Spartans and Special Forces

The starks were the surplus Forces (SF) of their time. Now we lease Delta Force, Navy SEALS, Green Berets, maritime Force RECON and Army Rangers. All ar small elite groups of contendriors apt to kill. How many of nowa elds warriors would equal one grievous? wedded the vast differences in technology and the way that battles are fought, who would come off on top? Spartan warriors are taken from their families at the eld of seven to demoralise the learn of a warrior. These boys where placed into groups also referred to as packs and send to Agoge, what we today call boot camp.While in Agoge they became accustomed to validity and given except minimal amounts of food and clothing to survive. By having just enough to get by they were encour daysd to steal. If they where caught stealing they would be punished, not for stealing, but for being caught. The boys where also encour mount upd to compete in jeer fights and games to promote unity. They learned songs of Spartan victo ries and how to remove and write. They didnt learn how to read and write for cultural purposes, but rather so that they could read maps. When the boys reached the season of 12 they became youths.Much more was demanded of youths than children. They began a more intensified physical nurture regime, were given extra tasks and discipline became harsher. They were forced to go bare hoof it and pall sole(prenominal) a tunic in both summer and spend. When the boys reached the term of 18 they became young adults. They served as trainers for the youths. Also included in this class where the most promising youths. These elite boys where the ones that stood out among all separates and chosen for achievable leadership positions. When a Spartan turned 20 years of maturate he became eligible for service in the soldiery.They joined a messes ( a group meal ) consisting of fifteen men of various long times. The ones who where not chosen for the messes where given a lesser citizenship . Only soldiers where of equal status and rank. Until the be on of thirty the Spartan soldiers spent to the highest degree all of their time in the barracks with the unit. This included even soldiers that where married. Spartans remained in the multitude until the age of sixty. Today, at the age of seven, children are in school and living with their families in a fond(p) home. They view enough food and clothing provided that there is no engage to steal.The only type of learn they are receiving is radical schooling and competitiveness gets you in nothing but trouble. The only other type of military training a child asshole receive would be if they where sent to a military academy and only wealthiest of families can afford to do that. At the age of 12 what was expected of youths is a little more demanding than that of a child. You are expected to do more chores and the physical training is from playing with your friends or gym class at school. We definitely didnt wear a tuni c in both summer and winter and you are only barefoot if you want to be.We have plenty of dress for all seasons and footwear to stay protected from the elements. Now we reach the age of 18 and you have either graduated from high school or received your GED. Then and only thusly you are allowed to join the military after meeting one of these two goals. For the most fortunate of this age group, they may go to col rowlocke. For the ones who want to become leaders in the military they go to a military academy like West plosive speech sound or The Citadel to become officers. For those who chose to just join the military, they go to basic training. This is nothing compared to what the Spartans have already been by means of.They have already been in training now for 12 years. Basic training only dies eight weeks and then you go on to your military occupational specialty (MOS) school which could last up to a year. If you become and infantryman like a Spartan begins as, you have an addi tional 11 weeks of training to complete. In the Army you can apply for special(a) Forces Green Berets, and if you are chosen you now begin more intensified training. If you are one of the few enlisted men or officers chosen for Special Forces you now must complete the SF Qualification (Q) hunt.The Q Course can last anywhere from 12 to 24 months depending on the MOS you choose. Special Forces soldiers have four MOS categories to choose from Weapons Expert (18B), Engineer (18C), Medic (18D) and communication theory (18E). When an officer trains for SF they are only given one MOS to choose from line of achievement Management (18A). When you have completed your SF training you are then charge to your unit and then to your team. At age 20 you have been in the military for two to three years and have moved up the ranks to at least a Specialist or Corporal in the Army.If you chose to go one of the military academies you are half way through your training and the process of getting you r degree, which is infallible to be an officer in the military. Unlike Spartans though, today you are allowed to be at home with your family and only if you are single you are not committed to staying in the barracks with the unit. in that respect are other daily rituals that you do while with your unit, such as physical training (PT), training with the unit at the range and alter your equipment. Those are only a few of the things that you do with the unit.Special Forces units, unlike Spartans, have what is referred to as a Real World Mission, meaning they can deploy to any part of the world within 24 hours. They are SF Teams deployed today in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation Enduring Freedom, the war on drugs in Central and South America and SF Teams in Africa on Peace Keeping missions. When you reach your 20 year mark in the military you have the choice of retiring or staying in longer. If I where to have stayed in for twenty years I would have retired at the age o f 42.Being part of the military until the age of 60 is not infallible of any soldier today. Spartans, like the citizens of many other Greek States, where learn as soldiers and utilize the array administration in battle. The Phalanx formation was rectangular in design and the Spartans where the masters in the use of this formation. The handed-down formation consisted of a strait line of men in a file 8 to 12 deep. This formation used pushing and required a lot of strength and stamina to endure long days of fighting. The Elite, as they are referred to, would take up the honorary right annexe when fighting with their allies.When they broke through the line of the enemy, as they usually did, the Spartans would drop behind left and roll through the enemy. The picture below is that of a Phalanx formation and shows the position of Elite forces on the honorary right case of the formation. pic pic The above picture is that of a Phalanx formation. The tactics of todays soldier are va stly more superior because of the way battles are fought. Battles today are not fought by masses of men on one field of battle slugging it out with irradiations, swords and shields. Today, we rely heavily on technology to fight our battles.The Spartans didnt have the luxury of a tomahawk cruise missile or artillery barrage to soften a target before attacking the enemy. Special Forces soldiers are taught Small whole Tactics, SERE (Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape) tactics, Combat Skills Training and Special Forces Field blind Training. All of this training combined prepares the soldiers for their Unconventional Warfare Combat puzzle out called Robin Sage at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. This exercise demonstrates the skills that the Special Forces soldiers have been taught over a 28 day period.For a Spartan to have achieved this type of training he would have been training for almost 14 years. The Spartan would have been much more refined in his combat skills than the averag e Special Forces soldier. Spartans wore hoplite harness which consisted of armor with flanged bronze cuirasses, leg greaves and a Corinthian style helmet. The weapons they would have carried into battle would have been a bronze shield weighing up to 15 pounds know as a Hoplon, a 6 to 10 foot spear called a Sarissas for thrusting at advancing soldiers and a two foot long sword called a Xiphos for thrusting and cutting in refinement combat.All of this equipment was simple and yet very effective on the battlefield. beneath is a picture of a Spartan soldier with all of his equipment needed for battle. pic The equipment of a Special Forces soldiers varies drastically from one combat theatre to the next. The basic equipment used consists of a uniform with boots, knee pads, elbow pads, protective eyewear, Interceptor Body armor with Ballistic plates to stop a hi-powered rifle round, a ballistic helmet. The weapons carried by Special Forces Soldiers also vary from mission to mission. The basic weapons carried on a mission for an SF soldier are an M-4 5. 6 millimetre Carbine, M-9 9 millimeter pistol, a bayonet, ammunition for both the pistol and rifle and hand grenades. Below is a group of Special Forces Soldiers posing for a photo in Iraq. pic In my opinion, the Spartans would be the toughest of the tough. They endured many more hardships over the span of their lifetime. They where taken from their families at the age of seven and spent their lives in the military. We, on the other hand, have all the luxuries one could ever want, and more. We are not brought up to be killing machines like the Spartans were. Thankfully most of us entrust never have to kill another human being in our lifetime.ReferencesHeadquarters, Department of the Army, Field Manual (FM) 3-05, Army Special Operations Forces, family line 2006Wikipedia, the secrete encyclopedia Retrieved December 12, 2009 from http//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special_Forces_Qualification_CourseWikipedia, the secrete encyclopedia Retrieved December 12, 2009 from http//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exercise_Robin_Sage rudiment News, Retrieved December 12, 2009 from http//a.abcnews.com/images/International/ht_berets06_070530_ssh.jpgWikipedia, the free encyclopedia Retrieved November 11, 2009 from http//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SpartaWikipedia, the free encyclopedia Retrieved November 11, 2009 from http//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spartan_ArmyWikipedia, the free encyclopedia Retrieved December 12, 2009 from http//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phalanx_formationWikipedia, the free encyclopedia Retrieved December 12, 2009 from http//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FileHop2.jpgWikipedia, the free encyclopedia Retrieved December 12, 2009 from http//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FileGreek_Phalanx.jpgMilitary Factory, website about ancient and groundbreaking weapons and armor Retrieved December 13, 2009 from http//www.militaryfactory.com/ancient-warfare/spartan-hoplite.asp