Epaminondas
The Theban general who broke Spartan power and reshaped Greece.
Daderot · via Wikipedia: Epaminondas · Public domain
He is best known for his military innovations at the Battle of Leuctra, which broke Spartan dominance in Greece.[1][2] His life is poorly attested in ancient sources, partly because Plutarch's biography of him has been lost.[3] Epaminondas was a general and statesman from Thebes who lived during a period of Greek history that was particularly turbulent after the Peloponnesian War ended in 404 BC.[4]
Quick Facts
- Born
- 419 or 411 BC
- Died
- 4 July 362 BC (age about 53)
- Place of death
- Near Mantineia, Peloponnese
- Allegiance
- 385 BC: Thebes
- Service years
- 385 and 371–362 BC
- Rank
- Boeotarch
- Battles
- Siege of Mantinea
- Battle of Leuctra
- Battle of Mantinea (362 BC)
Facts from the source article.
Life and work
Epaminondas supported this coup by leading a group of young men and exhorting the Thebans to fight for freedom.[5] At the peace conference of 371 BC, Epaminondas insisted on signing for all Boeotians, not just Thebans, which caused a break with Sparta.[6] Upon returning home, he was put on trial by political enemies for overstaying his term of office.[7] At the engagement known as the Battle of Leuctra, Epaminondas was placed in command of the Boeotian army, and on his left wing he positioned his best troops in a phalanx that was 50 ranks deep.[1][8]
On the right flank he stationed the less capable soldiers and ordered them to avoid combat and slowly fall back during the enemy assault.[9]
References
- Wikipedia, "Epaminondas" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Sage 2002, p. 138; Seager 2000, p. 183; Lazenby 1993, p. 7 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Epaminondas" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Joint Association of Classical Teachers 1984, p. 48; Roy 2000, p. 187 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Epaminondas" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Buckley 2010, p. 12 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Epaminondas" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Fine 1983, p. 547; Hornblower Spawforth 2003, p. 391 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Epaminondas" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Buck 1994, p. 63 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Epaminondas" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Beck 2008, p. 170; Buck 1994, p. 63 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Epaminondas" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Nepos 1790, p. 146 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Epaminondas" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Davis 2001, p. 24 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Epaminondas" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Kagan 1990, p. 283; Hanson 1999 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Epaminondas (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
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