Ancient Greek governments traditionally were monarchy-based, dating back to the 9th and 10th centuries BC. For the 7th and 6th centuries during the Archaic Period, political power began to be wielded by aristocratic families, … See more

First period of power
Peisistratos assumed and held power for three different periods of time, ousted from political office and exiled twice during his reign, before taking … See more

Domestic
One of the major areas of focus for Peisistratos and his government was the economy, and building and expanding on what his predecessor, Solon, had originally started. Peisistratos, likewise, had a two pronged … See more

Peisistratos died in 527 or 528 BC, and his eldest son, Hippias, succeeded him as tyrant of Athens. Hippias, along with his brother, Hipparchus, kept many of the existing laws and taxed the Athenians at no more than five percent of their income. In 514 BC, a plot to … See more

Not much is known about the early years of Peisistratos' life, but his father, Hippocrates, attended the Olympic Games in either 608 or 604 and during a sacrifice to the gods, the meat was boiled without a fire and was witnessed by Chilon the Lacedaemonian. As … See more

Analysis of secondary sources regarding both the length, as mentioned previously, and the accomplishments of Peisistratos' first two tyrannies are conflicting and very sparse in details, respectively. For instance, Lavelle hypothesizes that Megakles and the … See more

As opposed to the modern definition of a tyrant, a one-person leader whose ruling attributes are often considered to be violent and oppressive, the usage of the term tyrant during the Archaic Age of Greece did not automatically imply dictatorial or harsh … See more