league to which each member was to contribute annually either ships or an amount
of money, to be supervised by Athenian officials called Hellenotamiai, treasurers of
the Greeks. The league also brought economic benefits by securing the main trading
routes against piracy. In the early 460s, Cimon, the son of Miltiades, carried the
campaign against Persia into Asia Minor and defeated the forces of Xerxes on land,
and in 468 at the battle of Eurymedon in Pamphylia effectively eliminated the Persian
threat. Cimon conducted further campaigns against Persian interests in Cyprus until
his death in 460/59. Athens then resigned her claims to Cyprus in the Peace of Callias;
both sides recognized each other’s sphere of interest, and the supremacy of Athens
in the Aegean was thereby confirmed.
Democracy and empire: Periclean Athens
In the fifty years between the Persian and Peloponnesian wars, Athens was trans-
formed internally and in its external relations. A series of internal changes radicalized
the constitution of Cleisthenes. In 487, it was decided that the archons should
subsequently be elected by lot, one from each of the ten tribes, from 500 candidates
nominated by the demes and selected not exclusively from the first class of citizens
but including the second class too. Thus the power of the old aristocratic families was
severely curtailed. In 462–461 Ephialtes, supported by Pericles, reduced the privileges
and powers of the Areopagus, a body composed of ex-archons who held office for
life (a majority of whom were likely to be aristocratic or wealthy), which had general
guardianship of the constitution. Jurisdiction over all cases except those involving
homicide was transferred to the popular courts, the heliaea, so that the people virtually
monopolized the administration of justice. Other powers were transferred to the
council, making the role of the Areopagus largely ceremonial. In 454 the archonship
was opened up to the third class of citizens. This further weakened the power of the
wealthiest and broadened the democratic base of the state. Pericles then introduced
payment for jury service. Thereafter payment for office, which might encourage the
less wealthy, became a feature of the radical democracy.
In the developed democracy, the sovereign body was the assembly (the ekklesia),
of which all adult male citizens were members. Business was put before it, in the form
of motions, by the council of 500 (the boule), to which appointment was by lot from
those over 30. No one could serve on the council more than twice in a lifetime. The
Athenian year was split into ten parts of 36 days each called a prytany.The council
was also subdivided into ten groups of 50 which each presided for a prytany.This was
a small enough group to pay, and its members met every day. There were four
assemblies per prytany.One was required to take a vote of confidence on the officials
then serving, to oversee arrangements for the grain supply and for the defence of the
HISTORY 61