Agesilaus II reigned over Sparta from approximately 400 to 360 BCE, leading the city-state through a complex period marked by ambitious campaigns, shifting alliances, and internal challenges. His life offers a fascinating glimpse into the evolution of Spartan power and the forces that led to its eventual decline. Agesilaus was a resolute warrior, deeply loyal to Sparta, yet his reign highlights the tension between traditional values and the need for adaptability in a rapidly changing Greek world.
Early life and surprising ascension to power
Agesilaus was born around 445/4 BCE to King Archidamus II, of the Eurypontid royal line, and his second wife, Eupoleia. Despite his royal lineage, Agesilaus was not initially in line for the throne. His half-brother Agis II, born from Archidamus’s first marriage, held the title of heir. Agesilaus himself faced a major physical challenge—he was born with a disability that left him with a limp. In Sparta, infants with physical deformities were often abandoned, but because he was not the heir, Agesilaus was spared this fate and permitted to undergo the rigorous agoge training.
The agoge, Sparta’s strict educational system, shaped him into a disciplined soldier. He endured the training with resilience, quickly proving himself a talented warrior despite his limp. Agesilaus earned the respect of his peers and gained valuable allies, including Lysander, a prominent Spartan general who would later play a crucial role in his rise to power. Lysander’s favor was essential when Agis II died around 400 BCE. Though Agis had a son, Leotychidas, rumors of his illegitimacy—some claimed he was the son of the Athenian Alcibiades—led Lysander to champion Agesilaus for the throne. Agesilaus became king, overcoming both the stigma of his physical impairment and challenges to his legitimacy.
Early rule and the Conspiracy of Cinadon
Shortly after assuming the throne, Agesilaus confronted one of the first major challenges of his reign: the Conspiracy of Cinadon in 399 BCE. This rebellion, led by Cinadon—a disenfranchised Spartan citizen—sought to empower those excluded from the privileges of Spartan citizenship, such as the hypomeiones (former full citizens who had lost their status) and the oppressed helots. Cinadon’s vision was to topple the entrenched Spartan elite and restore equality. Though his followers were motivated by genuine grievances, Agesilaus reacted swiftly and decisively, quashing the conspiracy before it could take hold. Cinadon and his fellow conspirators were executed, and the king’s authority was solidified. However, Agesilaus took no further action to address the socio-economic issues that had fueled the rebellion, a decision that would have lasting consequences as Spartan society continued to fracture in the coming decades.
Campaigns in Asia Minor and rivalry with Persia
In 396 BCE, Agesilaus embarked on a significant campaign in Asia Minor, a move that marked the height of Spartan ambition abroad. Sparta’s former ally, Cyrus the Younger, had earlier attempted to overthrow his brother, the Persian king Artaxerxes II, but had failed and lost his life. The Persian Empire, still reeling from this internal power struggle, offered an opportunity for Agesilaus to assert Spartan influence and liberate Greek cities under Persian control. Supported by Lysander, Agesilaus assembled an army with a core of 30 full Spartans, 2,000 neodamodes (freed helots), and 6,000 Greek allies.
The campaign initially proceeded well. Agesilaus quickly demonstrated his cunning and battlefield acumen, leveraging Cyrus’s old mercenaries and adding the famed “Ten Thousand,” a group of Greek soldiers led by Xenophon. In a symbolic gesture meant to echo the grandeur of Agamemnon, Agesilaus staged a sacrifice at Aulis before sailing for Asia—a decision that angered the local Thebans, whose antipathy for Agesilaus and Sparta would only deepen. Upon arriving in Ephesus, the Spartan king found himself at odds with Lysander, who was well-connected in the region. Agesilaus asserted his authority by diminishing Lysander’s influence, forcing him to leave the army, which would sour their relationship but leave Agesilaus with unquestioned control over the campaign.
He launched raids into the satrapy of Phrygia, a region ruled by Pharnabazus, but was forced to delay his ultimate objectives due to the superior Persian cavalry and fortifications. After wintering in Ephesus, Agesilaus reformed his army’s tactics, creating a Spartan cavalry that could counter Persian forces on equal footing. In 395 BCE, he managed a major victory at Sardis by tricking the satrap Tissaphernes into defending the wrong region, then launched a surprise attack on Sardis itself, decisively defeating Persian forces and marking Sparta’s greatest military achievement abroad. The Spartan assembly rewarded Agesilaus by giving him control of both the army and navy, a dual command previously ungranted to any Spartan king.
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The Corinthian War and challenges at home
However, Sparta’s success in Asia Minor was short-lived, as events at home forced Agesilaus to abandon his ambitions in the East. The Persians, desperate to divert Sparta’s attention, financed a coalition of Greek city-states—Thebes, Corinth, Athens, and Argos—to wage war against Sparta in what became known as the Corinthian War (395-387 BCE). Persuaded by Persian bribes, Thebes had launched a proxy war with Sparta over the city of Phocis, which escalated into open conflict across mainland Greece. With Athens and Corinth joining the anti-Spartan alliance, Agesilaus was compelled to return home to defend Sparta’s interests.
After making a long march back to Greece through hostile territories, Agesilaus fought in the Battle of Coronea in 394 BCE, a grueling clash that saw him narrowly defeat the allied forces. However, the cost was high. The Corinthian War dragged on for years, draining Spartan resources and weakening its hegemony. Sparta’s victory at Coronea was not decisive enough to restore its dominance, and the war continued to erode its power base. Meanwhile, the Persian navy, under the command of the Athenian exile Conon, inflicted a severe defeat on the Spartan fleet at Cnidus, effectively dismantling Sparta’s maritime power. For the first time, the Spartans were vulnerable both at sea and on land, signaling a major shift in Greek geopolitics.
Conflict with Thebes and the disaster at Leuctra
Throughout the 370s BCE, Agesilaus maintained an aggressive policy toward Thebes, whose influence continued to grow. Driven by a personal vendetta dating back to his failed sacrifice at Aulis, Agesilaus undertook several invasions of Boeotia, hoping to curb Theban influence and reassert Spartan dominance. However, his uncompromising stance only exacerbated tensions, drawing Sparta into an endless conflict with its northern rival. In 371 BCE, Agesilaus used his influence to exclude Thebes from a peace treaty, setting the stage for the fateful Battle of Leuctra.
This decisive engagement, led by the brilliant Theban general Epaminondas, saw Sparta suffer its worst defeat. The innovative Theban tactics, which included the deep phalanx formation, overwhelmed the Spartan lines and resulted in the death of King Cleombrotus. Leuctra shattered the myth of Spartan invincibility and marked the end of Spartan hegemony in Greece. Although Agesilaus was not present at the battle, his role in escalating tensions with Thebes had set in motion the events that led to Sparta’s downfall.
The Revolt of the Satraps and later years in Egypt
After the loss of Spartan dominance, Agesilaus continued to seek opportunities to secure wealth and support for Sparta. In 366 BCE, he accepted a mission to Asia Minor to assist the revolting satrap Ariobarzanes against Persian authority, part of the broader Revolt of the Satraps. Despite his age, Agesilaus was relentless, and his involvement in these foreign conflicts was partly motivated by the need to replenish Sparta’s dwindling resources. Later, he was recruited by the Egyptian pharaoh Nectanebo I to support Egypt in its fight against Persia. Agesilaus served as a mercenary commander, offering his expertise in return for substantial payment.
Although he was well past his prime, his tactics and experience proved valuable, and he successfully supported the Egyptian resistance. However, his Egyptian campaign ended when Nectanebo II ascended the throne. Agesilaus accepted a payment of 200 talents for his services and set out to return to Sparta. Tragically, he died en route in Cyrenaica around 360/59 BCE, his body embalmed in wax for the journey back to his homeland.
Legacy and the decline of Sparta
Agesilaus left behind a mixed legacy. His friend and biographer, Xenophon, praised him as a paragon of Spartan virtues—disciplined, brave, and loyal to the end. Xenophon depicted him as a figure of humility and integrity, a king who served his city before himself. Yet Agesilaus was also a divisive figure whose rigid adherence to Spartan customs often hindered his strategic vision. While he succeeded in securing short-term victories, his long-standing enmity with Thebes and unyielding foreign policies contributed to Sparta’s prolonged conflicts and eventual weakening.
As a statesman, Agesilaus found himself caught between maintaining Sparta’s traditional values and confronting the evolving military and political landscape of Greece. His reign saw Sparta achieve great success abroad, particularly in Asia Minor, yet his ambitions were always undercut by the internal struggles and shifting alliances within Greece itself. After his death, Sparta’s influence continued to wane, and the city-state, once the dominant military power of the Greek world, slipped further into decline.
Agesilaus II remains a symbol of Sparta’s resilience but also of its rigidity. His life illustrates both the heights of Spartan ambition and the cost of an inflexible approach in a time of great change. His actions, particularly his deep-seated hostility toward Thebes, underscored the tragic arc of Sparta’s rise and fall, cementing his place as one of the most influential yet controversial kings in Spartan history.
