f tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands, or even millions. The entire Spartan army was estimated to be under five thousand men. In the beginning, Greek armies showed almost no pay structure. This was do to the fact that military participation was seen as a man's duty to his city-state or as a form of taxation. Each man was required to provide his own armor for battle. There for only those who could afford armor and weapons could be in the army. Since most men could not afford armor, most could not participate. Those who could afford to participate had other forms of income. However there was a pay system in place by 445 or 444 BC in Athens. The pay system was enacted during a time of peace for Greece, just after the signing of the thirty year peace between the Delian League and the Peloponnesian League. The standard rate of pay seems to have been a drachma a day until it was cut in half in 413 BC. However the standard rate over time was between three obols (half a drachma) to a full drachma a day for a hoplite soldier.In Sparta, the military was a way of life. From an early age, children were trained to be strong and to have good fighting skills. With most of their population being helots, or serfs, it was necessary to have a well-organized and highly trained fighting force to put down any revolts. Therefore, even though the Spartan military was comparatively small, it was very strong.Athens derived her military strength from a strong navy. In 481 BC the city of Athens discovered a large silver mine on publicly owned land. Athens used this silver to build a fleet of 200 ships of a type called triremes. This naval force not only gave Athens an advantage against the Persians in the Persian wars, it also gave Athens the power to force the membership of almost all the Aegean islands and many other city-states into the Delian League.The Greek hoplite wore a helmet, breastplate and greaves of bronze. The hoplite is typically armed with a w...
