To understand the relationship between Athens and Sparta, Plutarch set out to examine the lives of Greece and all its former and current rivals in his Parallel Lives series. Agesilaus was one of those lives and was a notable king of Sparta prior to the Athens-Spartan war. Although he won and lost many battles for the city, his legacy lived on. He was a short-statured, lame man who managed to rule an entire city state – and many looked up to him after his death.
