final ancient greece

Aristagoras of Miletus

(c.505-496 BC) Powerful figure in the Ionian city of Miletus who played a leading part in organizing a revolt of the Ionian cities against their Persian overlords. It failed, and he died while fighting in Thrace. was the leader of Miletus in the late 6th century BC and early 5th century BC and a key player during the early years of the Ionian Revolt against the Persian Achaemenid Empire.

Ionian Revolt

499-493, Ionian cities revolted against Persian Rule, helped by Athens. At first it was a success, then crushed by Persians. revolts in Aeolis, Doris, Cyprus and Caria, were military rebellions by several Greek regions of Asia Minor against Persian rule, lasting from 499 BC to 493 BC. At the heart of the rebellion was the dissatisfaction of the Greek cities of Asia Minor with the tyrants appointed by Persia to rule them, along with the individual actions of two Milesian tyrants, Histiaeus and Aristagoras. The cities of Ionia had been conquered by Persia around 540 BC, and thereafter were ruled by native tyrants, nominated by the Persian satrap in Sardis. In 499 BC, the tyrant of Miletus, Aristagoras, launched a joint expedition with the Persian satrap Artaphernes to conquer Naxos, in an attempt to bolster his position. The mission was a debacle, and sensing his imminent removal as tyrant, Aristagoras chose to incite the whole of Ionia into rebellion against the Persian king Darius the Great. In 498 BC, supported by troops from Athens and Eretria, the Ionians marched on, captured, and burnt Sardis. However, on their return journey to Ionia, they were followed by Persian troops, and decisively beaten at the Battle of Ephesus. This campaign was the only offensive action by the Ionians, who subsequently went on the defensive. The Persians responded in 497 BC with a three pronged attack aimed at recapturing the outlying areas of the rebellion, but the spread of the revolt to Caria meant that the largest army, under Daurises, relocated there. While initially campaigning successfully in Caria, this army was annihilated in an ambush at the Battle of Pedasus. This resulted in a stalemate for the rest of 496 BC and 495 BC. By 494 BC the Persian army and navy had regrouped, and they made straight for the epicentre of the rebellion at Miletus. The Ionian fleet sought to defend Miletus by sea, but was decisively beaten at the Battle of Lade, after the defection of the Samians. Miletus was then besieged, captured, and its population was brought under Persian rule. This double defeat effectively ended the revolt, and the Carians surrendered to the Persians as a result. The Persians spent 493 BC reducing the cities along the west coast that still held out against them, before finally imposing a peace settlement on Ionia which was generally considered to be both just and fair. The Ionian Revolt constituted the first major conflict between Greece and the Persian Empire, and as such represents the first phase of the Greco-Persian Wars. Although Asia Minor had been brought back into the Persian fold, Darius vowed to punish Athens and Eretria for their support of the revolt. Moreover, seeing that the myriad city states of Greece posed a continued threat to the stability of his Empire, according to Herodotus, Darius decided to conquer the whole of Greece. In 492 BC, the first Persian invasion of Greece, the next phase of the Greco-Persian Wars, began as a direct consequence of the Ionian Revolt.

Themistocles

A Greek military leader who convinced the Athenians to build a navy. This helped Athens win a major battle against Persia, the Battle of Salamis. He was ostracized around 471 BCE. was an Athenian politician and general. He was one of a new breed of non-aristocratic politicians who rose to prominence in the early years of the Athenian democracy. As a politician, Themistocles was a populist, having the support of lower-class Athenians, and generally being at odds with the Athenian nobility. Elected archon in 493 BC, he convinced the polis to increase the naval power of Athens, a recurring theme in his political career. During the first Persian invasion of Greece he fought at the Battle of Marathon[2] (490 BC) and was possibly one of the ten Athenian strategoi (generals) in that battle.

aitiai

Aristotle's Four Causes illustrated for a table: material (wood), formal (design), efficient (carpentry), final (dining). The "four causes" are elements of an influential principle in Aristotelian thought whereby explanations of change or movement are classified into four fundamental types of answer to the question "why?". Aristotle wrote that "we do not have knowledge of a thing until we have grasped its why, that is to say, its cause."[1][2] While there are cases where identifying a "cause" is difficult, or in which "causes" might merge, Aristotle held that his four "causes" provided an analytical scheme of general applicability.[3] Aitia, from Greek αἰτία, was the word that Aristotle used to refer to the causal explanation that has traditionally been translated as "cause", but this specialized, technical, philosophical usage of the word "cause" does not correspond exactly to its most usual applications in everyday English language.[4] The translation of Aristotle's αἰτία that is nearest to current ordinary language could be "question" or "causal explanation",[5][2][4] although any such terms may mask the fact that Aristotelians consider the four causes to be more fundamental in nature than mere explanations. In this article, the peculiar philosophical usage of the word "cause" will be employed, for tradition's sake, but the reader should not be misled by confusing this technical usage with current ordinary language. Aristotle held that there were four kinds of answers to "why" questions (in Physics II, 3, and Metaphysics V, 2):[2][6][5] Matter: a change or movement's material cause, is the aspect of the change or movement which is determined by the material that composes the moving or changing things. For a table, that might be wood; for a statue, that might be bronze or marble. Form: a change or movement's formal cause, is a change or movement caused by the arrangement, shape or appearance of the thing changing or moving. Aristotle says for example that the ratio 2:1, and number in general, is the cause of the octave. Agent: a change or movement's efficient or moving cause, consists of things apart from the thing being changed or moved, which interact so as to be an agency of the change or movement. For example, the efficient cause of a table is a carpenter, or a person working as one, and according to Aristotle the efficient cause of a boy is a father. End or purpose: a change or movement's final cause, is that for the sake of which a thing is what it is. For a seed, it might be an adult plant. For a sailboat, it might be sailing. For a ball at the top of a ramp, it might be coming to rest at the bottom.

aparche

First Fruits is a religious offering of the first agricultural produce of the harvest. In classical Greek, Roman, Hebrew and Christian religions, the first fruits were given to priests to offer a deity. First Fruits were often a primary source of income to maintain the religious leaders and the facility. Beginning in 1966 a unique "First Fruits" celebration brought the Ancient African harvest festivals that became the African American holiday, Kwanzaa.

clerouchies

Normally, Greek colonies were politically independent; they would have a special relationship with the mother city (the metropolis) but would otherwise be independent entities. Cleruchies were significantly different. The settlers or cleruchs would retain their Athenian citizenship, and the community remained a political dependency of Athens - a position reinforced by installing institutions of local government based on Athenian models, such as the council on Samos.[1] According to Plutarch, cleruchies were assigned to poor Athenian citizens, who would then live overseas while retaining their Athenian citizenship.[1] However, epigraphical evidence suggests that Athenian cleruchs were more commonly wealthy, and continued to live in Athens while slaves worked on their overseas estates.[1] Cleruchies thereby became a significant source of private wealth in Athens - the 3,000 kleroi on Lesbos provided 100 talents a year, according to Thucydides.[1] The first known cleruchy is thought to have been Salamis, captured by Athens from Megara in the 6th century BC. Other cleruchies were established on the Thracian Chersonese following its recapture from the Persian Empire after the Greco-Persian Wars of the 5th century BC, and at Chalcis following that city's defeat in a war with Athens. During the period of the Delian League and the Second Athenian League (5th-4th century BC), many more cleruchies were created by Athens such as on Samos. Athens' system of cleruchies reached its height in the late fifth century, at which point it stretched as far east as Amisos on the Black Sea.[1] This network of cleruchies was lost at the end of the Peloponnesian war, and never reached this extent again, although some cleruchies were re-established in the fourth century, for example at Lemnos and Samos.

Phusis vs. Nomos

Phusis is the ancient Greek word for "nature," cognate with the verb "to grow" (phuein ); as in English, it can be used both for the natural world as a whole and for the "nature" (i.e., the essential or intrinsic characteristics) of any particular thing, which it has "by nature" (phusei ). Nomos encompasses both law and unwritten, traditional social convention. The contrast between the two concepts is central to ancient sophistic thought, with roots in the pre-Socratic inquiry into the underlying natures of things. For the Sophists, nomos and phusis are polar terms, roughly equivalent (respectively) to the socially constructed and the universally, objectively given. The contrast was most strikingly applied in relation to justice. Antiphon's On Truth argues that justice is a matter of nomos, and nomos and phusis conflict; one should observe the requirements of justice when there are witnesses, but follow the dictates of nature otherwise. By "nature," Antiphon seems to understand what is physiologically given to all humans (Greeks and barbarians alike). By following it one gains what is advantageous to one's existence: life, pleasure, and freedom. In Plato's Gorgias, Callicles argues, with an appeal to animal behavior, that it is a matter of "justice according to nature," as opposed to convention, for the strong to prey upon the weak.

the revolt oand siege of samos 441-439 bc

Samian War Date 440-439 BC Location Samos Result Athenian victory; Samian surrender Belligerents Athens Samos Commanders and leaders Pericles The Samian War (440-439 BC) was an Ancient Greek military conflict between Athens and Samos. The war was initiated by Athens's intervention in a dispute between Samos and Miletus. When the Samians refused to break off their attacks on Miletus as ordered, the Athenians easily drove out the oligarchic government of Samos and installed a garrison in the city, but the oligarchs soon returned, with Persian support. A larger Athenian fleet was dispatched to suppress this agitation. This fleet initially defeated the Samians and blockaded the city, but Pericles, in command, was then forced to lead a substantial portion of the fleet away upon learning that the Persian fleet was approaching from the south. Although the Persians turned back before the two fleets met, the absence of most of the Athenian fleet allowed the Samians to drive off the remaining blockaders and, for two weeks, control the sea around their island; upon Pericles's return, however, the Athenians again blockaded and besieged Samos; the city surrendered nine months later. Under the terms of the surrender, the Samians tore down their walls, gave up hostages, surrendered their fleet, and agreed to pay Athens a war indemnity over the next 26 years. During the course of the war, the Samians had apparently appealed to Sparta for assistance; the Spartans were initially inclined to grant this request, and were prevented from doing so primarily by Corinth's unwillingness to participate in a war against Athens at the time. In 433 BC, when Corcyra requested Athenian assistance against Corinth, the Corinthians would remind the Athenians of the good will they had shown at this time.

the panhellenic decree 449 bc

The Greek city-states make peace with the Persian Empire through the Peace of Callias, named after the chief Greek ambassador to the Persian Court, an Athenian who is a brother-in-law of Cimon. Athens agrees to end its support for the Egyptians rebels still holding out in parts of the Nile Delta, while the Persians agree not to send ships of war into the Aegean Sea. Athens now effectively controls all the Greek city states in Ionia. Pericles begins a great building plan including the re-fortification of Piraeus and its long walls extending to Athens. Pericles proposes a "Congress Decree" allowing the use of 9,000 talents[citation needed] to finance the massive rebuilding program of Athenian temples. This leads to a meeting ("Congress") of all Greek states in order to consider the question of rebuilding the temples destroyed by the Persians. The Congress fails because of Sparta's opposition. Pericles places the Athenian sculptor Phidias in charge of all the artistic aspects of his reconstruction program. Construction begins on the Temple of Hephaestus in Athens, while the Athenian Senate commissions Callicrates to construct a temple to Athena Nike on the Acropolis. The Second Sacred War erupts between Athens and Sparta, when Sparta forcefully detaches Delphi from Phocis and renders it independent.

Essay: Ionian Enlightenment

The Ionian Enlightenment[1] was a set of advances in scientific thought, explanations on nature, and discovering the natural and rational causes behind observable phenomena, that took place in archaic Greece beginning in the 6th century BC. This movement began on the Ionian coast of western Anatolia by small numbers of forward-thinking Greeks (see Ionian School and Milesian School) from cities such as Miletus, Samos, and Halicarnassus.[2][3][4][5][6] They saw the world as something ordered and intelligible, its history following an explicable course and its different parts arranged in a comprehensible system. Most historians agree that Thales, one of the Seven Sages of Greece, started this movement by predicting a solar eclipse that actually occurred, though some believe this feat to be false. Miletus The Greek city of Miletus was the birthplace of Greek philosophy and Western scientific thought. Their culture combined the best of a resurgent Greek civilization with borrowings from Egypt and the Middle East. Internally, the politics of the Milesians were of faction, strife, and bloody revolution; externally, they were neighbored by two powerful empires in the Lydians and Persians. Despite these unfavorable circumstances, the Milesians were commercially indefatigable. With its three harbors and progeny of daughter colonies, Miletus was the "Jewel of Ionia." They traded not only with the Eastern empires, but also with Egypt; they sent out numerous colonies to settle in Thrace and along the coast of the Black Sea; and they had connections with Sybaris in southern Italy. Miletus bred Thales, Anaximander, and Anaximenes; the first three philosophers. Miletus was an essential location for this intellectual revolution to flourish because that they had connections with the great civilizations of Egypt, Mesopotamia, and Anatolia which in turn allowed for a vast array of exchange of goods and ideas from across the Mediterranean and three continents. Up until this point in time (6th century BC) the Greeks, and many empires before them, explained the events of the world as products of supernatural actions of divine agents. This can be seen in the writings of Homer and Hesiod, two famous Greek poets. With the introduction of rational and natural thought the Milesian Presocratic philosophers, as they were termed, attempted to produce an improved and rationalized theology in place of the anthropomorphic divinities of the Olympian pantheon. But their theology had little to do with religion, and they removed most of the traditional functions from the gods, such as thunder was no longer the growling of a minatory Zeus or that Poseidon created storms. This new Presocratic approach gave no direct credence to traditional lore and furthermore these philosophers simply ignored the kinds of explanations that were imbedded in myths and advanced their own accounts on the basis, not of tradition, but of reasons. Their approach refused to allow any supernatural actions to govern natural processes. This rejection of the supernatural did not make the philosophers atheists, rather it made them subordinate divine action to natural law which was known as Physis. These first philosophers offered reasons for their opinions and gave arguments for their views. For the most part, they were concerned not to advance opinions, but to advance reasoned opinions. The Ionian Enlightenment was the set of advances in scientific thought, naturalistic explanations, and the application of rational and scientific criticisms to all spheres of life in Ionia of ancient Greece in 6th century BC. The Ionian Enlightenment received its origins in both ancient Mesopotamian and ancient Greek philosophy. The city of Miletus became the central area to which new philosophers and intellects would share and teach new ideas about their scientific outlooks and aims.[1] Ionia was an essential location for the enlightenment to prosper due to their political standing and communication networks. Ionia, in the 6th century BC, was not ruled by a powerful empire, but it was ruled by smaller, self-governing governments, with intellectual leading figures. Ionia's political standing allowed the scientific ideas of the enlightenment to gain momentum without having serious restrictions. Ionia's central location in the Mediterranean allowed for extensive trade with Asia Minor, Phoenicia, Egypt, Italy, and southern France. The Ionians were able to exchange both materials and ideas, especially with the eastern cultures, which helped develop the ideas of the enlightenment.[2] The enlightenment challenged the flawed morality of the gods, suggesting that the will of the gods did not cause the "bad" in the world; rather it was caused by natural means. Homer described that natural disasters were caused by the wrath of the gods, however during the enlightenment, a more scientific outlook uprooted superstition and replaced it with natural explanations.[3] Philosophers removed the gods from their reasoning, and concluded that things occurred naturally and independently from the will of the gods.[4] Philosophers tried to explain the world through their senses, not through reasoning. Intellects thought that nature is a continuous becoming, to which everything is repeated or flows in cycles.[5] Among the intellects of the enlightenment, three were considered the first natural philosophers: Thales, Anaximander, and Anaximenes. These three philosophers are notable for their attempts to explain the material origin of matter. Their answers identified a single substance (water, aperion, and air, respectively), thereby creating the monist school of thought.[6] Their philosophies and ideas of the universe and matter were omnipresent throughout Ionia, and were used to formulate the Milesian School.[7] During the latter half of the 5th century BC, the prominence of the ideas and philosophies of the Ionian Enlightenment started to decline, heavily due to the Persian conquest of Ionia. Ionia stagnated culturally and economically. Many of the Ionian ideas and beliefs were adopted by the Athenians, which left very little evidence of the contributions made by the Ionian Enlightenment toward the formation of rational philosophies and ideas.

Milesian Philosophers (cosmologists)

The Milesian school was a school of thought founded in the 6th century BC. The ideas associated with it are exemplified by three philosophers from the Ionian town of Miletus, on the Aegean coast of Asia Minor: Thales, Anaximander, and Anaximenes. They introduced new opinions contrary to the prevailing belief of how the world was organized, in which natural phenomena were explained solely by the will of anthropomorphized gods. The Milesians conceived of nature in terms of methodologically observable entities, and as such was one of the first truly scientific philosophies. These philosophers defined all things by their quintessential substance (which Aristotle, perhaps being anachronistic,[1] called the ἀρχή / arche)[2] of which the world was formed and which was the source of everything. Thales thought it to be water.[3] But as it was impossible to explain some things (such as fire) as being composed of this element, Anaximander chose an unobserved, undefined element, which he called apeiron[4] (ἄπειρον "having no limit"). He reasoned that if each of the four classical empedoclean elements (water, air, fire, and earth) are opposed to the other three, and if they cancel each other out on contact, none of them could constitute a stable, truly elementary form of matter. Consequently, there must be another entity from which the others originate, and which must truly be the most basic element of all. The notion of temporal infinity was familiar to the Greek mind in the religious conception of immortality and Anaximander's description was in terms appropriate to this conception. This arche is called "eternal and ageless" (Hippolitus I,6,I;DK B2). Critics disliked the unspecified nature of the apeiron, which caused Anaximenes to define it as being air, which is a more concrete, yet still subtle, element.[5] Anaximenes held that by its evaporation and condensation, air can change into other elements or substances such as fire, wind, clouds, water, and earth. However, our modern concept of energy is much more similar to Anaximander's apeiron. Cosmology The differences between the three philosophers was not limited to the nature of matter. Each of them conceived of the universe differently. Thales held that the world was floating in water. Anaximander placed the world at the center of a universe composed of hollow, concentric wheels filled with fire, and pierced by holes at various intervals, which appeared as the sun, the moon, and the other stars. For Anaximenes, the sun and the moon were flat disks traveling around a heavenly canopy, on which the stars were fixed.

City Dionysia

The most important Greek festival in honor of the god Dionysus, and the first to include drama. ancient dramatic festival in which tragedy, comedy, and satyric drama originated; it was held in Athens in March in honour of Dionysus, the god of wine. it was held in Athens in March in honour of Dionysus, the god of wine. Tragedy of some form, probably chiefly the chanting of choral lyrics, was introduced by the tyrant Peisistratus when he refounded the festival (534/531 BC), but the earliest tragedy that survives, Aeschylus' Persai, dates from 472. The festivals were attended by all Athenian citizens (likely women as well as men) and visitors from throughout Greece. In the tragic competition, each of three tragic poets wrote, produced, and probably acted in three tragedies on a single theme. Each poet also presented a satyr play, which treated some heroic subject in burlesque fashion. Judges, chosen by lot, awarded a prize to the best poet. In comedy, introduced in 486, five poets competed for the prize, each with one play. The satyr play was always the work of a tragic poet, and the same poet never wrote both tragedies and comedies. In 440 comedy was also introduced into the Lenaea, the minor festival of Dionysus held in January, and tragedy was added 10 years later.

The revolt and reduction of Naxos (468-467 Bc)

The revolt of Naxos was a prelude of sorts to the Ionian revolt and the following Persian War fought between Greece and Persia. Iona was the name given to a small area of land on the western coast of Asia Minor. The islands between Ionia (Asia Minor) and Greece were left independent and were called the Cyclades. These islands were important trade routes and the largest and richest island among them was Naxos.

herodotus and thucydides

Thucydides is regarded as the 'scientific historian', relying on facts, dates, events and personalities to present the 'factual' narrative of history. He detested any reliance on the supernatural, abhorred subjectivity and strived to be as objective as possible, and was concerned about writing on solely the events of his own time, the only area of history where he could personally verify through examination of written records and eyewitness accounts. He is seen as the 'Father of the Historical Method'. Thucydides never mentioned Herodotus by name but is thought to have taken a swipe at him in one of his introductory statements in The Peloponnesian War: To hear this history rehearsed, for that there be inserted in it no fables, shall be perhaps not delightful. But he that desires to look into the truth of things done, and which (according to the condition of humanity) may be done again, or at least their like, shall find enough herein to make him think it profitable. And it is compiled rather for an everlasting possession than to be rehearsed for a prize. Herodotus, on the other hand, is seen as the 'sensational historian', relying on a blend of oral accounts, gossip, myths, rumors, and synthesizing it with his own view of the events, allowing the reader to make of it what they will. He is seen as the antithesis of what it is to be a historian as he made no attempt to find 'truth' on a factual basis and was content to provide multiple accounts of events and leave the reader to ascertain for themselves which one they identified with the most. An example of where the two historians diverge in their interpretation of history is within their ideas of war itself: Thucydides sought to explain conflict a resultant of preceding events that were based on emotion and erroneous logic and relied on factual reports of contemporary political and military events, based on unambiguous, first-hand, eyewitness accounts to describe how the events transpired. He sought not to infuse his works with moral lessons, seeing history along political lines and history itself as political and was one of the earliest people to decry the use of conventional morality when analyzing past historical events. For Thucydides, conflict represented another political tool that could and should be wielded, with logical considerations, and had been attributable to three, time-honored motives: honor, fear, and interest. Thus, war could be avoided if people made logical decisions based on the factual circumstances of their positions, que The Melian Dialogue. Herodotus sought to explain conflict as a result of personal motives, flawed personalities, and divine intervention, absent of more abstract ideas that cause conflict. Emotion plays a key part in his understanding of how events proceed and he relies heavily on the supernatural to answer questions that he himself cannot explain. Herodotus was essentially an author who sought to explain historical events in a 'fashionable' way, i.e. a way that appealed to many and could give history a 'dramatic flair' that would entice people to study it. For Herodotus, conflict represented folly and the failure of man to use the better of his sense and represented a continual cycle of revenge, aiming to right the wrongs of generations past. War was a source of moral lessons that future generations could learn from in order to prevent further occurrences and were something to avoid at all costs. Subsequently future historians, despite their detestment of Herodotus' style and historiography, continued to treat history as a source of moral lessons. Herodotus The Greek writer Herodotus is considered the world's first historian, "the father of history." Other have called him "the father of lies." Herodotus explored centuries of contacts between the ancient Greeks and the Persian Empire, culminating in the Persian Wars of the early fifth century BC. In dramatic land and sea battles, the Greeks managed to repel invaders from the much larger, richer, and more powerful Persian Empire to the east. Later historians have said these Greek victories saved Western Civiliation. To compile his history, Herodotus relied on oral accounts and he included gossip, myths, and rumors. Sometimes he would provide conflicting accounts of events and invite the reader to decide which to believe. Herodotus wrote, "No one is so foolish as to prefer war to peace: in peace children bury their fathers, while in war fathers bury their children." Historians are undocumented elsewhere in the world until the first century BC in China. _________ The dual marble bust of Herodotus and Thucydides was photographed in the summer of 2006 at an exhibit at the Colosseum in Rome. Photo by Mike Maxwell Thucydides The Greek writer Thucydides (thoo-SID-uh-dees) is credited with writing the first "scientific" history. Gods and legends played no role in his history of the Peloponnesian War between Athens and Sparta, which took place in the late fifth century BC. After 27 years of conflict, Sparta won, and Athens went into decline. Thucydides wrote only about events that occurred during his lifetime that he could verify through examination of written records and eyewitness accounts. He strived for complete objectivity, and in this way he pioneered the historical method used by historians today. Thucydides wrote, "Adverse to taking pains are most men in the search for the truth, and prone are they to turn to what lies readily at hand." He said truth could be distinguished from fiction "only after investigating with the greatest possible accuracy each detail." He tried not only to recount events, but to make sense of them. Thucydides records one of the figures in his history as observing that men go to war out of "honor, fear, and interest," a formulation not improved upon in subsequent centuries. He determined that war could be avoided if humans would base their choices on reason rather than force. According to Thucydides, it was because Athenians violated this principle that they eventually suffered defeat at the hands of Sparta.

Harmodius and Aristogeiton

Two lovers from ancient Athens. They became known as the Tyrannicides after they killed the Peisistratid tyrant Hipparchus, and were the preeminent symbol of democracy to ancient Athenians. Peisistratus had become tyrant of Athens after his third attempt in 546/7 BCE. In Archaic Greece, the term tyrant, referred to one who had seized power and ruled outside of a state's constitutional law, and did not carry the same negative implications it does today. When Peisistratus died in 528/7 BC, his son Hippias took the position of Archon and became the new tyrant of Athens, with the help of his brother, Hipparchus, who acted as the minister of culture. The two continued their father's policies, but their popularity declined after Hipparchus began to abuse the power of his position. Following Hipparchus' rejection by Harmodius, for whom he had unrequited feelings, Hipparchus invited Harmodius' young sister to be the kanephoros (to carry the ceremonial offering basket) at the Panathenaea festival, and then publicly chased her away on the pretext she was not a virgin, as required. This publicly shamed Harmodius' family; then he, with his lover Aristogeiton, resolved to assassinate both Hippias and Hipparchus and thus to overthrow the tyranny.[3] The assassination attempt succeeded and Hipparchus was killed in 514/3, but Hippias remained in power. The truly tyrannical (by today's standards) actions in the remaining years of his reign are typically attributed by contemporary scholars as paranoia and anger over the assassination. According to Aristotle, however, it was Thessalos, the hot-headed son of Peisistratus' Argive concubine, and thus half-brother to Hipparchus, who was the one to court Harmodius and drive off his sister.

Great Panathenaia

ere held every four years in Athens in Ancient Greece from 566 BC[1] to the 3rd century AD.[2] These Games incorporated religious festival, ceremony (including prize-giving), athletic competitions, and cultural events hosted within a stadium. The competitions for which this festival came to be known were only part of a much larger religious occasion; the Great Panathenaia itself. These ritual observances consisted of numerous sacrifices to Athena (the name-sake of the event and patron deity to the hosts of the event - Athens) as well as Poseidon and others. The Panathenaic festival was formed in order to honor the goddess Athena who had become the patron of Athens after having a competition with the god Poseidon where they were to win the favor of the Athenian people by offering the people gifts. The festival would also bring unity among the people of Athens.[3] A sister-event to the Great Panathenaia was held every year - the Lesser Panathenaia, which was 3-4 days shorter in celebration. The competitions were the most prestigious games for the citizens of Athens, but not as important as the Olympic Games or the other Panhellenic Games.

Marathon (490 BC)

first battle of persian war between greeks and persia. Athenians are outnumbered but still win as they are braver, and better fighters. Sparta doesn't help because they are in a religous festival. Athens wins and is rich (Militades is the commander). A runner goes back and tells athens of the victory and dies (26.2 miles) Battle of Marathon Part of the Greco-Persian Wars Plain of Marathon 1.jpg The plain of Marathon today took place in 490 BC, during the first Persian invasion of Greece. It was fought between the citizens of Athens, aided by Plataea, and a Persian force commanded by Datis and Artaphernes. The battle was the culmination of the first attempt by Persia, under King Darius I, to subjugate Greece. The Greek army decisively defeated the more numerous Persians, marking a turning point in the Greco-Persian Wars.

Epistates

in ancient Greece was any sort of superintendent or overseer. In the Hellenistic kingdoms generally, an epistates is always connected with a subject district (a regional assembly), where the epistates, as resident representative of the king, exercised control and collected taxes.

the erechtheid inscription 459 bc

is an ancient Greek temple on the north side of the Acropolis of Athens in Greece which was dedicated to both Athena and Poseidon. This is a cast of a portion of an inscription on a marble stele from the Athenian Acropolis. It details the state of construction of an unfinished building on the Acropolis in the years 409/8 BCE, now identified as the Erechtheion. The inscription, IG I³ 474, lists the supervisors of the project and inventories blocks to be used in the construction of the building and the dimensions of those blocks.

Euthanai

meaning straightening, was the examination of accountability which every public officer underwent on the expiration of his office in Classical Greece. At Athens the examination had two parts; the logos ('statement of account'), concerned the handling of public money and dealt with by a board of ten logistai (accountants), and the euthynai proper, an opportunity to raise any other objection to one's conduct in office, dealt with by a board of ten euthynoi (straighteners) appointed by the boule. These officials could dismiss accusations or pass them on to the courts.

colony of Thurii 444 bc

was a city of Magna Graecia, situated on the Tarentine gulf, within a short distance of the site of Sybaris, whose place it may be considered as having taken. The ruins of the city can be found in the Sybaris archaeological park near Sibari in the Province of Cosenza, Calabria, Italy. Thurii was one of the latest of all the Greek colonies in this part of Italy, not having been founded until nearly 70 years after the fall of Sybaris. The site of that city had remained desolate for a period of 58 years after its destruction by the Crotoniats; when at length, in 452 BCE, a number of the Sybarite exiles and their descendants made an attempt to establish themselves again on the spot, under the guidance of some leaders of Thessalian origin; and the new colony rose so rapidly to prosperity that it excited the jealousy of the Crotoniats, who, in consequence, expelled the new settlers a little more than 5 years after the establishment of the colony.[1] The fugitive Sybarites first appealed for support to Sparta, but without success: their application to the Athenians was more successful, and that people determined to send out a fresh colony, at the same time that they reinstated the settlers who had had been lately expelled from thence. A body of Athenian colonists was accordingly sent out by Pericles, under the command of Lampon and Xenocritus. Pericles' expressed intent was for it to be a Panhellenic colony,[2] and the number of Athenian citizens was small, the greater part of those who took part in the colony being collected from various parts of Greece. Among them were two celebrated names - Herodotus the historian, and the orator Lysias, both of whom appear to have formed part of the original colony.[3] The laws of the new colony were established by the sophist Protagoras at the request of Pericles,[4] adopting the laws of Zaleucus of Locri.

Cleisthenes and the council of 500

was a council of over 500 citizens (βουλευταί, bouleutai) appointed to run daily affairs of the city. Originally a council of nobles advising a king, boulai evolved according to the constitution of the city: In oligarchies boule positions might have been hereditary, while in democracies members were typically chosen by lot (→ Sortition), and served for one year. Little is known about the workings of many boulai, except in the case of Athens, for which extensive material has survived.

metic

was a foreign resident of Athens, one who did not have citizen rights in their Greek city-state (polis) of residence. The history of foreign migration to Athens dates back to the archaic period. Solon was said to have offered Athenian citizenship to foreigners who would relocate to his city to practice a craft.[2][3] However, metic status did not exist during the time of Solon.[4] Scholars have tended to date the development of metic status to the reforms of Cleisthenes in 508/7.[4] However, the rate of the increase in the Athenian population in the years following 480 is difficult to explain by purely natural growth - suggesting that immigrants to Athens could still become Athenians citizens at this point, and metic status did not yet exist.[5] The first known use of the word metoikos is in Aeschylus' play Persians, first performed in 472 BC.[4] However, James Watson argues that the word was used in Persians in a non-technical sense, meaning nothing more than "immigrant".[4] Rebecca Futo Kennedy dates the origin of metic status in Athens to the 460s,[6] while Watson argues that the legal status of being a metic did not develop until 451/0 BC - the same year as Pericles introduced his citizenship law.

graphe paranomon

was a form of legal action believed to have been introduced at Athens under the democracy somewhere around the year 415 BC; it has been seen as a replacement for ostracism which fell into disuse around the same time, although this view is not held by David Whitehead, who points out that the graphe paranomon was a legal procedure with legal ramifications, including shame, and the convicted had officially committed a crime, whereas the ostrakismos was not shameful in the least. The name means "suit against (bills) contrary to the laws." The suit could be brought against laws or decrees that had already been passed, or earlier when they were merely proposals. Once someone announced under oath that he intended to bring such a suit, the legislation or decree in question was suspended until the matter was resolved. The thinking was that, as there was no mechanism in Athens for unmaking a law, any new law should not be in contradiction with the already existing laws.

Eunomia

was a minor Greek goddess of law and legislation (her name can be translated as "good order", "governance according to good laws"), as well as the spring-time goddess of green pastures (eû means "well, good" in Greek, and νόμος, nómos, means "law", while pasturelands are called nomia).[1][2] She is by most accounts the daughter of Themis and Zeus. Her opposite number was Dysnomia (Lawlessness).

Battle of Salamis

was a naval battle fought between an alliance of Greek city-states under Themistocles and the Persian Empire under King Xerxes in 480 BC which resulted in a decisive victory for the outnumbered Greeks. The battle was fought in the straits between the mainland and Salamis, an island in the Saronic Gulf near Athens, and marked the high-point of the second Persian invasion of Greece. To block the Persian advance, a small force of Greeks blocked the pass of Thermopylae, while an Athenian-dominated Allied navy engaged the Persian fleet in the nearby straits of Artemisium. In the resulting Battle of Thermopylae, the rearguard of the Greek force was annihilated, whilst in the Battle of Artemisium the Greeks had heavy losses and retreated after the loss at Thermopylae. This allowed the Persians to conquer Phocis, Boeotia, Attica, and Euboea. The Allies prepared to defend the Isthmus of Corinth whilst the fleet was withdrawn to nearby Salamis Island. Although heavily outnumbered, the Greek Allies were persuaded by the Athenian general Themistocles to bring the Persian fleet to battle again, in the hope that a victory would prevent naval operations against the Peloponnese. The Persian king Xerxes was also eager for a decisive battle. As a result of subterfuge on the part of Themistocles, the Persian navy rowed into the Straits of Salamis and tried to block both entrances. In the cramped conditions of the Straits, the great Persian numbers were an active hindrance, as ships struggled to maneuver and became disorganized. Seizing the opportunity, the Greek fleet formed in line and scored a decisive victory. Xerxes retreated to Asia with much of his army, leaving Mardonius to complete the conquest of Greece. However, the following year, the remainder of the Persian army was decisively beaten at the Battle of Plataea and the Persian navy at the Battle of Mycale. The Persians made no further attempts to conquer the Greek mainland. These battles of Salamis and Plataea thus mark a turning point in the course of the Greco-Persian wars as a whole; from then onward, the Greek poleis would take the offensive. A number of historians believe that a Persian victory would have hamstrung the development of Ancient Greece, and by extension western civilization, and this has led them to argue that Salamis is one of the most significant battles in human history

Ostracism

was a procedure under the Athenian democracy in which any citizen could be expelled from the city-state of Athens for ten years. While some instances clearly expressed popular anger at the citizen, ostracism was often used preemptively. It was used as a way of neutralizing someone thought to be a threat to the state or potential tyrant. It has been called an "honourable exile" by scholar P. J. Rhodes.[1] The word "ostracism" continues to be used for various cases of social shunning.

Artemisium

was a series of naval engagements over three days during the second Persian invasion of Greece. The battle took place simultaneously with the more famous land battle at Thermopylae, in August or September 480 BC, off the coast of Euboea and was fought between an alliance of Greek city-states, including Sparta, Athens, Corinth and others, and the Persian Empire of Xerxes I. The Persian invasion was a delayed response to the defeat of the first Persian invasion of Greece, which had been ended by the Athenian victory at the Battle of Marathon. King Xerxes had amassed a huge army and navy, and set out to conquer all of Greece. The Athenian general Themistocles proposed that the Allied Greeks block the advance of the Persian army at the pass of Thermopylae and simultaneously block the Persian navy at the Straits of Artemisium. An Allied naval force of 271 triremes was thus dispatched to await the arrival of the Persians.

Trierarchy (4)

was a type of obligation called a liturgy, a debt similar to a tax on the very wealthy in Ancient Athens. The person (or persons) up on whom the duty fell is called a trierarch. The trierarch was responsible for the outfitting, maintenance, operation and leadership of a warship known as a trireme, the hull and mast of the ship being provided by the State. The responsibility might fall on one person or be shared, in which case it was known as a syntrierarchy. The cost of a whole trierarchy was not less than forty minas nor more than a talent with the average being 50 minas. The burden of the trierarchy was so great that during some years no other liturgy could be assessed in the same or the following year.

Choregia

was a wealthy Athenian citizen who assumed the public duty, or choregiai, of financing the preparation for the chorus and other aspects of dramatic production that were not paid for by the government of the polis or city-state. were appointed by the archon and the tribes of Athenian citizens from among the Athenian citizens of great wealth. Service as a choregos, though an honor, was a duty for wealthy citizens and was part of the liturgical system designed to improve the city-state's economic stability through the use of private wealth to fund public good. Choregoi paid for costumes, rehearsals, expenses of the chorus (including training, salaries, board and lodging), scenery, props (including elaborate masks), special effects and most of the musicians. The choregos also hosted a feast if his chorus proved victorious in competition. The prizes for drama at the Athenian festival competitions were awarded jointly to the playwright and the choregos.[3] Such victories carried prestige for the choregos. Several notable political figures served as choregoi, including Themistocles, Pericles and Plato, among others. Monuments were built in honor of victorious choregoi. At the turn of the 17th century AD, in an attempt to recreate the ancient Greek dramatic tradition, the position was revived briefly in Italian opera, and combined the roles of impresario and director.

Isegoria

was a word used by ancient Greek writers such as Herodotus[3] and Thucydides[4] to refer to some kind of popular government. It was subsequently eclipsed until brought back into English as isonomy ("equality of law").

King Cleomenes of Sparta

was an Agiad King of Sparta in the late 6th and early 5th centuries BC. During his reign, which started around 519 BC, he pursued an adventurous and at times unscrupulous foreign policy aimed at crushing Argos and extending Sparta's influence both inside and outside the Peloponnese. He was a brilliant tactician. It was during his reign that the Peloponnesian League came formally into existence. During his reign, he intervened twice successfully in Athenian affairs but kept Sparta out of the Ionian Revolt. He died in prison in mysterious circumstances, with the Spartan authorities claiming his death was suicide due to insanity.

Trireme

was an ancient vessel and a type of galley that was used by the ancient maritime civilizations of the Mediterranean, especially the Phoenicians, ancient Greeks and Romans.[3][4] The trireme derives its name from its three rows of oars, manned with one man per oar. The early trireme was a development of the penteconter, an ancient warship with a single row of 25 oars on each side (i.e., a single-banked boat), and of the bireme (Ancient Greek: διήρης, diērēs), a warship with two banks of oars, of Phoenician origin.[5] The word dieres does not appear until the Roman period. "It must be assumed the term pentekontor covered the two-level type".[6] As a ship it was fast and agile, and it was the dominant warship in the Mediterranean during the 7th to 4th centuries BC, after which it was largely superseded by the larger quadriremes and quinqueremes. Triremes played a vital role in the Persian Wars, the creation of the Athenian maritime empire, and its downfall in the Peloponnesian War. The term is sometimes also used to refer to medieval and early modern galleys with three files of oarsmen per side as triremes.

Solon's constitutional reforms

was created by Solon in the early 6th century BC.[1] At the time of Solon the Athenian State was almost falling to pieces in consequence of dissensions between the parties into which the population was divided. Solon wanted to revise or abolish the older laws of Draco. Solon promulgated a code of laws embracing the whole of public and private life, the salutary effects[2] of which lasted long after the end of his constitution. Under Solon's reforms, all debts were abolished and all debt-slaves were freed. The status of the hectemoroi (the "one-sixth workers"), who farmed in an early form of serfdom, was also abolished. These reforms were known as the Seisachtheia.[3] Solon's constitution reduced the power of the old aristocracy by making wealth rather than birth a criterion for holding political positions, a system called timokratia (timocracy). Citizens were also divided based on their land production: Pentacosiomedimnoi, Hippeis, Zeugitae, and Thetes. The lower assembly was given the right to hear appeals, and Solon also created the higher assembly. Both of these were meant to decrease the power of the Areopagus, the aristocratic council. The only parts of Draco's code that Solon kept were the laws regarding homicide. The constitution was written as poetry, and as soon as it was introduced, Solon went into self-imposed exile for 10 years so he would not be tempted to take power as a tyrant.

Thermopylae

was fought between an alliance of Greek city-states, led by King Leonidas of Sparta, and the Persian Empire of Xerxes I over the course of three days, during the second Persian invasion of Greece. It took place simultaneously with the naval battle at Artemisium, in August or September 480 BC, at the narrow coastal pass of Thermopylae ("The Hot Gates"). The Persian invasion was a delayed response to the defeat of the first Persian invasion of Greece, which had been ended by the Athenian victory at the Battle of Marathon in 490 BC. By 480 BC Xerxes had amassed a huge army and navy, and set out to conquer all of Greece. The Athenian politician and general Themistocles had proposed that the allied Greeks block the advance of the Persian army at the pass of Thermopylae, and simultaneously block the Persian navy at the Straits of Artemisium. A Greek force of approximately 7,000 men marched north to block the pass in the middle of 480 BC. The Persian army, alleged by the ancient sources to have numbered over one million, but today considered to have been much smaller (various figures are given by scholars, ranging between about 100,000 and 150,000),[10][11] arrived at the pass in late August or early September. The vastly outnumbered Greeks held off the Persians for seven days (including three of battle) before the rear-guard was annihilated in one of history's most famous last stands. During two full days of battle, the small force led by Leonidas blocked the only road by which the massive Persian army could pass. After the second day, a local resident named Ephialtes betrayed the Greeks by revealing a small path that led behind the Greek lines. Leonidas, aware that his force was being outflanked, dismissed the bulk of the Greek army and remained to guard their retreat with 300 Spartans and 700 Thespians, fighting to the death. Others also reportedly remained, including up to 900 helots and 400 Thebans; these Thebans mostly reportedly surrendered.

the gerousia

was the Spartan council of elders, which was made up of men over the age of sixty. It was created by the Spartan lawgiver Lycurgus in the seventh century BC, in his Great Rhetra ("Great Pronouncement"). According to Lycurgus' biographer Plutarch, the creation of the Gerousia was the first significant constitutional innovation instituted by Lycurgus.[1] The Gerousia consisted of 30 members in total, of whom twenty-eight had to be over the age of sixty, and the remaining two members were the two Spartan kings, regardless of their age. Other than the kings, the members of the Gerousia (gerontes) were elected, and served for life. Gerontes were elected by acclamation, and a group of men in a separate building would judge which shout had been the loudest. These elected members included a number of members of the two Spartan royal houses, and membership was probably restricted to aristocrats.[2] The Gerousia had two major roles. It debated motions which were to be put before the citizen assembly, with the power to prevent any motion from being passed on,[3] and functioned as a Supreme Court, with the right to try any Spartan, up to and including the kings.[2] The Great Rhetra suggests that it had the power to overturn decisions made by the Spartan assembly.

medism

was the imitation of, sympathizing with, collaboration with, or siding with Persians. The ethnonym "Mede" was often used by the Greeks of the Persians although, strictly speaking, the Medes were a different Iranian people, subject to the Persians. It was not until the 470s that the Greeks began to refer to "Persians", with Aeschylus' play The Persians in 472 being an early example of this.[1] Medism was considered a faux pas, even a crime, in many ancient Greek city-states. However, it does not seem to have been specifically criminalised. For instance, in Athens suspected Medisers were charged with treason.[2] The evidence suggests that this was true of other Greek city-states too: in Teos, for instance, a law from the classical period provided that anyone who betrayed the city should be punished by death, but failed to distinguish betrayal to the Persians from betrayal to any other group.[3] Themistocles the Athenian was ostracized for medism. Pausanias, the Lacedaemonian hegemon of the Hellenic League in the Battle of Plataea, was accused of medism by other member states, an accusation which allowed Athens to seize control of the league. Herodotus mentions the so-called "state medism" of Aegina, Thessaly, Argos, Thebes, and other Boeotians. Astute politicians in Athens often exploited popular feelings against medism as a means to their own advancement, which once led to a feud between the poets Timocreon of Rhodes and Simonides of Ceos in support of and against Themistocles, respectively

phoros

was the name for the membership dues paid to Athens by the members of the Delian League, formed to offer protection from Persian forces. It could be paid in military equipment (such as triremes) or money, most usually the latter. Consequently, a great deal of funds was paid to Athens for the purpose of military initiatives. Athens increased its military forces, resulting in its becoming a dominant and wealthy power.

Agoge

was the rigorous education and training program mandated for all male Spartan citizens, except for the firstborn son in the ruling houses, Eurypontid and Agiad. The training involved learning stealth, cultivating loyalty to the Spartan group, military training (e.g., pain tolerance), hunting, dancing, singing, and social (communicating) preparation.[1] The word "agoge" meant rearing in ancient Greek, but in this context generally meant leading, guidance, or training.[2] According to folklore, agoge was introduced by the semi-mythical Spartan law-giver Lycurgus but its origins are thought to be between the 7th and 6th centuries BC[3][4] when the state trained male citizens from the ages of seven to twenty-one.[1][5] The aim of the system was to produce strong and capable warriors to serve in the Spartan army. It encouraged conformity and the importance of the Spartan state over one's personal interest and generated the future elites of Sparta.[1] The men would become the "walls of Sparta" because Sparta was the only Greek city with no defensive walls after they had been demolished at the order of Lycurgus.[6] Discipline was strict and the males were encouraged to fight amongst themselves to determine the strongest member of the group. The agoge was prestigious throughout the Greek world, and many aristocratic families from other cities vied to send their sons to Sparta to participate in the agoge for varying periods of time. The Spartans were very selective in which young men they would permit to enroll. Such honors were usually awarded to the próxenoi of Sparta in other cities and to a few other families of supreme ancestry and importance.

Heliaea

was the supreme court of ancient Athens. Τhe view generally held among scholars is that the court drew its name from the ancient Greek verb ἡλιάζεσθαι, which means συναθροίζεσθαι, namely congregate.[α] Another version is that the court took its name from the fact that the hearings were taking place outdoors, under the sun.[β] Initially, this was the name of the place where the hearings were convoked, but later this appellation included the court as well. t is not clear whether Heliaia was instituted by Cleisthenes or Solon, but it seems that the latter initiated a function of the Assembly to sit as an appeals court.[2][γ] The court had 6,000 members, chosen annually by lot[3] among all the male citizens over 30 years old, unless they were in debt to the Treasury or disfranchised, namely deprived of their civil rights through the humiliating punishment of atimia (ἀτιμία).[4] Those suffering from intellectual or corporeal flaws were also excepted, if their shortages prevented them from fully perceiving the proceedings. If any unqualified person participated in a jury, then information was laid against him and he was brought before the Heliaia. If convicted the court could assess against him whatever punishment or fine he is thought to deserve. If the punishment was a money fine, then the infringer had to go to prison until he had paid both the former debt, for which the information was laid, and whatever additional sum had been imposed on him as a fine by the court.

the great Rhetra

was used in two senses by the classical authors. In one sense, it was the Spartan Constitution, believed to have been formulated and established by the legendary lawgiver, Lycurgus. In the legend Lycurgus forbade any written constitution. It was therefore presumed to have been oral. In a second sense, the rhetra refers to an oracle of Delphi, which was believed to have contained the entire constitution in verse. The credo of being unwritten fails in this case, as a written record of all oracles was maintained by the priests at Delphi. They and others consulted it frequently. It survived long after the demise of the oracle but is missing now, except for fragments handed down by classical authors. The classical authors and the literate population of Sparta knew better than to suppose that the rhetra went into effect as written by an oracle and remained unchanged. A double tradition developed: tales of the oracular rhetra and stories of the laws of Lycurgus. As there is no history of any constitutional issues dividing the Spartans, they seem to have had no problem accepting its contradictions, perhaps because they knew it was legendary. Also, the concept of the constitution being truly oral and a state secret presents certain paradoxes, such as how the classical authors knew so much about it. Moreover, the workings of the government of a major Greek state over centuries cannot have been either unwritten or a secret. For example, Cyrus the Younger knew perfectly well that Lysander was forbidden by law to hold a second term as navarch, and yet he requested the Spartan government to make an exception. And finally, if the Spartans were forbidden to write anything down, the existence of inscriptions in the Eurotas valley becomes problematic. The institution of the rhetra in fact coincides with the innovation of the Greek alphabet based on the Phoenician alphabet.

Helots

were a subjugated population group that formed the main population of Laconia and Messenia, the territory controlled by Sparta. Their exact status was already disputed in antiquity: according to Critias, they were "slaves to the utmost",[1] whereas according to Pollux, they occupied a status "between free men and slaves".[2] Tied to the land, they primarily worked in agriculture as a majority and economically supported the Spartan citizens. The number of helots in relation to Spartan citizens varied throughout the history of the Spartan state; according to Herodotus, there were seven helots for each Spartan at the time of the Battle of Plataea in 479 BC.[3] Thus the need to keep helot population in check and preventing rebellion was one of the main concerns of the Spartans. Helots were ritually mistreated, humiliated and even slaughtered: every autumn the Spartans would declare war on the helots so they could be killed by a member of the Crypteia without fear of repercussion.[4][5][6] Uprisings and attempts to improve the lot of the helots did occur, such as the Conspiracy of Cinadon.

prytaneis

were the executives of the boule of ancient Athens. When Cleisthenes reorganized the Athenian government in 508/7 BCE, he replaced the old Solonian boule, or council, of 400 with a new boule of 500. The old boule consisted of 100 members of each of the four ancestral tribes. Cleisthenes created ten new tribes and made the boule consist of 50 men from each of these tribes. Each tribe's delegation would be an executive of the boule for one-tenth of the year, so that ten groups of prytaneis served each year, a position granted by sortition. The executive officers were known as prytaneis and their term of office as a prytany.

perioeci

were the members of an autonomous group of free but non-citizen inhabitants of Sparta. Concentrated in the coastal and highland areas of Laconia and Messenia,[1] the name περίοικοι derives from περί, peri, "around", and οἶκος, oikos, "dwelling, house". They were the only people allowed to travel to other cities, which the Spartans were not, unless given permission. The city-state of Sparta was formed during the Greek Dark Ages, controlling the plains around the Eurotas river. Those communities already existing in the area which could not be assimilated into the Spartan state, or subjugated as helots, became the perioeci.[2] Whether they were Dorians, like the Spartans, or descended from pre-Dorian populations in the Peloponnese is unknown. The Perioeci were free, unlike the helots, but were not full Spartan citizens. They lived in their own settlements in the perioecis, which were described by ancient authors as poleis.[4][5][6] These settlements were largely under the control of the Spartan state,[1] but were self-governing on domestic issues.