 cleomenes (; greek ÎÎ»ÎµÎ¿Î¼Î­Î½Î·Ï kleomenes; died c. 489 bc) was an agiad king of sparta in the late 6th and early 5th centuries bc. during his reign, which started around 520 bc, he pursued an adventurous and at times unscrupulous foreign policy aimed at crushing argos and extending sparta's influence both inside and outside the peloponnese. he was a brilliant tactician. it was during his reign that the peloponnesian league came formally into existence. during his reign, he intervened twice successfully in athenian affairs but kept sparta out of the ionian revolt. he died in prison in mysterious circumstances, with the spartan authorities claiming his death was suicide due to insanity. == early life == he was the son of anaxandrides ii (of the agiad royal house) and his second wife (apparently a daughter of prinetades), and was the half-brother of dorieus, leonidas i, and cleombrotus. although the three younger half-brothers were the sons of anaxandrides' first wife and therefore had a better claim to the throne according to tradition, cleomenes was the eldest son and succeeded his father around 520 bc.cartledge, p.124. he allowed his half-brother dorieus to mount expeditions outside the peloponnese, perhaps as a way of expanding spartan influence and territories, and perhaps to rid himself of a potential rival.herodotus, 5.42&ndash;48. his interest in the world outside the peloponnese may have accounted for some of his reputation for insanity among fellow spartans who tended to be highly insular, conservative, and suspicious of all things foreign, especially that, according to herodotus, cleomenes acquired a taste for wine drunk "scythian fashion" (unwatered). == war against athens == around 510 bc the alcmaeonidae family, who had been exiled from athens, requested that sparta help them overthrow hippias, the son of pisistratus and tyrant of athens. the alcmaeonidae, led by cleisthenes, bribed the oracle at delphi to tell the spartans to assist them, and cleomenes came to their aid. the first attack on athens was a failure, but cleomenes personally led the second attack and besieged hippias and his supporters on th
490_BC_deaths 5th-century_BC_Greek_people 6th-century_BC_Greek_people Characters_in_Herodotus People_who_committed_suicide_in_prison_custody Royal_suicides_in_the_classical_world Rulers_of_Sparta