Global InformationConspiracy of Cinadon information
The conspiracy of Cinadon was an attempted coup d'état which took place in Sparta in 399 BCE early in the reign of Eurypontid King Agesilaus II (400–c. 360 BCE). The leader was Cinadon (Ancient Greek: Κινάδων), who was a trusted member of the king's bodyguard, but not a full citizen. The conspiracy aimed to break the power of the Spartan elite and give rights to a broader range of Lacedaemonians. Although elaborately organized, the plot was in the end betrayed to the ephors; they cracked down on the conspirators, and Cinadon himself was punished, possibly executed. The only significant source for this event is Xenophon's Hellenica,[1] though it is mentioned by Polyaenus[2] and Aristotle.[3]
- ^ Xenophon, Hellenica, iii.3.4-11. Online at Perseus accessed 14 June 2006
- ^ Polyaenus, Strategems, ii.14.1 s.v. Ephoroi.
- ^ Aristotle, Politics v.7 (1305b32).