Dr. Roel Konijnendijk

And in fact, I mean, Pyrrhus of Epirus besieged a spot at one point.

They have to save it, save victory from the jaws of defeat there as well.

So they are constantly taking a battering by everyone who now matters in the Hellenistic world, but they just never give up.

They're always trying again and trying again.

This is a story that's reported only in Plutarch in the fantastically irrelevant little treatise on brevity.

Specifically, the topic of the treatise is to say a lot in a few words.

He gives this famous example where Philip supposedly sent them an ultimatum saying, if I come into your lands, I will destroy you utterly.

to which the Spartans reply, just if.

And then Philip marches into their territory and destroys it.

There's always this impression that people have that this is a moment of Sparta boldly asserting, go on, try it.

One of those molon lave moments, one of those come and get them moments.

We dare you.

But the problem is, of course, the world has changed.

If somebody dares at that point to try and attack Sparta, they'll probably win because the Spartans don't have the kind of power that they used to.

They don't have the kind of

Military superiority, they don't have the allies, they don't have the numbers.

And the Macedonian military machine is just a better one.

It's more effective, more professional, better organized, faster, more flexible.

It's just a better army.

And so at that point, Sparta can try and be defiant and go down in history as this power that has this aura of esteem and this aura of defiance.