War was commonplace in ancient Greek culture. Though there were many friendly alliances and long periods of peace amongst neighboring cities and countries, City-sieges, civil wars, and large-scale battles were frequent. Many resources and lives were lost, but the rewards of victory outweighed that of what was squandered, making war a practical conclusion. This paper will explore the balance of combat with everyday Greek life, focusing on the compromise of war and its effects on civilian living in Ancient Greece.
In ancient Greece, most wars were caused by the need to expand, gaining territory to further progress the cities’ assets. The city-states of Athens, Sparta, and Thebes were always fighting over their boundary lines, but would often gather as alliances to fight against outside invading forces, like the Persians. These battles …show more content…
This amount of people was numerous as the military class was relatively small compared to the thousands of people in a city. Often, most would continue their day-to-day lives without a thought to the wars that were being established outside of the city. However, There were instances, as in the Peloponnesian war, that required civilians to take a more active approach in the war efforts. Due to the rise of siege warfare, civilians would have weapons of their own to defend their city if they were attacked whilst the cavalry was away.
Greek warfare is an astounding and interesting topic, which is just on the surface of being explored here. There are many other topics that can be discussed, from specific regional wars and individual battles to military combat and tactics. However, the topics covered here give a general inclusive as to the necessity of war in ancient Greece and shows the relationship between combat and civilian
In ancient Greece, most wars were caused by the need to expand, gaining territory to further progress the cities’ assets. The city-states of Athens, Sparta, and Thebes were always fighting over their boundary lines, but would often gather as alliances to fight against outside invading forces, like the Persians. These battles …show more content…
This amount of people was numerous as the military class was relatively small compared to the thousands of people in a city. Often, most would continue their day-to-day lives without a thought to the wars that were being established outside of the city. However, There were instances, as in the Peloponnesian war, that required civilians to take a more active approach in the war efforts. Due to the rise of siege warfare, civilians would have weapons of their own to defend their city if they were attacked whilst the cavalry was away.
Greek warfare is an astounding and interesting topic, which is just on the surface of being explored here. There are many other topics that can be discussed, from specific regional wars and individual battles to military combat and tactics. However, the topics covered here give a general inclusive as to the necessity of war in ancient Greece and shows the relationship between combat and civilian