One of the world's foremost scholars of ancient Greece, with a special interest in Sparta, Paul Anthony Cartledge is the Hellenic Parliament Global Distinguished Professor in the History and Theory of Democracy. Educated at the University of Oxford, Dr. Cartledge received his D.Phil. with a thesis on the topic of “Early Sparta c. 950-650 B.C.: an archaeological and historical study” (1975), under the supervision of Professor Sir John Boardman.

Dr. Cartledge has taught at a number of universities throughout the U.K. and Ireland including Trinity College, Dublin; Warwick University; and Cambridge, where he is Professor of Greek History and, most recently, Chairman of the Classics Faculty. He has been a Visiting Professor and Lecturer at many universities both in Europe and America, most recently at Heidelberg and Princeton.

Described as a 'Laconophile' and having earned the nickname 'Mr. Sparta', Dr. Cartledge has authored some 20 published works that include his most recent books, Spartan Reflections (Duckworth & University of California Press, 2001), Alexander the Great: the Hunt for a New Past (Overlook, New York, 2004), and Thermopylae: the Battle that Changed the World (Macmillan, UK, and Overlook, New York, 2006).  In his career he has published over 65 articles on topics to do with Ancient Greece, with 12 forthcoming articles and chapters such as “The Helots” in The Cambridge World History of Slavery, vol. 1 that he is co-editing (Cambridge University Press) and “Sparta” in The Classical Tradition (Harvard University Press). In 2002, Dr. Cartledge was awarded the Gold Cross of the Order of Honour of the Greek Republic (by the President of Greece), and in 2004, he was elected an Honorary Citizen of Sparta.