The Four Tribes of Attica - The Tribes and Kings of Early Athens
Athens Before Draco
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• The Rise of the Greeks
By Michael Grant. Currently available on cassette.
• A History of the Ancient World
By Chester Starr.
• History of Greece to the Death of Alexander the Great
By J. B. Bury.
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Here you'll find information on the social order in Attica (and specifically Athens) before the codification of law by Draco.
Athenian Social Units
Oikos
Most family heads in Ancient Greece were subsistence landowners. The property was held by and transmitted through the oikos, which consisted of a family plus any free or slave dependents. It is from the Greek word oikos that we get the word "economy".
Genos
A group of ancient Greek families claiming descent from a common ancestor was known as the
genos
'clan'. The families of the
genos shared religious cults. Shared religion proved to be a strong bond. It was the heads of the
gene (plural of
genos) who arranged marriages.
Phratry
Thirty
gene formed a
phratry, which Michael Grant says was probably the equivalent of a village or city-ward. Each
phratry held an annual religious festival in which it enrolled new members.
Tribe or Phylai
Three phratries formed a tribe or phylai headed by a tribal king. The earliest known function of the tribes was military. They were corporate bodies with their own priests and officials, as well as military and administrative units. The original four phylai in Athens were the
- Geleontes
- Hopletes
- Argadeis
- Aegicoreis
Kings of the Athenians
According to tradition, the tribes of Attica were originally united under a single king (of the Medontid line) whose job was to hold together the 4 tribes. [See
King Codrus.]
But historian Chester Starr says the tribal kings of Attica lacked the power to unite factions that medieval monarchs had. The ancient tribal kings were weak financially. Life was simple. Everyone, including the king, was expected to work. This sameness led to a sense of relative equality and enforced the idea that all tribesmen had rights. The equality was only relative, however. Society was divided into two social classes, the upper of which sat with the king in council for major problems. The upper class also provided war leaders, thereby lessening the need for a kingly military leader.
- King -->
- Polemarch & King -->
- Polemarch, King, & Civil affairs Archon -->
- Polemarch (military), First Archon (civil), and King-Archon (religion) -->
- Thesmothetai ( 3 other Archons)
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Archons Replaced Kings
It is thought that at an early date a war leader (
polemarch) was appointed to share power with the king. Soon the king found himself subordinated to a second, new
archon in civil affairs. A king named
Acastus is thought to have surrendered his position as king in favor of a lifetime appointment as
archon (later,
first archon). The Athenians kept a king-
archon for religious matters. In perhaps the mid-8th century, the lifetime-
archon appointment was replaced with a 10-year term. From about the 680's the appointment was made every year. Somewhat later, 6 more
archons were added, the
Thesmothetai 'layers down of law', so there were 9 annually-elected officials. This meant the monarchy (one ruler) was replaced by an aristocratic oligarchy (rule by the noble few).
Aristotle on the Early Government of Athens
"Now the ancient constitution, as it existed before the time of Draco, was organized as follows. The magistrates were elected according to qualifications of birth and wealth. At first they governed for life, but subsequently for terms of ten years. The first magistrates, both in date and in importance, were the King, the Polemarch, and the Archon. The earliest of these offices was that of the King, which existed from ancestral antiquity. To this was added, secondly, the office of Polemarch, on account of some of the kings proving feeble in war; for it was on this account that Ion was invited to accept the post on an occasion of pressing need. The last of the three offices was that of the Archon...."
Aristotle Athenian Constitution
Advisors to the Archons
By the time of Solon, if not before,
archons automatically became members of the
Areopagus. They held office for life, administered justice, and advised the
thesmothetai. Since
archons were noblemen (
eupatrids), so were members of the Areopagus, but another (at this time less important) body, the assembly (
ecclesia) was comprised of
all citizens including the lower class peasants, laborers, artisans, and tradesmen, the
orgeones.
Articles on Greek Democracy
