What was athenian democracy

The presidency of the Boule rotated monthly among the ten tribes the political calendar was ten months long. Each day, one member was selected by lots to serve as epitastes , chairing the day's meeting, holding the keys to the treasury, and greeting foreign emissaries.

The Boule was also responsible for the daily operations of the city-state and enforced legislation passed by the Ecclesia. The dikasteria, which handled both public and private suits, were a central component of the Athenian legal process. They were staffed by citizens over the age of thirty, who were selected annually from a pool of six thousand citizens. The dikasteria were viewed as a direct expression of the people's will, as there was no higher authority than the jury.

Specialized judicial cases were argued before other bodies—notably the archons, who handled religious and military cases, and the Areopagus, which decided on murder cases. Gale Student Resources in Context - Athens. It looks like you're using Internet Explorer 11 or older. This website works best with modern browsers such as the latest versions of Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and Edge.

If you continue with this browser, you may see unexpected results. The Thirty Tyrants Athens is the birthplace of democracy, a process that went throug h various stages and setbacks until it reached its signature form under Pericles B. Radical Democracy Radical democracy meant "pay for service," that is, Athenian citizens were paid by the state to participate in public affairs.

Citizen Role During its golden age in the fifth century BC, Athens was governed by a direct democracy. Report a problem. National Geographic Society. For information on user permissions, please read our Terms of Service. If you have questions about how to cite anything on our website in your project or classroom presentation, please contact your teacher. They will best know the preferred format. When you reach out to them, you will need the page title, URL, and the date you accessed the resource.

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Any interactives on this page can only be played while you are visiting our website. You cannot download interactives. Ancient Greek politics, philosophy, art and scientific achievements greatly influenced Western civilizations today. One example of their legacy is the Olympic Games. Use the videos, media, reference materials, and other resources in this collection to teach about ancient Greece, its role in modern-day democracy, and civic engagement.

Learn how democracy in the United States is different from that of the ancient Greeks. The United States has a complex government system. One important tenet of this system is democracy, in which the ultimate power rests with the people. In the case of the United States, that power is exercised indirectly, through elected representatives. Although the U. The Greeks are often credited with pioneering a democratic government that went on to influence the structure of the United States. Read this article that describes how elements of ancient Greek democracy heavily influenced the figures that designed the United States government.

Citizenship is the status of being a citizen, belonging to a nation, and having the associated rights and responsibilities. Plot on a Map Salamis. When the Assembly met, the male citizens assembled to discuss the affairs of the city, and this discussion required that each citizen have freedom to speak his mind. This freedom was vital to the proper functioning of the Assembly , whether the issue at stake was some important public policy Dem. In an anecdote from the distant past, Demosthenes suggests that freedom of speech had a long history at Athens , and persisted despite periodic attempts to limit it.

He recounts how in the 6th century BCE the island of Salamis had revolted from Athenian control, and the Athenians had forbidden anyone even to propose a war to recover the island; but Solon , a real person whose place in Athenian history became subject of legend, composed a poem on the subject poetry on the subject was evidently not forbidden , and through this ruse got around the law and convinced Athens to fight for Salamis Dem.

We might note, here, that Demosthenes claims a certain freedom of speech to have extended even to resident foreigners and slaves Dem. This freedom to speak was not absolute or without regulation. Aeschines tells us, for example, that in the early democracy before the 5th century citizens over 50 years of age could speak first, and only after those had their say could younger men speak Aeschin.

Other formal restrictions could apply, such as decrees limiting discussion of certain topics to certain meetings of the Assembly Aeschin. Other, less legitimate but perhaps more effective limits could be imposed: the crowd might raise a clamor and refuse to listen to a speaker advocate an unpopular proposal Dem.

Individual citizens could lose the right to participate in the Assembly by committing various offenses Aeschin. Demosthenes mentions legal penalties for people who attend a meeting of the Assembly while owing a debt to the public treasury Dem. Also prohibited from participating were: anyone convicted of prostituting himself Aeschin.

Read about the evidence Aristotle Aristot. Citizens were paid for attending the Assembly , to ensure that even the poor could afford to take time from their work to participate in their own government. Aristotle recognized that inclusion of all citizens and freedom to speak are not the only hallmarks of a democratic constitution, but that the most democratic states pay their citizens for attending the Assembly.

In the 4th century , when Timocrates had proposed that the Athenians loosen enforcement of penalties against those who owe debts to the state, Demosthenes claimed that there would be no money left in the treasury to pay for attendance at the Assembly , and he went on to equate that outcome with an end to Democracy Dem.

Read about the evidence Thucydides Thuc. The traditional meeting-place for the Assembly was the open space on top of the hill of the Pnyx Thuc.

The Pnyx was open to the sky, and thus meetings of the Assembly must have been influenced by the weather; the laws that mandated good weather omens before the election of military officers Aristot. In each prytany, there were three regular assemblies in addition to the Sovereign Assembly ; these were simply called Assemblies Aristot.

It seems likely that in the 5th century only the Sovereign Assemblies were regularly scheduled, because Thucydides mentions a period of 40 days in the year in which there was no Assembly Thuc. Apart from the Sovereign Assembly , one of the remaining three was an occasion for any citizen who wished to present a suppliant-branch and address his fellow citizens about any public or private matter that concerned him Aristot.

The ability of citizens to voice complaints in this public forum may have deterred certain bad behavior, or at least made the perpetrators think twice. Aeschines recounts how on one occasion some men assaulted a man named Pittalacus. On the next day when Pittalacus was in the marketplace, his attackers came up to him and tried to assuage him; they were afraid that their crime would be published to the whole city, since there was to be an Assembly that day Aeschin. The other two regularly scheduled meetings in each prytany were concerned, according to Aristotle , with other things Aristot.

Some of this other business was scheduled to happen at particular assemblies during the year. At an Assembly held on the 11th day of the first prytany, the people voted on whether or not to hold an review of all the laws Dem.

In the 6th prytany, there was discussion of whether or not to hold an ostracism, discussion of any information against people charged with being informers—in this category, no more than three citizens and three resident foreigners—and discussion of people accused of failing to perform some assigned public service Aristot.

A meeting during the 6th prytany was also the occasion for election of military officers Aristot. Read about the evidence Apollodorus Dem.

At least until the middle of the 4th century the Assembly occasionally met to conduct a trial, most often an impeachment Dem.

Assemblies do not seem to have taken place on fixed days during each prytany, but they did not happen on days when the law-courts were in session Dem. They seem also to have been scheduled around other important events, such as religious festivals. Aeschines is highly critical of an Assembly that was called on the 8th day of the month Elaphobolion, a day of sacrifices to Asclepius the orator says that this was unprecedented in memory Aeschin.

Sometimes our sources seem to use it to refer to extra meetings, in addition to the normal four that happened in each prytany. But at other times the term seems to indicate an Assembly called at short notice, but not necessarily an extra Assembly. Officials of the Council called together a meeting of the Assembly , which opened with various religious rituals before the citizens were invited to speak and vote on matters of public business.

If the Assembly was to vote on some matter by ballot, the Prytaneis distribute the ballots Dem. Read about the evidence Xenophon Xen. In the 5th century , the Prytaneis actually managed the conduct of a meeting of the Assembly Xen. These Proedroi managed the conduct of the Assembly ; deciding when to put a question to the vote Aeschin. The People did, on occasion, override the will of the officials conducting the meetings, as when, in the late 5th century , the Prytaneis were unwilling to allow a vote, the People overrode them with menacing shouts Xen.

The selection or appointment of Proedroi was potentially subject to corruption, which Aeschines hints at on two occasions Aeschin. The opening of a meeting of the Assembly was marked by rituals. A sacrifice was made and carried around the area, and there was a prayer, both of these intended to purify the proceedings Aeschin.

The heralds offered the prayer Aeschin. Xenophon Xen. Even the most serious of matters were often decided by show of hands, such as the impeachment and condemnation of generals Aristot. Under certain circumstances, the Assembly would vote by ballot psephos Xen. Voting by ballot was limited to issues which had to be decided by a quorum of citizens Dem.

Once the Assembly had approved something, the decree, its date, and the names of the officials who put the matter to the vote, were recorded and preserved as a public record of the proceedings of government Aeschin. The Council of represented the full-time government of Athens.

It consisted of citizens, 50 from each of the ten tribes, who served for one year. The Council could issue decrees on its own, regarding certain matters, but its main function was to prepare the agenda for meetings of the Assembly. Andocides Andoc. Aristotle lists service on the Council among those offices chosen by lot Aristot. He elsewhere says that in a democratic city, the Council was the most important board of magistrates Aristot.

Through most of the 5th and 4th centures BCE, citizens were paid for their participation in the Council Aristot. Before taking their seats on the Council , newly selected Councilors had to undergo scrutiny dokimasia , an audit of their fitness to serve Aristot.

Read about the evidence Lysias Lys. Lysias makes the claim that the law of scrutiny was primarily intended to deny political office to men who had participated in one of the short-lived oligarchic coups of the 5th century BCE, or the Tyranny of the Thirty these events are discussed above Lys. Lysias Lys. The Nine Archons underwent scrutiny before taking office Aristot. In fact, according to Aeschines , any citizen could call upon any other citizen to undergo scrutiny at any time, to determine whether he deserved the privilege of speaking before the Assembly Aeschin.

Furthermore, every young Athenian man underwent a scrutiny before the members of his deme before he was enrolled in the list of citizens Dem. The scrutiny of newly selected Councilors was managed by the Thesmothetae, the lower six of the nine archons Aristot.

According to Xenophon , they were also asked if they honored their family graves Xen. After the candidate answered the questions, and any accusers had come forward, the Council voted by show of hands Aristot. A passage from a speech by Lysias confirms that a candidate who was rejected by the Council could appeal to a jury , while noting that this appeal could take time, and might result in the year beginning without a full body of magistrates in office Lys.

The newly appointed Councilors swore an oath, the terms of which are preserved by passing mentions in various sources.

Five hundred Councilors served on the Council for the year, but practical concerns required that they be divided into smaller groups. The order in which the Councilors from each tribe served as presidents was random, determined by lot Aristot. The random determination seems to have taken place at the end of each prytany rather than all at once at the beginning of the year , so no one could predict which tribe would serve next.

When the decree was written, the Councilors from the tribe of Oineis were serving as prytanes, or presidents; the decree needed to refer to the next group of presidents, but that group was clearly not known. So, we can infer from this that the selection must have happened toward the end of a prytany. Obviously, during the ninth prytany of the year, it would be obvious that whichever tribe had not yet served would hold the presidency for the final prytany.

This elaborate randomization of the presidency was probably intended to limit possibilities for corruption. No one could plan to introduce business to the Council when a particular tribe held the presidency, and no Councilor could know in advance when he would serve as a president.

This chairman kept the keys to the treasuries and archives of Athens , as well as the state seal Aristot. In addition to a daily meeting of all the presidents, the chairman and one third of the presidents were required to be on hand in the Tholos constantly Aristot.

These men, on-call in the Tholos , represented the whole government of Athens in a time of crisis, at least until the full Council or Assembly could be convened. Heralds and envoys from other states came to the presidents in the Tholos first, as did messenger bearing official letters Aristot. Plot on a Map Macedon. Demosthenes describes a dramatic scene, that shows clearly the function of the presidents and the chairman.

Demosthenes describes what happened when news of this threat came to Athens :. Plot on a Map Elateia. They were sitting at supper, but they instantly rose from table, cleared the booths in the marketplace of their occupants, and unfolded the hurdles, while others summoned the commanders and ordered the attendance of the trumpeter.

The commotion spread through the whole city. At daybreak on the next day the presidents summoned the Council to the Council House , and the citizens flocked to the place of assembly. Before the Council could introduce the business and prepare the agenda, the whole body of citizens had taken their places on the hill. So, in a crisis, the safety of Athens lay first in the hands of the presidents and the chairman. It is worth noting that because there were days in the legislative year Aristot.

There are further implications, if we accept the estimate of two scholars that in BCE there were approximately 22, adult male citizens—it is beyond the scope of this article to give evidence and justification for this, but the arguments are presented in Victor Ehrenberg, The Greek State , 2nd English Edition Methuen, 31, whose estimate is 20,,, and in A.

A citizen had to be 30 years old to serve as a Councilor Xen. For the sake of argument, we might assume that the average citizen would then have an active political life of 30 years, until he was During that time, there would need to be approximately 10, chairmen, each controlling the state seal and the treasuries, and presiding over the presidents of the Council for a day and a night Aristot.

Since no one could serve as chairman twice Aristot. It follows, then, that approximately one half of all Athenian citizens would, at some point during their lives, have the privilege and responsibility of holding this office, arguably the closest equivalent to a Chief Executive in the Athenian democracy.

More important than any other function of the Council was its role in preparing the agenda for meetings of the Assembly , where all Athenian citizens gathered to discuss and vote on decrees. While any male citizen was invited to speak in an Assembly and all male citizens could vote, the topics for discussion and vote were limited by what amounted to a system of checks and balances between the Assembly and the Council. Plot on a Map Euboea. In this case, an existing law required that any surplus funds in the treasury of Athens should be used for military purposes.

But despite this law, Apollodorus wanted the Assembly to discuss how to spend the funds. So Apollodorus brought the matter to the Council , which voted to create a preliminary decree.

The council approved the preliminary decree. This preliminary decree allowed the Assembly to discuss how to spend the money. Demosthenes goes on to say that the Assembly voted, unanimously, to spend the money on the military Dem.

So, after this lengthy procedure, the Athenian democracy did with its money precisely what an existing law required. But the mechanism of the Council , its probouleuma, and the Assembly allowed all of the citizens to deliberate, in an orderly manner, on the extent to which the existing law was appropriate under these circumstances, a war in Euboea and around Olynthus.

Plot on a Map Citium. An inscription that survives in fairly good condition illustrates vividly the course of an actual motion through the Council , to the Assembly by means of a preliminary decree, and into the body of Athenian policy as a decree of the Athenian People. It is important to note that the text and translation given here omit any indication of how the inscription actually looked, and the extent to which modern editors have filled in missing sections; what appears here is considerably cleaned up.

It can serve to illustrate the workings of the Council , but should not be taken as indicative of the proper way to present and read an inscription. When Nikokratos was archon, in the first prytany that of the tribe Aegeis : Theophilos from the deme Phegous , one of the Proedroi, put this matter to the vote: The Council decided after Antidotos , son of Apollodoros , from the deme Sypalettos made the motion : Concerning the things that the Citians say about the foundation of the temple to Aphrodite , it has been voted by the Council that the Proedroi, the ones to be chosen by lot to serve as Proedroi at the first Assembly , should introduce the Citians and allow them to have an audience, and to share with the People the opinion of the Council , that the People , having heard from the Citians concerning the foundation of the temple, and from any other Athenian who wants to speak, decide to do whatever seems best.

When Nikokrates was archon, in the second Prytany that of the tribe Pandionis : Phanostratos from the deme Philaidai , one of the Proedroi, put this matter to the vote: The People decided after Lykourgos , son of Lykophron , of the deme Boutadai made the motion : Concerning the things for which the Citian merchants resolved to petition, lawfully, asking the People for the use of a plot of land on which they might build a temple of Aphrodite , it has seemed best to the People to give to the merchants of the Citians the use of a plot of land on which they might build a temple of Aphrodite , just as also the Egyptians built the temple of Isis.

On this one inscription we see the whole legislative process.