The Spartan hoplites organized themselves into a tight ... Each soldier bore a long lance and (5) a short iron sword. Despite the uniformity in hoplite dress, the Spartan warrior wore a ...

With an eight-foot long spear, a short sword, and a bronze-covered shield, the total weight of their equipment was therefore in the region of 60 to 70 lbs: almost half their own bodyweight!

Inward-looking and self-sufficient, the Spartans were the most feared hoplites (infantrymen ... that just before the Battle of Thermoplyae, a Spartan warrior named Dienekes was told that the ...