Spartan Amazon Warriors

HISTORY OF SPARTANS &
AMAZONS

Amazons. (Female Warriors)

Very little is really known about the Amazons and for the longest time, they
were always thought to be nothing more than a myth.   I do believe in Greek
based on some fact.   It did, and still does today, make many good stories
for sitting around the campfire. The AMAZONS were a nation of women
dwelling near the river Thermodon. They were, as a race, regarded as
children of Ares and Harmonia. I do believe Herodotus thought they may
have occupied the Southern part of Russia and until now, there was very
little proof to confirm this.    (This is where the story starts getting interesting!)
It is now thought that the "Amazons" were actually Scythian women.
In the last part of the 20th Century, excavations by Russian archaeologists
have produced new evidence that suggests Herodotus, just maybe, could
have been right.   Burial mounds recently opened outside the town of
Pokrovka(?), in Russia, contained the remains of Scythian women buried in
full battle dress and also with many different weapons and items of war
lying beside them.
Herodotus wrote that no Scythian woman was allowed to marry until she
killed 1- 3 enemy men in battle. Scythian women were tattooed, just like the
Scythian men and wore much of the same clothing that the men did. Which
by the way, had an Asian style to it. It also been reported that Scythian
women had a mastectomy on their right breast when they were young. This
is so they could fire a bow or throw a javlin without any interference. (OUCH!)

"THE SPARTANS!"

THEY WERE THE BEST WARRIORS OF ALL THE CITY STATES THAT GREECE HAD TO OFFER AT THE TIME.
THEY DID MANY THINGS BUT IT WAS WHAT THEY DID AT THERMOPYLAE FOR which THEY ARE BEST
KNOWN. THEY DIED TO THE LAST MAN! I SHOULD ADD THAT THE SPARTAN WOMEN WERE JUST AS
STRONG IN SPIRIT AS THEIR MEN! WHEN THE WOMEN PRESENTED THE SHIELDS TO THEIR MEN THEY HAD
A SAYING,
"EITHER COME BACK WITH IT OR ON IT".

BEFORE THE BATTLE OF THERMOPYLAE ON THE FIRST DAY, XERXES (KING OF THE PERSIANS) TOLD
KING LEONIDAS (THE LION) TO LAY DOWN HIS WEAPONS. HIS REPLY IS CLASSIC!
"MOLON LABE"
"COME AND TAKE THEM"
SIMPLE, SWEET, AND TO THE POINT! YOU GOT TO LOVE IT!
ANOTHER INTERESTING COMMENT TO COME OUT OF THE BATTLE OF THERMOPYLAE WAS, WHEN TOLD
THE PERSIANS WERE SO MANY THEIR ARROWS WOULD BLOCK OUT THE SUN, "Dieneces" ONE OF THE
BRAVEST SPARTANS REPLIED, "GOOD, THEN WE FIGHT IN THE SHADE!"
A GREAT SENSE OF HUMOR!

THERE WAS A GREAT MOVIE IN THE EARLY 60'S CALLED THE 300 SPARTANS. THERE WAS ANOTHER IN
2007 CALLED "300." ALTHOUGH I'M FAR FROM BEING AN AUTHORITY IN THE MATTER, I HAVE TO TELL
YOU THAT EVEN I KNEW THERE WERE SO MANY"WRONGS" IN THESE MOVIES! I GUESS THAT'S WHY IT'S
CALLED HOLLYWOOD!
ONE OF THEM WAS THE "V" or Lambda ON THE SHIELD. THAT DIDN'T COME TO BE UNTIL SEVERAL
YEARS AFTER THE FACT. THE SHIELDS HAD MOSTLY PAINTINGS ON THEM IN 480 BC. WE'LL GO DEEPER
INTO THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN REALITY AND HOLLYWOOD AT A LATER TIME. SO....ARE YOU READY
FOR THIS?
( TO BE CONTINUED!)

THE GREEK PHALANX
The Hoplite phalanx was a formation in which the men would line up in ranks in very close
intervals. The Hoplites would lock (overlap) their shields together, and the first few ranks of
soldiers would level their spears out over the first rank of shields. The phalanx, therefore,
presented a bronze wall of shields and a large quantity of spear points facing the enemy, making
frontal assaults much more interesting (Insane would be a word that I would use!). This also
allowed a lot more soldiers to be involved in combat at a given time (instead of just those in the
front rank).
Each hoplite provided their own equipment. The primary hoplite weapon was a spear called the
Dory. It was made of Ash and believed to have been seven to nine feet long. It was held in the
right hand, while the left hand held the shield (Aspis). The spearhead was usually a leaf shape,
while the rear of the spear had a spike called a 'lizard-killer' which was used to stand the spear in
the ground. It was also used as a secondary weapon if the main shaft snapped.
(Being a reenactor, I bought my shaft for the Dory at the local lumber supplier. It is pine and came
in 8" length and approx 1 1/4" diameter. I just recently found out that the actual width of the Dory
was more like 3/4". If you look at some Vase Paintings, they will show Helots following along with
extra Dorys. That's because they were so thin that they would break easy and the warriors would
have replacements.) (I'm sorry, but why would you go to a gang fight with a stick about the
diameter of a drum stick when you can take a 2x4"?lol!)
Hoplites also carried a short sword called a Xiphos. The short sword was a secondary weapon,
used if and when spears broke. A Hoplite typically wore a bronze curiass or a linothorax, a
bronze helmet, as well as greaves and other armour. Hoplites carried a circular shield called an
Aspis (often referred to as a hoplon) made from wood and covered in bronze, measuring roughly 3
feet in diameter. The shield was made in a dish-like shape, which allowed it to be supported with
the rim on the shoulder. It spanned from chin to knee and was heavy, approx 14 lbs.
The most experienced Hoplites were often placed on the right side of the phalanx. There was a
leader in each row of a phalanx, and a rear rank officer, who kept order in the back ranks. The
phalanx is thus an example of a military formation in which the individual elements of battle were
taken out of the equation for the good of the whole. (team effort) The formation was deliberately
organized to group friends and family closely together, thus providing a"mental" incentive to
support one's "family!"

SPARTA
Sparta is situated on the southern Peloponnesus, and was originally founded during the
Dorian invasions.
The city of Sparta was originally founded during and after the Mycenaean War, in which the
Dorian Spartans crossed the Taygetus mountains and took the territory of the Messenia.
However, obviously outnumbered by the native population of Messenia, and accompanied by
other political stresses, the Spartans responded by enacting a military government, or a military
oligarchy, formulated by, according to the Spartans, Lycurgus.

Known almost exclusively for its military strength, and its role within the Persian Wars, the
Spartans believed themselves to be of "true" Greek lineage and tradition. Their reign, extended
with the aid of alliances and invasions, covered most of the Peloponnesus, until the Spartans
eventually rivaled Athens.

SPARTAN WOMEN:
Unlike the women of Athens, Spartan women were taught reading and writing. They were also
expected to be able to protect themselves. Where in Athens, the education of a girl involved
spinning, weaving, and other domestic arts, for a Spartan woman such tasks were relegated to
the helots or perioeci. A girl's education was equally as brutal as the men's; many athletic events
such as javelin, discus, foot races, and staged battles were also for both sexes.
Women's roles in Sparta were not limited to marriage and procreation. Spartan women had many
rights that other Greek women did not have. Namely, they could own and control their own
property. A woman was expected in times of war to overtake her husband's property, and to
guard it against invaders and revolts until her husband returned; hence many Spartan women
are pictured as warriors. (Sounds like Amazons to me,huh?)
It is more than likely that the women of Sparta were allowed to own land in times of war, simply
because Sparta feared a revolt from the helots, and required strong women to fend off such an
attack.