Agesilaus II

Who was Agesilaus II?

Agesilaus II, or Agesilaos II was a Eurypontid king of the Ancient Greek city-state of Sparta, ruling from approximately 400 BC to 360 BC, during most of which time he was, in Plutarch's words, "as good as thought commander and king of all Greece," and was for the whole of it greatly identified with his country's deeds and fortunes. Small in stature and lame from birth, Agesilaus became ruler somewhat unexpectedly in his mid-forties. His early reign saw successful military incursions into various states in what is now Turkey, although several diplomatic decisions resulted in Sparta becoming increasingly isolated prior to his death at the age of 84 in Cyrenaica.