Ancient Greece - Peloponnesian War

The Helot Barracks were areas where the helots, the enslaved population of Sparta, were housed and controlled. Helots were essential to the functioning of Spartan society, performing agricultural work and other labor-intensive tasks that allowed Spartans to focus on military training. While not a site of Spartan pride, the Helot Barracks were a necessary feature of Spartan life, especially during the Peloponnesian War, as the Spartans needed to ensure that their slave population did not rebel while they were engaged in the war effort. The control and oversight of the helots were critical to Sparta’s ability to maintain its military structure.

Stone structures with thick walls and barred windows, lined with sparse bedding and worn-out furniture, under a gray sky filled with distant thunderclouds