Nauarch
In ancient Greece the Nauarch ( Greek ναύαρχος naúarchos ) was the commander in chief of the Spartan naval forces . He was in command of the activities of the Spartan fleet. The authority also referred to foreign cities and territories that were taken. In Athens, on the other hand , the term nauarch referred to a skipper (captain) or a subordinate squadron commander.
Sources
The title was used in Sparta in the 5th and 4th centuries BC. Used. The term nauarch was first used in the year of the sea battles against the Persians in 480 BC. The source did not come into being until around 425 BC. Aristotle , though not familiar with the Spartan military organization, compared the position of a nauarch with that of the Spartan king. Nevertheless, the other sources about the office of the Spartan fleet commander are sparse.
The office of the nauarch
The nauarchy is not one of the original Spartan institutions. Its greatest importance was attached to the nauarchy at the time of the conflict with Athens and the expansion of Spartan rule during the Peloponnesian War . Probably the most important nauarch for Sparta was Lysander , who destroyed the entire navy in the war against Athens and thus forced a surrender. The office of the nauarch was detached from the office of the ephors, related in reputation and powers to the office of the king, which can be justified by the fact that the nauarch also had authority on land and there were no two nauarchs at the same time. The nauarchy may have arisen when part of the royal command was transferred to another official. Wealthy citizens were considered for the election of a Nauarch. The choice was made by the people's assembly. Initially, the terms of office were irregular, but after the defeat of Kyzikos in 410 these were regulated by law and now ran from spring to spring. However, the length of the term of office could be tied to the scope of the upcoming military operation. The repeated appointment as Nauarch was possible until around 400 BC. A law forbade iteration of the office.
The harmosts were on an equal footing with the nauarchs as commanders on land. A nauarch could appoint a harmost so that he would remain subordinate to him. An epistoleus, a secretary, messenger and deputy, was also subordinate to the Nauarch. After the office of Epistoleus one could later be elected to the fleet leader. The Nauarchs received precise orders and orders from the Ephors and the Apella . Since they were accountable to the Spartan authorities, an adviser (Symboulos) was sent along with the Nauarchs, who, in the worst case, could also dismiss if there was no military success or dissatisfaction with the warfare. After the defeat at Leuktra 371, the Spartan fleet was disbanded and with it the office of Nauarch.
In classical Athens, however, the fleets were also commanded by a strategos . In the later Hellenistic empires, the office of nauarch remained and could well be exercised for several years.
List of known Spartan nauarchs
(after Thucydides and Xenophon )
| year | Surname |
|---|---|
| 481/480 | Eurybiades |
| 480/479 | Leotychidas II |
| 479/478 | Pausanias |
| 477/476 | Dorkis (?) |
| 430/429 | Knemos |
| 428/427 | Alkidase |
| 426/425 | Thrasymelidas |
| 413/412 | Melankridas |
| 412/411 | Astyochus |
| 411/410 |
Mindarus (fallen) , Hippocrates |
| 410/409 | Pasippidas |
| 409/408 | Kratesippidas |
| 408/407 | Lysandros |
| 407/406 | Kallikratidas |
| 406/405 | Arakos (pro forma) , in fact Lysandros |
| 404/403 | Libys |
| 403/402 | Panthoidas |
| 402/401 | Samos |
| 401/400 | Anaxibios |
| 400/399 | Polos |
| 398/397 | Pharax |
| 397/396 | Archelaidas |
| 396/395 | Pollis |
| 395/394 | Cheirikrates |
| 393/392 | Podanemos (fallen) , Herippidas |
| 392/391 | Teleutias |
| 391/390 | Ecdicos |
| 390/389 | Teleutias (2nd time) |
| 389/388 | Hierax |
| 388/387 | Antalkidas |
| 387/386 | Teleutias (3rd time) |
| 377/376 | Pollis |
| 376/375 | Nikolochos |
| 375/374 | Aristocrates |
| 374/373 | Alkidase |
| 373/372 | Mnasippos |
literature
- Nauarchos. In: The Oxford Classical Dictionary . 3. Edition. Oxford University Press, Oxford et al. 1996, ISBN 0-19-866172-X , p. 1028.
- Raphael Sealey: The Spartan Nauarchy. In: Klio . Volume 58, 1976, pp. 335-358.
- Lukas Thommen : Sparta. Constitutional and social history of a Greek polis. 2nd expanded edition. Stuttgart 2017, ISBN 978-3-476-04330-6 , pp. 145-147.
Remarks
- ↑ Herodotus 8:42.
- ↑ pol . 1271a.
- ↑ Xenophon , Hellenika 1,6,5.
- ↑ Xenophon, Hellenika 5,1,6.
- ↑ Herodotus, Histories 8,131.
- ↑ Diodorus, 11:44. Thucydides, The Peloponnesian War 3,16,3.
- ^ Thucydides, The Peloponnesian War 2.80–85.
- ↑ Thucydides, The Peloponnesian War 3,16,3.
- ↑ Walther Judeich : Anaxibios . In: Paulys Realencyclopadie der classischen Antiquity Science (RE). Volume I, 2, Stuttgart 1894, Col. 2082.