he Spartan king was put in charge of the army at Thermopylae. Of his over lordship Herodotus says only that they especially looked up to him. He was convinced that he was going to certain death, which he would not have been if he had thought the forces given him were adequate for a victory. He selected only men who had fathered sons that were old enough to take over the family responsibilities. Plutarch mentions in his Sayings of Spartan Women that after encouraging her husband before his departure for the battlefield, Gorgo, the wife of Leonidas, asked him what she should do when he had left. To this he replied: Marry a good man, and have good children. Another common saying of Spartan Women was: Come home with your shield or on it. The meaning being that the soldier was to return home either victorious (with your shield) or dead - i.e. carried away from the battle field (on their shield), rather than fleeing the battle and dropping their shield in cowardice (as it was too heavy a piece of armor to carry while running).
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Nick/www.greece-priv…, on November 4, 2007, said:
he Spartan king was put in charge of the army at Thermopylae. Of his over lordship Herodotus says only that they especially looked up to him. He was convinced that he was going to certain death, which he would not have been if he had thought the forces given him were adequate for a victory. He selected only men who had fathered sons that were old enough to take over the family responsibilities. Plutarch mentions in his Sayings of Spartan Women that after encouraging her husband before his departure for the battlefield, Gorgo, the wife of Leonidas, asked him what she should do when he had left. To this he replied: Marry a good man, and have good children. Another common saying of Spartan Women was: Come home with your shield or on it. The meaning being that the soldier was to return home either victorious (with your shield) or dead - i.e. carried away from the battle field (on their shield), rather than fleeing the battle and dropping their shield in cowardice (as it was too heavy a piece of armor to carry while running).