1. Athens

2. Athen’s first government:
Oligarchy – a government where a group of people have absolute rule
Reforms were made
to the government
to keep people from
uprising.

3. Ruler #1: Draco - wanted to prevent civil war - appointed to draw up a written code - laws applied equally to ALL classes - laws were extremely harsh - did not succeed

4. Ruler #2: Solon
A rich merchant. He set up a constitution that took power away from the rich.
Set up limits on how much land someone could own
Gave landowners a right to vote
Gave assembly power to pass laws
Erased all debts
Freed people enslaved due to debt
Gave citizenship to non-Athenian artists
Ordered fathers to teach sons a trade

5. Under Solon:
More Athenians took part in government
Trade increased
Poor were helped (but not too much)
Rich were VERY affected, but reforms did not necessarily increase their wealth.