Further, Sparta did not consider that autonomy included the right of a city to choose democracy over Sparta's preferred form of government. Sparta's government was much different than Athens, it was an oligarchy. Athens had leaders such as Pericles, but it was not absolute rule as Sparta was. Spartans were obliged to use iron obols (bars or spits), meant to encourage self-sufficiency and discourage avarice and the hoarding of wealth. Aristotle describes the kingship at Sparta as "a kind of unlimited and perpetual generalship" (Pol. Either way, kingship in Sparta was hereditary and thus every king Sparta had was a descendant of the Agiad and the Eurypontid families. iii. Spartiates were full citizens of the Spartan state (or part of the demos). The Council of Elders consisted of two kings and 28 other men. These monarchs were particularly powerful when one of them led the army on campaign. It can be considered a monarchy, but the main part it is considered is a totalitarian. No. Athens focused more on culture, while Sparta focused more on war. Athens was the birthplace of modern democracy, after all. The Spartans had two kings ruling the city, but their powers were limited by the 'council of elders', having 28 members participating. Sparta also had a council that created laws. 800 BCE to 600 BCE . * What did they have. The Spartan Constitution (or Spartan politeia) are the government and laws of the classical Greek city-state of Sparta. An oligarchy meant the ruling power was in the hands of only a few people. But the Spartans were the best warriors in all of Greece. You may have heard that ancient Greece invented democracy, but democracy was only one type of government employed by the Greeks, and when it first evolved, many Greeks thought it a bad idea.. Pour autoriser Verizon Media et nos partenaires à traiter vos données personnelles, sélectionnez 'J'accepte' ou 'Gérer les paramètres' pour obtenir plus d’informations et pour gérer vos choix. The most important thing was to organize an army that could defend the city-state against invasions. A monarchy was governed by only one person. Over time, the kings became mere figureheads except in their capacity as generals. Sparta was also unique because its government was less concerned with the rights of the people and more concerned with perfecting their military. "[1], Another version of the rhetra is given by H. Michell:[2]. The oligarchy structure in Sparta enabled it to keep war as a top priority. [3] Ephors themselves had more power than anyone in Sparta, although the fact that they only stayed in power for a single year reduced their ability to conflict with already established powers in the state. The Spartans spoke Greek. Fergus O'Brien/Taxi/Getty Images. Spartan political system was a combination of monarchy (kings), oligarchy (Gerousia) and democracy (ephoroi, ephors). The duties of the kings were primarily religious, judicial, and militaristic. Spartiate women were the only Greek women to hold property rights on their own, and were required to practice sports before marriage. Vous pouvez modifier vos choix à tout moment dans vos paramètres de vie privée. 640 BC) Whatever kind of government you had, ancient Greek governments all had pretty much the same responsibilities. The kings ruled Sparta, unlike Athens who was a democracy with a large council of 50 people from each of their 10 tribes in the city state. Civil cases were decided by the ephors, and criminal jurisdiction had been passed to the ephors, as well as to a council of elders. Although the five ephors were the only officials with regular legitimization by popular vote, in practice they were often the most conservative force in Spartan politics. Access Level … They thought of themselves as Greeks. We still have the type of government democracy today. The council was made up … Alcibiades, being an Alcmaeonid and thus a member of a family with old and strong connections to Sparta, was admitted as a trophimos and famously excelled in the agoge as well as otherwise (he was rumoured to have seduced one of the two queen consorts with his exceptional looks). However, their small length did make them only useful for breaking into an enemy's phalanx. Sparta did not experience the same changes in government that Athens and other city­states experienced. Socrates - Socrates - Background of the trial: The trial of Socrates in 399 bce occurred soon after Athens’s defeat at the hands of Sparta in the Peloponnesian War (431–404 bce). Accession was given to the male child who was first born after a king's accession. The pro-Spartan Athenian magnate Xenophon sent his two sons to Sparta for their education as trophimoi. He was supplanted also by the ephors in the control of foreign policy. Its democracy was "the rule of the mob," and historians consider the Athenians as the developers of democracy. The Sparta government is neither. The Spartans had two kings ruling the city, but their powers were limited by the 'council of elders', having 28 members participating. What type of government did the Greeks have? This was due to her army, which was feared by other Greeks. ATHENS The Athenian democratic government gave the citizens in Greece more freedom. In addition to the kings, there were five ephors (magistrates) that were elected from aristocratic families. Real power was transferred to the ephors and to the gerousia. There were two exceptions to this rule. Lycurgus had conceived also political institutions, established after consulting with the Delphic oracle. But Sparta was very different from the other Greek city-states. One person ruled in monarchies and tyrannies. Subsequently the two chiefs from the largest villages became kings. Helots were the state-owned serfs who made up 90 percent of the population. Sparta had a government that consisted of two kings (one from the Agrid family and one from the Eurypontid family), five Ephors (supreme magistrates), the Gerousia (council of … Sparta considered all discourse from outside as a potential threat and all other states as past, present, or future enemies, to be treated with caution in the very least, even when bound with alliance treaties. The Spartans had no historical records, literature, or written laws, which were, according to tradition, expressly prohibited by an ordinance of Lycurgus, excluding the Great Rhetra. Two kings ruled the city, but a 28-member 'council of elders' limited their powers. An oligarchy was governed by a few wealthy and powerful people. Others believe that it points to a compromise arrived at to end the struggle between two families or communities. They also had … I285a), Here also, however, the royal prerogatives were curtailed over time. The Spartan political system was unusual in that it had two hereditary kings from two separate families. Kings-2 of them, hereditary monarchs (members of two royal families), headed a council of elders. Sparta also had a council that created laws. A military oligarchy is a government in which the military exercises control over the people. What type of government did Sparta and Athens have? Sparta focused on producing good soldiers and all Spartan male citizens were part of the army. Only those who had successfully undertaken military training, called the agoge, and who were members in good standing of syssitia (mess hall), were eligible. The kings were also priests of Zeus and they sat on the council of elders known as the gerousia. Athens and Sparta, the Intellect and the Muscle of Ancient Greece . The hómoioi were also required to sleep in the barracks until the age of 30, regardless of whether they were married or not. Monarchy - A single ruler like a king. This type of government is called an oligarchy. But Sparta was very different from the other Greek city-states. The Spartans spoke Greek. We tend to look at the ancient Greek city-state of Spartaas being a warrior society, which it was, but also as less sophisticated than intellectual centers like Athens. The Doric state of Sparta, copying the Doric Cretans, instituted a mixed governmental state: it was composed of elements of monarchical, oligarchical, and democratic systems. One of the most iconic things for Sparta is the battle formation phalanx. The ancient city of Athens, Greece, had a democratic government. The Perioeci were free, unlike the helots, but were not full Spartan citizens. Nos partenaires et nous-mêmes stockerons et/ou utiliserons des informations concernant votre appareil, par l’intermédiaire de cookies et de technologies similaires, afin d’afficher des annonces et des contenus personnalisés, de mesurer les audiences et les contenus, d’obtenir des informations sur les audiences et à des fins de développement de produit. Yahoo fait partie de Verizon Media. What would happen to boys at age 7 in Sparta? Sparta had two kings ruling together but at the same time creating a system of checks and balances in a modified version of a democratic society. Sparta had a highly unusual system of government. All classical Greek city-states had a politeia; the politeia of Sparta however, was noted by many classical authors for its unique features, which supported a rigidly layered social system and a strong hoplite army. How could Sparta compete with that? What Type of Government Did Athens Have? 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