Section 4 - Vocabulary• Ephors – people responsible for the daily operations of

government • Helots- captured slaves that were forced to do work• Military state- society organized for the purpose of waging war• Barracks- military housing

Sparta• Life was simple• Most decisions were made for

you• Boys were taken at age 7 to train

for the army• Girls were trained to be home

makers

• War and army training dominated daily life for men• Other Greeks feared and

admired Sparta• Used iron rods as money

Government in Sparta• Only about 9,000 citizens• Mix of oligarchy, democracy and

monarchy• Ruled by two kings who were also

the military leaders• The kings also headed the

governing body, the council of elders• Consisted of 28 men over the age of

60• Members were elected for life

• Spartan assembly consisted of free adult males• Had far less power than the Athenian

assembly• They could pass laws but the council

had to approve them• The assembly elected ephors – five

people elected and responsible for the day-to-day operations of the government. They made sure the council acted within the limits of Spartan law and could remove a king who broke the law.

The Helots• These people worked the fields and

produced enough food to feed the Spartans

• This freed Spartan men’s time to use for training as soldiers

• Sparta became a military state to keep the Helots under them

• A military state is a society organized for the purpose of waging war.

• Helots were treated unfairly. The ephors waged war on them once a year and any helot that revolted could be murdered.

Education• At a young age boys were taken from

their families to train for the army• They lived in barracks – military

housing units• They did not receive well-rounded

educations, they spent most of their time exercising, hunting and training with weapons• At 18 men began a two year program

of military training to be part of the phalanx

Social Classes• Warriors had to take a test to

join the army. If they failed they could not be part of the army.• Men who passed the test gained

full citizenship rights. Including:• Land ownership • Chance to go into the council at

age 60

Women• Raised to be strong • Participated in sports to stay fit

so they could be healthy to have babies• Had a lot of freedom and

responsibilities because their husbands spent a good deal of their lives away at military camp• They had greater independence

than any other city state