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To keep the helots from rebelling, the Spartans created a strong _______________ of boys and men.

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Final answer:

To prevent helot uprisings, the Spartans established a comprehensive military organization beginning with the rigorous agoge training of their youth. The system was designed to ensure Spartans could dedicate their entire lives to military preparedness and authority over the much larger helot population.

Step-by-step explanation:

To keep the helots from rebelling, the Spartans created a strong military organization of boys and men. The foundation of this military might was the agoge, an education system that started from age seven and forged Spartan boys into disciplined, formidable warriors. The societal structure was geared towards maintaining control over the helot population, which was considerably larger than the Spartan citizenry and comprised the majority of people in the regions controlled by Sparta. Significant aspects of this system extended into various facets of Spartan life, including the strenuous training of young Spartans in the Krypteia, a secret police force designed to intimidate the helots and suppress potentials for insurrection.

The military life extended well beyond just the training period with Spartan soldiers remaining in the army reserve until the age of sixty. Moreover, the societal infrastructure was such that Spartan males could fully dedicate their lives to military service since the labor force was largely made up of helots and other subservient populations. This hegemonic dominance over the helots was symptomatic of a broader militaristic and slave society that at its core was designed to prevent a massive slave uprising in Sparta.

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