Agesilaus II king of Sparta

Agesilaus II was a king of Sparta, who campaigned against the Persians in Asia Minor to liberate the Greek cities.

Although he was small and lame from birth, he fully responded to his military duties. Thus, he is proof that the Spartans did not throw sick children to the sea.

He was the child of King Archidamus II and Eupolya. He was raised like any other child in Sparta, as he was not destined to succeed his father.

The legal heir was his brother, Ageas II. However, his child, Leotychidas, was considered illegitimate. Thus, Agesilaus II ascended the throne.

He had decided to go to Asia Minor with his army to liberate the Greek cities from the Persians. Therefore, he turned to the Oracle of Dodona, so that it could give him an oracle. However, the Ephors urged him to consult the Oracle of Delphi as well.

Finally, in 396 BC, he marched to Ephesus with an army of 8,000 men against the Persians. There, he plundered Phrygia and then invaded Lydia.

At Sardis, he defeated the army of Tissaphernes. Agesilaus reached Paphlagonia. Although in 394 BC he made preparations to raid the Persians again, he returned to Greece, intending to confront them from there.
From 394 to 387 BC, he participated in the Corinthian War.

During the campaign in Asia Minor, it is said that the soldiers saw their king as the only one who could withstand the changes of weather, from very cold to unbearable heat. The Greeks of the region enjoyed seeing the Persians playing well and were afraid of a Spartan.

Agesilaus, in order to boost the morale of his soldiers in the campaign against Pharnabazus of Asia Minor, ordered them to sell the prisoners they had captured naked. The Persians were not accustomed to physical exercise, so many had unfit bodies. The Greeks, seeing the weak bodies of their prisoners, took courage.

When Agesilaus’ army defeated the Corinthians in the Corinthian War, many suggested that they sack the city of their opponents. However, the Spartan leader said: “If we want to destroy those who fought with us against the barbarians, it is as if we are destroying ourselves.”

Agesilaus was an excellent tactician and resourceful in battle, and his fame went beyond the Greek borders.

In the campaign against Thebes, Sparta’s allies began to complain that it was unfair that most of the dead were from them and not from the Spartans. So Agesilaus came up with a trick: He had the allies sit in a mixed group and the Spartans alone.

Then, he would gradually call out various professions, so that everyone who practiced one of them would stand up. Thus, all the allies stood up and none of the Spartans.

In Sparta, no soldier was allowed to practice any profession. Then Agesilaus said: “Do you see, my brave men, with how many more soldiers we are campaigning compared to you?”.

As he was short, thin and lame, characteristics that one would say do not suit a war hero, his bravery was famous as far as Egypt.

At the age of 80, he rushed to help the Pharaoh. When he arrived in Egypt, he lay down with his men on the ground to rest. Many had learned of his arrival and wanted to meet him. Among them were Pharaoh’s envoys with gifts.

No one imagined that a general would be lying on the ground. Agesilaus ordered the gifts to be distributed among the slaves. He kept only a little beef.