The penestae were a class of unfree labourers tied to the land once inhabiting Thessaly

Thessaly

Thessaly is a traditional geographical region and an administrative region of Greece, comprising most of the ancient region of the same name. Before the Greek Dark Ages, Thessaly was known as Aeolia, and appears thus in Homer's Odyssey....

, whose status was comparable to that of the Sparta

Sparta

Sparta or Lacedaemon, was a prominent city-state in ancient Greece, situated on the banks of the River Eurotas in Laconia, in south-eastern Peloponnese. It emerged as a political entity around the 10th century BC, when the invading Dorians subjugated the local, non-Dorian population. From c...

n helots.

Status

Tradition made the penestae descendants of the Achaeans subjected by invading tribes

Thesprotians

The Thesprotians were an ancient Greek tribe of Thesprotis, Epirus, akin to the Molossians. The poet Homer frequently mentions Thesprotia which had friendly relations with Ithaca and Doulichi. On their northeast frontier they had the Chaonians and to the north the kingdom of the Molossians...

 arriving from Thesprotia

Thesprotia

Thesprotia is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the Epirus region. Its capital is the town of Igoumenitsa. It is named after the Thesprotians, an ancient Greek tribe that inhabited the region in antiquity.-History:...

. Archemachus

Archemachus of Euboea

Archemachus of Euboea was an ancient Greek writer who wrote on his native island . His works consisted of at least three books. Whether this Archemachus was the author of the grammatical work Hai Metonymiai , is uncertain.-Sources:...

 (cited by Athenaeus

Athenaeus

Athenaeus , of Naucratis in Egypt, Greek rhetorician and grammarian, flourished about the end of the 2nd and beginning of the 3rd century AD...

, VI, 264), a 3rd century BC writer, believed instead that they were Boeotia

Boeotia

Boeotia, also spelled Beotia and Bœotia , is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the region of Central Greece. It was also a region of ancient Greece. Its capital is Livadeia, the second largest city being Thebes.-Geography:...

ns:

"The Aeolian Boeotians who did not emigrate when their country Thessaly

Thessaly

Thessaly is a traditional geographical region and an administrative region of Greece, comprising most of the ancient region of the same name. Before the Greek Dark Ages, Thessaly was known as Aeolia, and appears thus in Homer's Odyssey....

 was conquered by the Thessalians, surrendered themselves to the victors on condition that they should not be carried out of the country, nor be put to death, but should cultivate the land for the new owners of the soil, paying by way of rent a portion of the produce of it, and many of them are richer than their masters."

The Thessalian lands were very productive and spacious (in comparison to the size of the population, i.e.); the penestae thus had goodly amounts of rich land to cultivate. The contributions given to the Thessalians (and Archemachus' remark about their wealth) imply that the penestae could freely dispose of the portions in excess of their rent payments, and that they could possess goods. Certain penestae, known as latreis, worked as house servants, receiving in exchange a salary.

Dionysius of Halicarnassus

Dionysius of Halicarnassus

Dionysius of Halicarnassus was a Greek historian and teacher of rhetoric, who flourished during the reign of Caesar Augustus. His literary style was Attistic — imitating Classical Attic Greek in its prime.-Life:...

 tells us (II, 9) that they were beaten when they refused to obey and that, generally speaking, they were treated like chattel slaves (i.e. people considered to be the property of others). They appear to have been much less numerous than the free Thessalians.

From a passage in Demosthenes

Demosthenes

Demosthenes was a prominent Greek statesman and orator of ancient Athens. His orations constitute a significant expression of contemporary Athenian intellectual prowess and provide an insight into the politics and culture of ancient Greece during the 4th century BC. Demosthenes learned rhetoric by...

 it appears that the penestae sometimes accompanied their masters to battle, and fought on horse-back as their knights or vassals. This circumstance is not surprising, in view of the fame of the Thessalian cavalry. The penestae of Thessaly also resembled the Laconia

Laconia

Laconia , also known as Lacedaemonia, is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the region of Peloponnese. It is situated in the southeastern part of the Peloponnese peninsula. Its administrative capital is Sparti...

n helots in another respect, for they often rose up in arms against their lords. There were penestae among the Macedonians

Ancient Macedonians

The Macedonians originated from inhabitants of the northeastern part of the Greek peninsula, in the alluvial plain around the rivers Haliacmon and lower Axios...

also. There were also an Illyrian tribe called Penestae.