Historical Figure

Cleisthenes

6th-century BC Athenian lawgiver

Born: 569 BCE · Died: 500 BCENationality: Classical Athens

About Cleisthenes

Cleisthenes, or Clisthenes, was an ancient Athenian lawgiver credited with reforming the constitution of ancient Athens and setting it on a democratic footing in 508 BC. For these accomplishments, historians refer to him as "the father of Athenian democracy". He was a member of the aristocratic Alcmaeonid clan. He was the younger son of Megacles and Agariste making him the maternal grandson of the tyrant Cleisthenes of Sicyon. He was also credited with increasing the power of the Athenian citizens' assembly and for reducing the power of the nobility over Athenian politics.Wikipedia ↗

Associated Events

Empirec. 508 BCE – 322 BCE

Athenian Democracy

Athens established the world's first known democracy under the reforms of Cleisthenes, creating a system of direct citizen participation in government that became the foundation of Western democratic thought.