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The Theban campaign of 377 BC was the second
attempt by King Agesilaus II of Sparta to force Thebes to accept Spartan
control, but like his first attempt in the previous year the campaign ended in
failure. In 382 the Spartans had seized control of Thebes, but in 379 a
combination of Theban exiles and internal enemies of the new regime overthrew
the pro-Spartan government and expelled the Spartan garrison of the Cadmea (the
citadel of Thebes), triggering the Theban-Spartan or Boeotian War (379-371).
The Spartans sent an army late in the year, but without success. In 378 King Agesilaus II led a
second invasion of Theban territory. After forcing his way past some extensive
field fortifications, he ran into a combined Theban and Athenian army three
miles from Thebes, and was unwilling to risk attacking them in their strong
position on a ridge. Agesilaus retreated back to Thespiae, where he restored
the fortifications, before leading most of his army back out of Boeotia.
A Spartan garrison was left at Thespiae, but later in the year that force
suffered an embarrassing defeat at the hands of the Thebans, in which the
Spartan commander Pheobidas was killed. After
this setback the Spartans sent a fresh regiment commanded by one of their
polemarchs to take over at Thespiae. Agesilaus took command of the army that
invaded Boeotia in 377. His first move was to order the new commander at
Thespiae to secure the passes over the Cithaeron range. In an attempt to
mislead the Thebans he then ordered the market for his army to gather at
Thespiae. The Thebans, who had been preparing to defend a position at Scolus,
south of Thebes, were fooled, and moved their army west onto the road from
Thespiae to Thebes. In the meantime Agesilaus marched up the Scolus road, and
was able to get past the previous Theban position without a fight. This meant
that Agesilaus was now in a dangerous position, between Thebes and the main
Theban army. He advanced north-east across Boeotia, devastating the country as
he went. The Spartans reached as far as Tanagra, a Spartan ally to the
north-east of Thebes, before turning back. In the meantime the Theban army had
rushed back from Thespiae, and took up a strong position on a hill called the
'seat of Rhea'. Agesilaus needed to find a way to dislodge the Thebans, and
decided to carry out a feint west towards Thebes itself. The Thebans were
forced to abandon their strong position and dash back towards the undefended
city. They had the advantage of higher ground on most of this route, but were
harassed by the Sciritae, Spartan hill men with an excellent reputation as
scouts and elite troops. The Sciritae chased the Thebans all the way back to
the city, before withdrawing. The Thebans put up a victory trophy, but this was
more of a publicity gesture than a celebration of a real success. The Spartans
withdrew to the seat of Rhea, where they passed through the Theban field
fortifications constructed in the previous year, and from there returned to
Thespiae. They were harassed on their way by Theban and Athenian peltasts, but
these attacks were eventually beaten off by Olynthian cavalry, Spartan allies
since their defeat in the Olynthian- Spartan War of 382-379. After reaching
Thespiae Agesilaus led most of his army back to the Peloponnese. On the way
home he ruptured a vein in his leg while climbing an acropolis, and was thus
unfit for the campaign of 376. Although the Spartans hadn't posed a direct
threat to Thebes during the 377 campaign, they had inflicted heavy damage on
the Theban farmland, and food was now running short. The Thebans arranged to
purchase supplies from Thessaly, and sent a convoy of transport ships escorted
by two triremes to collect the grain. This meant that they needed to pass
Oreus, on the northern coast of Euboea. This was one of the few places on the
island still in Spartan hands, and the local harmost, Alcetas, was able to man
three triremes. In order to trick the Thebans he got his three crews to
exercise in one ship, and so the eventual attack, carried out on the return
journey, came as a surprise. The entire convoy was captured, and the 300
crewmen were imprisoned in the citadel at Oreus.
While Alcetas was in the city, possibly visiting a boyfriend, the Thebans broke
out of their prison, seized the citadel, and inspired a revolt in the city. The
grain and ships were recovered, and the crucial supplies reached Thebes. As a
result the Spartan attempt to starve the Thebans into surrender failed.
The Spartan campaign of 376 was even less successful. This time Cleombrotus was
in command, but after suffering a minor defeat in the passes across Cithaeron,
he cancelled the invasion and returned home.eview] cover cover cover l
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Sparta at War, Scott M. Rusch. A study of the rise, dominance
and fall of Sparta, the most famous military power in the Classical Greek
world. Sparta dominated land warfare for two centuries, before suffering a
series of defeats that broke its power. The author examines the reasons for
that success, and for Sparta's failure to bounce back from defeat.
The Spartan Supremacy 412-371 BC, Mike Roberts and Bob Bennett. . Looks
at the short spell between the end of the Great Peloponnesian War and the
battle of Leuctra where Sparta's political power matched her military
reputation. The authors look at how Sparta proved to be politically unequal to
her new position, and how this period of supremacy ended with Sparta's military
reputation in tatters and her political power fatally wounded.
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