Spartan Mora regiments at Battle of Plataea

[Paralus]

...perhaps a little more detail/explanation is called for. Thucydides himself frankly admits "...but it would be impossible for me to give the exact numbers either of the whole armies or of the various divisions on either side. The secrecy with which their affairs are conducted meant that no-one knew the numbers of the spartans, and for the rest it was impossible to rely on the estimates given, since it is human nature to boast about the size of one's own forces..." He then goes on to estimate these. On that basis, the Brasideoi and Neodamodeis together apparently number a mere 512...

No. Thucydides clearly lists the Sciritae, Brasideans and Neodamodeis as separate units and then goes on to list the "Lacedaemonians themselves" (5.67.1):

In this battle the left wing was composed of the Sciritae, who in a Lacedaemonians army have always that post to themselves alone; next to these were the soldiers of Brasidas from Thrace, and the Neodamodeis with them; then came the Lacedaemonians themselves, company after company, with the Arcadians of Heraea at their side. After these were the Maenalians, and on the right wing the Tegeans with a few of the Lacedaemonians at the extremity; their cavalry being posted upon the two wings. Such was the Lacedaemonian formation.

Thus he does not include these units with the “Lacedaemonians themselves”.

A number of things are clear: the Brasideans and the Neodamodeis are separate units – from each other as well as the “Lacedaemonians themselves” and that there were, apparently, “a few Lacedaemonians” on the right wing.

Agis orders two 'Polemarchs' ( i.e. 'Mora' commanders/Brigadiers) called Hipponoidas and Aristocles, to detach two 'Lochoi' - in other words, each of them to send half their men - to plug the gap caused when Agis orders the Brasideoi/Neodamodeis to move left ( the Spartan allies on their right heavily overlap the Athenians, but the Mantineans on their right overlap the Brasideoi/Neodamodeis).

Thucydides has already told us that all the Spartans form the left and centre, with the Sciritae and Brasideoi/Neodamodeis the extreme left units, save for "a few Spartans at the very [right flank] end". Now, there can hardly have been a third of the Spartan Army (whether 'Morai' or Thucydides 'Lochoi') on the right flank for they are hardly "a few Spartans", nor is it logical, given that the armies were about to meet, to order those furthest away ( on the right flank) to re-inforce the left. Thucydides can only realistically mean 'two lochoi' from the 'right wing' of the Lakedaemonians themselves i.e the centre ( and presumably the Allies would close up to their left, to close the 2x 128 = 256 yard gap).

As the armies were about to meet it mattered little that the “Spartans” who moved to fill the gap came from the right wing or – as you’d suggest – the “right wing” of the centre. Fact was that the Mantineans overlapped the Spartan left by the two “lochos” (or whatever “unit” you wish to use) moved to counter that overlap – the Sciritae and Brasideans – who were then replaced by two “lochos” from “the right wing”. Two plus two fills a gap no? And, unless the Brasideans had suffered severely in Thrace, these units are 600 men each (depending upon Brasidean numbers).

On your reading Agis wished to open a two lochos (insert your “unit” here in Pythonesque tone) gap in his centre right. The man was obviously a goose. It makes far more sense that he attempted to transfer units from his – now – unopposed right wing.

Thucydides has already admitted the difficulty in assessing Spartan numbers. You have pointed out the possible confusion of unit sizes. It is highly likely that Thucydides had no idea of the Spartan numbers on the right – a position they regularly occupied in their arrays.

It is totally illogical, though, that Agis would remove two lochoi from his centre to shore up his extending left. He was a Spartan king after all.

So, in the end, how many Spartan units (lochoi or mora) were at Mantinea?