How Ancient Greek Democracy Worked

It is not difficult to describe how the ancient Greek democracy worked. It is actually different from our current form of democracy, but it is still fairly straightforward and easy to understand. The ancient Greek democracy found its origins in the city of Athens, Greece. Our current system of “democracy”, although different from the Athenian version, owes its existence to this form of government. As scholar Marvin Perry noted, “Athenian democracy embodied the principle of the legal state: a government based not on force but on laws debated, drawn up, modified, and obeyed by free citizens.” In this short article we will briefly describe how Greek democracy works and the differences between it and the form of democracy we enjoy today.

Teacher. John Keane of the University of Westminster states in the “In Search of Democracy” video series, “Democracy means self-government through the assembly.” (Part 2) This self-government manifested itself through six main institutions. Each part was integral to the operations of the entire system. The main institutions that they made up were the Assembly, the Council of 500, the People’s Court, the Archons, the Areopagus Council and, finally, the Generals.

The “how” of ancient Greek democracy is quite simple. Everything basically flowed interdependently through these six institutions. The legislation was introduced and approved by the will of the people. The military applied the law and the people themselves judged and punished the crime. As we shed some light on individual institutions, we will see the synergy on which the democracy of the ancient Greeks was built and society ruled.

This early Greek democracy was founded on the idea of ​​the Assembly, Ekklesia, in Greek. Historian Christopher W. Blackwell, writes in “Athenian Democracy: A Brief Overview,” the Assembly was “the regular gathering of male Athenian citizens to hear, discuss, and vote on decrees affecting all aspects of Athenian life, both public and private. … “Notice, the assembly was made up only of male citizens. Although women enjoyed the status of citizens, they, as well as foreigners and slaves, were denied a place in the assembly. Members of the assembly frequently propose, debate, and vote on legislation and other state affairs. This was certainly a long process, as each member was allowed to speak and participate in an orderly manner.

The Council of 500 (originally 400) consisted of 500 members, each serving a one-year term. Each member of the council was taken from among the Assembly. The Council was responsible for the management of ports, military installations and other state property. Most importantly, they prepared the Assembly agenda. As we can see, every component of ancient Greek democracy was vital to its proper functioning.

In Aristotle’s Athenian Constitution we read: “There was also going to be a Council, composed of four hundred and one members, chosen by lot from among those who had the suffrage. For both this and the other magistracies, the lot was cast among those who had more thirty years old; and no one could hold office twice until everyone else had had their turn, after which they had to cast their lot again. ” (Aristotle Part 4)

History tells us that these council members were paid. The inclination toward a career in professional politics was held back by the imposed one-year term limit and the opportunity to serve only two terms in life. However, the pay was substantial enough to allow him an absence a year from his main office to attend to state affairs.

The People’s Court formed what was essentially the main judicial arm of the ancient Greek democracy. These were known as “jury courts”, made up of the citizens themselves. In such courts, the members of the jury would hear the cases presented to them and decide the fate of the defendants. Once again, going back to Aristotle, we see that “There are three points in Solon’s constitution that seem to be its most democratic characteristics: first and foremost, the prohibition of loans on the security of the person of the debtor; second, the right of anyone who wanted to claim rectification on behalf of anyone who was being done wrong; thirdly, the institution of appeal to the tribunals of the jury; and it is to the latter, they say, that the masses have owed their strength Most of all, since, when democracy is the owner of the voting power, it is the owner of the constitution. Furthermore, as the laws were not written in simple and explicit terms (but as those of inheritance and guardianship of the State) , disputes inevitably occurred, and the courts had to decide on all matters, whether public or private. ” (Aristotle Part 9)

Next in Greek democracy were the Archons. This was a group of nine men who were essentially the main leaders of the city of Athens. They were highly educated and honest people, originally responsible for making various judgments on public, military and religious affairs.

The fifth vital piece of ancient Greek democracy was the Areopagus or Council of the Areopagus. It was a council of men who had served as judges with jurisdiction over cases of murder and other serious crimes. The court was made up of former Archons and its members served for life. Quoting the ancient writer Demosthenes, we learn that “all of you, of course, are aware that on the Areopagus, where the law permits and orders the trial for murder, first of all, every man who presents a charge of such a crime must take an oath invoking destruction upon himself, his relatives and his house; secondly, that he should not treat this oath as an ordinary oath, but as one that no one swears for any other purpose; because it is on the entrails of a wild boar, a ram, and a bull, and they must have been slaughtered by the necessary officials and on the appointed days, so that both in time and in officials all the solemnity requirements have been met. Even so, the person who has taken this tremendous oath you do not get immediate credit; and if you bring any falsehood home, you will take the perjury stain with you to your children and relatives, but you will get nothing. expel the defendant guilty of murder, inc Portuguese then has no power over the convicted criminal; only the laws and designated officials have power over man to punish him “(Dem. 23,67-69).

Lastly, there were the generals. The generals were entrusted with the military welfare and the affairs of the state. Again, Aristotle informs us, “Four years after the establishment of this system, under the Archon Hermocreon, they first imposed on the Council of the Five Hundred the oath that they take to this day. Then they began to elect the generals by tribes, one of each tribe, while Polemarch was the commander of the entire army. ” (Aristotle Part 22)

As has been shown, each of these six facets of ancient Greek democracy contributed to the proper functioning of the whole. The Assembly, the Council of 500, the People’s Court, the Archons, the Council of the Areopagus and the Generals were the people themselves. Most of the familiar pitfalls of politics were deliberately avoided due to short-term limits. The people carried out the will of the people.

As has been shown, this early Greek democracy was an intensely participatory form of government, unlike our modern representative form of government. Today the United States has what has traditionally been called a democracy, when in reality it is a Republic. The main difference between our government and theirs is the cyclical election of public officials who go to the various state offices and to Washington to represent their constituents. Our voices count, but not in the direct and daily internal functioning of legislating, governing and judging the citizenry.

Furthermore, today’s political figures are well paid and most (if not all) pursue politics as a career. This differs greatly from the classical Greek model of democracy. It has also sparked an endless series of scandals, too numerous to cite here. The masses governed under our system do not easily trust public officials, and are

This cynicism has turned into a general distrust of the government and a desire of citizens to be protected from the constant intrusions of ‘Big Brother’. Our text affirms this sentiment: “We are concerned with protecting the individual from the state, which we often see as a threat to personal liberty and an obstacle to the pursuit of our personal life … the Greeks were not concerned with erecting safeguards against the state; they did not see the state as an alien force, from which to be feared or protected. ” (Perry 63)

Many of the original ideas of the ancient Greek democracy have been preserved in our present Republic. Ours is a more refined system, perhaps. Our kind of democracy serves as a model for justice and freedom around the world in the same way that the fledgling democracy of Greece once did. Although far from perfect, the checks and balances in our system serve to balance the powers of government in very unique and ingenious ways.

Selected works cited:

Aristotle, “The Constitution of Athens”, translated by Sir Frederic G. Kenyon. 350 a. C. http://classics.mit.edu/Aristotle/athenian_const.1.1.html

Demosthenes. Demosthenes with an English translation by AT Murray, Ph.D., LL.D. Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1939.