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 According to the opinion of Cicero, Epameinondas had been
the greatest man of Greece. He was born at Thebes, in 418 BC. His
family, though poor, was very ancient and his father Polymnedas
was belonging to the noble family of the so called Sparti,
descendants of Kadmos.
He received an excellent education in music, vocal and instrumental and
also dancing. He was also trained in gymnastics, where he strove for
skill and stamina. He was fortunate to possess all the qualities Greeks
valued. He studied philosophy with the Pythagorian philosopher Lysis of
Tarentum, who had settled at Thebes and he had constant philosophical
conversations with Theban Simias and the Tarentine Spintharos,
both pupils of Socrates.
He was a close friend with Pelopidas and their friendship grew
even bigger, when at a battle with Arcadians, in 385 BC, Epameinondas
saved the seven times wounded Pelopidas, after a hard struggle,
receiving many wounds and putting his own life in great danger. He was
ready to fall also from the woods when Agesipolis the king of Sparta
rushed and saved both beyond any expectation.
His moral qualities were in accord with the intellectual ones.
A courageous man, he was averse to cruelty and unnecessary bloodshed. So
when he captured the Sikyonian town of Phoebia, in which many Boeotian
fugitives had been gathered, he did not kill them, as was the Theban
law, but he assigned them new nationality, any the fugitives preferred,
and set them free. He had no personal ambitions, except to serve his
country as better as he could.
In 367 BC, four years later after his great victory at Leuktra, he was
appointed to serve as mere hoplite in an expedition of the Theban army,
to rescue Pelopidas, who had been captured by the tyrant of Pherae,
Alexander. When the expedition got into great difficulties, the generals
appointed him head of the army and Epameinondas rescuing the army
returned to Thebes, where he was appointed Boetarch. Immediately he
returned to Thessaly with an army and forced the release of his friend.
He was indifferent in money or fame and when the archon of Thessaly
offered him fifty talents, though he was in need of money for an
expedition in Thessaly, he did not take them, because he did not want to
shame his country and borrowed the money from friends.
When Artaxerxes offered him money to accept his propositions,
Epameinondas refused and said to the envoy: "if the propositions
of Artaxerxes are in accord with the interests of my country, I do not
need money to accept them, but if they are opposite with the interests
of my country, all the gold of his kingdom would not persuade me to
betray my homeland. You who tried to bribe me without knowing my
character I forgive you but you must leave the town immediately before
you corrupt others."
In all his expeditions under his leadership Thebans never plundered,
though his allies did. In a battle when one of his officers sold a
captive for money, he said to him: "give me back your shield and
go away, your hands have been polluted and they are not worth to keep
it, to defend your fatherland".
Though a grown man, he was not known at Thebes, nor he had played an
active role in her affairs. It was after the revolution against Sparta,
that his country offered him an office. He was one of the most eloquent
Greeks, though Spintharos said, that he never met any other, who
understood more and talk less.
He died at the battle of Mantinea, in 362 BC. Diodoros tell us, that
when Thebans found great resistance from Lacedaimonians, Epameinondas
went at the front in order to encourage them. He first threw his javelin
and killed the Lacedaimonian commander, then alone turned and killed
with his sword several warriors. His moves were watched by the enemy,
who threw him a multitude of arrows. Epameinondas avoided them with his
shield and quick moves, but some entered his body and when that
happened, he took them out and was still fighting, until a spear thrown
with great force pierced his chest.
It is said that before his death and with the spear in his chest, he was
waiting the outcome of the battle and when they told him that the
Thebans were victorious, he asked if certain commanders were alive. When
he was given a negative answer, he told them to make piece. The hill,
where he was carried, was full of soldiers when he gave the order to
take off the spear to die and then someone told him "you die
Epameinonda without leaving children", he answered "by
Zeus this is not true. I leave two undying daughters, the victory at
Leuktra and the victory at Mantinea".
His last words were "I have lived long enough" and then
after a small pause said "for I die unconquered".
He was buried on the place where the armies met and on his grave they
placed a pillar and a shield with a dragon in relief, the emblem of Sparti.
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