The polis emerged out of the scattered villages of early Greece, as a way of building unified states, and centralising government. The establishment of the Greek poleis was a significant political innovation throughout history because it gave rise to new government systems which have become models to the modern state structure. It was characterised by its ability to unite citizens, and through this, resulted in the growth of larger states such as Athens and Spart. Within the poleis there were constitutions, which were developed in conjunction with the purpose to achieve a unified system of government for each state. In addition, this new form of government allowed for citizens to greater participate in political and social matters, which had not been the case in previous ruling powers. Thus, both the development of the constitution and the introduction of a new political structure have both influenced and changed the nature of the state.
The early Greek poleis served as way of uniting citizens under a centralized government. Under the Athenian and Spartan government, the people had more rights and, opportunities within society, which were governed by a set constitution. The constitution or politeia operated within individual poleis to identify ideas and values that would distinguish one city-state from another. For example, in Sparta, the Rhetra acted as the foundation to how society was structured. These were a set of laws that were established and implemented by Lykourgos, which formed the new government system through a combination of different elements from all the politeiai; namely oligarchy, monarchy and democracy . The Rhetra played a role in regulating the process of law and policy making, and also governing the educati...
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...is, as it ensured an even distribution of power and rights.
The rise of the poleis, brought about new social and political idea. Through the reformation of the state, each polis developed their own constitution which dictated how the government and citizens were structured. Within this new structure, more political opportunities arose for citizens, enhancing their sense of citizenship to the city through greater contributions. Through Athens, early forms of democracy arose and in Sparta, military strength became their dominant characteristic. In both cases, citizens were united in pursuit of common purposes, which was why the rise of the early Greek poleis was successful. Thus the early poleis became a model for shaping the nature of the state, and it is the different factors, that resulted from the reformations, that have influenced the development of the state.
On one hand the Athenian’s unique style of government allowed a larger inclusion of people into the Polis through state pay for service. This inclusiveness gave the people of Athens a patriotic fervor that simply was not present on the same scale in other Greek Poleis. On the other hand, the main weakness of the Athenian Assembly was its unpredictability. The Demos was easily convinced into brash decisions by demagogues that cost the Delian League dearly in the long run. This unpredictability led to the League’s campaign into Egypt, where League forces sustained massive loses. Athenian’s elitist attitudes also contributed to further separation between Poleis where the League could have been used to increase Greek
It is surprising indeed that Even today, tyrannies and dictatorships exist in the world when more than two and a half thousand years ago the ancient Athenians had developed a functional and direct form of democracy. What contributed to this remarkable achievement and how it changed the socio-political. scene in Athens is what will be considered in this paper. The paper will have three sections, each detailing the various stages. of political development from the kings of Attica to the time of Pericles when, in its golden age, Athens was at the height of its. imperial power.
Polis’s are small urban communities that numbered in the thousands during the time of ancient greece. they had a small government system that allowed them all to vote and be involved in their democracy. These small city states made up the great empires of the Greek and Roman cultures. They could not have been governed better with the concept of democracy. With all the city state's governing themselves then when the bigger political decisions came around that is when the central government, or head of all the other city states, was given the power to decide what would happen to these polises. That is how the founding fathers of the United States of America created their government that lasts even today. They modeled it after two great
Plato’s Republic and Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics were both written in the 4th century B.C.E. (“The Republic” 1; “Nicomachean Ethics” 1). We have already defined a political system and noted that the different political systems can be applied to a person’s constitution and to communities. My comparative analysis of the different regimes presented by Plato and Aristotle will consist of two parts—an examination of Plato’s and Aristotle’s separate organizations for the regimes, followed by the advantages and weaknesses that can be attributed to the different models.
“With the Polis, the Greeks established a new type of political structure” (McKay 119) where poleis with it’s own distinctive system of government. While the Poleis were not the first forms of city-states to emerge, they were more than a political institution. Communities of citizens with their own customs and laws and after 800
Two major forms of government existed during Ancient Greece: oligarchy and democracy. The government in Sparta was controlled by an oligarchy in which the power was held by a group of five men called ephors. Working below the ephors was the Council of Elders and an Assembly. Male citizens over age sixty could serve on the Council while anyone, male or female, over the age of twenty could be a member of the Assembly.1 Though the citizens had little say in the decisions made by the government, the system worked effectively. It was the oligarchy in Sparta that put a war-like attitude as its first priority in the city-state. Every man in the army fought with a great deal of passion for his country. The beliefs of Sparta were oriented around the state. The individual lived and died for the state. The government in Athens followed a very different course than that of Sparta. Upper class male citizens over the age of thirty were the only Athenians who held any right to vote. The democracy in Athens consiste...
Sparta contained a four branch government system that was considered one of the most unique in all of Greece. Unlike the democracy of Athens, Sparta had a diarchy which consisted of two kings. These figures held little influence over the state and served more as a symbol of royal heritage. The second branch was the Gerousia council which acted as an advising body and held influence over court decisions. This council was comprised of the two kings and of twenty-eight elected elders who served a life term. The minimum age of an elder on the committee was sixty. The Ephors, the third b...
Sparta contained a four branch government system that was considered among the most unique in all of Greece. Unlike the democracy of Athens, Sparta was based on an oligarchy structure. The diarchy, which consisted of two kings, was the first division of this government. These figures held little influence over the state and served more as a symbol of royal heritage (Kennell 83). The second branch was the Gerousia council which acted as an advising body and hel...
Athens and Sparta were both city-states in Classical Greece. While Athens embraced democracy, Sparta was a dictatorial fierce warrior state. Sparta was a militaristic community, Athens was a freethinking, and commerce minded city-state. Modern societies have modeled their government organizational structure and military discipline practices from lessons learned of these ancient city-states. There is much is to be praised regarding Classical Greece for their courage, their progressive thinking and the birth of democracy. However, I think it is important to remember that in both cases, Athens and Sparta were able to sustain their lifestyle on the backs of countless slaves, non-citizens and women and that there is a darker and less romantic side to the past.
The southernmost tip of Greece reaches into the Mediterranean Sea. Mountains cover nearly ¾’s of mainland Greece. It is surrounded by about 2,000 islands. Greece has a dry climate and poor soil farmers planted crops well suited for barley, wheat, olives, and grapes. The sea is especially powerful during the winter when the winds are high and the seas are rough. . Ancient Greece existed over 2000 years ago. It was made up of a collection of similar city-states such as Athens, Sparta, Olympia and Corinth. They each had their own laws and rulers. The city-state Polis became central to the development of classical civilization in Greece. By 750 B.C., the polis became the focus of Greek life. The polis was a town that served as the center of the polis where people could meet for political, social, and religious activities. The central meeting place in the polis was usually a hill. At the top of the hill was a fortified area called an Acropolis that served as both a fortress and religious center? Below the Acropolis was an open area that served both as a place where people could assemble and as a market. Cities varied greatly in size a population. Athens had a population of more than 300,000 by the fifth century B.C., but most cities were much smaller, consisting of only a few hundred to several thousand people. The polis was a community of people who shared a common identity and common goals. As a
Between the years of 508 BCE and 322 CE, Greece flourished under democracy. However, some question if the flourishing of Athens is due to the democracy that was in place as opposed to other factors relevant in building a successful community. This investigation will examine the effectiveness of Athenian democracy in Greek society. Relevance of Athenian democracy can be seen in foundation of many democracies found worldwide. In this investigation the right to vote, protection of minorities, use of social class, the structure of democracy and how Greek democracy has influenced the world will be addressed. The place investigated will be Greece, specifically the capitol Athens. The effectiveness of Athenian democracy can be seen in social structure, protection of minorities, and right to vote, as well as its structure and influence of other countries around the world.
Athens was a much more superior polis compared to Sparta because the Athenians invented new ideas and creations that supported the people, such as democracy, the Athenians led the Delian League, and Sparta created the Peloponnesian League after the Athenians created their alliance, and the Athenians changed the ways of their government many times to suit the people, and the Spartans did not.
The population size of the polis were small, and each male citizen was cognizant of their role and value within the community, and developed a strong spirit of independence. This sense of independence is what led the citizens within the polis to choose their own leaders, and overthrowing leaders that had done wrong by the greater populist or that the populist felt had abused their power. Athens, furthered this sense of independence by creating a democratic Athens, where full citizens were expected to run the governme...
Government creates order and peace within civilizations. Both the Greeks and Romans contributed to western government today but in very different way. The Greeks practiced direct democracy. This approach allowed for a justis and encouraged a attitude of civic involvement.
Greek society began by the formation of the city-state. "The city-state, based on tribal allegiances, was generally the first political association during the early stages of civilization." ( Perry, 45) This was the first step in the progression toward early self-government. "Greek city-states generally moved through four stages: rule by a king (monarchy), rule by landowning aristocrats (oligarchy), rule by one man who seized power (tyranny), and rule by the people (democracy). (Perry, 46)