Describe the political system of ancient Athens?

Answer 1

The growing unrest brought tyrants to power in many Greek city-states as a result of revolutions. The Greeks used the term tyrant to describe a leader who seized total power by force. Many tyrants achieved some of the goals of their followers. For example, they destributed farmland to the landless and put people to work on large public building projects. But eventually tyrants grew more concerned with keeping their power than with serving the people.

Most tyrants were soon replaced by an oligarchy in which a few wealthy citizens, rather than the nobility, ran the government. However, a number of city-states moved toward a democratic government. In 594 B.C., Athenians gave a statesman named Solon authority to reform the laws. Solon ended the practice of enslaving debtors. He divided citizens into classes by wealth and defined the rights and duties of each class. He also drew up a code of law. Shortly after Solon left office, civil war broke out. In 560 B.C., a tyrant seized power.

In 508 B.C., another Athenian statesman, Cleisthenes, proposed a constitution that made Athens a democracy. Cleisthenes extended voting rights in the assembly to all free adult men. He created a council of 500 members, which was open to any citizen. His reforms thus gave every citizen a chance to serve in the government.

Answer 2

In Ancient Athens there was Direct Democracy and it goes as follows.

The Citizens of Athens, males over the age of twenty who were born and raised in Athens with two Athenian parents, could vote in the Athenian assembly.

The Assembly (ekklesia) was held in the open air on the Pnyx hill forty times a year. Roughly 6'000 citizens were able to attend due to the size, and they were allowed to propose motions, speak in debates and vote on motions (show of hands).

The Assembly functioned as the legislative body; making laws and taking decisions.

After the Assembly came the Council.

The Council was for all male citizens over the age of thirty and they were entitled to put their name forward to serve on the Council (boule).

Every year a new Council, of 500 members, was chosen by lot. No citizen could serve on the Council more than twice in his lifetime and the years couldn't be consecutive.

The Council functioned as the executive body, that put the Assembly's decisions into practice.

Then there were the Magistrates (Archons).

All male citizens (adults obviously) could put their names forward for one of the nine annual magistracies and were, once again, chosen by lot.

The post was held for only a year and, at the end of the year, the post-holder would make a report in front of a panel of Athenian Jurors justifying how he'd spent his year in office; and account for any of the public money he'd be responsible for.

Originally the position of Archon was pretty powerful but, by mid-5th century, they were largely ceremonial, religious and legal in nature.

There were three Archon positions that were particularly important;

Eponymous Archon; the magistrate who gave his name to the year.

Archon Basilus; "King Archon" who presided over main religious festivals taking the role which would have formally been the King of Athens'.

Polemarch; originally the role of the Polemarch had been as the military leader of Athens, but it eventually dwindled to a ceremonial role in rites connected to warefare. Also, the Polemarch's Office kept the register for the metics (to collect the metic tax).

Moving on now.

The Strategoi. Ten 'generals' were elected each year to be commanders of the armed forces; navy, army etc.

Over time though, the Strategoi position became the most important one in Athens as they assumed leadership of the Assembly.

In the whole of the Athenian political system, the position of Strategoi was the only position for which you could be continuously re-elected for for - so it attracted ambitious politicians as well as generals.

Though you might think that the Strategoi was the downfall of the Athenian political system they had a final 'safety net' after all the 'one-year only' positions.

Ostracism.

Ostracism could be used against individuals who became too powerful, and so, periodically, the Athenian Assembly voted on whether to hold an Ostracism.

If they decided to hold one, then on a given day each male citizen was issued with a peace of potsherd (a piece of pot, because papyrus was expensive) and wrote the name of the person they'd want to see exiled for ten years from Athens.

Anyone who received over 50% of the votes was then exiled for ten years but his family were permitted to remain in Athens and his property was still his own.

It was believed that a ten year exile would be long enough to break down any power-base or chain of influence the ostracized individual had built up during his time in the position of power he held.

Answer 3

Pericles took Athens from a democracy established by Ephialtes to a radical democracy where the people in fortnightly assemblies made all the political decisions and the council implemented them.

Some of the other Greek cities copied the Athenian model.

Answer 4

A democracy was use in Athens, in Ancient Greece

Answer 5

I know of two of them. Sparta had an oligarchy, a government run by a small group of people. Athens had a democracy, a government ran by the citizens.

Answer 6

The Greek world was made up of over 2000 independent city-states each with its own form of government. These changed over time varying from monarchy oligarchy tyranny democracy.

Answer 7

Oligarchy