Latest / Ancient Greece: Philosophy, Democracy, and Endless War — Fexingo History
The Sacred Band of Thebes: Lovers in Arms at Leuctra
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the Sacred Band of Thebes, an elite fighting unit of 150 male couples whose bond of love was their greatest weapon. They trace its founding by the Theban commander Gorgidas after the Spartan occupation of the Cadmea in 382 BCE, examine its transformation under Pelopidas into the core of Thebes' hoplite force, and recount its decisive role at the Battle of Leuctra in 371 BCE, where Epaminondas used the oblique phalanx to smash Spartan supremacy. The conversation draws on Plutarch's Life of Pelopidas and Xenophon's Hellenica, discusses the…
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