Hello,
So right off the bat the reason why I’m asking this is because the movie 300 has made this kinda difficult for me to figure out.
But was the saying “No retreat no surrender” an actual Spartan law or is this an entire things made up from the 300 movie?
People point out his tomb, his children on the street
his childrens children and posterity.
His name and glorious reputation never die;
he is immortal even in his grave,
that man the furious War-god kills as he defends
his soil and children with heroic stand. (Tyrtaios fr. 12, 23 sqq.)...Or if in winning his proud spear-vaunt he escapes
the doom of death and grief’s long shadow-cast,
then all men do him honour, young and old alike;
much joy is his before he goes below.
He grows old in celebrity, and no one thinks
to cheat him o f his due respect and rights,
but all men at the public seats make room for him,
the young, the old, and those of his own age.
This is the excellence whose heights are now must seek
To scale, by not relenting in the fight...(Tyrtaios fr. 12, 35-44)
Compared to;
You know that those who bravely hold the line
and press toward engagement at the front
die in less numbers, with the ranks behind
protected; those who run, lose all esteem (arête).
The list is endless o f the ills (kaka) that hurt
the man who bears to think the coward's thoughts:
for it’s a bad place, as he flees the fray,
to have his wound, between the shoulders-blades,
and it’s a shameful sight to see him lie
dead in the dust, the spear-point in his back. (Tyrtaios fr. 11, 11-20)
The movie should not be taken as indicative of historical studies, or history generally, nevertheless, although it is rather contentious whether these were customs or laws proper, Spartan nomos which might quite closely resemble this sentiment was most definitely practiced, and importantly, so it was thoughout the Greek polis, even if Sparta took it a few steps further.
Namely, the concepts of agathos (courage) and kakos (cowardice) were presumably not limited to military affairs, though we have by far the most indications from them due to the limited accounts from Sparta, and the reliance on outside sources.
"This too is one of Lycurgus’ admirable institutions: he brought it about that an honourable death [ kalos thanatos ] was preferable to a life of disgrace in the city. For, investigation would reveal that fewer of these die than those who prefer to retreat from danger”. (Xenophon. Lak. Pol. IX, l ie. Constitution of the Lacedaimonians ) Actually reading a few of the next sections here might be helpful.
So, a few general points are to be raised;
(1) Those fallen in war were burried in a communal memorial service with honours, and during the early periods with conflicts in relative vicinity, probably burried at Sparta itself ( Tyrtaios ), this custom though later became unfeasible due to the distances, regardless, this service was quite contrary to anonimity of typical Spartan burials.
(2) Those returning from war due to the perceived cowardice ( this notion is substantially different than the modern one, since a man due to no fault of his own, but by mere chance having survived the encounter - trivially, being a messanger at that instance - could be later reviled ).
(3) The severity of punishment depended on broader circumstances, like the number of men, urgency and duress of the situation insofar whether Sparta could afford such a loss of fighting men. For example, after Leuctra, where 300 survived, they were given the chance of redeeming against Mantineia, and the situation was rather dire at that point, as Thebean invasion was imminent.
(4) Tresantes ( which is a techincal term with legal ramifications, as opposed to kakoi ), as they were known, were deprived of certain citizenship rights - although the extent of that is, to my knowledge, still contested^(1) - the question of permanency ( stigmatization is most likely permanent, it is more a matter of retention of legal social standing ), conditional military service, property relations - while the more settled aspects, like losing of public office and exclusion from syssitia. Ducat^(1) also argues that this brought with is a dissolution of marriage, and MacDowell^(2) general exclusion from any political activity.
As a worthwhile mention, surrenders were not unheard of, as 290 Spartans, among those 120 Spartiates, did surrender at Sphacteria to the Athenians in 425 BC, although the resulting punishment after the return from captivity is rather unclear, beside some remarks in Thucydides, book IV. Though perhaps /u/Iphikrates might be able to shed some specifics and broader context these particular events if requested, even of retreats, as these ancient military affairs are way outside my zone.
Also for some extra reading;