Mediterranean Hegemon of Ancient Greece Chapter 35: Spartan’s public meal system

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Some people have already retreated and proposed: Crotone is enough for Lockrie to cope with it, and now it has a more powerful ally, Lockrie is not an opponent at all, and should withdraw the army immediately!

At the same time, many people objected, thinking: This is a rare opportunity to beat Crotone! Moreover, Dionia and Crotone are defensive alliances and should not send troops to interfere. Moreover, Dionia has just ended the war, the loss should not be small, and the hatred with the Crotones cannot be eliminated immediately. They can't do their best to help Crotone, so we should take this opportunity to attack!

The two sides quarreled, and it was not until the chief general Demodokas brought the good news that "Syracuse agreed to aid", which turned the council's worries into joy and agreed to continue the war.

When Diopantos was dispatched to attack the territory of Crotone, most of the Lorraine Senators held the fluke that Dionia should not send troops, so the council even "in case Dioni Asia sent troops, how Lorry should respond," the specific measures have not been finalized.

And now, the Dionians are standing in front, Diopantos has no idea for a while: fight? ! ...That means going to war with the Dionian Alliance! As a member of the council, he knew in his heart that the Lorry Council was wishful thinking. They were too eager to defeat Crotone, so they could not accept the existence of any variables, and Dionia was undoubtedly the biggest variable that could defeat Lorry. Crotone, who has been unable to defeat, coupled with the triumphant scene described by Metrofinis in Turrii, made Diopantos a little afraid. If he launches an attack here, it will lead to Dioni. Asia joined the war and allowed the war to expand. Although Syracuse, Lockry’s ally, agreed to assist, it is now fighting Carthage with all its strength. Apart from providing a little navy assistance, it is impossible to give more help. Therefore, the group of people in the council will definitely count the responsibility for the final defeat of the war on themselves.

But if you don’t fight? ! …Just retreating in this way will not only damage my own honor, but also damage the prestige of Lockley’s city-state, and I will be blamed when I go back…

When Diopantos was hesitating, some soldiers clamored first.

"Dionians, don't be arrogant! If you ask us to retire, shall we retire?! Tell you, we will not retire!"

"That's right, we Lockleys are not easy to mess with! Lockley has been in Great Greece for hundreds of years, what is Dionia? I have never heard of it!"

"We just don't retreat, what do you dare to do to us!"

……

The clamour of the soldiers made Diopantos anxious and annoyed: There were no more than a thousand people in his hands, and a half of them were sailors. Along the way, many soldiers dragged sheep and cattle, looted a lot of supplies, and their eyes were blinded by greed. They no longer looked like soldiers, so they still have the guts to compete with the Dionians? !

Diopantos gave birth to a retreat, but he did not give instructions. The other party had already sounded rhythmic drums, and the static square array moved, making a relatively neat "crush" of footsteps, like a block The thick iron wall pressed straight over, and the Rocky soldier who was yelling just now fell silent.

Diopantos sighed and said, "Retreat!"

As soon as the order was issued and the bugle was not sounded, the Rocky soldiers had already turned and ran backwards, and the formation was completely dispersed.

Diopantos was completely unable to stop the soldiers from retreating in an orderly and frantic manner, as if death was chasing behind him. He just wanted to speed up his escape from here and discard the looted items...

Asistus did not expect to push the Rockree back so easily. He sent a small group of soldiers to sweep the battlefield, leading the army to follow the Rockree until he watched them scramble to board the ship. , Drove off the coast, and then led the soldiers back, and then returned all the recovered materials to the Crotone people who came to express their gratitude with ambivalence. This made Crotone people both grateful and ashamed.

Of course Diopantos was not reconciled to return to Lokri like this. After the fleet sailed south for a while, he led the team to land on the coast of Silition, which was not yet an ally of Dionia...

…………………

In Sparta, there is a building that occupies a very large area. The unpretentious stone pillars prop up the roof for sheltering from wind and rain. It is ventilated on three sides, and one side is a kitchen. The vast hall is filled with long wooden tables and chairs. This is the canteen of Spartan citizens.

When it was time to eat, the Spartans gathered here from all directions, lined up one by one, received their share of "public meal", and then ate in the cafeteria, which could accommodate 500 people at a time. On sunny days, the dining table was even set on the grass. Thousands of Spartan citizens ate together regardless of age or level. Everyone’s food was roughly the same, which not only reflected the equality of all citizens of Sparta, but also emphasized it all the time. Their unity. And the Spartans, who emphasized discipline and obedience, kept this grand dining scene always in order. This is the public meal system that Sparta is famous for in Greece.

The food they receive is not free, but must be produced by the "allotment" allocated to citizens by the city-state and paid to the city-state before they can enjoy the public meal. It is said that it is a citizen’s own “land”. In fact, citizens themselves do not have the right to use it. Instead, they are managed by the city-states, and are farmed by Black Rollers. Once citizens lose their “shares” and cannot pay the output, they will lose them. The right to participate in public meals, and thus reduced to the marginalized people of the city (that is, the Piriasi people). Therefore, the public meal system created by the Spartans is not only a dining system, but also an important political activity. Verification of Bada citizenship.

Since the Peloponnesian War, the Spartan cafeteria has been difficult to reproduce the spectacular scene of dining with thousands of people. The citizens have been fighting for a long time, and accompanied by deaths, the number of people dining here has never exceeded 500, even if it is After the victory of the war, the number did not recover, because the Spartan fleet patrolled the Aegean Sea. Some city-states conquered by Sparta in important geographical locations need Spartan garrisons to remain loyal, although most of the soldiers are Mercenaries, Piriasis, Black Laos, but authentic Spartan citizens must serve as commanders and senior team officers.

On this day, the number of Spartan citizens dining in the restaurant was no more than 100.

Phoebedas was sitting at the table, chewing the bread in his hand, thinking about the new king's enthronment not long ago. Agsilius became king. It was unexpected by many people, but he was happy because Agsilius had several in-depth contacts with him, and he believed that he was a kind and wise man who would be a good king.

"Hey, look! There are two **** black Rolexes over there!" A man at the table next to him suddenly shouted. Following the direction of his finger, Phoebe Das saw two people eating at the opposite table. The man's expression immediately became a little unnatural. Although he was all topless, his body and skin color were different from those of real Spartan citizens.

"That's new citizens. Being able to enjoy public meals shows that they have gained enough merits in the war, and that they can impress the conservative old men in the council, grant them freedom and citizenship, and give them a share. , It's not easy! For real warriors, we should respect!" Another man said mildly.

"Huh, who knows if Lysander did the hands and feet?! During the war, he used his power to defeat Athens and turned many Pithias and a few Black Laos into Spartan citizen!" The man lowered his voice and said angrily.

"No matter how brave we Spartans are, we cannot withstand the casualties caused by frequent fighting. Without these new citizens, we would not have won victory over Athens."

"But look at how many real Spartans around here, and several of my comrades-in-arms have temporarily lost their citizenship rights and are reduced to inferior people because they cannot pay their share of the communal meal!... If this continues, is Spartan still Spartan?!"

"Um...you are right..."

"I'm telling you, we..." The man leaned close to another companion and whispered.

Spartans have always been taciturn, especially when dining, and this citizen not only talks a lot, but also whispers, it’s hard not to attract Phoebe’s attention, just when he turned his head and wanted to see what this man was. Whenever someone patted him on the shoulder: "Phoebidas, King Agsilius invites you to come."

"Okay." Phoebe Das immediately put the last bit of bread into his mouth, drank the cereal in one gulp, wiped his mouth, stood up and followed the guards towards the front of the cafeteria. He subconsciously turned his head and looked at that. A man, he had finished his meal, and he left the restaurant, only his back was visible.

Phoebedas shook his head, dispelled the doubt in his heart, and came to the new king of Sparta. At this time, Agsilius was different from the previous him, a little more calm, and a little more majestic.

Phoebe Das respectfully salutes.

"Sit down, Phoebe Das." Agassilaus looked at him with a smile: "You and I are old friends, don't be so polite!"

After listening to Phoebe Das, he really stopped being humble and sat down directly opposite Agassilaus.

"Are you full? Not enough, I still have it here." Agcilius said, pushing a plate over.

The king of Sparta has to participate in the public meal, the food is no different from other citizens. The only privilege is that he can receive double meals. It is not for the king to eat more, but the king of Sparta can use it. This extra public meal invites others to eat together, not necessarily a Spartan citizen, but even a Gentile. The last king Acis used this way to entertain Asibed.

Spartan’s public meal is actually not delicious, but it is a political expression, which means that the invited person becomes the king’s distinguished guest, so that the Spartan king can use this right to win over the gaps. Resolve contradictions and cultivate cronies... And today, Agcilius gave this honor to Phoebe Das. 46