Leuctra or Leuktra ( grc, τὰ Λεῦκτρα) or Leuctrum or Leuktron (τὸ Λεῦκτρον) was a town of Aegytis on the confines of

Arcadia Arcadia may refer to: Places Australia * Arcadia, New South Wales, a suburb of Sydney * Arcadia, Queensland * Arcadia, Victoria Greece * Arcadia (region), a region in the central Peloponnese * Arcadia (regional unit), a modern administrative un ...

and

Laconia Laconia or Lakonia ( el, Λακωνία, , ) is a historical and administrative region of Greece located on the southeastern part of the Peloponnese peninsula. Its administrative capital is Sparta. The word ''laconic''—to speak in a blunt, con ...

, described by

Thucydides Thucydides (; grc, , }; BC) was an Athenian historian and general. His '' History of the Peloponnesian War'' recounts the fifth-century BC war between Sparta and Athens until the year 411 BC. Thucydides has been dubbed the father of " scient ...

as on the confines of Laconia toward Mount Lycaeus, and by

Xenophon Xenophon of Athens (; grc, Ξενοφῶν ; – probably 355 or 354 BC) was a Greek military leader, philosopher, and historian, born in Athens. At the age of 30, Xenophon was elected commander of one of the biggest Greek mercenary armies of ...

. It was originally an Arcadian town, but was included in the territory of Laconia. It commanded one of the passes leading into Laconia, by which a portion of the Theban army penetrated into the country on their first invasion under

Epaminondas Epaminondas (; grc-gre, Ἐπαμεινώνδας; 419/411–362 BC) was a Greek general of Thebes and statesman of the 4th century BC who transformed the Ancient Greek city-state, leading it out of Spartan subjugation into a pre-eminent posit ...

. It was detached from

Sparta Sparta (Doric Greek: Σπάρτα, ''Spártā''; Attic Greek: Σπάρτη, ''Spártē'') was a prominent city-state in Laconia, in ancient Greece. In antiquity, the city-state was known as Lacedaemon (, ), while the name Sparta referred ...

by Epaminondas, and added to the territory of

Megalopolis A megalopolis () or a supercity, also called a megaregion, is a group of metropolitan areas which are perceived as a continuous urban area through common systems of transport, economy, resources, ecology, and so on. They are integrated enou ...

. It appears to have stood on the direct road from Sparta to Megalopolis. Leuctra's site is located near modern Leontari.

References

Populated places in ancient Arcadia Populated places in ancient Laconia Former populated places in Greece {{AncientArcadia-geo-stub