Lakedaimonian Numbers

All text, translations, and maps copyrighted by Lawrence Douglas Ringer. Last modified on: 19-August-2015.

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Introduction

The question of the size of the Lakedaimonian morai (divisons) and lokhoi (companies) is a contentious one that has led many writers to suggest corrections to various ancient authors. Personally, it seems obvious to me that Xenophon (Constitution of the Lakedaimonians 11.4) was not describing the historical Lakedaimonian military when he wrote that the legendary Lakedaimonian lawgiver Lykourgos divided the Lakedaimonians into six morai of cavalry and infantry and that there were four lokhagoi (commanders of lokhoi) in each mora of hoplites. This would have meant that there were 24 lokhoi in the legendary Lakedaimonian army. However, Xenophon (Hellēnika 7.4.20, 7.5.10) twice stated that there were 12 lokhoi in the historical Lakedaimonian army. Therefore, there would seem to have been only two lokhoi in each historical mora.

To begin with, the size of a mora or lokhos in any campaign would have varied according to which age groups were mobilized. The age groups that were normally liable to call up were those aged 20 to 60 years old. Another complication is the question of when did the Lakedaimonians begin integrating both Spartiatai (first class citizens popularly called Spartans) and perioikoi (‘dwellers around’, second class citizens) within the same Lakedaimonian units.




The Battle of Mantinea, 418 BCE

Fifty-four years prior to the second battle of Mantinea in 362 BCE, the Lakedaimonians had deployed hepta (seven) lokhoi (companies) at the first battle of Mantinea in 418 BCE during the Peloponnesian War. Thoukydides estimated their number at approximately 3,584 hoplites (448 men in the front ranks times 8 men deep = 3,584). Prior to the battle, the Lakedaimonians had dispatched a hektos (sixth) of their forces—comprising the oldest and youngest men—to guard their homes. Thoukydides did not mention separate lokhoi of perioikoi, so apparently they were either serving in the same units as the Spartiatai or they were not present, which in my opinion is less likely. Thoukydides after all referred to the hoplites repeatedly as Lakedaimonians and not once as Spartiatai. Thoukydides remarked that there was a separate unit of 600 Skiritai, who held the left wing. (Thoukydides 5.67.1, 5.68.3)

The size of a lokhos:

• Each lokhos at the battle would have numbered roughly 512 (3,584 ÷ 7) Lakedaimonian hoplites.
• At full strenght, each lokhos would have originally amounted to about 614 (512 ÷ 5 x 6) men when the oldest and youngest men were included.

The overall size of the Lakedaimonian army consisting of twelve lokhoi:

• The twelve lokhoi would have totalled approximately 6,144 (512 x 12) hoplites without the oldest and youngest men.
• At full strenght, the twelve lokhoi would have totalled approximately 7,368 (614 x 12) hoplites in all age groups.

However, some modern authors believe that Thoukydides should be emended to read six morai instead of seven lokhoi. In that case, each mora in the battle would have consisted of approximately 597 (3,584 ÷ 6) men. When the youngest and oldest age groups were included, each mora would have numbered more or less 716 (597 ÷5 x 6) men for a grand total of about 4,296 (716 x 6) Lakedaimonians.

Thoukydides (5.68.2) commmented upon Lakedaimonian secrecy and the difficulty of obtaining information about them, so he may certainly have been ignorant about the existence of morai in the Lakedaimonian army. However, it seems to me to be equally possible that Thoukydides simply preferred to use a whole number and consequently referred to seven lokhoi instead of to three and one half morai.


The Battle near Lekhaion, 391/390 BCE

A Lakedaimonian mora (division) was mauled by javelin armed peltasts led by the Athenian general Iphikrates in 391/390 BCE. According to Xenophon (Hellēnika 4.5.11–17) the mora consisted of “hōs (about, nearly) 600 hoplites” and lost “peri (about) 250” men during their retreat to Lekhaion, the western port of Korinth.

The size of a lokhos:

• Each lokhos at the battle would have numbered roughly 300 (600 ÷ 2) Lakedaimonian hoplites.
• At full strenght, each lokhos would have originally amounted to about 360 (300 ÷ 5 x 6) men when the oldest and youngest men were included.

The overall size of the Lakedaimonian army consisting of twelve lokhoi:

• The twelve lokhoi would have totalled approximately 3,600 (300 x 12) hoplites without the oldest and youngest men.
• At full strenght, the twelve lokhoi would have totalled approximately 4,320 (360 x 12) hoplites in all age groups.

The Invasion of Boiotia by Agesilaos, ca. 378 BCE

In ca. 378 BCE, the army of the Lakedaimonian king Agesilaos included five morai of Lakedaimonians. Each mora was composed of 500 men. The Skiritai formed a separate lokhos. (Diodoros. 15.32.1)

The size of a lokhos:

• Each lokhos in the campaign would have numbered roughly 250 (500 ÷ 2) Lakedaimonian hoplites.
• At full strenght, each lokhos would have originally amounted to about 300 (250 ÷ 5 x 6) men when the oldest and youngest men were included.

The overall size of the Lakedaimonian army consisting of twelve lokhoi:

• The twelve lokhoi would have totalled approximately 3,000 (250 x 12) hoplites without the oldest and youngest men.
• At full strenght, the twelve lokhoi would have totalled approximately 3,600 (300 x 12) hoplites in all age groups.

The Battle of Tegyra, 376/375 BCE

Plutarch (Pelopidas 17.2) wrote that two morai of Lakedaimonians were defeated by the Thebans under Pelopidas at Tegyra in 376/375 BCE and that each mora numbered 500 men per Ephoros, 700 men per Kallisthenes, and 900 men per other writers including Polybios. Since Xenophon (Hellēnika 4.5.11–17) wrote that there were “hōs (about, nearly) 600 hoplites” in a mora roughly 15 years earlier in 391/390 BCE, it seems that we can safely dismiss the figures of 700 and 900 men per mora given by Kallisthenes and Polybios. After all, the Lakedaimonian population was in a noted decline!

The size of a lokhos:

• Each lokhos in the battle would have numbered roughly 250 (500 ÷ 2) Lakedaimonian hoplites.
• At full strenght, each lokhos would have originally amounted to about 300 (250 ÷ 5 x 6) men when the oldest and youngest men were included.

The overall size of the Lakedaimonian army consisting of twelve lokhoi:

• The twelve lokhoi would have totalled approximately 3,000 (250 x 12) hoplites without the oldest and youngest men.
• At full strenght, the twelve lokhoi would have totalled approximately 3,600 (300 x 12) hoplites in all age groups.

The Battle of Leuktra, 371 BCE

There had been four morai (divisions) serving in the army of the Lakedaimonian king Kleombrotos (reigned 380–371 BCE) in Phokis apparently in 374 BCE. Unfortunately, Xenophon did not explicitly state that those four morai were present in the army of Kleombrotos at the battle of Leuktra in 371 BCE. Xenophon mentioned that the polemarch Deinon was slain in the battle and mentioned several times that, following the death of Kleombrotos in the battle, the polemarchs (plural) were in charge. Therefore, as each mora was commanded by a polemarch, there must have been at least three morai present at Leuktra. I surmise that there were four morai in Kleombrotos’ army at Plataia just as there had been in ca. 374 BCE. In the battle, “of all of the Lakedaimonians engys (nearly) 1,000 were slain”! Significantly, “of the Spartiatai themselves, of whom hōs (about, nearly) 700 were there, peri (about) 400 were slain” in the battle. Xenophon stated that the Lakedaimonians in Kleombrotos’ army at Leuktra comprised those who were 20 to 55 years old. (Xenophon. Hellēnika 6.1.1, 6.4.2, 6.4.14–15, 6.4.17)

The size of a lokhos and the overall size of the Lakedaimonian army consisting of twelve lokhoi:

• Lacking any indication as to these figures, I assume a slight decline in the numbers from the battle of Tegyra in 376/375 BCE.

If there were four morai present at the battle, then there would have been a total of eight lokhoi at Leuktra.

• With about 700 Spartiatai serving in eight lokhoi, there would have been on average roughly 88 (700 ÷ 8) Spartiatai in each lokhos, which probably consisted of fewer than 250 Lakedaimonians.
• With only 300 (700 - 400) or so Spartiatai survivors after the battle, on average there would have been something like 38 (300 ÷ 8) Spartiatai left alive per lokhos!
• I assume that there would have been approximately 2,000 (250 x 8) Lakedaimonian hoplites in the army. In that case, the loss of nearly 1,000 Lakedaimonians in the battle would have been a shockingly high proportion—roughly 50%—of the Lakedaimonian contingent, which is the situation that Xenophon recounts.

Post-Leuktra

In the ensuing ten years, the Lakedaimonians had likely suffered a modest yet nevertheless significant number of battle casualties. For example, in 369 BCE, the Arkadian Lykomedes of Mantinea captured Pellana in Lakonike and slew the 300 man Lakedaimonian garrison (Diodoros. 15.67.2). Most of these particular ‘Lakedaimonians’ were likely non-Lakedaimonians such as neodamōdeis (freed helots) and/or mercenaries. However, there were probably a few Spartiatai and perioikoi serving in the garrison as officers.

After the Lakedaimonians had left a garrison of three lokhoi at Kromnos in ca. 365 BCE, a large Arkadian army besieged the town. Kromnos was on the Arkadian–Lakedaimonian border. The Lakedaimonian prince Arkhidamos attempted to rescue these three lokhoi, but he was wounded and ouk elatton (not less than) 30 of the elite troops around Arkhidamos were slain. Subsequently, the Lakedaimonians attempted to extricate these three lokhoi under the cover of darkness. However, pleious (more than) 100 men were captured during this desperate escape. These 100+ Lakedaimonian captives and 30+ slain were all Spartiatai and perioikoi. The number of slain was undoubtedly far greater than the 30+ men noted in one episode of this campaign. The Lakedaimonian captives were divided up amongst the Arkadians, Argives, Messenians, and Thebans and may have been sold as slaves. (Xenophon. Hellēnika 7.4.20–27)

But more than anything else the Theban invasion of Lakonike during the winter of 370/369 BCE devastated Lakedaimonian numbers. Not only had many Lakedaimonian perioikoi defected to the Thebans, but the lost of Messenia would have impoverished many Spartiatai thereby reducing them to the status of hypomeiones (inferiors).


Conclusions

Taking all of the above into account, it seems highly unlikely that a lokhos would have numbered more than 200 Lakedaimonian hoplites in 362 BCE. Therefore, the twelve lokhoi, which formed the Lakedaimonian army, may have numbered 2,400 men or fewer. The Spariatai contingent may have numbered as follows:

• According to Xenophon, there had been about 300 Spartiatai survivors in the eight lokhoi that had fought at Leuktra. The other four lokhoi that had not been present at the battle would have numbered roughly 352 (88 x 4) Spartiatai hoplites. So, following the battle of Leuktra in 371 BCE, the 12 lokhoi would have consisted of roughly 652 living Spartiatai aged 20 to 55.
• Using Thoukydides’ formula for the number of the youngest and oldest age groups would produce a total of 211 (88 x 12 ÷ 5) Spartiatai for this group and a grand total of approximately 863 (652 + 211) living Spartiatai in 371 BCE!
• Following the battle of Leuktra in 371 BCE and a redistribution of the Spartiatai into the lokhoi, there would have been roughly 72 (863 ÷ 12) Spartiatai on average in each of the twelve lokhoi.
• In the ensuing decade (371–362 BCE), there would have been an infusion of young recruits into the Lakedaimonian army. Nonetheless, it seems likely that the Spartiatai from all age classes contributed fewer than 100 men to each lokhos in 362 BCE.
• Xenophon (Hellēnika 7.5.10) described the Spartiatai in the nine lokhoi at Lakedaimon in 362 BCE as mala oligoi (exceedingly few). According to my calculations, these nine lokhoi would have consisted of under 900 Spartiatai from amongst all of the age classes from age 20 to 60.
• My conclusion that there were fewer than 1,200 Spartiatai in 362 BCE is supported by Aristotle (Politics 2.1270a), who wrote that there were oude (not even) 1,000 Spartiatai roughly two decades later after a period of relative peace.

The perioikic contingent in the Lakedaimonian army of 362 BCE may have numbered as follows:

• Unfortunately, we do not know the total number of perioikoi (second class citizens) serving in the Lakedaimonian army at Leuktra. Nonetheless, assuming a maximum of 250 Lakedaimonians per lokhos, then there would have been about 162 (250 - 88) perioikoi per lokhos for a total of roughly 1,296 (162 x 8) perioikoi in the army.
• The perioikoi suffered about 600 (1,000 - 400) fatalities in the battle of Leuktra. Therefore, there would have been on average 75 (600 ÷ 8) dead perioikoi per each of the eight lokhoi.
• With roughly 696 (1,296 - 600) perioikic survivors of the battle, there would have been around 87 (162 - 75) perioikoi left alive per each of the eight lokhoi.
• There had been a tremendous loss of the Lakedaimonian perioikoi at and following the battle of Leuktra. In addition to the numerous dead, many had defected.
• The proportions of Spartiatai and perioikoi had been roughly 35-65 (700 Spariatai to 1,296 perioikoi) at the battle of Leuktra in 371 BCE. It was probably nearer to around 50-50 or maybe even with a lower proportion of perioikoi at the battle of Mantinea in 362 BCE.