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The agoge (Greek: ἀγωγή, translit. ágōgḗ in Attic Greek, or ἀγωγά, ágōgá in Doric Greek) was the rigorous education and training program mandated for all male Spartan citizens, except for the firstborn son in the ruling houses, Eurypontid and Agiad. The word agōgē had various meanings in Ancient Greek and comes from the verb ἄγω (to lead). There is no evidence that it was used to refer to the Spartan education system until the 3rd century BC, but it was often used before then to mean training, guidance, or discipline. The education featured in the agōgē involved cultivating loyalty to Sparta through military training (e.g., pain tolerance), hunting, dancing, singing, and social (communicating) preparation. The agōgē was divided into three age groups, roughly corresponding to young children, adolescents, and young adults. Spartan girls did not participate in the agōgē, although they may have received a similar state-sponsored education. Sources are unclear about the exact origins of the agōgē. According to Xenophon, it was introduced by the semi-mythical Spartan law-giver Lycurgus, and modern scholars have dated its inception to the 7th or 6th century BC Regardless, the structure and content of the agōgē changed over time as the practice fell in and out of favour throughout the Hellenistic period. The Classical Agōgē Structure The agōgē was divided into three age categories: the paides (about ages 7–14), paidiskoi (ages 15–19), and the hēbōntes (ages 20–29). The boys were further subdivided into groups called agelai (singular agelē, meaning "pack"), with whom they would sleep, and were led by an older boy (eirēn) who Plutarch claims was chosen by the boys themselves. They answered to the paidonomos or "boy-herder," an upper-class official who was tasked with overseeing the entire Spartan education system. Paides The paides were taught the basics of reading and writing, but even the early stages of education focused on the development of skills that would encourage military prowess. Boys would compete in athletic events such as running and wrestling, as well as choral dance performances. Notably, paides were expected to steal food for themselves and their eirēn, and were probably underfed as a means of encouraging this. Stealing did not go unpunished, however, as Xenophon reports that those who were caught would be beaten, a lesson which he claims taught the boys stealth and resourcefulness. There were other hardships too: the boys were made to participate in the agōgē in bare feet, supposedly to toughen their feet and improve agility, and beginning at the age of 12, boys would be given only one item of clothing, a cloak, per year. Plutarch reports that the boys slept together with the other members of their agelē, constructing beds out of reeds pulled by hand from the Eurotas River. Additionally, paides were educated in Laconism, the art of speaking in brief, witty phrases. According to French historian Jean Ducat, Aristotle believed that it was important that a Spartan learn how to poke fun at his peers, and that he be able to accept the teasing himself. At around age 12, a boy would often enter into an institutionalized relationship with a young adult male Spartan, which continued as he became a paidiskos. Plutarch described this form of Spartan pederasty (erotic relationship) as one where older warriors (as the erastes) would engage promising youths (the eromenos) in a long-lasting relationship with an instructive motive. Xenophon, on the other hand, claims that the laws of Lycurgus strictly prohibited sexual relationships with the boys, although he acknowledges that this is unusual compared to other Greek city-states. Paidiskoi Ducat considers the stage of paidiskoi as a transitional phase between a child and an adult, where Spartan boys were encouraged to integrate themselves into adult society. At this point, loyalty shifted from the agelē to the syssition, a common mess where adult Spartans of all ages were expected to eat together and socialize. Scholars have suggested that one role of the erastes was to act as a "sponsor" through which the eromenos could gain entry to the same syssition. Physical training and athletic competitions continued with an increased intensity. Hēbōntes At the age of 20, a young Spartan graduated from the ranks of the paidiskoi into the hēbōntes and was known as an eirēn. If he had demonstrated sufficient leadership qualities throughout his training, he might have been selected to lead an agelē. The term hēbōntes means: "those who have reached physical adulthood". It was at this age when Spartan men became eligible for military service and could vote in the assembly, although they were not yet considered full adult citizens and were still under the authority of the paidonomos. Those hēbōntes who had impressed their elders the most during their training could be selected for the Crypteia, a type of 'Secret Police' tasked with maintaining control over the Helot population through violence. While scholars such as Pierre Vidal-Naquet have suggested that the Crypteia functioned as an initiatory ritual in the transition into adulthood, others, such as David Dodd, believe it was used primarily as a tool of terror. Plutarch and Plato also differ in their accounts of the Crypteia, with Plutarch mentioning brutal killings done by the Crypteia in Life of Lycurgus and Plato not mentioning the killings at all in Laws. Additionally, 300 hēbōntes were chosen to join the hippeis, a highly-esteemed infantry cohort (despite the name implying cavalry). Xenophon describes the selection process as a public event where each of the three hippagretai (commanders) chooses 100 men, supposedly to instil a rivalry between each group, seeing as each man would be loyal to the hippagrete who chose him and resentful of the other two. He claims that this encouraged the groups to report instances of their rivals' wrongdoing, effectively keeping the entire cohort in check. A Spartan man was considered to have graduated from the agōgē at age 30, at which time he was expected to have been accepted into a syssition and was permitted to have a family. He would also receive a kleros, an allotment of land farmed by helots. Purpose According to Plutarch, the main purpose of the agōgē was for Spartan boys to undergo intense physical trials to prepare their bodies for the harshness of war. The competitive nature of athletic events encouraged hard work and merit. However, the agōgē likely had a second purpose: to instil in young children a collective Spartan identity. The agōgē kept Spartan boys away from their families for much of their childhood, which Stephen Hodkinson believes taught them to favour the needs of the entire populace over that of an individual. Since a Spartan man's formative years were spent entirely in a perpetual competition of merit (both physical and social) they were encouraged to conform to the Spartan laws and social norms. Completion of the agōg.... Discover the Anton Powell popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Anton Powell books.