Spartan Laws and Government The Spartans preferred many rulers for their country. The divine proclamation, which he received in this manner, is known as a "rhetra" and is given in part by Plutarch as follows: Plutarch provides by way of explanation: "In these clauses, the "phylai" and the "obai" refer to divisions and distributions of the people into clans and phratries, or brotherhoods; by "archagetai" the kings are designated, and "appellazein" means to assemble the people, with a reference to Apollo, the Pythian god, who was the source and author of the polity. In the pre-Classical period, ancient Greece was … What Type of Government Did Athens Have? By 500 BC the Spartans had become increasingly involved in the political affairs of the surrounding city-states, often putting their weight behind pro-Spartan candidates. The Spartans had no historical records, literature, or written laws, which were, according to tradition, prohibited. Fergus O'Brien/Taxi/Getty Images. There was no argument about that. 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. Hoplite soldiers (Chigi Vase, ca. Civil cases were decided by the ephors, and criminal jurisdiction had been passed to the ephors, as well as to a council of elders. He was supplanted also by the ephors in the control of foreign policy. One person ruled in monarchies and tyrannies. 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 elders) and the Apella (the assembly of equals - all Spartan men over the age of 30). Monarchy - A single ruler like a king. Introduction. Neither could foreign embassies or emissaries address the assembly; they had to present their case to the Gerousia, which would then consult with the Ephors. Athens was the birthplace of modern democracy, after all. Document outlining the structure of ancient Spartan government, Structure of Spartan society and government, Learn how and when to remove this template message, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Spartan_Constitution&oldid=1000070501, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles needing additional references from September 2015, All articles needing additional references, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 13 January 2021, at 12:05. Answer for question: Your name: Answers. Athens had the first democracy, and because of Athens we have a democracy.Sparta was ruled by two kings from two royal families, who were helped by a council of wise old men. The ephors, chosen by popular election from the whole body of citizens, represented a democratic element in the constitution. An Oligarchy. Sparta also had a council that created laws. They thought of themselves as Greeks. Sparta focused on producing good soldiers and all Spartan male citizens were part of the army. It was typical for a Spartan home to be made of sun dried mud bricks, with red clay roof tiles. The council was made up of the two kings and twenty-eight elders. Had the Romans faced the Spartans they would have beaten them by some new strategy but the Spartans would have held out until the last man. Parnon (1,935 m). High state policy decisions were discussed by this council who could then propose action alternatives to the demos. These monarchs were particularly powerful when one of them led the army on campaign. A military oligarchy is a government in which the military exercises control over the people. Ancient Greek civilization - Ancient Greek civilization - Sparta and Athens: Prominent among the states that never experienced tyranny was Sparta, a fact remarked on even in antiquity. The council was made up … The ancient city of Athens, Greece, had a democratic government. These kings would lead the army in times of war. [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. Either way, kingship in Sparta was hereditary and thus every king Sparta had was a descendant of the Agiad and the Eurypontid families. What type of government did Sparta and Athens have? Taygetus (2,407 m) and to the east by Mt. Sparta, ancient capital of the Laconia district of the southeastern Peloponnese, southwestern Greece. These men had much military experience and rarely visited their wives and children. ATHENS The Athenian democratic government gave the citizens in Greece more freedom. A Spartan kings’ duties were classified as religious, military, judicial roles. An oligarchy is where a few citizens have a say in the government They thought of themselves as Greeks. There were two exceptions to this rule. 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