Dr. Roel Konijnendijk

And so they have their democratic faction, essentially, where they're at least non-pro-Spartan faction.

It's very amorphous what kind of political ideals they have, but they have to flee.

They're in exile.

But they, just like the Athenians went to Thebes, the Thebans go to Athens and get support.

They go back in.

Yeah, I know.

And not just, I mean, it's very well noticed at the time as well.

I mean, there's a really interesting passage in Deinarchus where he actually says that, oh, we keep quoting at each other this time, this decree that the Thebans issued that they helped us when we were in trouble as a way to persuade the assembly to help them when they are in trouble, right?

This is something that is remembered.

Yeah.

And one of the people who backed this, the Theban uprising, was one of the people who was involved in this Athenian uprising.

So you have this kind of quid pro quo thing where, okay, we'll help you get your state back.

So they send these exiles in and they manage to drive the Spartan garrison out, which triggers the so-called Boeotian War.

It's only a few years after the Spartans take over.

There's this protracted conflict where the Spartans keep having to send troops to Thebes or to Boeotia into the region.

essentially to try and reassert themselves, but they can't seem to get anything done.

They really just sort of fruitlessly campaigning.

They managed to nibble away some of the minor cities of the region, but they can't do anything to put Thebes back in its place, essentially.

Gorgidas is the one who created Peloponnese.

I mean, this is us hypothesizing what makes this force so effective, because we know that it's effective, but we don't actually know anything about its training regime or its organization.