Skirites

The Skirites (in Greek old Σκιρῖται / Skiritai ) is people pertaining to the State lacédémonien, of statute comparable with that of the Périèques. They are established in Skiritide, mountainous region and savage located at the north of the Laconie, the border with the Arcadie, between the Oinous and the Eurotas.

According to late authors like Etienne de Byzance or Hésychios of Alexandria, Skirites are of origin arcadienne. Their lifestyle is primarily rural: their habitat is burst in villages, the principal ones being Oion and Caryai. Their territory is inhospitable, but strategically important for Sparte since it dominates the road carrying out towards Tégée, which explains why it falls quickly under the cut Spartan. Their statute is similar to that of Périèques, but Xénophon ( Helléniques , V, 2) distinguishes some.

In time of war, Skirites form a crack corps of light infantry, a loach (battalion) with share of 600 men, which is used as complement with the civic army. According to Thucydide (V, 67,1), they fight with the extreme-left of the line of battle, posts more threatened of the hoplitic phalange: “from time immemorial they are the only ones of Lacédémoniens to have the privilege to fight separately and in this place”. The night, they are placed in sentinel ahead of of the army (Xénophon, République of the lacédémoniens , XII, 3) and play the scouts to open the way with the king, which they are the only ones to precede ( ibid , XIII, 6).

In the Cyropédie (IV, 2), Xénophon compares them with the riders Hyrcaniens, used by the Assyrie NS like rear-guard.

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