis of Sparta, established in the 9th century BCE, was one of the most militarily accomplished poleis of Ancient Greece. Its military power was rivaled by almost no other until its fall, and its citizens had their lives entirely dedicated to the military. Stated by McKay, as the leading Greek military power in the Archaic period, a process was created with credit given to Lycatius where it was most importantly dedicated to Sparta. They dedicated their whole lives to their Polis, with military training starting for boys at the young age of seven and continuing for the rest of their lives. Since so much time was spent away from home and their wives, same-sex relationships were common and very important for them, leading soldiers to …show more content…
Due to the fact that the laws were so strict and people in high positions had the power to make very extreme decisions based on someone’s choices, which kept everyone obeying the law and made sure that no one was outside of the Spartan government system. This government, although very strict, was very effective, as seen with Sparta’s accomplishments throughout its history. Without this strict way of life, Sparta would not have been the successful Polis known for its immense power. Contributing again to the strict law system, people with lots of power in Spartan society used religious authority to reinforce their own decisions. In Spartan Society, Erenow states that “he issues his laws to the populace only after going to Delphi with the most powerful figures and asking the god if it would be preferable and better for Sparta to obey the laws he personally drawn up. Once the god responded that it would be better in every way, only then did he issue them” (Spartan Society). This shows how effective the officials were at controlling the people and using their beliefs to keep them in …show more content…
Without the Spartans’ orderly society and strong military, gaining power by winning battles, the Spartans would not have been such a large and important Polis of Ancient Greece. As such a large influence on the Greek world, Sparta had many years, from its founding to its destruction, of successful battles and military conquest. The only way this was made possible, making Sparta so widely known for its supreme power, was to have an extreme military program where every male became a warrior and to have an extremely orderly society. If Sparta never had all of its male citizens training from a young age to become a fierce warrior for his Polis, building up a huge army of well-trained soldiers, the military power and authority of the Polis would never have come to be. Since Sparta was entirely dedicated to improving its military power, without a rigorous lifelong training program it would never have been the hugely powerful Polis it is now known as. Secondly, Sparta’s strictly organized society was also extremely conducive to its military success and
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