AG Culture Lecture 6 (Jan. PDF)

January 23, 2025 (Lecture 6) I. Ch. 3: “Ordering the Polis: Government and Public Administration”, cont. C. The Development of Athenian Democracy in the Archaic Period, cont. 3. The Reforms of Cleisthenes (508 B.C.), cont. a. Political Reorganisation of Attica, cont. -the tribes would develop a...

January 23, 2025 (Lecture 6) I. Ch. 3: “Ordering the Polis: Government and Public Administration”, cont. C. The Development of Athenian Democracy in the Archaic Period, cont. 3. The Reforms of Cleisthenes (508 B.C.), cont. a. Political Reorganisation of Attica, cont. -the tribes would develop a continuity on the basis of two basic functions: (1) politically, each tribe would annually select 50 citizens to serve on the Council of 500, which set the agenda for the Assembly; (2) militarily, when Athens was at war each tribe would annually elect its own general from among its numbers, and citizens of each tribe would serve together -the system ensured that every deme was represented in the Council (every deme would have a minimum of one member in the Council)—represented proportionately, according to its population -the system promoted loyalty not only to one’s demesmen, but also to one’s (socio-economically varied) tribesmen, which assisted the sense of unity among the Athenians in general -the Athenian system is “democratic”, then, in that the definition of citizen is relatively broad at Athens (even including those without land), but also in that the weight of authority resides ultimately with the Assembly, which had a far more robust role than the Spartan Assembly did (consider also how the Athenian Council’s membership was much larger than that of the Spartan Gerousia , and that membership changed entirely every year, whereas election to the Gerousia resulted in permanent membership) b. Other Reforms of Cleisthenes -Cleisthenes sought to reduce family privilege by changing naming conventions, switching from patronymics (names identifying one’s father) to demotics (names identifying one’s deme) -under Cleisthenes’ system, most annual appointments (magistrates of all levels [there were nine chief magistrates at Athens; they were called archons], council-members, and jurors—though not generals, who were still elected annually) were by lottery, from among all the citizens -but obstacles to participation in government, like distance from Athens, and poverty, remained -Cleisthenes was traditionally regarded as the one who introduced the laws surrounding ostracism: every year the Assembly voted on ostracising any one citizen; to be ostracised, one had to receive the majority of votes, with a minimum threshold of 6000 votes cast (against anyone) -if someone were ostracised (no crime need be alleged), he would have 10 days to depart from Attica, and was required to stay away for 10 years (he was not deprived of owning any property 1 he left behind) -the purpose of ostracism was to lessen strife by temporarily expelling divisive leaders (how democratic was it?) 4. Later Reforms (early Classical Period) -pay was introduced for jurors by Ephialtes (together with Pericles), in the mid-V B.C.; later in the century, pay was introduced even for attending the Assembly; these measures encouraged broader political participation -Ephialtes also took away much of the power of the (elite, judicial) Areopagus, which had been dominated by the wealthy classes, giving it to citizen-juries instead -in the midst of these impressive democratic advances, we should still remember that Athens totally excluded enslaved persons and women from citizenship and political involvement; foreign residents also had no way of securing citizenship for either themselves or their descendants: they were permanently “other” II. Ch. 4: “War and Peace” A. War and the Citizen-Soldier -unlike other ancient civilisations, the Greeks were citizens, together forming a body (the assembly: ecclesia) with at least nominal political authority within their respective poleis -the privilege of political authority was paired with the responsibility to serve within the military: a polis’ fighting force was not professional, but was made up essentially of citizens (a “militia”) -as far as the army was concerned, in most poleis the majority of citizens would have enough wealth to provide themselves with the heavy arms characteristic of the hoplite (see the earlier discussion); men lacking adequate resources (poor citizens and metics [non-Greek locals]) would serve as light infantry (archers, slingers, or javelin-men [peltasts]) -the Greek hoplite phalanx was dominant through the Archaic and Classical Periods; its weaknesses (esp. inability to adapt to rapidly changing battlefield circumstances) were exploited effectively by the Macedonian King, Philip II, who updated phalanx warfare, professionalising his army (allowing for a refining of tactics), adopting the use of a much longer infantry spear (the sarissa), expanding the cavalry, and using both cavalry and light infantry more effectively to complement the heavy infantry phalanx -the Hellenistic Kings continued to adapt the phalanx, giving a greater role to light infantry, adopting Persian war chariots equipped with scythes, and giving new prominence to siege weapons and artillery (besides infantry and cavalry) -Greek young men seeking their fortunes had ample opportunity to serve as mercenaries for 2 Hellenistic Kings -the age of the Greek phalanx finally came to an end with the advance of Roman legionary warfare: the smaller Roman maniple was much more adaptable to changing battle conditions than the phalanx (a key early encounter was in 146 B.C., when the Romans defeated the Achaean League at the Battle of Corinth) -turning to the Greek navy, the ships would have to be bought by the state or by its wealthiest citizens, and what was needed was rowers, who would not require any specific equipment; the massive navy of Athens (famous for including the poorest male Greeks as citizens) therefore had many opportunities for its poorest citizens to serve the polis militarily -the main ship used by the Greeks during the Classical Period was the trireme, named for its three banks of rowers on each side; an Athenian trireme had 170 rowers, supplemented by 30 other seamen (marines, archers, sailors) 3