Ancient Greece

Lesson 4: Athenian Democracy

The Origins of Athenian Democracy

Before the introduction of democracy in 508 BC, Athens was ruled by a tyrant.

(In Ancient Greece, the word 'tyrannos' did not have the same negative connotations that our English word 'tyrant' does. The word simply referred to an autocratic ruler who was not answerable to any other person or body)

The members of the family that ruled Athens were known as the Pisistratids. They were named after Pisistratus, the man who had originally established the dynasty.

Hippias was the son of Pisistratus, and he took over from his father in 530 BC.

His rule was unpopular and many Athenian aristocrats soon became opposed to it.

In 514 BC, two aristocratic lovers, Harmodius and Aristogeiton, murdered Hipparchius, a brother of Hippias. After this event, Hippias' rule became even more oppresive.

Many Athenian aristocrats appealed to the Spartans for help. Eventually, the Spartan king Cleomenes led an army to Athens and drove out the Pisistratids.

Hippias rule was initially replaced with an oligarchic form of government, in which power was mainly in the hands of a body known as the Areopagus.

The Areopagus had existed as an institution since long before the time of Pisistratus. It had supposedly been set up by the legendary Athenian statesman Solon.

We cannot be certain as to whether or not Solon actually existed.

The Areopagus was made up mainly of those who belonged to the wealthier classes.

This oligarchic system of government was not to last for very long however.

In 508 BC, the reformer Cleisthenes pushed through a series of reforms which shifted power from the Areopagus to the general Assembly (known in Classical Greek as the Ekklesia) at which all Athenian citizens, whether rich or poor, had the right to vote.