Ancient Civilizations Chw3mi

Athens: On the Road to Democracy

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  Early Athenians tried to solve their governmental problems in various ways
  
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  One solution was to appoint a magistrate called an archon
  
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  The archon’s job was to solve ongoing disputes between aristocrats and common citizens
  
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  The most famous archon was Solon who brought in a number of economic and social changes which included
  
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    Changes to the law code that helped relieve the debt and land problems of the poor
    
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    Abolishment of the practice of selling debtors into slavery
    
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    Abolishment of aristocratic privilege
    
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    Council of 400
    
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  Unfortunately, the road to democracy was not a smooth one
  
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  Tyrants came to power throughout the Archaic period
  
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  Peisistratus is a famous Greek who became a tyrant in charge of Athens
  
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  He defeated his opponents (on the third attempt) and took the city
  
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  Peisistratus ruled until his death when his son, Hippias, took over
  
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  Hippias ruled until the army of Sparta farced an end to the tyranny in 510 BCE
  
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  Hippias was forced into exile and Athens again had to find new political solutions.
  
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  Cleisthenes finally proposed a solution
  
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  He created a Council of 500 with 50 members from each of the new 10 tribes of Athens that allowed a greater say in political matters
  
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  Furthermore, the practice of Ostracism was introduced
  
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  Ostracism allowed the city to send any citizen and his family into exile for 10 years if that citizen was in danger of becoming a tyrant
  
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  Every January the Athenian Assembly voted on whether ostracism was needed and who it would be (sort of like ancient Survivor)
  
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  A minimum of 6000 votes needed to be cast on ostraka (broken pieces of pottery) for an ostracism to happen
  
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  The person who’s name appeared most often was sent into exile
  
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  The first ostracism occurred in 487 BCE.
  
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  The idea that Athens was always democratic, therefore, is not an accurate portrayal of the political challenges Athens faced
  

Spartan Government

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  Sparta & Athens represent 2 opposing concepts of the Greek polis
  
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  Also represent opposing concepts of the individual's relationship to the state.
  
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  The single, overwhelming fact of Spartan history was the Messenean War.
  
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  725 BCE, the Spartans annexed all territory of their neighbour, Messenia.
  
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  Controlling the territory of a subject population that outnumbered their population ten to one, Spartans worried of revolt and so invented a new political system as dramatically revolutionary as Athenian democracy in the north:
  
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    They turned their state into what amounts to a military state.
    
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  The Messenians were turned into agricultural slaves called helots.
  
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  The military and the city‑state became the centre of Spartan existence.
  
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  The state determined whether children, both male and female, were strong when they were born; weakling infants were left in the hills to die
  
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  At 7, every male Spartan was sent to military and athletic school. These schools taught toughness, discipline, endurance of pain (often severe pain), and survival skills.
  
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  At 20, after thirteen years of training, the Spartan became a soldier. The Spartan soldier spent his life with his fellow soldiers; he lived in barracks and ate all his meals with his fellow soldiers.
  
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  At 30, the Spartan become an "equal," and was allowed to live in his own house with his own family—although he continued to serve in the military.
  
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  The ideology of Sparta was oriented around the State. The individual lived (and died) for the state.
  
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  The combination of this ideology, the education of Spartan males, and the disciplined maintenance of a standing army gave the Spartans the stability that had been threatened during the Messenean revolt.
  
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  Spartan society was divided into three main classes.
  
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  At the top was the Spartiate, or native Spartan
  
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  The Spartiate served in the army and was the only person who enjoyed the full political and legal rights of the state.
  
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  Below the Spartiates were the perioeci, foreigners who served as a kind of buffer population between the Spartans and the helots.
  
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  At the bottom were the helots.