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Archidamus III waa the son of Agesilaus II,
was king of Sparta from 360 to 338. While still a prince, he was the eispnelas,
inspirer, of Cleonymus, son of Sphodrias. He interceded with his own father to
spare his aites' father's life in a legal matter, an action which further
intensified friction between Athens and Sparta. He later led the Spartan forces
both before and during his rule. Archidamus headed the force sent to aid the
Spartan army after its defeat by the Thebans at the Battle of Leuctra in 371 and was commander later during
the fighting in the Peloponnese. Four years later he captured Caryae, ravaged
the territory of the Parrhasii and defeated the Arcadians, Argives and
Messenians in the "tearless battle", so called because the victory
did not cost the Spartans a single life. However, he was in turn defeated by
the Arcadians in 364 at Cromnus.] In 362, he showed great courage in the
defense of Sparta against the Theban commander
Epaminondas. As king,
Archidamus supported the Phocians against Thebes in the
Sacred War of
355–346. In 346 he went to Crete to help Lyttos in their struggle against
Knossos in the Foreign War. In 343, the Spartan colony Tarentum asked for
Sparta's help in the war against the Italic populations, notably the Lucanians
and the Messapians. In 342 Archidamus arrived in Italy with a fleet and a
mercenary army and fought against the barbarians, but in 338 he was defeated
and killed under the walls of Manduria. He was succeeded by his son
Agis III, and was also the father of Eudamidas I and
another son named Agesilaus.
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