The Battle of Leuctra was a battle fought between the Theban-led Boeotian League and Sparta in Boeotia in 371 BC.
In 379 BC the Boeotian city-state of Thebes revolted against the Spartans, who had achieved dominance over Greece through their victory in the Peloponnesian War. In 371 BC the Spartans advanced into Boeotia. On the plain of Leuctra the Spartans spread their hoplites evenly across the battlefield with - as was traditional - their commander and best infantry on the right. Sparta's experienced, larger force had every expectation of crushing the Thebans. But the Theban leader Epaminondas adopted an unprecedented battle formation. He concentrated his hoplites in a column 48 ranks deep on the left of his line, where he also placed his elite infantry, the Sacred Band. This left only a thin line of hoplites in the center and on his right, screened by skirmishers on foot and horseback. The skirmishers held the Spartans off while Epaminondas' column crashed into the enemy's right, causing it to scatter. Epaminondas now attacked the Spartans' exposed flank and put the superior Spartan force to flight.