Through this first period of education the boys were taught basic physical skills and were also introduced to hardships. By the age of ten they would all be taking part in public competitions. From the end of their 12th year to the end of their 18th year they would face the heavily intensive training of a cadet soldier, and if need be, they could be called to the army for non-combatant service. Through this rigorous training they would be barefoot in order to learn to run faster, scale heights more easily and clamber down cliffs without difficulty and quickly. The boys were also only given one garment of clothing to wear, ever. This was not only economical but another form of discipline. With only one piece of clothing you would have to take the utmost care so it doesn’t get ripped. This garment was to be worn all year regardless of the weather. Their exercise would be done in the nude; their housekeeping done by themselves and their beds would have to be hand made by them from plucked reeds. Food was issued in frugal amounts so as to make them able to go without any if the need ever arose. Stealing food to enhance their diet was not only tolerated but also encouraged, unless they were caught in which case they were “punished severely for being a sorry bungler in the art”. Xenophon also said that this was to “make the boys craftier and more inventive in getting in supplies, while at the same time it cultivated their war-like instincts”. They also progressed their ability to depend on themselves, to spy and track and scout.
Xenophon carries on by saying that during youth “when the froth of insolence rises to the surface; when, too, the most violent appetites for Pleasure invade the mind”, that was exactly when the state forced ongoing labours on the maturing adolescents and formulated for him “a subtle system absorbing occupations”. Even when the boys were walking through the streets of the city they were expected to keep silent and to gaze down at the floor constantly. This again showed respect towards their elders.
At the start of their 19th year the youths became eirens. This meant they were now combatants but not yet full front line soldiers. The period of 18 to 20 was spent being drilled in a huge school based upon the army. In this establishment they were under the instruction of other youths who had finished their 20th year but had not yet become full men. They would gain their full manhood at thirty. At 20 they were allowed to marry but still had to live in the barracks, leaving them no private life, and they would have to visit their wives in secrecy and could only do so rarely. This is similar to men in the army who get married in that just like the Spartan army, they have to remain in their barracks while they serve and can only rarely see their wives. Xenophon clarified that the Spartans “showed still a greater anxiety in dealing with those who had reached the prime opening of manhood”.
From the age of 24 to 30 they served as front line combatants but not much is known about this stage in their lives as sources are scarce and many are unreliable. What we do know is that a select group of men were sectioned off into corps of knights, consisting of 300 men. Three citizens in their prime would each select 100 youths giving reasons for their decisions. This is similar to any exam today for scholarship places at a specialist school such as the Royal Ballet School or the Royal Academy of Drama. Hundreds of teens audition in front of two or three judges yet only a select few get their scholarship. This was an incredible honour but also forced those who were rejected to keep a beady eye on the chosen in case one of them faulted in their code of honour. It also meant that they had to compete and attempt to outdo each other. Once they had completed their 30th year the Spartans became full citizens. This entitled them to attend and participate in the assembly. They no longer lived their days in the barracks, but now enjoyed a life at home with their wife and children. However, they were expected to dine in the public mess. Plutarch noted that “they took a great deal of care to their hair” as it made them look as if they were taller than they were and it “added beauty to a good face and terror to an ugly one”. They had been educated to keep a good-looking healthy body and this would have defiantly added to their beauty. Herodotus also noted this as he said that on the eve of the battle of Thermopylae, Leonidas and his 300 Spartans spent time curling and adorning their hair; as Xerxes the King of Persia was informed: “it is the common practice of the Spartans to pay careful attention to their hair when they are about to risk their lives.” From the age of 30 to 60, Spartan citizens were liable for military service.
The education of girls was very different to the education of girls in other areas of Greece, Athens in particular, at that time. It was customary at that time for girls to merely act as maids, wives or mothers in the society. Sparta however changed this bringing a radical new idea for women in their society, the idea that they might actually be useful. Plutarch states that “The education of girls was aimed at producing healthy bodies, so that the fruit they conceived might take firmer root and find better growth and that they, with greater vigour, might be the more able to undergo the pains of childbearing”. Much like the boys, the girls were split into groups from a young age. The main difference however, is that they lived at home. They would exercise with the boys and they also participated in most sports too, including wrestling, javelin, discus, running and ball games. One of the most arduous tasks they undertook was bibasis. This game involved jumping up and down, each time touching their buttocks with their heels. Girls were also just as competitive as boys when it came to choral and dance competitions. However, it is unknown as to whether or not they danced naked at certain feasts to harden their bodies. According to Plato the girls of Sparta did not live the trivial life involved with “wool work”, but shared the gymnastics and music of the boys.
As you can see, the Spartan way of bringing up children is not that dissimilar to the ways of our modern society. They look quite harsh on the surface, but once comparisons are drawn you can see that we are quite alike in bringing up children. Of course the Spartans are slightly more harsh, put their children under more stress and do not hesitate to put them through rigorous, painful activities, but this was customary of the time. The Spartan system was very well thought out, and far beats that of any other educational system seen through the ages including the system we use today.
