Spartan Society: Fear of Helot Rebellions and Militaristic Training

Why did Spartan society revolve around training for war?

A) Warfare was their favorite activity

B) Spartans feared Helot rebellions

C) Spartans wanted to dominate the entire Mediterranean world

D) Spartans believed they could not achieve immortality without proving their bravery in battle

Final answer:

B) Spartans feared Helot rebellions

Spartan society's militaristic training was largely driven by their fear of Helot rebellions, leading to a military hierarchy designed primarily to maintain control over their significantly larger Helot slave population.

Explanation:

Spartan Society and Militaristic Focus

Spartan Society revolved around training for war predominantly because Spartans feared Helot rebellions. The entire Spartan societal structure was built upon maintaining control over the Helots, who constituted about 90% of the population in the territories controlled by Sparta. These Helots were serfs, a legacy of the people conquered by Spartans in the 8th century BCE, and were kept in a state of oppression and subjugation to prevent uprisings.

To ensure their dominance and suppress any potential resistance, Spartans would 'declare war' on the Helots annually. The infamous agoge, Spartan's rigorous educational system, included serving on the Krypteia, a secret police aimed at infiltrating and terrorizing Helot communities to prevent rebellions. Spartan society was a military hierarchy built on the necessity of combat readiness to maintain control over a much larger enslaved population.

This militaristic culture extended to all aspects of life, imposing harsh disciplines from a young age and ensuring that Spartans remained the preeminent land warfare power. However, downright ambitious conquests beyond their terrain were secondary; the priority was to manage the Helot threat internally, shaping the singular focus on military preparation rather than pursuit of empire expansion or achieving immortality through bravery.