Growing up in Spartan Society

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Imagine you are in the dusty, odorous training camps of Ancient Sparta. There are children everywhere, being hit and yelled at. Do they cry? No. These nine-year-old children have been hardened, toughened, and trained, starting at age seven. They have been taught to never show fear, anguish, or pain.

"Don't give me those, but let me have ones that kill in combat”(Spartan Anonymous).

It is many do not know how true this quote was in Ancient Sparta. The Spartans dedicated their lives to being the best warriors to walk the earth. They were molded from the time they were infants into masters of weaponry, stealth, and fear. They endured long, painful days of training, with very little food, water, and clothing.

“Here is courage, mankind's finest possession, here is the noblest prize that a young man can endeavor to win” (Tyrtaeus).

But the road to courage was much harder and darker. Spartans had a very military way of life, with marching, weaponry, and barracks for the boys to sleep in. What made them feared, hated, and, most importantly, respected by the world? How did they become the fearsome killing machines of Ancient Greece? The children were abused, starved, and tortured. But they were also strengthened and prepared for war. This is why Spartan childhood training was what made the Spartans so successful in the Ancient Greek Classical Age. They used harsh, but effective training methods, used well trained and educated warriors and trainers, taught successfully developed weapons and tactics, and put to use the training they were given as children in their daily lives.

Spartans used harsh, but effective training methods. The young Spartan boys trained to be warriors. Starting...

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Levi, Peter. "Spartan Education - CSU Pomona - Cal Poly Pomona." Spartan Education. Stonehenge Press, 1 Jan. 1992. Web. 27 Mar. 2014. http://www.csupomona.edu/~plin/ls201/greece4.html.

Lozides, Antonios. "Ancient History Encyclopedia." The Spartan Education. Creative Common, 20 Mar. 2012. Web. 27 Mar. 2014. http://www.ancient.eu.com/.

“Sparta.” N Army Training-. OTTI Travel, Inc., 1 Apr. 2014. Web. 16 Apr. 2014.

"Upbringing." Plutarch on Sparta. . Reprint. Harmonsworth: Penguin, 1988. . Print

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Waryncia, Lou, and Kenneth M. Sheldon. If I Were a Kid in Ancient Greece. Peterborough, NH: Cricket, 2006. Print.

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