Kara Sears
The ruler who created harsh laws for Athens was Draco, an archon appointed by the Areopagus to draft strict new laws in the 7th century BCE. His laws, known as Draconian reforms, replaced the oral law system with a written legal code enforced by a court of law. However, these laws were considered harsh as they required severe punishments, often death, for most crimes. Later, Solon, the premier archon, revised or abolished Draco's laws and created a new code of laws that embraced public and private life, providing a balance between the aristocrats and commoners.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Name | Draco |
| Time Period | Around 620 BC |
| Known For | Draconian reforms, the first written code of laws for Athens |
| Purpose | To restore order and quell conflict |
| Appointed By | The Areopagus |
| Target | To protect the common people and provide some safeguards |
| Severity of Punishments | Harsh, often death |
| Outcome | Failed to restore order, led to further unrest |
| Replaced By | Solon's reforms |
| Solon's Time Period | 594 BC |
| Solon's Goal | To balance power among economic classes and end hatred and fear |
| Solon's Approach | Impartial justice, equal laws for all |
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What You'll Learn
Draconian reforms: harsh laws often ending in death
In the 7th century BCE, Athens was in a state of social unrest, with a land and agrarian crisis. The city was also suffering from violent factions among the aristocracy, who used the courts to discriminate against the common people, including poor farmers, labourers, artisans, and merchants.
In response to this turmoil, around 620 BCE, Draco, an archon, was appointed by the Areopagus to draft a strict new legal code for Athens. Draco's code was the first written code of laws for the city, and it provided some protections for the common people. However, his laws also included harsh punishments, often ending in death, for most crimes. Such harsh laws are now known as "Draconian".
Despite the severity of his laws, Draco's reforms ultimately failed to quell the conflict in Athens. In 594 BCE, Solon, the premier archon at the time, issued a new set of reforms that defined citizenship and gave each free resident of Attica a political function. Solon's reforms included the creation of an assembly, or ecclesia, that was open to all male citizens, regardless of social class. He also opened up membership in the assembly to all Athenian citizens, even the poor, although only members of the two wealthiest classes could become archons or magistrates.
Solon's laws remained in force for over a century, and he is often credited with laying the foundation for Athenian democracy. However, his reforms were not universally popular, and he was criticised by both the aristocracy and the common people. Despite this, Solon refused to remain in power as a tyrant and instead reinforced the idea of citizen responsibility in governing Athens.
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Solon's reforms: laws embracing public and private life
In 594 BCE, the Athenian lawgiver Solon was tasked with resolving a deepening social crisis. In response, he introduced a new constitution and mandated that in civil conflicts, no citizen could remain neutral and had to take sides. Solon's constitution was based on four classes determined by census and wealth. While birthright privilege was eliminated, Solon maintained a hierarchical distribution of political responsibility.
Solon's reforms also impacted the political structure of Athens. He established a council of 400 members, with 100 citizens from each of Athens's four tribes, called the boule, which managed daily affairs and set the political agenda. Solon also set up an ecclesia or Assembly, which was open to all male citizens, regardless of social class. Furthermore, Solon's economic reforms included the "shaking off of burdens," which addressed the crisis caused by debt. All debts were cancelled, enslaved debtors were freed, and borrowing on personal security was prohibited. Solon also abolished enslavement for debt, allowed hektemoroi to hold their land freely, and mandated that fathers teach their sons a trade.
Solon's legal code replaced Draco's harsh laws, except for those concerning homicide. He introduced two significant changes to judicial practice: any Athenian, not just the injured party, could initiate a lawsuit, and some control over the verdict of magistrates was provided by the right to appeal to a court of citizens at large. Solon's reforms defined citizenship by granting each free resident of Attica a political function, giving Athenian citizens the right to participate in assembly meetings. By granting this formerly aristocratic role to every free citizen of Athens who owned property, Solon reshaped the social framework of the city-state.
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Solon's background: a poet and merchant
Solon, the archaic Athenian statesman, lawmaker, political philosopher, and poet, was born into a well-to-do family in Athens around 630 BC. He worked as a merchant in the export-import trade but considered himself relatively poor. Unlike many of his contemporaries, Solon did not worship money, a fact that is evident in his poems.
Poetry was a form of entertainment for Solon, and he also used it to spread his ideas among the Athenians. Solon's verses are a personal record of his reforms and attitudes. He is known to have written poetry for pleasure, as patriotic propaganda, and in defence of his constitutional reform. His poetry has been described as self-righteous and pompous, and his surviving verses show him writing in the role of a political activist determined to assert personal authority and leadership. Solon's poetry was also influenced by the example of Tyrtaeus, and he wrote iambic and trochaic verses, which are considered livelier and more direct than his elegies.
Solon is credited with laying the foundations for Athenian democracy. His efforts to legislate against political, economic, and moral decline resulted in constitutional reform that overturned most of Draco's laws. Solon's reforms included debt relief, later known and celebrated among Athenians as the seisachtheia (shaking off of burdens). His laws outlined a clear boundary between the protections that exist between citizens and non-citizens, with citizens granted special privileges and protections over non-citizens, who could be subjected to slavery.
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Solon's motivations: to balance power among economic classes
Solon was an archaic Athenian statesman, lawmaker, political philosopher, and poet. He is credited with laying the foundations for Athenian democracy through his constitutional reforms. Solon's Athens was characterised by social and political upheaval, with the city-state almost falling apart due to dissensions among its people. The aristocracy ruled Athens, with government decisions being made by a handful of leaders called archons and their subordinates, the magistrates. The aristocrats often formed violent factions to gain advantages over one another and used the courts to discriminate against the common people, who were mostly poor farmers, labourers, artisans, and merchants. The poor farmers were easily driven into debt, and when they were unable to pay up, they were reduced to serfdom or, in extreme cases, sold into slavery. The intermediate classes resented their exclusion from the government, and the social, economic, and political issues could have culminated in a revolution and subsequent tyranny, as had happened in other Greek states.
Solon's motivations were to prevent tyranny and balance power among the economic classes. He believed in moderation and in an ordered society where each class had its proper place and function. He refused to redistribute land as demanded by the poor, instead passing measures to increase general prosperity and provide alternative occupations for those unable to farm. He encouraged trades and professions and forbade the export of produce other than olive oil, stimulating the circulation of Athenian coinage. He also introduced debt relief, later celebrated among Athenians as the seisachtheia (shaking off of burdens).
Solon ended exclusive aristocratic control of the government and replaced it with a system of control by the wealthy. He gave all citizens the right to participate in assembly meetings, reshaping the social framework of the city-state. He lowered the requirements for election to public office, giving common people the power to elect and hold officials accountable. Solon's new government was not a democracy controlled by the majority but an attempt to balance power among the classes. He explained his purpose in one of his poems:
> To the people I have given such honour as is sufficient, neither taking away nor granting them more. For those who had power and were great in riches, I greatly cared that they should suffer nothing wrong. Thus I stood, holding my strong shield over both, and I did not allow either side to prevail against justice.
Solon's reforms were not welcomed by everyone, as neither the aristocrats nor the common people got everything they wanted. However, the Athenians grudgingly accepted his social, political, and legal reforms, seeing no other way to avoid civil war.
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Hippias's tyranny: cruel rule, harsh taxes, and public unrest
Hippias, the eldest son of Pisistratus, was the last tyrant of Athens, ruling from 527 or 528 BC to 510 BC. He succeeded his father, who was the first tyrant of Athens. Hippias was a patron of poets and craftsmen, and under his rule, Athens prospered. However, his response to the assassination of his brother, Hipparchus, in 514 BC, was merciless. He began to rule with cruelty, executing and exiling many citizens and imposing harsh taxes.
Hippias' cruelty created unrest among his subjects, and he started to lose control of Athens. In an attempt to cling to power, he sought military support from the Persians and formed alliances with other Greek tyrannies. The Alcmaeonidae family of Athens, who had previously been exiled by Pisistratus, planned an invasion to depose Hippias as they were concerned about his alliance with the Persians. In 510 BCE, Cleomenes I of Sparta successfully invaded Athens and trapped Hippias on the Acropolis, forcing him to flee to the Achaemenid Empire.
Hippias first took refuge with the Persian governor at Sardis and later crossed the Aegean with the Persian army. The Persians attempted to reinstall Hippias as the tyrant of Athens, but they were defeated at Marathon in 490 BCE. Hippias died soon after.
The rule of Hippias stands in contrast to that of his father, who was considered moderate in his exercise of power. Hippias, on the other hand, was described as bitter and cruel, with his harsh taxes and executions creating unrest among the Athenian people.
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Frequently asked questions
Draco, an archon, created the first written code of laws for Athens around 620 B.C. These laws provided some protections for the common people but also required severe punishments, often death, for most crimes. The term "Draconian" is used today to refer to harsh laws.
Draco was tasked with restoring order in Athens after Megacles, along with his genos, the Alcmaeonidae, was exiled from the city for killing Cylon's supporters, who had taken refuge in Athena's temple on the Acropolis.
Yes, Solon, who was elected as the primary archon around 594 B.C., created a new code of laws for Athens to end the conditions that had caused hatred and fear among the people. Solon's laws remained in force for over 100 years.
