Her exact birthdate is unknown but she is believed to have been the daughter of King Cleomenes of Sparta and born between 510 and 506 BC. Upon the death of her grandfather, Anaxandridas II in 520 BC her father had became king. Gorgo was raised in the custom of the time and appears to have been a precocious child for Herodotus wrote that she advised her father not to trust a foreign diplomat when she was only 8 or 9 years old. The king accepted her advice.
Leonidas
In her early teens Gorgo married her father’s half-brother Leonidas. The couple is known to have had at least one child, a son named Pleistarchus.
Cleomenes
Gorgo’s father developed an interest in matters beyond Sparta and as this was an interest not shared by other Spartans he was thought to be insane. Though this interest did not negate his being supported as king it may have led to his downfall. As it happened, when the Persians invaded Greece some of the city states collaborated with them. One of these was Aegina and in 491 BC Cleomenes attempted to arrest those he considered treasonous. His co-ruler, Demaratus, attempted to foil his plan, Cleomenes deposed him by bribing the oracle of Delphi and put Leotychides in his place. The Aegina collaborators were then arrested.
The next year, Cleomenes was forced into exile when the Spartans discovered how he had deposed Demaratus but he promptly raised an army as was permitted to return. His return to power was short lived and he was imprisoned by command of his half-brother Leonidas. Not long afterwards he was found dead in his cell, a presumed suicide.
Queen of Sparta
Leonidas was now king of Sparta with his wife Gorgo at his side. Their son Pleistarchus was still a minor when his father marched off to do battle with the Persians at Thermopylae in 480 BC. Before he left Sparta, Gorgo asked him what she should do if he did not return. According to the ancient author, Plutarch, he replied: “marry a good man who will treat you well, bear him children, and live a good life.”
Demaratus sent word to Sparta on as tablet sealed in wax so that it could pass through enemy lines undetected. The Spartan generals did not know what to make of his blank tablet and it was Gorgo who suggested they remove the wax. They did and discovered that the battle was lost and the Persians were on the march.
Pleistarchus
Pleistarchus was now king, but as he was still a minor his uncle Cleombrotus and his cousin Pausanias acted as regent. It is not known when Queen Gorgo died but her son ruled as king until 458 BC.
Two major motion picture tell the story of Leonidas and Gorgo: 300 Spartans made in 1952 and 300 released in 2006.
Sources:
Women in Ancient Greece – Sue Blundell - British Museum Press – 1995
The Histories - Herodotus - Penguin Books - 1955
