Known for the wisdom and shrewdness, she famously hid sensitive messages by covering wooden tablets in wax. While her husband was away fighting Persia, she used her political capital to sure up support for him. Gorgo was queen of Sparta, wife of Leonidas, the legendary Spartan king do fought at Thermopylae. 9: Gorgo, Queen of Spartaĭo not assume all famous Spartan leaders of repute were men. After the war, Lysander was the effective ruler of Athens, setting up a puppet government who did what he said. Such an immense loss was too great to overcome and Sparta was able to claim victory, ending the war. Commanding the Spartan side in the last major naval engagement of the war, he oversaw the destruction of 160 of Athens’ 180 ships. At the time Sparta and Athens were fighting a brutal war over which state would be the true power in Greece. But somehow he rose through the ranks of Sparta’s navy, reaching the position of master of ships. Born to a slave mother, Lysander grew up poor and humble. This was quite a responsibility, given how much emphasis Greek states put on naval power at the time. Lysander was not a king but admiral who commanded the entire Spartan fleet. Leaders who helped shape Spartan, Greek, and human history. Today we look at some of the most famous Spartan leaders. After death they were worshipped as almost mythic heroes, similar to how Julius Caesar was. With so many kings and generals, many Spartan leaders achieved great fame for their personal achievements. And even more uniquely, Sparta had two kings serving at the same time. Unlike other Greek states, Sparta remained a kingdom long after their society grew wealthy. For a long time, none of their rivals stood a chance. Through this Sparta built a vast alliance of smaller Greek states. But Spartan leaders were also great military strategists, being known for their offensive phalanx. Why? Because they would molded from a young age to be the ultimate warriors – children unable to handle their brutal training program were simply left to die.
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A martial culture unlike any others, Spartan warriors were feared by all who knew them. Ultimately the Athenians actually won but more often than not the Spartans were victorious. The Spartans and the Athenians fought numerous wars in order to decide which of them could be the true power of ancient Greece.
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Sparta was one of two great empires that dominated classical Greek history.