By the 500s B. C.E. colonization had slowed because much of the available land around the Mediterranean region after the Dark Age had been claimed. The population of Greek city-states began to increase again, as did the number of working poor. Most Greek city-states granted citizenship to all of their free-born males, but that did little to lift poorer citizens out of poverty. Farmers awaiting their harvest might borrow money or food to be repaid when their crops came in.
On the other end of the economic scale, the aristocracy, which owned the best or most land, was joined by a new class that grew rich from commerce. Some of these newly wealthy, and some members of the aristocracy who genuinely believed the social system needed reform, seized the chance to take power. These new leaders were called tyrants, and although today that word is used to describe a merciless ruler, it was not necessarily a negative label at first. The tyrants needed support from the city’s population, especially the new type of soldiers known as hoplites.
Except for Sparta, city-states did not have professional, standing armies. All men from ages 18 to 60 (including foreigners living in the city) were expected to serve in the army as needed. The typical Greek hoplite was most likely a farmer who owned enough land-perhaps several acres that he worked alongside a couple of slaves-so that he could buy the necessary gear. The fact that the more successful Greek citizen-farmers were also soldiers, essential for defense of their city-state, gave them an increasingly powerful voice in the government. So, in a city-state such as Athens or Corinth, the successful tyrant was one who had support of the local hoplites.
In return for this support, a tyrant often helped the poorer classes by initiating large public works projects (often with wealth confiscated from the former rulers), such as city walls or new temples. Sometimes they went a step further and reformed existing laws to make the justice system more balanced.
Make Sure You Ask The right Questions
The Greeks' oracle at Delphi, who interpreted messages from the god Apollo, was famous beyond the borders of Greece. In the sixth century B. C.E., various nations were warring over land belonging to the Medians in Anatolia, across the Aegean Sea from Greece. Both the Persian Empire under King Cyrus, and Croesus, the wealthy king of Lydia in Anatolia, wanted to expand their kingdoms. But before Croesus went up against the strong Persian forces, he traveled to Delphi to consult with the oracle.
If he attacked Persia, Croesus was told, a great kingdom would be destroyed. Confident now that he would be victorious, Croesus's army advanced against the Persians—with disastrous results. He did not gain the Median land, and he lost his own kingdom to Cyrus. The Persians, now his rulers, allowed Croesus to return to Delphi to express outrage at the advice he was given. Croesus learned that he should have asked which great kingdom would be destroyed.
Athens was an exception. In Athens, if the harvest was bad in a particular year, poor land-owning peasants might be forced to sell themselves into slavery to pay their debts. While other city-states managed to find ways to balance the interests of the rich and poor, in Athens the rich were reluctant to give up any of their wealth and power. Eventually, conflict between poorer classes demanding justice and the wealthy demanding payment led to threats of civil war-which, in turn, led to the most radical reform, Athenian democracy.
World History
