CAS CL 101 Lecture Notes - Lecture 22: Perioeci, Helots, Gerousia
20 Mar 2015
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Document Summary
Polis = independent city-state w/ own government and laws; a body of politai. Citizens formed minority of actual amount of people in polis. Solon"s reforms set athens on road to democracy. Conservative, oligarchic, highly militarized polis in the middle part of peloponnesus. Valley within mountains, 25 miles from the seat, but next to the river evrotas. Possessed most of the peninsula"s rich, fertile soil (plenty of crops) The name sparta means: sown , in the myth about king kadmos his people were born from teeth of dragon he sow in the land. Another name: laconia, lacedaemon (sparta: polis itself; laconia: area around) The word laconic means pithy , the spartans were noted for their brusque and aphoristic sayings. King leonidas i to persians: come and take (it) . Sparta"s political situation: citizenship only to spartan males, at most 5% of population (even lower than elsewhere in greece)
