Battle Of Leuctra By Xenophon And Plutarch

There is a lack of first-hand accounts of the Battle of Leuctra. Most modern scholars base their analysis on known tactics, archeological evidence, and information provided by ancient historians who wrote about the battle. While a number of ancient historians and philosophers such as Aristotle, Plato, and Thucydides documented various aspects of Sparta, most modern historians rely on the writings of Xenophon and Plutarch when addressing the Battle of Leuctra. Both Xenophon and Plutarch provided similar accounts of the battle; however, there are discrepancies such as the total number of forces on each side. Due to the likelihood these ancient historians had personal biases, and given that neither had first-hand accounts of the battle, I

will rely on the interruptions and analysis of modern historians to describe the events of the battle.

Background
The Battle of Leuctra was a result of Sparta’s actions during the aftermath of the Peloponnesian War.

Subsequent to their victory in the Peloponnesian War, Sparta entered into a period of expansion and imperialism. While their military might was essentially unopposed in the immediate years following the war, their attempts to maintain their empire through an oligarchy system of governance led to the contempt of formally loyal allies. This eventually led to the uprising in Thebes. The uprising in Thebes, along with Athens, Corinth, and Argos, initiated the Boeotian-Spartan War in 379 B.C. Sparta initiated a tenuous peace agreement after eight years of fighting. The peace agreement did not include Thebes. This resulted in direct conflict between Sparta and Thebes which led to the Battle of

Leuctra.
Post-Peloponnesian War
The period of Spartan hegemony, 404-371 B.C., followed the end of the Peloponnesian War. With the defeat of Athens, Sparta became the uncontested regional power of Greece. Sparta abandoned their isolationist policy and began to expand their empire throughout the Greek mainland. Sparta instituted the oligarchy system of governance to maintain control of the Greek city-states. This led to an insurrection of Spartan’s former allies who felt the end of the Athenian imperialism was substituted by Sparta’s imperialistic agenda.
Athens initiated the period of insurrections by exiling the pro-Spartan officials known as “The Thirty Tyrants”. These officials forcibly subdued any elements that challenged their authority, to include any citizens or officials who were found to be pro-democratic. This policy resulted in the execution of approximately five percent of Athens’ total population. The brutal policies instituted by these officials resulted in the successful uprising in Athens in 403 BC. Following the successful revolt by Athens, a number of additional Greek city-states followed suit to exile their Spartan appointed officials; most notable being Thebes, (Kerns, 1988).
The Theban uprising took place in 378 BC, and initiated the Theban and Spartan War. A number of battles took place between Thebes and Sparta throughout the war which lasted approximately 16 years. The turning point of the war occurred in 371 BC at Battle of Leuctra between King Cleombrotus I of Sparta and General Epaminondas of Thebes.
King Cleombrotus I
King Cleombrotus I ruled Sparta from 380-371 BC, following the death of King Agesipolis I in 380 BC. In the Spartan tradition of dual monarchy, King Cleombrotus I ruled along with King Agesilaus II. He led several campaigns against the Thebans with varying degrees of success. Due to his seemingly apathetic approach to engaging the Thebans in battle, per the accounts documented by Xenophon, some historians believe King Cleombrotus I was pro-Theban. In contrast, many other historians believe King Cleombrotus I simply chose a more diplomatic approach with the Thebans. Wherever his allegiances may have been, King Cleombrotus I was directed by the Spartan counsel to lead the army in a military campaign against Thebes, which culminated in The Battle of Leuctra, (Smith, 1870).
General Epaminodas
General Epaminodas was born in Thebes in 410 BC and died in Mantineia in 362 BC. He led a relatively private life; even after Sparta overthrew the local Theban government (382 BC) and instituted a small dictatorship. His rise to prominence did not occur until Pelopidas, a former statesman exiled from Thebes by the Spartans, secretly returned to Thebes and incited a popular uprising against the Spartan dictatorship in 379 B.C. Epaminodas is said to have played a role in the uprising, (Parke, n.d.).
Following the Theban uprising, Sparta led multiple campaigns in an attempt to regain control of Thebes; all of the attempts were unsuccessful. While the Thebans were reluctant to engage the Spartans in head to head battle, they were successful in repelling Spartan attacks by utilizing unconventional warfare tactics. While it is not noted in historical reference, it is assumed by many historians that General Epaminodas played a role in commanding and instituting the Theban battle tactics during this period. The multiple conflicts provided General Epaminodas with the opportunity to study Spartan battle tactics and develop a strategy to defeat the Spartans at the Battle of Leuctra.
Boeotian-Spartan War
The Boeotian-Spartan War began with the Theban uprising in 379 B.C.

Thebes aligned itself with Athens in an effort to overturn Spartan hegemony in Greece. Thebes then went on to reconstitute the formerly disbanded Boeotian League. The Boeotian League, led by Thebes, consisted of Euboea, Acarnania, Phocis, Thessaly, Arcadia, and Achaea.

Following the Theban uprising, Sparta launched a counter-offensive to retake control of Thebes. The Spartan army, led by King Cleombrotus I, marched towards Thebes in an attempt to retake the city. Thebes, reluctant to engage the Spartans in a hoplite confrontation, built a trench, reinforced with defensive positions, around the perimeter of Thebes. This defensive posture was effective in discouraging the Spartan army from engaging the Thebans, and resulted in the stalemate and subsequent withdrawal of the Spartan army.

Sparta attempted to retake Thebes several times during this period without success. Concurrently, both Sparta and Thebes were successful in other minor engagements across the Greek mainland. None of these battles marked a decisive turning point of the

war.
After an eight year stalemate between Sparta and Thebes, an attempt to reconcile peace was initiated in 371 B.C. While the general war ended at the peace conference, Sparta refused to recognize Thebes as the formal representative of the Boeotian League for the peace agreement. Instead, Sparta insisted that each city of the Boeotian League sign the peace treaty as an individual entity. The Theban representative, General Epaminondas, maintained his position and insisted the alliance be treated as a single entity. As a result, King Agesilaus of Sparta removed Thebes from the list of signatories. This break-down of the peace negotiations pit Sparta directly against Thebes.