Passage 4.21.6
οἱ Μεσσήνιοι δὲ ἀκούοντες ἀπονοίας τε ἐνεπίμπλαντο καὶ συνιστάμενοι καθʼ ὁπόσους ἕκαστοι τύχοιεν ἐφέροντο ἐς τοὺς Λακεδαιμονίους· ὥρμησαν δὲ καὶ γυναῖκες τῷ κεράμῳ καὶ ὅτῳ δύναιτο ἑκάστη τοὺς πολεμίους βάλλειν. τοῦτο μὲν δὴ μὴ δρᾶσαι σφᾶς μηδὲ ἐπιβῆναι τῶν τεγῶν τοῦ ὄμβρου τὸ βίαιον ἐπεκώλυε· λαβεῖν δὲ ὅπλα ἐτόλμησαν καὶ τοῖς ἀνδράσιν ἐπὶ πλέον αὗται τὴν τόλμαν ἐξῆψαν, ὁπότε καὶ τὰς γυναῖκας ἑώρων προτιμώσας συναπολέσθαι τῇ πατρίδι ἢ ἀχθῆναι δούλας ἐς Λακεδαίμονα, ὥστε κἂν παρελθεῖν ἐδυνήθησαν τὸ πεπρωμένον·
The Messenians, upon hearing this, were filled with despair and gathered themselves together in whatever numbers they could, rushing against the Lacedaemonians. Even the women took up roof tiles and anything else each could find for throwing at the enemy. Indeed, they were prevented from carrying this out and climbing onto the roofs by the violence of the rainstorm; nevertheless, they dared to take up arms and by their courage inspired the men to greater bravery, when the men saw that even the women preferred to perish alongside their country rather than be taken as slaves into Lacedaemon. Thus they might even have overcome their fate.