Agesipolis I
| Agesipolis | |
|---|---|
| King of Sparta | |
| Reign | 394–380 BC |
| Predecessor | Pausanias of Sparta |
| Successor | Cleombrotus I |
| Died | 380 BC Aphytis |
| Dynasty | Agiad |
| Father | Pausanias of Sparta |
Agesipolis I (Greek: Ἀγησίπολις Αʹ) was the twenty-first of the kings of the Agiad dynasty in ancient Sparta.
Agesipolis succeeded his father Pausanias, while still a minor, in 394 BC, and reigned fourteen years. Upon the death of Pausanias, Agesipolis and his brother, Cleombrotus I, were both placed under the guardianship of Aristodemus, their nearest relative. Agesipolis came to the crown just about the time that the confederacy (partly brought about by the intrigues of the Persian satrap Tithraustes), which was formed by Thebes, Athens, Corinth, and Argos, against Sparta, rendering it necessary to recall his colleague, Agesilaus II, from Asia; and the first military operation of his reign was the expedition to Corinth, where the forces of the confederates were assembled.
The Spartan army was led by Aristodemus, and gained a victory over the allies. In 390 BC Agesipolis, who had now come of age, was entrusted with the command of an army for the invasion of Argolis. Having procured the sanction of the Olympic and Delphic gods for disregarding any attempt which the Argives might make to stop his march, on the pretext of a religious truce, he carried his ravages still farther than Agesilaus had done in 393 BC; but as he suffered the aspect of the victims to deter him from occupying a permanent post, the expedition yielded no fruit but the plunder.
In 385 BC the Spartans, seizing upon some frivolous pretexts, sent an expedition against Mantineia, in which Agesipolis undertook the command, after it had been declined by Agesilaus. In this expedition the Spartans were assisted by Thebes, and in a battle with the Mantineans, the Theban generals Epaminondas and Pelopidas narrowly escaped death. Agesipolis took the town by diverting the river Ophis, so as to put the low ground at the foot of the city walls under water. The basements, being made of unbaked bricks, were unable to resist the action of the water. The walls soon began to totter, and the Mantineans were forced to surrender. They were admitted to terms on condition that the population should be dispersed among the four hamlets, out of which it had been collected to form the capital. The democratic leaders were permitted to go into exile.
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