What usually happened to Spartan babies born weak?

If a baby was weak, the Spartans exposed it on the hillside or took it away to become a slave (helot). Nurses had the primary care of the baby and did not coddle it. Soldiers took the boys from their mothers at age 7, housed them in a dormitory with other boys and trained them as soldiers.

What was life like as a Spartan child?

The boys lived in barracks and were often beaten to make them tough. They were given little to eat in order to get used to what life would be like when they went to war. The boys were encouraged to fight one another. When the boys turned 20 they entered into the Spartan army.

Why did Spartans not wear armor?

In response to Iphicrates’ victory over Sparta in 392 BC, Spartan hoplites started abandoning body armour. Eventually, they wore almost no armour apart from a shield, leg greaves, bracelets, helmet and a robe. However, pike-men armed with the sarissa never outnumbered troops equipped in the hoplite style.

What did Spartans do to deformed babies?

The Spartans used to dispose of “imperfect” or weak babies by throwing them off of Mount Taygetus into a pit.

How many babies were left to die in Sparta?

10 Half Of All Spartan Babies Were Left To Die. In Sparta, weak children weren’t given a chance. If they were born weak, ill, or deformed, they were left to die—and that happened a lot. When a baby was born, the father would carry the newborn to the town’s elders.

What happens to the baby of a Spartan soldier?

If a Spartan baby was judged to be unfit for its future duty as a soldier, it was most likely abandoned on a nearby hillside. Left alone, the child would either die of exposure or be rescued and adopted by strangers.

Where did the Spartans throw babies off cliffs?

The ancient historian Plutarch claimed these “ill-born” Spartan babies were tossed into a chasm at the foot of Mount Taygetus, but most historians now dismiss this as a myth. If a Spartan baby was judged to be unfit for its future duty as a soldier, it was most likely abandoned on a nearby hillside.

How did the Spartans look for weaknesses in children?

In Sparta, weak children weren’t given a chance. If they were born weak, ill, or deformed, they were left to die—and that happened a lot. When a baby was born, the father would carry the newborn to the town’s elders. The elders would examine the child, looking for weaknesses and deformities.