In this encounter with the Persians, the front line was rotated to give everyone a rest. Spartans underwent rigorous training from the age of 6 or 7 in the agoge. They had to be extremely tough both mentally and physically to survive it.
A particular emphasis was placed on enduring hardship. Thucydides wrote. Spartans holding a position will fight long and stubborn battles until they rout the enemy, but once they have done so they do not pursue them for any great distance nor for long. This 'toughness' invariably meant that Spartan hoplites would win in the end, if for no other reason than endurance.
Hoplites of other Greek city states were rarely able to match the Spartans in this regard among other things and thus, even if they were able to hold their own initially, they would almost always tire before the Spartans.
They did not get anything like the same training and excepting, at different times, Thebes - the Sacred Band - and Argos did not have full-time professional soldiers. This uneven match made it more likely that battles would be short. Nonetheless, even Spartans recognized that holding a hoplon for long periods was tough: one form of punishment they used was to have the offender stand guard all day holding his shield.
A final point here is that, when on the march except immediately before battle , helots were often used as porters, carrying soldiers' equipment. Thus, the hoplites' strength was saved for the 'main event'. Concerning the weight of the shield, we can't be sure exactly and shield designs changed over time. I've seen estimates ranging from Also, these shields were used primarily to form a protective wall in formation; they were not designed to be swung around as you often see in the movies , something which would have quickly tired even the strongest Spartan soldier.
Lars' answer has addressed the fact that the shields know as a hoplon often didn't need to be held for long; I'd like to address the actual mechanics. Image showing the shield held close in to the body, with straps and left shoulder taking most of the weight - photo by Grant Mitchell [CC BY 2.
Firstly, the hoplon was designed to be used in a fairly restricted way - held close in to the body and kept immobile relative to the user. This is much less taxing than holding for example a centre gripped 'Viking' shield at arm's length. Keeping the centre of mass close in to the body reduces the effort required not only from the arm, but from the entire body as you don't have to counterbalance as much.
Secondly, the hoplon used what was known as the argive grip - the handle was placed near the right edge, and a strap over the forearm at the centre supported much of the weight. This both helped keep the shield close to the body see above , and meant that the hand - generally the weakest part of the arm - wasn't taking the full weight of the shield alone as it would in a centre gripped design.
Additionally, this specific type of strapped grip had the advantage of letting the arm hang straight, instead of requiring the user to bend their elbow. Lastly, and probably most significantly, the hoplon was highly convex.
This allowed the upper lip to be rested on the user's left shoulder 1 [2] , taking much of the weight. To sum up: a 15kg weight hanging largely off the shoulder is much easier to manage than a 15kg weight held at arm's length. Sign up to join this community.
The best answers are voted up and rise to the top. Stack Overflow for Teams — Collaborate and share knowledge with a private group. Create a free Team What is Teams? Learn more. How would a Spartan have held his shield? Ask Question. Asked 3 years, 8 months ago. Active 3 years, 6 months ago. Viewed 12k times. How long would a Spartan have had to endure holding a shield for?
Its large size covered a large portion of the holder's body and its weight 24 lbs in the show allowed it to deliver crushing blows. Vital to maintaining the effectiveness of the Greek phalanx, the left third of the shield would protect the right flank of the man to the holder's left, hence why losing it was considered to be a disgrace.
After the battle, the aspis was often used as a stretcher to carry the dead and wounded from the battlefield. In the event of a retreat, the shield would usually be the first thing discarded. These two facts gave birth to the phrase "Come back with your shield or on it. In Sparta, a routing soldier most likely was disgraced and executed for cowardliness. The Spartans used his Aspis in the simulations to great effect, protecting himself from the deadly projectile attacks of the Ninja and the crushing blows of the Samurai 's kanabo , while also using it offensively to bash and throw around both opponents.
It was the most devastating weapon against the unarmored Ninja and was still effective against the Samurai in terms of kills, but had significantly less kills most likely to the Samurai's heavy armor.
Unlike the Spartans; the Macedonians were imperialistic and thus had to invade enemy territory. Spartan shields were massive because Spartans specialized in defenses and armor.
Philip II introduced lighter gear to his Phalangite hoplites in order to give them more mobility. The sages examined the entrails under the watchful eye of the king, who would only give the order to attack if he could count on divine approval. The singing was accompanied by the flautists who played from their positions within the ranks. The Spartan phalanx, a tight military formation usually eight men deep, would then begin its advance, lances raised, in time with the music.
One measure of the Spartan reputation for courage and nerve was the pace with which it proceeded: Its army would draw close to enemy lines more slowly than their rivals, always following the steady rhythm set by the flutes. Hoplite warriors formed phalanxes, which advanced in lockstep.
The front row presented a barrier of shields locked together, from which a long line of spears protruded. Unity within the phalanx was crucial, and Spartan phalanxes had a fearsome reputation for holding their formation. During the Peloponnesian War, both the Spartan and Athenian sides made use of an additional class of soldier, the peltasts. This division of light infantry supplemented the heavily armed—and often unwieldy—hoplites. Enemy commanders justly feared the colossal damage this disciplined mass could inflict.
The phalanx was formed of compact columns of hoplites who maintained the formation at the exact width and depth required. Wielding a greater and more powerful block of fighters than the enemy was one of the keys to victory. The Spartan formation was typically a minimum of eight lines deep. The aim for those in the front row was to injure the arms, throat, or eyes of their opponents.
When the first lines clashed, all the soldiers would push forward with their shields. Every hoplite pressed hard against the back of the man in front, while those in the first three or four lines hurled their lances.
The purpose of the phalanx was to smash the enemy line. Until a breach was made, there were few casualties within the tightly packed Spartan lines, and the soldiers behind could immediately cover the gaps left by any men who did fall. If a phalanx did ever fall apart, the soldiers were left vulnerable, tempted to abandon their shields in order to flee. For the Spartans, such an outcome was almost too shameful to contemplate.
Despite their frightening reputation, the Spartan army was very restrained when it defeated a foe. This practice was, at heart, pragmatic: Having secured the military objective, there was little sense in unnecessarily exposing Spartan forces to further danger, especially if the enemy had men mounted on horseback. Instead, the king would order the trumpeters to sound the retreat, and the army would start to retrieve the dead. When vanquished enemies wanted to retrieve the bodies of their fallen, they would send a representative to negotiate the handover with the king of Sparta.
The bodies of the fallen Spartans were carried on their own shields to a site near the battlefield for burial. From age seven, a Spartan boy was sent to the military academy known as the agoge, where he would be put under the supervision of a teacher and instructor, the paidonomos.
From there, he would then be enlisted in the Spartan army. From age 20 to 29, he was part of the hebontes, an age group regarded by Spartan society as not yet fully adult, since marriage was only encouraged after age In theory, all Spartan males were bound to military service until achieving the status of elder, or geron, at age 60, but many continued to serve on the battlefield. In a time-honored Spartan tradition, other markers were often erected on the site of the battle.
One of the most common was a tree trunk dressed in the helmet, armor, and weapons of the defeated. If the battle was particularly significant, a stone monument might be constructed, such as the statue of the lion in honor of the Spartan leader Leonidas, which was placed on the battlefield of Thermopylae.
When the rituals were over, the army began their triumphal return to Sparta. The worst fate for any Spartan was cowardice on the battlefield.
Throughout history, mothers have wept in seeing their sons set out for war; Spartan women, however, developed another ritual, aimed at preventing the ignominy that would befall them if their son wavered in the line of duty. Plutarch records Spartan mothers handing the shield to their sons, with the exhortation: Either with this or upon this —either return with the shield, victorious; or return lying on it, dead.
All rights reserved. Please be respectful of copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited. Some hoplite shields, like the one above, were designed with openings through which spears could be thrust.
Oliveriano Archaeological Museum, Pesaro, Italy. The Hoplite. Hoplites dressing for battle. Athenian cup from the early fifth century B. Wien Museum, Austria. The Phalanx. Greek phalanx from a Chigi vase in a pro-Corinthian style. Seventh century B.
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