krypteia

…Individual Spartans were not allowed to release or sell their helots, but from the second half of the 5th century onwards, in emergency situations, the polis would release them in exchange for military service or money. However, the helots were far more numerous than the Spartans and were very dissatisfied with their status, so the Spartans strictly monitored and oppressed them, and the ephors declared war on the helots every year when they took office, and Spartan youths secretly killed the strongest helots in a custom called krypteia, and 2,000 helots with excellent fighting abilities were assassinated by a polis plot. On the other hand, the helots also seized the opportunity to rebel, and the Messenian helots in particular rebelled at least three times between the 7th and 5th centuries BC, in the 2nd, 3rd and 4th Messenian Wars, and were eventually released by Thebes in 369 BC, after which they established their own independent city of Messene. …

*Some of the terminology explanations that mention "krypteia" are listed below.

Source | Heibonsha World Encyclopedia 2nd Edition | Information

…個々のスパルタ人によるヘイロータイの解放や売却は許されなかったが，前5世紀後半以降，緊急の場合，従軍や金銭の提供と引換えに，ポリスの手でヘイロータイを解放することがあった。しかしヘイロータイはスパルタ人よりもはるかに数が多く，またその地位に大きな不満を抱いていたので，スパルタ人はヘイロータイを厳しく監視，弾圧し，エフォロスたちは就任に当たり毎年ヘイロータイに対して宣戦を布告し，スパルタの若者は〈クリュプテイアkrypteia〉という慣習により屈強なヘイロータイをひそかに殺し，戦闘能力に優れた2000人のヘイロータイがポリスの謀略で暗殺されたこともあった。一方，ヘイロータイも機会をとらえては反乱を企て，とくにメッセニアのヘイロータイは，第2,3,4次メッセニア戦争と，前7～前5世紀に少なくとも3度の大反乱を起こし，結局，前369年，テーバイによって解放され，独立してメッセネを建てた。…

※「krypteia」について言及している用語解説の一部を掲載しています。

出典｜株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典 第２版について | 情報