Tyrant Reign in the City-States and Chapter 3 Key Terms

Slideshows and Pomeroy Textbook

What does turannos mean?

A usurper, someone who seizes power illegally

What did the original word turannos not denote?

Insane or oppressive rule

Why did the earliest tyrants rise?

They rose in response to the hoplite military change-over

What were the first two city-states where tyrants seized power?

Argos and Corinth

What are some of the sources for tyrant rule in Greece?

• Historian Herodotus circa 440 B.C.

• Philosopher Aristotle circa 330 B.C.

• Greek poets

How long did the age of tyrants last?

From about 670-500 B.C.

Why are tyrants now looked down upon unfavourably?

Ill repute stemmed from propaganda spread by aristocrats as well as later sentiment that dictatorial rule threatened freedom

From which group did most tyrants come?

The elite group, although not necessarily from the top-ranked families

How were would-be tyrants distinguished?

Personal achievements

How long did tyrannies last?

Few lasted longer than three generations, and most collapsed after one or two

What element of aristocratic rule caused political disruption?

Frequent bouts of violence among rival aristocrats

Who were the armed followers of a tyrant?

Disaffected aristocrats within the polis who had been frozen out of the ruling circle or a mercenary force from outside the polis

Other than armed support, what did a tyrant need to be successful?

The tacit support of the citizens themselves, particularly the heavily armed farmer-hoplites

Did the tyrants favour the poor or rich more?

The poor

What changes did tyrants make in city-states?

They built temples, harbours, and fortifications as well as improving water supply, drainage systems, provided work for poorer citizens, and encouraged trade and commerce

How did cultural activities change under tyrants?

They thrived as new religious cults and festivals were established and tyrants made special efforts to attract the best artists, architects, poets, and thinkers in Greece

Why did later generations of tyrants often get ousted?

They had no real office and resorted to increasingly tyrannical measures resulting in them being overthrown with the exiled aristocrats returning

What was different even when aristocrats returned after tyranny?

Farmer-hoplites were no longer willing to vote for leaders whom they could not hold accountable, nor could the nobles now refuse to include farmer-hoplites in politics or remove benefits given to the poor

When did resentment against the aristocracy begin?

In the 700s B.C. there began to be resentment against the wealth, power, and arrogance of the aristocracy

What were the reasons for the middle-class upset towards the aristocracy?

Aristocratic households owned most of the fertile land leaving independent farmers with few opportunities to acquire good land without emigrating or acquiring marginal land requiring travel and yielding poorer return

What political structures angered the middle-class?

Being shut out of positions of power such as magistracies, boards, and the council

When did the oligarchic hold begin to weaken?

The early 600s B.C. when more inclusive forms of government were emerging that would give political power to the mass of people, including the poor

How was the middle class similar to the upper classes?

They exploited the labour of others and could often afford to own at least one enslaved woman or man or hire regular workers

How did the hoplite revolution lead to tyranny?

It changed the power dynamics in a city-state, which now relied upon the middle class for defence and gave them leverage

What does this diagram represent?

The power structure and voice in government after the Greek tyrants arose

What is the hoplite franchise?

When hoplite citizens, about 60% of the male citizens, have the vote

What did hoplites vote on under a dictator?

They would vote on simple and local decisions while the tyrant would make more important decisions

What were the enabling factors for Greek tyrants’ rise to power?

• Economic middle class growing due to increased prosperity and population growth

• Growing discontent within the middle class at being excluded from politics

• General unhappiness among middle and lower classes at injustice, corruption, and incompetence of the aristocracy

• Hoplite warfare gave leverage to the middle class

• Some city-states saw immediate causes for tyranny such as mismanagement sparking anger

What is an example of aristocratic mismanagement that led to tyrannical overthrow?

At Mytilene on Lesbos the ruling Penthilids had an incident where they were beating their fellow citizens with clubs in the street when they were attacked and murdered by Megacles and his friends

Who were the two most famous tyrants?

Periander of Corinth and Pisistratus of Athens

What was the one city-state that was great without a tyrant?

Sparta

What is an example of a tyrant capital projects?

Cypselus and Periander’s stone paved road, a four mile long path for ships’ goods to be carted across Corinth’s two harbours

What were the three city-states that did the best under tyrants?

Corinth, Athens, and Miletus

What was an agora?

A large open space at the centre of a city-state that served as a gathering place and around which most construction was directed

What was the Archaic period?

It was the period after the Dark Ages from 750-480 B.C. in which the city-state began to develop alongside other major changes such as hoplite warfare and tyranny

What did hoi agathoi and hoi kakoi mean?

Hoi agathoi was used by the aristocracy to refer to themselves as the good and characterise those outside the aristocracy as the bad, hoi kakoi

Who were the Bacchiads?

A prominent clan in Corinth from which Cypselus, a tyrant, came

What were the two main forms of sculptures? (ē)

Those of a naked young man, kouros, or a clothed young maiden, korē

What is lyric poetry?

Poetry not falling into the category of heroic epics that is produced during the Archaic period, sometimes accompanied by a lyre (hence the name)

Who was Sappho?

The only woman from the Archaic period whose poetry is extant and is known as one of the best lyric poets

What was electrum?

The material from which coins were made that was an alloy of gold, silver, and a trace of copper

What is the pancration?

A sporting event that is a combination of boxing and wrestling with nothing barred except biting and eye-gouging

What is oligarchy?

The rule of powerful aristocratic families dividing all spheres of power among themselves

Who were thetes?

Free men who were forced by poverty to hire themselves out as labourers and formed the lowest class of citizens, always being poor and often owning no land