The Archaeological Discovery of a Memorial to the Sacred Band of Thebes
The date of the Sacred Band’s formation is unclear, but it was probably sometime around 379 BC. There was logic behind the use of gay couples to form an elite unit. Its members, devoted to each other, would fiercely fight to protect their lovers, and avoid cowardice and dishonor in their presence. They were spread out along the phalanx’s front ranks, or concentrated into a shock unit. The Sacred Band lived up to expectations, and spearheaded a series of Theban victories that shattered Sparta’s power and the myth of Spartan invincibility. For decades, Thebes’ gay warriors were acknowledged as ancient Greece’s most elite fighters. Their run of success finally ended at the Battle of Chaeronea, in 338 BC. There, Thebes was decisively defeated by Philip II of Macedon and his son Alexander.
True to its hardcore reputation, the Sacred Band refused to surrender, and fought to the last man until all its members were killed. The Thebans eventually erected a statue of a huge lion, nearly 13 feet tall, at Chaeronea to honor those killed in the battle. Its presence was attested to by various ancient historians, but then it vanished. It was finally rediscovered in the nineteenth century, broken and buried near the village of Chaeronea. Further archaeological excavations revealed that the monument stood at the edge of an enclosure, in which were buried the bodies of 254 men, laid out neatly in seven rows. They were the remains of Thebes’ Sacred Band. The statue was eventually pieced back together in 1902, and today, the Lion of Chaeronea can be seen near the site of the Sacred Band’s heroic last stand.
