The Spartan hoplite enjoys unquestioned currency as history’s greatest fighting man. The last stand at Thermopylae made the Spartans legends in their own time, famous for their ability to endure hardship, control their emotions, and to never surrender – even in the face of impossible odds, even when it meant certain death. Was this reputation earned? Or was it simply the success of a propaganda machine that began turning at Thermopylae in 480 BC? Covering Sparta’s full classical history from the polis’ (city-state) foundation to its final subsumption by Rome in the first century BC, this book examines the myth of Spartan warrior supremacy, painting a very different picture of Spartan warfare – punctuated by frequent and heavy losses.

Author Myke Cole Published by Osprey Publishing ISBN 9781472843753 EAN 9781472843753 Bic Code Cover Hardback