Spartan hippeis
E376247
The Spartan hippeis were an elite royal bodyguard unit of 300 handpicked warriors who formed the core of Sparta’s heavy infantry.
All labels observed (1)
| Label | Occurrences |
|---|---|
| Spartan hippeis canonical | 1 |
Statements (46)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
Spartan military unit
ⓘ
elite infantry ⓘ military unit ⓘ royal bodyguard ⓘ |
| ageRequirement | young adult Spartiate men ⓘ |
| allegiance |
Sparta
ⓘ
surface form:
Lacedaemon
|
| associatedWith |
Spartan agoge training system
ⓘ
Spartan kingship ⓘ |
| battlefieldRole |
close protection for the royal position in the line
ⓘ
front‑line shock troops ⓘ |
| commandStructure |
associated with the polemarchs
ⓘ
under authority of the Spartan kings ⓘ |
| country | Sparta ⓘ |
| culture |
Sparta
ⓘ
surface form:
Ancient Sparta
|
| distinctFrom |
Spartan cavalry
ⓘ
Theban Sacred Band ⓘ |
| duty |
guarding the kings in peace and war
ⓘ
serving as the most reliable troops in critical battles ⓘ |
| equipment |
body armor
ⓘ
heavy shield (aspis) ⓘ helmet ⓘ hoplite panoply ⓘ spear ⓘ |
| etymology | Ancient Greek word "hippeis" meaning "horsemen" or "knights" ⓘ |
| function |
formed the core of Sparta’s heavy infantry
ⓘ
served as personal guard of the Spartan kings in battle ⓘ |
| government | Spartan dual kingship ⓘ |
| languageOfName | Ancient Greek ⓘ |
| militaryBranch | heavy infantry ⓘ |
| notableEngagements | Peloponnesian War ⓘ |
| numberOfMembers | 300 ⓘ |
| partOf | Spartan army ⓘ |
| region | Laconia ⓘ |
| reputation |
elite within the Spartan citizen army
ⓘ
highly disciplined ⓘ |
| role | royal bodyguard of the Spartan kings ⓘ |
| selection | handpicked warriors ⓘ |
| selectionCriteria |
courage
ⓘ
excellence in military training ⓘ loyalty to the kings ⓘ physical fitness ⓘ |
| socialClassRequirement | Spartiates ⓘ |
| status | permanent standing corps of selected men ⓘ |
| tactics | fought in phalanx formation ⓘ |
| timePeriod |
5th century BCE
ⓘ
Classical Greece ⓘ |
Referenced by (1)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.