The Cadetship of Classical Athens

Resumé

The classical Athenians voted for a fulltime preparation-program for new hoplites in 335/4 BC. There have for a long time been three debates about this cadetship. The first debate is whether all eighteen-year-olds or only those who had chosen to be hoplites were ephebes. The second debate concerns dating. On one side are those ancient historians who think that the ephebeia (‘cadetship’) dates back to the early fourth or even the fifth century. But the other side insists that the cadetship was entirely brand new in the mid-330s. The third debate is about why the demos (‘people’) actually voted for this military reform. The predominant view is that their vote was a response to the crushing defeat of Athenian hoplites at Chaeronea. But there have always been doubts about whether this was the main reason. J.L. Friend and T.R. Henderson have recently published book-length studies of the Athenian cadetship. Theirs are the first monographs on the ephebeia in sixty years. By championing minority views and making innovative arguments, Friend and Henderson have injected considerable new heat into these old debates. This article nreconsiders the three debates in light of their important books. It aims to settle each debate one way or another by weighing up all available evidence.