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84-492: The Solonian constitution was created by Solon in the early 6th century BC. 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 . He promulgated a code of laws embracing the whole of public and private life, the salutary effects of which lasted long after

168-422: A phyle or tribe and one of its subdivisions, the phratry or brotherhood, but also to an extended family, clan or genos . It has been argued that these interconnecting units of kinship reinforced a hierarchic structure with aristocratic clans at the top. Thus rivalries between aristocratic clans could engage all levels of society irrespective of any regional ties. In that case, the struggle between rich and poor

252-551: A convenient basis for an overview of the issues involved. Economic and ideological rivalry is a common theme in ancient sources. This sort of account emerges from Solon's poems, in which he casts himself in the role of a noble mediator between two intemperate and unruly factions. This same account is substantially taken up about three centuries later by the author of the Aristotelian Athenaion Politeia but with an interesting variation: ... there

336-428: A convenient framework within which to consider the laws that have been attributed to Solon. Some short-term consequences of his reforms are considered at the end of the section. Depending on how we interpret the historical facts known to us, Solon's constitutional reforms were either a radical anticipation of democratic government, or they merely provided a plutocratic flavour to a stubbornly aristocratic regime, or else

420-634: A crucial period of economic transition, when a subsistence rural economy increasingly required the support of a nascent commercial sector. The specific economic reforms credited to Solon are these: It is generally assumed, on the authority of ancient commentators, that Solon also reformed the Athenian coinage . However, recent numismatic studies now lead to the conclusion that Athens probably had no coinage until around 560 BC, well after Solon's reforms. Nevertheless, there are now reasons to suggest that monetization had already begun before Solon's reforms. By

504-539: A cunning trick or more directly through heroic battle around 595 BC. The Megarians, however, refused to give up their claim. The dispute was referred to the Spartans, who eventually awarded possession of the island to Athens on the strength of the case that Solon put to them. Plutarch professes admiration of Solon's elegy. The same poem was said by Diogenes Laërtius to have stirred Athenians more than any other verses that Solon wrote: Let us go to Salamis to fight for

588-425: A disservice against even just one member of the society would indirectly be a disservice against every member of the society. The only parts of Draconian constitution 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 ten years so he would not be tempted to take power as a tyrant . Religion There

672-474: A family might voluntarily pledge part of its farm income or labour to a powerful clan in return for its protection. Farmers subject to these sorts of arrangements were loosely known as hektemoroi indicating that they either paid or kept a sixth of a farm's annual yield. In the event of 'bankruptcy', or failure to honour the contract stipulated by the horoi , farmers and their families could in fact be sold into slavery. Solon's reform of these injustices

756-577: A horse would flaunt their superiority by selecting names that began or ended with the word ‘hippos'. However, Solon later changed the meaning of the hippeus, as it became the second highest of the four social classes. It was composed of men who had at least 300 medimnoi or their equivalent as yearly income. The Hippeus were also called the Knights in Aristotle 's Athenian Constitution (circa. 350 BC). Aristotle gave an alternate characterization for

840-616: A horse, or who had an income of three hundred medimni. The third class were the Zeugitae, whose property qualification was two hundred medimni of dry or liquid produce; and the last class were the Thetes, whom Solon did not permit to be magistrates, but whose only political privilege was the right of attending the public assemblies and sitting as jurymen in the law courts. This privilege was at first insignificant, but afterwards became of infinite importance, because most disputes were settled before

924-442: A jury. Even in those cases which he allowed the magistrates to settle, he provided a final appeal to the people. Solon further instituted a timocracy , ( τιμοκρατία ) and those who did not belong to the nobility received a share in the rights of citizens, according to a scale determined by their property and their corresponding services to the Athenian State . For this purpose, he divided the population into four classes, founded on

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1008-619: A law relating to homicide, yet there is consensus among scholars that it did not amount to anything like a constitution. During his visit to Athens, Pausanias , the 2nd century AD geographer reported that the inscribed laws of Solon were still displayed by the Prytaneion. Fragments of the axones were still visible in Plutarch 's time but today the only records we have of Solon's laws are fragmentary quotes and comments in literary sources such as those written by Plutarch himself. Moreover,

1092-408: A medimnos would have weighed. The weight of a medimnos is currently believed to be 40 kilograms of wheat , or 31 kg of barley . This difference is very significant in attempting to judge how much tribute would have been paid at the time. It is believed that an active adult male in the sixth century BCE would have needed to consume about eight medimnoi per year, with a typical female consuming

1176-413: A noble or Eupatrid clan. Solon's father was probably Execestides. If so, his lineage could be traced back to Codrus , the last King of Athens . According to Diogenes Laërtius , he had a brother named Dropides, who was an ancestor (six generations removed) of Plato . According to Plutarch, Solon was related to the tyrant Pisistratus , for their mothers were cousins. Solon was eventually drawn into

1260-527: A number of reasons; Attic pleaders did not hesitate to attribute to him (Solon) any law which suited their case, and later writers had no criterion by which to distinguish earlier from later works. Nor can any complete and authentic collection of his statutes have survived for ancient scholars to consult. Besides the alleged legislative aspect of Solon's involvement with pederasty, there were also suggestions of personal involvement. Ancient readers concluded, based on his own erotic poetry, that Solon himself had

1344-409: A preference for boys. According to some ancient authors Solon had taken the future tyrant Pisistratus as his eromenos . Aristotle, writing around 330 BC, attempted to refute that belief, claiming that "those are manifestly talking nonsense who pretend that Solon was the lover of Pisistratus, for their ages do not admit of it", as Solon was about thirty years older than Pisistratus. Nevertheless,

1428-549: A regulator of Athenian society, Solon, according to some authors, also formalized its sexual mores. According to a surviving fragment from a work ("Brothers") by the comic playwright Philemon , Solon established publicly funded brothels at Athens in order to "democratize" the availability of sexual pleasure. While the veracity of this comic account is open to doubt, at least one modern author considers it significant that in Classical Athens, three hundred or so years after

1512-545: A set of contradictory stories or a complex story that might be interpreted in a variety of ways. As further evidence accumulates, and as historians continue to debate the issues, Solon's motivations and the intentions behind his reforms will continue to attract speculation. Two contemporary historians have identified three distinct historical accounts of Solon's Athens, emphasizing quite different rivalries: economic and/or ideological rivalry, regional rivalry, and rivalry between aristocratic clans. These different accounts provide

1596-401: A set of laws that were intended to promote and safeguard the institution of pederasty and to control abuses against freeborn boys. In particular, the orator Aeschines cites laws excluding slaves from wrestling halls and forbidding them to enter pederastic relationships with the sons of citizens. Accounts of Solon's laws by 4th century orators like Aeschines, however, are considered unreliable for

1680-521: A similar story about Socrates and the poet Stesichorus , quoting the philosopher's rapture in almost identical terms: ut aliquid sciens amplius e vita discedam , meaning "in order to leave life knowing a little more". The social and political upheavals that characterized Athens in Solon's time have been variously interpreted by historians from ancient times to the present day. The historical account of Solon's Athens has evolved over many centuries into

1764-564: A slightly lower amount. From these figures, it can be estimated that a young family including a father, a mother and three children would have consumed approximately 25 medimnoi every year. The payment required to receive a very high rank, therefore, would feed approximately 20 families. According to Herodotus , during the reign of Xerxes II of Persia , the Satrap of Assyria ( Tritantaechmes , son of Artabazos I of Phrygia ) received an income of just over one medimnos of silver every day. This

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1848-517: A staunch opponent of Pisistratus. In protest, and as an example to others, Solon stood outside his own home in full armour, urging all who passed to resist the machinations of the would-be tyrant. His efforts were in vain. Solon died shortly after Pisistratus usurped by force the autocratic power that Athens had once freely bestowed upon him. Solon died in Cyprus around the age of 70 and, in accordance with his will, his ashes were scattered around Salamis,

1932-540: 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. Despite the division between classes and citizens, Solon felt these class were connected as one. Solon felt that

2016-553: A time during the Athenian coup of 411 BC . They were eligible for a few positions of government in Athens such as: The thetes ( Ancient Greek : θῆτες , romanized :  thêtes , sing. Ancient Greek : θής , romanized :  thēs , 'serf') were the lowest social class of citizens. The thetes were those who were workers for wages, or had less than 200 medimnoi (or their equivalent) as yearly income. (Thus,

2100-543: The seisachtheia (shaking off of burdens). He is described by Aristotle in the Athenian Constitution as "the first people's champion". Demosthenes credited Solon's reforms with starting a golden age. Modern knowledge of Solon is limited by the fact that his works only survive in fragments and appear to feature interpolations by later authors. It is further limited by the general paucity of documentary and archaeological evidence covering Athens in

2184-422: The hippeis . The top three classes were eligible for a variety of lesser posts and only the thetes were excluded from all public office. The real motives behind Solon's economic reforms are as questionable as his real motives for constitutional reform. Were the poor being forced to serve the needs of a changing economy, was the economy being reformed to serve the needs of the poor, or were Solon's policies

2268-547: The horoi clearly provided immediate economic relief for the most oppressed group in Attica, and it also brought an immediate end to the enslavement of Athenians by their countrymen. Some Athenians had already been sold into slavery abroad and some had fled abroad to escape enslavement – Solon proudly records in verse the return of this diaspora. It has been cynically observed, however, that few of these unfortunates were likely to have been recovered. It has been observed also that

2352-430: The seisachtheia not only removed slavery and accumulated debt but may also have removed the ordinary farmer's only means of obtaining further credit. The seisachtheia however was merely one set of reforms within a broader agenda of moral reformation. Other reforms included: Demosthenes claimed that the city's subsequent golden age included "personal modesty and frugality" among the Athenian aristocracy. As

2436-626: The Euboic standard in place of the Pheidonian or Aeginetan standard . 100 new drachmae were thus made to contain the same amount of silver as 73 old drachmae. By this measure he pleased neither party, but the rich were dissatisfied at the loss of their securities, and the poor were still more so because the land was not divided afresh, as they hoped it would be, and because he had not, like Lykurgus , established absolute equality. ... [Solon], wishing to leave all magistracies as he found them, in

2520-600: The Heliaia , but were not allowed to serve in the Boule or serve as magistrates. In the reforms of Ephialtes and Pericles around 460–450 BC, the thetes were empowered to hold public office. Twelve thousand thetes were disenfranchised and expelled from the city after the Athenian defeat in the Lamian War . There is debate among scholars whether this represented the entire number of thetes, or simply those who left Athens,

2604-524: The wage ratio of pentacosiomedimni to thetes could be as little as 2.5.) This distinction spanned from some time earlier than 594−593 BC until 322 BC. The thetes were defined as citizens who did not qualify as zeugitae , although the thetes may have predated the Solonian reforms. They could participate in the Ecclesia (the Athenian assembly) , and could be jurors serving in the law court of

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2688-497: The 13th year of Herod the Great 's reign, the country had suffered from a prolonged drought, and the ground was barren and unable to produce fruit on that account. He then petitioned the man who had been made prefect of Egypt by Caesar , who allowed Herod's countrymen to purchase grain and to export it, insofar that "the number of cori of wheat, of ten Attic medimnos apiece, that were given to foreigners, amounted to ten thousand; and

2772-580: The Aegean between 600 BC and 560 BC, a success story that coincided with a decline in trade in Corinthian pottery. The ban on the export of grain might be understood as a relief measure for the benefit of the poor. However, the encouragement of olive production for export could actually have led to increased hardship for many Athenians to the extent that it led to a reduction in the amount of land dedicated to grain. Moreover, an olive tree produces no fruit for

2856-572: The Areopagus favoured his prosecution. According to the Athenian Constitution , Solon legislated for all citizens to be admitted into the Ekklesia and for a court (the Heliaia ) to be formed from all the citizens. The Heliaia appears to have been the Ekklesia, or some representative portion of it, sitting as a jury. By giving common people the power not only to elect officials but also to call them to account, Solon appears to have established

2940-483: The Athenian Navy and therefore gave them a role in Athens' affairs. Of the population dissatisfied, the inhabitants of the northern mountainous region of Attica , and the poorest and most oppressed section of the population, the diacrii , demanded that the privileges of the nobility, which had till then been obtained, should be utterly set aside. Another party, prepared to be contented by moderate concessions,

3024-538: The Athenians could not induce him to repeal any of his laws. Within four years of Solon's departure, the old social rifts re-appeared, but with some new complications. There were irregularities in the new governmental procedures, elected officials sometimes refused to stand down from their posts and occasionally important posts were left vacant. It has even been said that some people blamed Solon for their troubles. Eventually one of Solon's relatives, Pisistratus, ended

3108-517: The Greek word for "yoke", which has led modern scholars to conclude that zeugitae were either men who could afford a yoked pair of oxen or men who were "yoked together" in the phalanx—that is, men who could afford their own hoplite armor. The zeugitae could serve as hoplites in the Athenian army. The idea was that one could serve as a hoplite if he had enough money to equip himself in that manner, i.e. he could produce 200 medimnoi or more per year. At

3192-408: The class of Hippeus as 'those who were able to maintain a horse'. This assumption appears to be on the basis of the inscription of the statute of Diphilus The zeugitae ( Ancient Greek : ζευγῖται , romanized :  zeugitai ) were those whose property or estate could produce at least 200 medimnoi of wet or dry goods (or their equivalent), per year. The term appears to have come from

3276-405: The death of Solon, there existed a discourse that associated his reforms with an increased availability of heterosexual contacts. Ancient authors also say that Solon regulated pederastic relationships in Athens; this has been presented as an adaptation of custom to the new structure of the polis . According to various authors, ancient lawgivers (and therefore Solon by implication) drew up

3360-489: The difficulties, and to restore peace by means of legislation. One of the primary measures of Solon was the Seisachtheia ("dis-burdening ordinance"). This gave an immediate relief by cancelling all debts , public and private . At the same time, he made it illegal for the future to secure debts upon the person of the debtor . Solon also altered the standard of coinage [and of weights and measures ], by introducing

3444-451: The early 6th century BC. Ancient authors such as Philo of Alexandria , Herodotus , and Plutarch are the main sources, but wrote about Solon long after his death. Fourth-century BC orators, such as Aeschines , tended to attribute to Solon all the laws of their own, much later times. Solon was born in Athens around 630 BC. His family was distinguished in Attica as they belonged to

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3528-439: The early sixth century the Athenians were using silver in the form of a variety of bullion silver pieces for monetary payments. Drachma and obol as a term of bullion value had already been adopted, although the corresponding standard weights were probably unstable. Solon's economic reforms succeeded in stimulating foreign trade. Athenian black-figure pottery was exported in increasing quantities and good quality throughout

3612-487: 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 . Solon's constitution reduced the power of the old aristocracy by making wealth rather than birth a criterion for holding political positions,

3696-647: The factionalism by force, thus instituting an unconstitutionally gained tyranny . In Plutarch's account, Solon accused Athenians of stupidity and cowardice for allowing this to happen. Solon's first stop in his travels was Egypt. There, according to Herodotus, he visited the Pharaoh of Egypt, Amasis II . According to Plutarch, he spent some time and discussed philosophy with two Egyptian priests, Psenophis of Heliopolis and Sonchis of Sais . A character in two of Plato's dialogues, Timaeus and Critias , claims Solon visited Neith 's temple at Sais and received from

3780-535: The first six years (but farmers' difficulty of lasting until payback may also give rise to a mercantilist argument in favour of supporting them through that, since the British case illustrates that "One domestic policy that had a lasting impact was the conversion of 'waste lands' to agricultural use. Mercantilists felt that to maximize a nation's power all land and resources had to be used to their utmost"). In his poems, Solon portrays Athens as being under threat from

3864-517: The fleet, and apparently for pay. The others served without pay. The holders of office in the State were also unpaid. Each division had different rights; for example, the pentacosiomedimnoi could be archons , while thetes could only attend the Athenian assembly. The fourth class was excluded from all official positions, but possessed the right of voting in the general public assemblies (the Heliaia ) which chose officials and passed laws. They had also

3948-477: The foundations of a true republic. There is consensus among scholars that Solon lowered the requirements – those that existed in terms of financial and social qualifications – which applied to election to public office. The Solonian constitution divided citizens into four political classes defined according to assessable property a classification that might previously have served the state for military or taxation purposes only. The standard unit for this assessment

4032-478: The hands of the wealthy classes, but to give the people a share in the rest of the constitution, from which they were then excluded, took a census of the wealth of the citizens, and made a first class of those who had an annual income of not less than five hundred medimni of dry or liquid produce; these he called pentakosiomedimni . The next class were the Hippeis, or knights, consisting of those who were able to keep

4116-426: The island We desire, and drive away from our bitter shame! One fragment describes assorted breads and cakes: They drink and some nibble honey and sesame cakes ( itria ), others their bread, other gouroi mixed with lentils. In that place, not one cake was unavailable of all those that the black earth bears for human beings, and all were present unstintingly. According to Diogenes Laertius, in 594 BC, Solon

4200-689: The island where he was born. Pausanias listed Solon among the Seven Sages , whose aphorisms adorned Apollo's temple in Delphi . Stobaeus in the Florilegium relates a story about a symposium where Solon's young nephew was singing a poem of Sappho 's: Solon, upon hearing the song, asked the boy to teach him to sing it. When someone asked, "Why should you waste your time on it?", Solon replied, " ἵνα μαθὼν αὐτὸ ἀποθάνω ", "So that I may learn it before I die." Ammianus Marcellinus , however, told

4284-471: The language of his laws was archaic even by the standards of the fifth century and this caused interpretation problems for ancient commentators. Modern scholars doubt the reliability of these sources and our knowledge of Solon's legislation is therefore actually very limited in its details. Generally, Solon's reforms appear to have been constitutional, economic, moral, and sexual in their scope. This distinction, though somewhat artificial, does at least provide

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4368-815: The manifestation of a struggle taking place between poorer citizens and the aristocrats? Solon's economic reforms need to be understood in the context of the primitive, subsistence economy that prevailed both before and after his time. Most Athenians were still living in rural settlements right up to the Peloponnesian War . Opportunities for trade even within the Athenian borders were limited. The typical farming family, even in classical times, barely produced enough to satisfy its own needs. Opportunities for international trade were minimal. It has been estimated that, even in Roman times, goods rose 40% in value for every 100 miles they were carried over land, but only 1.3% for

4452-410: The measure used by Solon to establish a Timocratic Constitution in Athens around 595 BCE. According to this constitution, various amounts of grain needed to be paid as tax to secure certain ranks or social statuses (for example, a payment of 500 medimnoi to become a military commander, but only 200 or less to become an agricultural worker). Since taxes could be paid in any of the foodstuffs common at

4536-563: The number that was given in his own kingdom was eighty thousand." Epiphanius of Salamis has, likewise, mentioned the medimnos , saying: "The m nasis and the medimnos are taken, I think, from the language of the Romans, for in that language medium is interpreted 'middle.' ...But the medimnos varies among the Cyprians ; for the people of Salamis , that is to say, of Constantia, have a medimnos of 5 modii , while those of Paphos and

4620-456: The other two, formed an obstruction and prevented the other groups from gaining control. Regional rivalry is a theme commonly found among modern scholars. "The new picture which emerged was one of strife between regional groups, united by local loyalties and led by wealthy landowners. Their goal was to take control of the central government at Athens and with it dominate over their rivals from other districts of Attica." Regional factionalism

4704-428: The possession of land: Solon's legislation only granted to the first three of these four classes a vote in the election of responsible officers, and only to the first class the power of election to the highest offices; as, for instance, that of archon. The first three classes were bound to serve as hoplites ; the cavalry was raised out of the first two, while the fourth class was only employed as light-armed troops or on

4788-470: The priests there an account of the history of Atlantis . Next, Solon sailed to Cyprus , where he oversaw the construction of a new capital for a local king, in gratitude for which the king named it Soloi . Solon's travels finally brought him to Sardis , capital of Lydia . According to Herodotus and Plutarch, he met with Croesus and gave the Lydian king advice, which Croesus failed to appreciate until it

4872-519: The remainder staying behind. Unlike the popular concept of galley slaves , ancient navies generally preferred to rely on free men to row their galleys. In the 4th and 5th century, Athens generally followed a naval policy of enrolling citizens from the lower classes (the thetes), metics and hired foreigners. However, under some conditions, for example during the Mytilenean revolt , higher classes were enrolled as rowers also. This made them crucial in

4956-477: The rest. Attika in Solon's time seemed to be moving towards a similarly ugly solution with many citizens in danger of being reduced to the status of helots . Rivalry between clans is a theme recently developed by some scholars, based on an appreciation of the political significance of kinship groupings. According to this account, bonds of kinship rather than local loyalties were the decisive influence on events in archaic Athens. An Athenian belonged not only to

5040-646: The right of taking part in the trials by jury which Solon had instituted. Solon established a constitutional order with a single chief consultative body, and a single administrative body. Solon established as the chief consultative body the Council of the Four Hundred , in which only the first three classes took part, and as chief administrative body the Areopagus , which was to be filled up by those who had been archons. Solon Solon's reforms included debt relief later known and celebrated among Athenians as

5124-428: The same distance were they carried by ship and yet there is no evidence that Athens possessed any merchant ships until around 525 BC. Until then, the narrow warship doubled as a cargo vessel. Athens, like other Greek city states in the 7th century BC, was faced with increasing population pressures and by about 525 BC it was able to feed itself only in good years. Solon's reforms can thus be seen to have taken place at

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5208-456: The strong fire" of their love and dear affection. Medimnoi A medimnos ( Greek : μέδιμνος , médimnos , plural μέδιμνοι, médimnoi ) was an Ancient Greek unit of volume, which was generally used to measure dry food grain . In Attica , it was approximately equal to 51.84 litres, although this volume was frequently subject to regional variation. For example, the Spartan medimnos

5292-429: The time ( agricultural crops , wine , meat , fish etc.), it was necessary to adjust the actual volume being paid according to its relative value at the time of payment. After the reforms introduced in the second century BCE, the medimnos was set at 58.92 liters. The smaller units of division all remained the same, with the exception of the kotyle, which was 1/238 of a medimnos. It is difficult to ascertain how much

5376-415: The time of Solon's reforms, zeugitae were granted the right to hold certain minor political offices. Their status rose through the years; in 457/6 BC, they were granted the right to hold the archonship , and in the late 5th century moderate oligarchs advocated for the creation of an oligarchy in which all men of hoplite status or higher would be enfranchised, and such a regime was indeed established for

5460-438: The top class of citizens: those whose property or estate could produce at least 500 medimnoi of wet or dry goods (or their equivalent), per year . They were eligible for all top positions of government in Athens. These were: The pentacosiomedimnoi could also serve as generals ( strategoi ) in the Athenian army. Prior to the rule of Solon, the term hippeus came from the word "horse;" those who were rich enough to buy

5544-432: The tradition persisted. Four centuries later Plutarch ignored Aristotle's skepticism and recorded the following anecdote, supplemented with his own conjectures: And they say Solon loved [Pisistratus]; and that is the reason, I suppose, that when afterwards they differed about the government, their enmity never produced any hot and violent passion, they remembered their old kindnesses, and retained "Still in its embers living

5628-620: The truth lies somewhere between these two extremes. Before Solon's reforms, the Athenian state was administered by nine archons appointed or elected annually by the Areopagus on the basis of noble birth and wealth. There was an assembly of Athenian citizens (the Ekklesia ) but the lowest class (the Thetes ) was not admitted and its deliberative procedures were controlled by the nobles. There therefore seemed to be no means by which an archon could be called to account for breach of oath unless

5712-524: The unaristocratic pursuit of commerce. When Athens and its neighbor and rival in the Saronic Gulf , Megara , were contesting the possession of Salamis , Solon was made leader of the Athenian forces. After repeated disasters, Solon was able to improve the morale of his troops through a nationalist poem he wrote about the island. Supported by Pisistratus, he defeated the Megarians either by means of

5796-424: The unrestrained greed and arrogance of its citizens. Even the earth ( Gaia ), the mighty mother of the gods, had been enslaved. The visible symbol of this perversion of the natural and social order was a boundary marker called a horos , a wooden or stone pillar indicating that a farmer was in debt or under contractual obligation to someone else, either a noble patron or a creditor . Up until Solon's time, land

5880-793: The wisdom to sort out their differences for them in a peaceful and equitable manner. Some modern scholars believe these powers were in fact granted some years after Solon had been archon, when he would have been a member of the Areopagus and probably a more respected statesman by his peers. As archon, Solon discussed his intended reforms with some friends. Knowing that he was about to cancel all debts, these friends took out loans and promptly bought some land. Suspected of complicity, Solon complied with his own law and released his own debtors, amounting to five talents (or 15 according to some sources). His friends never repaid their debts. After completing his work of reform, Solon surrendered his extraordinary authority and traveled abroad for ten years, so that

5964-545: Was also a religious impact that played a role in the archaic city. Within the clans there was never a recovery of military impact, but religion had always influenced political potential. Generations beyond the years had gone on and religion was not forgotten as the advancement of the political system did. James H. Oliver. (2003). The Solonian Constitution and a Consul of A.D. 149. Greek, Roman and Byzantine Studies , 13 (1), page 101. The pentacosiomedimni or pentakosiomedimnoi ( Ancient Greek : πεντακοσιομέδιμνοι ) were

6048-453: Was approximately equal to 71.16 litres. A medimnos could be divided into several smaller units: the tritaios (one third), the hekteus (one sixth), the hemiektos (one twelfth), the choinix (one forty-eighth) and the kotyle (0.27 L.) The medimnos originated in Corinth and was adopted as a unit of measurement by Classical Athens and Megara as well as various other Greek poleis . It was

6132-416: Was chosen archon , or chief magistrate. Solon repealed all of Draco's laws except those relating to homicide. During Solon's time, many Greek city-states had seen the emergence of tyrants , opportunistic noblemen who had taken power on behalf of sectional interests. Solon was described by Plutarch as having been temporarily awarded autocratic powers by Athenian citizens on the grounds that he had

6216-437: Was composed of the parali , the inhabitants of the "Paralia" , the coast. The third was formed by the nobles, called pedici or pediaci , because their property lay for the most part in the pedion , the level and most fruitful part of the country. Solon, who enjoyed the confidence of all parties on account of his tried insight and sound judgment, was chosen archon by a compromise, with full power to put an end to

6300-420: Was conflict between the nobles and the common people for an extended period. For the constitution they were under was oligarchic in every respect and especially in that the poor, along with their wives and children, were in slavery to the rich...All the land was in the hands of a few. And if men did not pay their rents, they themselves and their children were liable to be seized as slaves. The security for all loans

6384-577: Was equivalent to approximately 55 litres. According to Polybius , in the Roman army at the time of the Punic Wars “the infantrymen receive two thirds of an Attic medimnos of wheat every month; the cavalry receive seven medimnoi of barley and two of wheat. In the allies' army, the infantry receive the same, while the cavalry receive one and a medimnos and a third of wheat and five medimnoi of barley”. The historian, Josephus , mentions that during

6468-577: Was inevitable in a relatively large territory such as Athens possessed. In most Greek city states, a farmer could conveniently reside in a town and travel to and from his fields every day. According to Thucydides , on the other hand, most Athenians continued to live in rural settlements right up until the Peloponnesian War . The effects of regionalism in a large territory could be seen in Laconia , where Sparta had gained control through intimidation and resettlement of some of its neighbours and enslavement of

6552-500: Was later known and celebrated among Athenians as the seisachtheia (shaking off of burdens). As with all his reforms, there is considerable scholarly debate about its real significance. Many scholars are content to accept the account given by the ancient sources, interpreting it as a cancellation of debts , while others interpret it as the abolition of a type of feudal relationship, and some prefer to explore new possibilities for interpretation. The reforms included: The removal of

6636-480: Was one medimnos (approximately 12 gallons) of cereals and yet the kind of classification set out below might be considered too simplistic to be historically accurate. According to the Athenian Constitution , only the pentakosiomedimnoi were eligible for election to high office as archons and therefore only they gained admission into the Areopagus. A modern view affords the same privilege to

6720-402: Was the debtor's prison up to the time of Solon. He was the first people's champion. Here Solon is presented as a partisan in a democratic cause whereas, judged from the viewpoint of his own poems, he was instead a mediator between rival factions. A still more significant variation in the ancient historical account appears in the writing of Plutarch in the late 1st – early 2nd century AD: Athens

6804-472: Was the inalienable property of a family or clan and it could not be sold or mortgaged. This was no disadvantage to a clan with large landholdings since it could always rent out farms in a sharecropping system. A family struggling on a small farm however could not use the farm as security for a loan even if it owned the farm. Instead the farmer would have to offer himself and his family as security, providing some form of slave labour in lieu of repayment. Equally,

6888-509: Was the struggle between powerful aristocrats and the weaker affiliates of their rivals or perhaps even with their own rebellious affiliates. Solon's laws were inscribed on axones , large wooden slabs or cylinders attached to a series of axles that stood upright in the Prytaneion . Originally the axones recorded laws enacted by Draco in the late 7th century (traditionally 621 BC). Nothing of Draco's codification has survived except for

6972-503: Was too late. Croesus had considered himself to be the happiest man alive and Solon had advised him, "Count no man happy until he be dead." The reasoning was that at any minute, fortune might turn on even the happiest man and make his life miserable. It was only after he had lost his kingdom to the Persian king Cyrus , while awaiting execution, that Croesus acknowledged the wisdom of Solon's advice. After his return to Athens, Solon became

7056-400: Was torn by recurrent conflict about the constitution. The city was divided into as many parties as there were geographical divisions in its territory. For the party of the people of the hills was most in favour of democracy, that of the people of the plain was most in favour of oligarchy, while the third group, the people of the coast, which preferred a mixed form of constitution somewhat between

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