A History of Ancient Sparta: Valor, Virtue, and Devotion in the Greek Golden Age

A born teacher and lecturer, Professor Timothy B. Shutt examines the history and culture of ancient Sparta, a society renowned for military excellence and adherence to the values of courage, discipline, duty, and the overcoming of fear. Vastly outnumbered at the Battle of Thermopylae, the Spartan "300" held off an overwhelming Persian force before finally succumbing - but not without inflicting massive casualties and inspiring the rest of the Greeks with the notion that they could persevere.
In this enlightening series of lectures, Professor Shutt delves into Spartan culture, examining its origins, government, religion, and the major events that defined its history.

Course Syllabus

• Lecture 1 Aura and Overview: “Come and take them.”
• Lecture 2 Geography and Origins
• Lecture 3 Institutions: What Made the Spartans So Different?
• Lecture 4 Government and Religion
• Lecture 5 Spartan Art and Culture
• Lecture 6 Women in Sparta
• Lecture 7 The Early Days: Before the Persian Wars
• Lecture 8 The Ionian Revolt to Marathon, 490 BCE
• Lecture 9 Their Finest Hour: Artemisium and Thermopylae, 490–480 BCE (Part I)
• Lecture 10 Their Finest Hour: Artemisium and Thermopylae, 490–480 BCE (Part II)
• Lecture 11 The Triumph of the Greeks: Salamis and Plataea, 480–479 BCE
• Lecture 12 Earthquake, Revolt, Stormclouds Gathering: The Peloponnesian War to the Peace of Nicias
• Lecture 13 Sparta Triumphant: From the Peace of Nicias to Aegospotami
• Lecture 14 Triumph and Nemesis: From the Destruction of the Long Walls at Athens to Leuctra a