Epaminondas
The Theban general who broke Spartan power and reshaped Greece.
Epaminondas (c. 419/411–362 BC) was a Greek general and statesman who reshaped the ancient city-state of Thebes. He led it out of Spartan control and into a dominant position in Greek affairs known as the Theban Hegemony. His victory at the Battle of Leuctra broke Sparta’s military strength and freed the Messenian helots—Peloponnesian Greeks who had been enslaved under Spartan rule for about 230 years after the Second Messenian War ended in 600 BC. Epaminondas redrew Greece’s political boundaries, dismantled old alliances, forged new ones, and oversaw the founding of entire cities. He also introduced key battlefield innovations, including the oblique order.
The historian Xenophon, a contemporary who admired Epaminondas, provides the main account of his military skill in his work *Hellenica*. Later, the Roman orator Cicero called him “the first man of Greece,” and Michel de Montaigne ranked him among the three “worthiest and most excellent men” in history. However, the changes Epaminondas made to Greek politics did not last. The cycle of shifting power and alliances continued, and just twenty-seven years after his death, Alexander the Great destroyed a rebellious Thebes. Today, Epaminondas is remembered mainly for a decade of campaigning (371–362 BC) that created a short-lived Theban hegemony but also weakened the major city-states, paving the way for Macedonian dominance.
Historical sources for Epaminondas are scarce, especially compared to figures like Philip II of Macedon or Pelopidas. A key reason is the loss of Plutarch’s biography of him, which was part of the *Parallel Lives* and paired him with Scipio Africanus. Plutarch wrote over 400 years after Epaminondas’s death, but he often names his sources, allowing some verification. Some details survive in Plutarch’s lives of Pelopidas and Agesilaus II. A biography by the Roman author Cornelius Nepos, from the first century BC, is also a major source. Xenophon, a contemporary and direct witness, covers the period from 411–362 BC in his *Hellenica*, though he favored Sparta and does not always mention Epaminondas, even at Leuctra. He does describe Epaminondas’s final battle and death. Diodorus Siculus, writing in the first century BC, also covers Epaminondas’s role in 4th-century conflicts, providing useful corroboration.
Epaminondas was born in Thebes to a high-ranking family that claimed descent from the mythical Spartoi. His birth year is uncertain, estimated between 419 and 411 BC. His father was Polymnis, his brother Caphisias, and both parents lived to see his victory at Leuctra in 371 BC. He received an excellent education, learning to play the cither and flute, to dance, and preferring agility over strength in the gymnasium. He studied philosophy under Lysis of Tarentum, a Pythagorean who had fled persecution in Magna Graecia and lived in Epaminondas’s father’s house. Lysis deeply influenced him; Epaminondas became devoted to his teacher, embraced Pythagoreanism, and later tended his grave. He was known for patriotism, incorruptibility, selflessness, and modesty. He lived frugally, even in voluntary poverty, to limit his needs and increase his independence. Ancient sources also note his military skill, eloquence, taciturn nature, wit, and crude humor. He never married, instead cultivating close friendships, most famously with his lifelong companion Pelopidas.
Epaminondas lived in a turbulent period. After winning the Peloponnesian War in 404 BC, Sparta pursued an aggressive, unilateral policy that alienated many former allies. Thebes, meanwhile, had grown stronger during the war and sought control over other Boeotian cities. This ambition, along with other disputes, brought Thebes into conflict with Sparta.
- born
- 419/411 BC
- died
- 362 BC
- field
- General, statesman
- nationality
- Theban (Greek)
- known_for
- Victory at Leuctra, Theban Hegemony, oblique order, liberation of Messenian helots
Lore & Background
Xenophon, the historian and contemporary, is the main source for Epaminondas's military prowess, and Xenophon describes his admiration for him in his major work Hellenica (book VII, chap. 5, 19). Accordingly, in later centuries the Roman orator Cicero called him 'the first man of Greece', and in more recent times Michel de Montaigne judged him one of the three 'worthiest and most excellent men' who had ever lived. The changes Epaminondas wrought on the Greek political order did not long outlive him, as the cycle of shifting hegemonies and alliances continued unabated. A mere twenty-seven years after his death, a recalcitrant Thebes was obliterated by Alexander the Great. Thus Epaminondas—who had been praised in his time as an idealist and liberator—is today largely remembered for a decade (371 BC to 362 BC) of campaigning that established a decade long Theban hegemony but also sapped the strength of the great city-states and paved the way for Macedonian hegemony.
Reader's Guide
The life of Epaminondas is very poorly attested in the ancient sources, especially compared to some of his near contemporaries (e.g. Philip II of Macedon and Pelopidas). One principal reason for this is the loss of Plutarch's biography of him. Epaminondas was one of approximately 50 ancient figures given an extensive biography by Plutarch in his Parallel Lives, in which he is paired with the Roman statesman Scipio Africanus; however, both of these parts of Lives are now lost. Plutarch wrote his biography over 400 years after Epaminondas's death and is therefore very much a secondary source, but he often explicitly names his sources, which allows some degree of verification of his statements. Some episodes of Epaminondas's life can be found in Plutarch's Lives of Pelopidas and Agesilaus II, who were contemporaries. There is also a surviving (and possibly abridged) biography of Epaminondas by the Roman author Cornelius Nepos from the first century BC which, in the absence of Plutarch's, becomes a major source for Epaminondas's life. The period of Greek history from 411–362 BC is primarily attested by the historian, contemporary and direct witness Xenophon, his work being a continuation of Thucydides's History of the Peloponnesian War. Xenophon, who was partial to Sparta and its king, Agesilaus, does not always mention Epaminondas himself and does not note his presence at the Battle of Leuctra. However, Xenophon tells us of Epaminondas's last battle and death, which is told in the last and seventh book of the Hellenica. Epaminondas's role in the conflicts of the 4th century is also described, much later, by Diodorus Siculus, in his Bibliotheca historica. Diodorus was writing in the 1st century BC, and is also very much a secondary source, though useful for corroborating details found elsewhere.
Did You Know?
- Epaminondas was taught philosophy by Lysis of Tarentum, a Pythagorean who had escaped persecution in Magna Graecia and settled in Epaminondas's father's house.
- Epaminondas never married, but cultivated friendships, most famously with his lifelong companion Pelopidas.
- He is said to have saved the life of Pelopidas during a campaign in 385 BC, though some historians dismiss this as an unhistorical doublet.
- Epaminondas led a frugal lifestyle and lived in voluntary poverty.
Notable Quotes (Wikiquote)
"Epaminondas (Ἐπαμεινώνδας; circa 419/411–362 BC) was a Greek general and statesman of the city-state of Thebes, best known for defeating the Spartans at the Battle of Leuctra." — Epaminondas "When the Spartans accused the Thebans of a long list of serious offences, he retorted, "These Thebans, however, have put a stop to your brevity of speech!" — Epaminondas "Epaminondas is reported wittily to have said of a good man that died about the time of the battle of Leuctra, "How came he to have so much leisure as to die, when there was so much stirring?" — Epaminondas "Spintharus, speaking in commendation of Epaminondas, says he scarce ever met with any man who knew more and spoke less." — Epaminondas
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