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Ancient History: Greece > Spartan Government System: The Ephorate > Flashcards

Spartan Government System: The Ephorate Flashcards

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1
Q

What was the ephorate?

A
  • A board of five ephors who were the chief magistrates and administrative officials in Sparta
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2
Q

How did the ephorate originate?

A
  • Unknown
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3
Q

What are the three theories of the origin of the Ephorate?

A
  • Originally priests and astrologers
  • Created by the kings to carry on the government while they were at war
  • Originally connected with the five villages and may have been chiefs who became advisors to the kings
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4
Q

When did the Ephorate win their great political power? How did it develop?

A
  • 7th Century BC

- Their power slowly increased until they had taken over the main powers of the kings

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5
Q

Outline the election process of the Ephorate. Who could stand? How were they elected? When did they take office? What would they do upon appointment?

A
  • Any Spartan over the age of 30 could stand
  • Elected by the assembly annually, by acclamation
  • Took office at the full moon - after the autumnal equinox
  • Upon appointment would issue a proclamation to all citizens to shave their moustaches and obey the laws
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6
Q

What monthly oath did the ephors make?

A
  • To uphold the office of the kings as long as they behaved in accordance with the laws
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7
Q

Were the ephors empowered to depose the king?

A
  • Yes
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8
Q

What are the seven main functions of the Ephorate?

A
  • Checks on the kings (overseers)
  • Dealing with foreign policy
  • Dealing with the army
  • Control over magistrates
  • Supervision over training
  • The Krypteia
  • Dealings with the Gerousia
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9
Q

As representatives of the people and a democratic element, the ephorate were expected to do what? (2)

A
  • Keep a check on the kings both at home and on campaign

- Summon the kings before them for misdemeanours

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10
Q

In terms of foreign powers, what did the Ephorate deal with?

A
  • Foreign embassies
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11
Q

What does Xenophon tell us about the ephors and their control over the borders?

A
  • Before foreign representatives could enter Sparta they had to halt at the border and wait the permission of the ephors
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12
Q

Who did envoys make their proposals or demands to? What was then decided?

A
  • The ephors

- If they should go before the assembly

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13
Q

What did ephors do when war was declared? (3)

A
  • Decided which age classes should go
  • Issued orders mobilising the army
  • Gave instructions to the generals and recalled them if they failed
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14
Q

What did the ephorate do in terms of controlling magistrates? What happened after a magistrate´s year in office?

A
  • Held great power over lesser magistrates
  • At the end of a magistrate’s year in office, he gave an account of himself to the ephors, who then decided if any punishment was in order
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15
Q

What did the ephorate do in terms of supervising training? (3)

A
  • Had total control over training and discipline of the youth
  • Any misconduct was reported to the ephors and Spartan youths were given a regular physical examination
  • Chose the three captains of the elite corps of the Spartan army
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16
Q

What is the name of the secret police organisation that was under orders from the ephors

A
  • The Krypteia
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17
Q

How has the Krypteia been portrayed?

A
  • As a tyrannical and vicious weapon - used to murder helots indiscriminately
18
Q

What two sources mention the role played by the Krypteia and the removal of the helot population

A
  • Plutarch and Aristotle
19
Q

Was a secret police organisation common practice in the Ancient Greek world?

A
  • No. This was unique to Sparta and never adopted by other Greek states
20
Q

Give a quote from Aristotle about the Krypteia

A
  • “the ephors used to declare war on the helots - so that they could be massacred without offending the gods”
21
Q

Give a quote from Plutarch about the Krypteia

A

“(The Krypteia)” killed all the helots they could light upon”

22
Q

Who was in the Krypteia? Why? How so? (2)

A
  • Most probably a body of eighteen to twenty year old youths - at the disposal of the ephors for special service
  • Membership formed part of the training of the youths
  • In that they:
    • Served for two years
    • Provided a useful method for removing undesirables - specifically helots
23
Q

What was the ephorate’s relationship with the Gerousia? What did the ephors preside over? What did they initiate? What did they do with the Gerousia? What sort of judges were they?

A
  • They summoned and presided over sessions of the Gerousia and the Assembly, as well as initiating legislation
  • With the Gerousia they acted as a court of criminal justice and carried out punishments
  • They were criminal judges in cases involving perioikoi and together constituted the Supreme Civil Court
24
Q

What are the two limitations of the Ephorate?

A
  • Answerable to the public body

- Despite their great powers, they were subject to certain restrictions

25
Q

What restrictions were the ephors subject to? (3)

A
  • They were elected for one year only
  • When they became private citizens once again they could be called to account for their actions in an audit by their successor
  • They could not be re-elected
26
Q

Was the ephorate democratic or oligarchic?

A
  • Both
27
Q

According to Xenophon, what 3 ‘rights’ did the ephors have? (all one quote)

A
  • The “right to inflict punishment at will, to require immediate fines and to depose magistrates during their term of office”
28
Q

What does Xenophon compare the ephorate to? (quote) Explain

A
  • “Like tyrants or presidents (referees) at the games they punish the offender as soon as the offence is detected”
  • He uses the word tyrant but not in a negative sense, he compares them to referees, ensuring that the game is fair
29
Q

According to Xenophon, what did the ephors “exercise”?

A
  • “by watching each man’s conduct, they exercise a restraining hand on all”
30
Q

According to Xenophon, what would Spartan boys do when called upon by the ephors?

A
  • They would run
31
Q

How does Aristotle refer to the ephorate’s power?

A
  • “excessive, virtually that of a tyrant”
32
Q

How does Aristotle claim that the Ephorate damaged the constitution? (Quote)

A
  • “even the kings were forced to curry favour from them, and this has caused further damage to the constitution, for an aristocracy turned into a democracy”
33
Q

What is an issue that Aristotle points out about the ephorate?

A
  • Because they are selected from among the entire population they are “open to bribes”
34
Q

Aristotle refers to the two ephors who accompanied the king on campaign as what? (Quote)

A
  • “the kings’ greatest enemy”
35
Q

According to Plutarch, why did the Spartans impose the Ephorate in the first place?

A
  • After Lycurgus’ reforms, the Spartans realised that oligarchy was the most dominant form of government in Sparta and imposed the Ephorate as a curb on the undiluted oligarchy
36
Q

What does Plutarch imply about the Ephorate? As in what sort of process is it?

A
  • That it is a democratic process
37
Q

In what way are Xenophon and Aristotle’s opinions of the ephorate similar?

A
  • Both call them tyrants and say that the ephors had incredible sway and influence over Spartan policy
38
Q

In what way do Xenophon and Aristotle’s opinions of the ephorate differ?

A
  • Xenophon describes them in an overall positive light (referees and all that)
  • Aristotle says their power was excessive. They were open to corruption and bribery and gave the common people an undue influence over political matters
39
Q

Why does Xenophon write favourably of the ephorate? When did he live and write? Who did he become friends with? What about his sons?

A
  • He lived and wrote at the end of the Peloponnesian War in the late 5th century BC (many of Athens’ intellectuals of this time were laconophiles)
  • On his campaigns as a mercenary commander, Xenophon endeared himself to the Spartan King Agesilaus and later became a Spartan embassador
  • There is strong evidence to suggest that his sons went through the agoge
40
Q

Why does Aristotle write less favourable of the ephorate? When did he live and write? What was Sparta like at this point? How was he different to his intellectual predecessors?

A
  • Not an Athenian but moved to Athens and studied under Plato in the 4th century BC
  • At this point Sparta had crumbled under internal disorders, as well as a success of military defeats (the rose tinted view of Sparta had been shattered)
  • Aristotle made a clear break from his intellectual predecessors by viewing Sparta through a critical lens

Ancient History: Greece (17 decks)

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