Don't Ask Trivia Quiz

Answer: Sacred Band of Thebes

The Sacred Band of Thebes was organized in 378 BCE by the Theban commander Gorgidas. According to the historian Plutarch, the reasoning was that lovers would be more committed to fighting for each other than would have been the case for strangers. The couples were originally spread out along the front lines to provide inspiration for the rest of the troops.

Answer: 300

The Sacred Band of Thebes was composed of 150 age-structured couples, with a total of 300 men. The older member of each couple was a charioteer, and the younger was referred to as his companion. According to Plutarch's "Life of Pelopidas", the inspiration for the Band's formation came from Plato's "Symposium".

Answer: Pelopidas

When Pelopidas assumed command of the Sacred Band of Thebes, he determined that they would fight as a unit, rather than being dispersed, and that remained the practice for the duration of their existence. This coincided with the period of Theban supremacy in Greece, and the Band received much credit for the military successes of the time.

Answer: Tegyra

Pelopidas led the Sacred Band of Thebes and a small cavalry force to try and capture the city of Locris, which was temporarily undefended, but the Spartans returned in force before he arrived. Battle was waged near Tegyra. The Theban forces included about 300 foot-soldiers (hoplites), while the Spartans had between 1,000 and 1,800.

The battle had little military significance, but was psychologically important, representing as it did the first time that Thebes had defeated Sparta in a direct battle, and the first time that Sparta had been defeated by a smaller army.

Answer: Sparta

In 371 BCE, Spartan forces invaded Theban territory. The battle on the plain near Leuctra opened with a Spartan javelin/spear attack, followed by a cavalry engagement. It was during this phase of the battle that the Sacred Band of Thebes, led by Pelopidas, sent the Spartans into disarray, leaving the battle to be finished by foot-soldiers.

This battle permanently weakened Sparta's influence over the rest of the Greek peninsula in the post-Peloponnesian War political stage.

Answer: They were annihilated in battle

In 338 BCE, at the Battle of Chaeronea, Philip II of Macedon, along with his son Alexander (later to be 'the Great') defeated the Theban army decisively, including the annihilation of most, if not all, members of the Sacred Band, who were buried together in a mass grave. While Plutarch says that all 300 were killed, excavation of the mass grave only yielded 254 skeletons.

Answer: stone lion

The stone lion marking the site where the members of the Sacred Band of Thebes were buried was erected around 300 BCE, then restored in the 20th century, and is a popular tourist attraction.

Answer: No

Not only did homosexuality remain illegal for members of the armed forces, it was not until the 1990s that homosexual service personnel stopped facing court martial (and jail) for consensual sexual acts. They are still dismissed if discovered.

Answer: blue discharge

Starting in 1916, a blue discharge, also referred to as a 'blue ticket', was issued by commanders seeking to remove soldiers who were perceived as undesirable, without needing to provide evidence to support a dishonorable discharge. They were issued primarily to gay and African American soldiers.

The range of discharges changed again in 1947, with blue discharges being replaced by general discharges (under honorable conditions, but not meriting an honorable discharge) and undesirable discharges (not under honorable conditions, but not dishonorable).

At the same time, the regulations were amended so that homosexual soldiers did not qualify for a general discharge. Active homosexual activity led to a dishonorable discharge; discovery of homosexual status without evidence of sexual activity led to an undesirable discharge.

Answer: Spain

Ironically, Greece is one of the few NATO countries that do NOT allow openly gay soldiers to join their armed forces, along with Belarus and Azerbaijan. In Turkey, they are exempt and tagged 'mentally ill'. The United States adopted a policy of "Don't Ask; Don't Tell; Don't Harass" in 1993, allowing gay soldiers to be part of the armed forces as long as nobody knows (or tries to know).

This represented a step forward from a total ban, but homosexuality remains grounds for dishonorable discharge if it becomes public knowledge.