Athens VS Spartans

Athenian Government

Spartan Lifestyle

The Government: The Athenians and Spartans had a different type of government even though they were both in Greece. The Athenians had a democracy called direct democracy. Participating citizens voted directly on legislation and executive bills. Participation wasn’t like today where you could just go and vote when you’re registered to vote, which is not that difficult to get. To be able to vote, one had to be an adult male citizen who owned land, was not a slave, and had gone through military training. Voters numbered about 30,000-50,000 people out of a total of 250,000-300,000. It changed little over time, but it was not that much of a change.

Spartan lifestyle was all based around the military and the city’s needs. At the very beginning of their life they’re already being judged on whether or not they are strong enough to be Spartan citizens. If they were too sick or too puny they were left to die in the countryside. The boys turned into men at the age of seventeen, where they were taken from their mothers and shoved into the military. They were taken into the barracks where they learned discipline, athletics, survival skills, hunting, and how to endure pain. By the age of twenty they became soldiers for their military. The life of a Spartan soldier was always right next to another Spartan soldier. They ate, slept, and trained with other Spartans. They were allowed to marry but they could not see their wife until they became equals. To become an equal you had to be a soldier who reached the age of thirty. However they were still soldiers until the age of sixty. Women weren’t allowed to go into military training, but they did receive education among similar lines. The Spartans were the only ones who allowed women to receive an education. But this was not normal education, same for men. It was a test of physicality for both men and women, which could be grueling. The women also had an unusual amount of domestic freedom for that time. They could move out, stay indoors, or just hangout.

Spartan Government

Spartan government has an unusual system. Two kings ruled the city, but a 28-member 'council of elders' limited their powers. So depending on who their ‘council of elders’ were it could’ve been very corrupt and evil. Now the ‘council of elders’ were elected by choosing a Spartiate. Spartiates were military professionals who lived their lives in the barracks and in war, and rarely saw their families.

Athenian Lifestyle

Athenian homes were very simple and not intricately decorated or with many details. They usually had few windows, doors, and pieces of furniture. Even the food was simple. Bread is usually a part of their everyday meals. Wine was served for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Fruits, vegetables, and fish were their main courses of food in those days. Men, in those days, were the only ones considered citizens. They went to the markets to buy and sell, handled the agriculture, and hung out with friends mostly to discuss politics. Men were the only ones able to get a formal education. Now women on the other hand were completely different. They spent most of their lives in the house. They weaved, cooked, raised the children, and if the family had slaves they’d train them to help or do the women’s job for them. Even back then beauty was considered very important, so they even wore makeup! The children lived fairly easy and simple lives. The boys went to school, and occasionally had tutors to help them with their studies. Now the girls learned everything that will be necessary to run their household from their mothers. Now once the boys got old enough they went through a test to get their citizenship based on their knowledge from school. On the other hand the girl's life was very short, and in this day and age is considered taboo. They were usually married by the age of thirteen, and like their mothers, ran the house for their newly married husbands.

Athenians VS Spartans

By: Connor Nelson