Rule of Thirty

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The rule of the thirty ( ancient Greek οἱ Τριάκοντα Τύραννοι hoi Triakonta Tyrannoi , German 'die thirty tyrants' ) was an eight month period - from August 404 to March 403 BC. Chr. - permanent reign of terror from 30 oligarchs in ancient Athens .

Supported by the Spartan general Lysander , men striving for oligarchy seized power after Athens' defeat in the Peloponnesian War and had more than 1,500 political opponents murdered during their rule . Their fall under the leadership of Thrasyboulos paved the way for the restoration of Attic democracy .

Situation after the end of the Peloponnesian War

After the end of the Peloponnesian War, Athens' future seemed uncertain at first, because the Spartan peace agreements contained nothing about the future status of Athens. After all, the city was spared high maintenance payments to Sparta and colonists. Nonetheless, the situation in Athens was tense, since with the victorious Lysander emigrants and exiles, including former members of the oligarchical council of the four hundred , had returned. The supporters of the oligarchy, like those of democracy, first tried to gain power. Shortly before Lysander's return from Samos , the oligarchs prevailed; they had the leaders of the democratic forces arrested by the Council of Five Hundred . Although the supporters of democracy were largely isolated afterwards, it was only through threats from Lysander that they were intimidated in a popular assembly and the decision was made to entrust thirty men with the task of recasting the laws under which they were to administer the state. As a result, the thirty eliminated the popular assembly as the decision-making body in favor of the council they dominated and established a rule in the course of which more than 1,500 Athenians were murdered.

The duration of the rule of the thirty

The events between the surrender of Athens on the 16th Munichion 404 BC BC and the onset of the thirty require an interval of several months, as Lysander sailed to Samos, besieged the city, captured it, arranged the conditions there and then went to Athens.

Since, according to Xenophon, the rule of the thirty lasted eight months, Lysander's trip to Samos following the election of the thirty with a solar eclipse on September 3, 404 BC. The deposition, including the first and last month, took place in April of the year 403 BC. Instead of. Assuming that Lysander needed a certain amount of time to travel to Samos, it must be assumed that the rule of the thirty began as early as August 404 BC. Is to be set. The beginning of August is supported by the fact that Lysander, after the onset of the thirty at the end of the summer of 404 BC. Went to Samos.

It can therefore be stated that the rule of the thirty in mid / end of August 404 BC. And that after eight months of reign in March 403 B.C. Was overthrown.

The Spartan occupation

The Athenians asked for by the Spartans a crew and were then a 700-strong crew team under the leadership of harmosts Kallibios . According to Aristotle , the Spartan occupation was only called after the unsuccessful campaign of the Thirty against the fortress Phyle and after the death of Theramenes , while according to other reports the executions of many citizens were already taking place under the protection of the Spartan troops . Nevertheless, Aristotle's statements are to be believed.

As a reason for the request for military support from the Spartans, Xenophon states that the thirty had asked the occupation to “deal with the city as it pleased ” (Xen. Hell. 2,3,13) and the desired To be able to set up a constitution. Aristotle, on the other hand, reports that the thirty sent envoys to Sparta to justify the killing of Theramenes and to ask for support for a blow against Thrasybulus. This means that the Thirty did not bring the Spartan garrison until they needed them to reach a decision and stabilize their position shaken by the defeat at Phyle. However, these reasons did not exist in the early days of their rule.

Aristotle describes the occupation of the Spartans as necessary for the rule of the state by the thirty: "They [the thirty] now had the state safely under control, with Callibios and the Peloponnesians present as well as some of the Hippeis supporting them" (Arist. AP 37.1). This means that the thirty could only rule the state with the help of the occupation or that they were dependent on the support of the occupation. Nothing can be found in Aristotle about this support from the crew. Xenophon, on the other hand, goes into more detail about the crew in some places. He describes that the thirty sent envoys to Sparta to request a garrison for the time "until they got rid of the common rabble and set up the new constitution." (Xen. Hell. 2,3,13) These Place allows two possible interpretations: Either the place really only says something about the duration of the occupation or about the end of the occupation or it is to be understood in such a way that the thirty needed the occupation to achieve their goals. That the latter interpretation is the more likely possibility becomes clear in the following.

After the crew had arrived in Athens, Callibios was treated very politely by the thirty, in order to be sure of his approval of their plans and because he always put enough men on his guard for the thirty. The reason for the requirement and courteous treatment of the Spartans is that the thirty requested the occupation in order to be able to establish the state and because they needed their armed force to achieve their goals. This means, however, that the thirty asked the occupation not to protect them from external enemies, but to carry out their idea of ​​domination. And the occupation under Callibios seems to have become a compliant instrument of the thirty, for the occupation soldiers always appeared when the thirty wanted to follow their decisions with deeds. So the thirty intimidated the councilors after Theramenes' conviction by the occupation soldiers standing in front of the town hall. But also the people were frightened by the soldiers. The thirty also used the soldiers to intimidate them when voting on the arrested men from Eleusis and Salamis .

It can therefore be said that the thirty brought the occupation to Athens in order to secure their decisions and their rule against their own people with them and that they abused the occupation forces for oppression. At the same time, however, the occupation force meant Athens' dependence on Sparta, as the rule of the thirty was stabilized by the occupation forces.

The harmost Kallibios is to be reproached for allowing himself to be abused and probably becoming a willing tool of the thirty. The Occupation, by intimidating the people and supporting the Thirty, helped keep the Thirty in power.

The rule of thirty

The history of the rule

When Lysander drove to Samos after the demolition of the Long Walls began , it was not foreseeable that the rule of the Thirty would soon begin in Athens. But democracy supporters had to be careful, as emigrants and displaced persons had also returned with Lysander; so did former members of the oligarchical council of the four hundred who wanted revenge for their exile. The re-active hetairies also posed a threat to democracy. On the other side, strategists , taxarchs and respected citizens formed in order to preserve the still existing democracy. Theramenes wanted to promote the oligarchical overthrow and finally asked Lysander for support. With this support, the coming rule became, in effect, a satellite regime of Sparta.

The establishment of rule

As already considered, the rule of the thirty began under the archon Pythodorus in early September 404 BC. This was preceded by their forced election by Lysander, because he found that the Athenians had broken the terms of the peace treaty and because, in his opinion, they had torn down the walls later than agreed. Thus, under the massive threat from Lysander, the popular assembly voted in favor of the oligarchy as the form of government and elected thirty, ten from each party, following the proposal of Drakontides from Aphida . Their task should be to bundle the laws of the fathers in a new constitution and to administer the state according to this. In this task and in the election of the thirty, however, the formation of a government cannot be seen, but only the attempt of the thirty to legalize their rights in such a way that they could exercise all power in the polis . However, this is not certain, especially since Aristotle reports that the thirty quickly disregarded the resolutions: "After they had become masters of the city, they disregarded all other resolutions about the constitution" (Arist. AP 35.1). So they first chose the 500 council members from the 1000 preselected members and then from their friends the officials for the other state offices in order to have docile tools. - They eliminated the Ekklesie in favor of the council dominated by them. “In addition, they elected ten archons for the Piraeus, eleven prison guards and three hundred assistants armed with whips to support them and thus kept the polis under control.” (Arist. AP 35,1) - These assistants are to be regarded as the bodyguard with the thirty protected themselves against resistance.

Two projects can be cited as a government program: 1. The cleansing of Athens from bad elements ( sycophants and aristocrats ) and 2. the guidance of the citizens to virtue and justice. “At first they were moderate towards the citizens and pretended to have the traditional state order (pátrios politeía) in mind; the laws of Ephialtes and Archestratos over the Areopagites removed them from the Ares hill . ” (Arist. AP 35,2) Then they repealed the laws of Solon , abolished the people's courts and transferred the judiciary to the council, while they themselves presided over the court retained. As a first measure of their new power, the thirty had the arrested strategists , taxiarches and respected citizens brought before the council for condemnation , even though the people wanted to bring them to a court of 2,000 judges. All but Agoratos were sentenced to death and executed. They did the same with everyone who had lived on the sycophantic system during the democratic period. One of Critias ' speeches shows how far this elimination went: "And if we notice that someone is an opponent of the oligarchy, we try as far as possible to get him out of the way" (Xen. Hell 2, 3.26). Nevertheless, the action of the thirty found the approval of the citizens.

The thirty achieved two different goals through their actions: They got rid of unpopular opponents, besides sycophants and demagogues also prominent democrats, and gained the favor of the people. Both meant consolidating their rule.

The exercise of domination

After the thirty established their rule, they began to turn their power against the people. The thirty discussed how to act violently and how to deal with the citizens as they pleased. That is, the thirty planned to rule the people violently and arbitrarily. Here at the latest it becomes clear that they did not want to be restricted by laws; this also contributed to the fact that they delayed the writing of the laws under which governance was to take place under pretexts.

“When they ruled the polis more reliably, they no longer spared citizens, but killed those who stood out because of their wealth, their origins or their reputation; in this way they freed themselves from their fear, and they wanted to take possession of the property of those who had been killed; and in a short time they killed no less than 1,500 people. "

- Arist. : AP 35.4

From this account it becomes clear that the thirty killed those citizens who had distinguished themselves by wealth, origin, or ability and whom they expected to oppose the exercise of power. In addition to the fear of the restriction of power or its loss, a second motive for their actions becomes clear: greed. Many were captured, killed, and their goods distributed among the thirty on the pretext of overthrowing the constitution; the others were terrified. The victims of the reign of terror included u. a. Polemarchus, the brother of the speaker Lysias , Hippias of Thasus , Xenophon of Ikaria and the athlete Autolycus .

It is questionable whether, as shown, 1500 people were actually killed within a short period of time. It seems more credible that the number relates to the entire reign of the thirty.

Another motive for murdering many citizens was revenge. Xenophon describes that Critias , leader of the thirty, had many people killed, and that the explanation for this lies in the fact that "he was previously banished by the people." (Xen. Hell. 2,3,15) Theramenes must do this too have recognized, since he advised Critias against the murder of men who enjoyed respect with the people and who would have done nothing to the upper class. More unjust executions followed and citizens began to wonder what would become of the constitution. Eventually civil unrest broke out, and Theramenes urged the thirty to end their violence and let the best citizens participate in government, otherwise the oligarchy could not possibly survive. Behind the demand is an idea of ​​rule that differs greatly from that of Critias: While Theramenes wanted to legitimize the rule through the participation of all those who could equip themselves as horsemen or hoplites, Critias probably endeavored to increase the number of rulers to keep the people involved low.

The thirty entered "in a list the names of three thousand citizens who, as it was said, were to take part in official business in the future." (Xen. Hell. 2,3,18) But that means that all others do not participate in the Were allowed to participate in official business and therefore should not receive full civil rights. Only the three thousand were to be subject to the jurisdiction of the council, and all others to that of the thirty. The thirty did not create the list because they wanted to let the citizens participate in the rule, but because they feared that the citizens might gather around Theramenes and that Theramenes, as the leader of the people, would remove their rule. Publication of the list was repeatedly delayed by the Thirty, and they made repeated changes to it. - The criterion for inclusion in the list was probably only reliability.

The decline of rule

The decline of power began with the fight for Phyle , as this is to be seen as the turning point of rule. Before that, despite their arbitrary and unjust actions against the Athenians, the Thirty had repeatedly succeeded in getting the Athenians to "keep quiet". After the fight for Phyle, however, the problems emerged openly, and the rule of the thirty threatened to lose its power or to be overcome by the democratic resistance to Thrasybulus.

The occupation of Phyles can be assumed, since it is mentioned by Aristotle, Diodor and Xenophon. According to Xenophon, disputes developed first within the city up to the death of Theramenes and the expulsion of the citizens, and only then did the military events outside the city begin. With Aristotle, on the other hand, the order of events is different: with him, the occupation of Phyles seems to have been the reason for eliminating Theramenes. With this assumption, the measures taken by the thirty are understandable. Therefore, here too, Aristotle's account must be believed, at least for the chronology of events.

According to Xenophon, the thirty withdrew from the city “in bright weather” and when they were in front of Phyle, “heavy snowfall set in at night and continued throughout the following day” (Xen. Hell. 2,4,2 -3) This suggests the beginning of winter. This assumption is supported by Diodorus and Aristotle. Diodorus reports that a lot of snow fell and Aristotle describes that winter was just beginning. It can therefore be assumed that the occupation of Phyles by Thrasybulus fell in late autumn or early winter. This was the beginning of the end of the rule of the thirty, since the move of the thirty against Phyle was not crowned with success and instead they “had to withdraw shamefully. "

According to Aristotle, the defeat before Phyle is the reason why the thirty eliminated Theramenes and took away the arms of the citizens except for the three thousand. With Xenophon the condemnation and execution of Theramenes preceded the defeat of Phyle, but after the disarmament of the people. As already mentioned, Aristotle is more credible in the chronology, since he describes Theramenes' execution as a result of the defeat.

The thirty passed the resolution to disarm the people, whereupon Theramenes objected to the resolution, because he did not want the city to be weakened. Theramenes was subsequently charged. At this point, however, Xenophon's description of the persecution and murder of thirty Metöken must be mentioned, since these events can only occur chronologically between the defeat before Phyle and Theramenes' murder.

"So they decided, in order to be able to pay the occupation crew, that each of them should seize and execute a Metöken and confiscate his property."

- Xen. : Hell. 2,3,21

As already stated, the occupation team was very likely not yet in Athens, but arrived in Athens later. Therefore, the argument that the Thirty the assets of metics needed to pay for the occupation, not even be believed; on the contrary, it must be assumed that they enriched themselves with the wealth of the metics out of greed. This can be supported by a description of Lysias, because according to him two poor men were also to be arrested in order to avoid the appearance that the arrest and murder were carried out only for the sake of money and for the good of the state. Theramenes refused this action, reprimanded the thirty for their actions and threatened to put an end to the executions with like-minded citizens. The capture and murder was carried out and, among other things, the speaker Lysias, who later escaped, and his brother Polemarch were arrested.

The thirty believed themselves threatened by Theramenes or impaired in their decisions and decided to eliminate it. To this end, they slandered him against the individual council members by claiming that he was undermining their rule. A council was called to indict Theramenes. From this point on, the descriptions of Aristotle and Xenophon differ significantly. While Aristotle briefly describes the course of events up to Theramenes' death, Xenophon's account is considerably more extensive. In Xenophon there is a long speech by Critias, the accuser, and Theramenes' counter-speech. - It seems as if Xenophon Theramenes wanted to erect a literary monument by having him accuse the thirty of their criminal acts in his counter-speech to Kritias' indictment. Theramenes was accused by Critias before the council of being an enemy and traitor to the government. Since Theramenes defended himself skilfully and effectively and the council reacted benevolently, Critias intimidated the council by armed men, because he feared that Theramenes might be acquitted. To forestall this, he struck Theramenes from the list of three thousand, removing him from the jurisdiction of the council and sentencing him to death. The motive for the process and its outcome must be assumed that Critias feared a loss of power and wanted to forestall it. The process also shows how self-righteously and self-righteously the legitimate opinions of others were dealt with: Dissenting views were not allowed, but suppressed or punished with death.

The death of Theramenes ushered in a new phase in the action of the thirty: They disarmed the citizens up to the three thousand, then increased their cruelty and wickedness and expelled or killed citizens. Political interests were no longer in the foreground, but hostility and greed determined their actions. Their hostility to the Athenians increased, and they forbade anyone outside the three thousand from entering the city and dragging them from their estates.

The thirty tried to avert the external danger from Thrasybulus by bribing him. But Thrasybulus did not allow himself to be bribed, but carried out a devastating attack on an observation post of the thirty near Acharna. The thirty saw their rule seriously endangered and occupied Eleusis and Salamis as a place of refuge. The men there were arrested and taken to Athens. Those arrested were sentenced to death and executed to the delight of those who were always concerned with their own gain. Eventually the thirty were defeated by Thrasybulus in a battle in Piraeus , they were ordered to emigrate to Eleusis, and ten other men were chosen to end the war.

The fact that the rule of the thirty was ended was not least because the influence of Lysander was curtailed by the Spartan king. Pausanias also enforced an amnesty between the democratically and oligarchically-minded citizens of Athens; only the main culprits were executed. All other citizens close to the oligarchy were allowed to form a special community in Eleusis. This paved the way for the restitution of the democratic constitution.

Comparison of different representations

Aristotle Xenophon Diodor
Disarming the people 2, 3, 20
Execution of Theramenes 2,3,56 Execution of Theramenes 14,5,3
Expulsion of the demo from the city 2,4,1 Expulsion of the demonstration from the city 14.32.3
Occupation of Phyles by Thrasybulus 37.1 Occupation of Phyles by Thrasybulus 2,4,2 Occupation of Phyles by Thrasybulus 14.32.1
Execution of Theramenes 37.2
Disarming the People 37.2
Brutal Action by the Thirty 37.2
Attempt by the thirty to bribe Thrasybulus 14.32.5
Arrival of the Spartan crew 37.2 Aid requested from Sparta 14.32.6
Defeat of the thirty at Acharnä 2,4,4 Defeat of the thirty at Acharna 14.33.1
Occupation of Eleusis 2,4,8
Battle and defeat of the thirty in Piraeus 38.1 Battle and defeat of the thirty in Piraeus 2,4,10ff. Battle and defeat of the thirty in Piraeus 14.33.2ff.
Deposition of Thirty 38.1 Deposition of the thirty 2,4,23 Deposition of thirty 14.33.5

The names of the thirty

effect

The rule of the thirty, in some eyes, was by no means just an example of failed politics. At the beginning of the 19th century, sections of nationalist fraternities were fascinated by the idea of ​​the radical political leadership elite born from antiquity, which included terrorist violence as a legitimate means in their tactics. In particular, the Kotzebue assassin Karl Ludwig Sand and his circle were known as admirers of the era of thirty.

literature

swell

  • Aristotle : The State of the Athenians. (Reclams UB 3010) translated and edited by Martin Dreher, Stuttgart 1993, ISBN 3-15-003010-2 .
  • Diodor ’s of Sicily Historical Library. translated and edited by Julius Friedrich Wurm, 4 vols., Stuttgart 1839–1840.
  • Isocrates : Complete Works. Volume 1: Speeches I-VIII. (Library of Greek Literature, Vol. 36) translated by Christine Ley-Hutton, 2 Vols., Stuttgart 1993, ISBN 3-7772-9307-5 .
  • Lysias : Lysias with an English translation by WRM Lamb. (The Loeb classical library, vol. 244) London & Cambridge / Mass. 1967, ISBN 0-674-99269-5 .
  • Plutarch : Plutarch's Lives with an English translation by Bernadotte Perrin in 11 volumes. Vol. 4: Alcibiades and Coriolanus, Lysander and Sulla. (The Loeb Classical Library, vol. 80), London, Cambridge / Mass. 1968.
  • Xenophon : Hellenika. Greek and German. (Tusculum Collection) translated and edited by Gisela Strasburger, 3rd edition, Düsseldorf & Zürich 2000, ISBN 3-7608-1639-8 .

Selection of secondary literature