Notes in red are comments by me rather than my summaries of what is in the book

 

v      Some general issues

Ø       Central government, legal systems, courts, legislature, but

Ø       Many tens of thousands of citizens with the same status--no king, nobles

Ø       Officials almost all chosen by lot for a year

v      Prosecution

Ø       Perhaps originally by magistrates, but ...

Ø       Private case is prosecuted by the victim

Ø       Public case by any free adult male, in some cases only a citizen,

Ø       Murder older than that distinction (Drakon)

§          Not given any of the labels (Graphe etc.) used for other cases

§          Could be prosecuted by relative of the victim

§          Perhaps by anyone (citizen?), but that isn't clear.

Ø       And some (minor) offenses only prosecuted by appropriate magistrate?

Ø       And ten magistrates with the job of prosecuting ex-officials on financial charges at their end of term review

Ø       Many different kinds of cases

§          Dike is "case"

§          Defined by public or private

·          Graphe is a kind of public case, originally defined by being in writing, apparently.

·          Phasis another kind, prosecutor receives half the fine, other differences not known.,

§          By what magistrate/court it was associated with

§          By the procedure for prosecution, for instance

·          Arrest defendant, take him to magistrate

·          Go to magistrate, must then arrest

·          May then arrest

·          ...

§          Special class of cases between two or among more people (claim to inheritance, say), rather than prosecutor and defendant

Ø       Incentive to prosecute

§          In many cases, there is a fine or forfeit, part of which goes to the prosecutor

§          Or the prosecutor might hope to be paid to settle out of court?

§          Or private animosity, political rivalry

·          Demosthenes' was awarded a crown for serving Athens well

·          An opponent sued to nullify the award, in part on the grounds that he hadn't

§          Or public spirit?

Ø       Incentive not to prosecute

§          In most cases, making an out of court settlement counted as an offense by the prosecutor

§          But there were ways of evading that

·          Both parties ask for a postponement because someone is sick

·          And never get around to arranging for the trial to be continued

§          Fewer than 1/5 votes in most cases led to

·          fine for prosecutor

·          And probably disqualification from bringing that kind of suit in the future

§          "Sycophant" was someone who engaged in lots of frivolous prosecution

·          He could be prosecuted for being a sycophant

·          Once a year by any citizen

·          But at most three citizens and three metics could be charged (per year?)

·          Could also be prosecuted by an ordinary Graphe or, later, a different procedure for someone who prosecuted  a ship master or merchant without justifications

v      The laws

Ø       Passed by the assembly, although process also involved the Boule

§          Later, proposed law had to be passed by the assembly, then

§          Then approved by the nomothetai

§          Who were originally a selection of jurors, later appointed by the Assembly

§          Still later some procedures for finding problems with existing laws, suggesting changes to the Assembly (Ekklesia)

Ø       The written law stated when and how it was passed

Ø       Might state how it was to be enforced

§          If it constrained a magistrate, presumably by the normal review at end of term

§          Punishment for violating it might be stated in the law, if not presumably set by the jury

§          Magistrate and court for trial might be stated

§          If not, perhaps implicit by the nature of the offense?

Ø       Could only be tried for violating an existing law, apparently

§          But some laws pretty broad, and ...

§          The prosecutor only had to convince a large amateur jury that the defendant had done something covered by a law--it didn't have to be true.

§          And some people interpret a procedure of accusing people to the Ekklesia or Boule as available for things that ought to be illegal but weren't (see below)

v      [Legal categories of people]

Ø       Citizens, foreigners, slaves

§          Citizen if father a citizen

§          Later only if both father and mother

§          Legitimacy apparently not required

Ø       Anciently citizens in four hereditary tribes, but reorganized by Solon

§          Everyone in deme based on where he lived ("parish").

§          Demes grouped non-geographically into ten tribes

§          Membership in Deme hereditary, so became gradually less geographical over time.

Ø       Deme/tribe organization important for appointment of officials

§          Each deme provided one officer for some offices (ten total)

§          Fixed number of representatives in the Boule  (council of 500)

§          Every adult male citizen registered with his deme.

§          At age 18, legal procedure to register, prove age.

Ø       Aliens occasionally given citizenship

§          Citizens of cities that allied with Athens--citizenship with some restrictions

§          As a special honor

§          Reward for fighting in the navy in one battle

Ø       Outlawry and Atemia

§          Originally, Atemia meant outlawry--could be killed.

§          Came to be distinguished--Atemia was loss of some of the rights of a citizen

§          Could not hold public office, enter temples, etc.

§          Sometimes only partial disfranchisement

§          Penalty if he did things he wasn't permitted to

Ø       Aliens

§          Metics are resident aliens

·          Had to have a citizen sponsor

·          Could use courts, etc., but

·          Special taxes

·          Had to serve in army or navy if required

§          Not clear if all resident aliens are metics

§          Some aliens, metic or otherwise, got particular rights as rewards

·          To own land in Athens

·          To pay taxes at the citizens' rate

·          To serve in the military with citizens instead of with other metics

·          Etc.

Ø       Slaves

§          Hereditary, at least if both parents were slaves

§          Could own nothing

§          Owner not free to kill, but could mistreat

§          Slave could take asylum and ask to be bought be someone else

§          Legal action for offenses against a slave taken by his owner

§          And owner is liable for offenses by his slave

§          In fact, some slaves largely independent, paying a share or fixed payment to owner

§          Slave could be freed, did not become a citizen, could become a metic with previous owner as sponsor, but nobody else.

§          But slaves who fought for Athens got freed and made citizens

§          Special status of public slave, details unknown. Apparently higher.

 

...

v      Marriage, family, etc.

Ø       Kyrios (lord) has two meanings

§          The man who is in charge of a woman or a child

·          The child's father

·          The woman's father until she is married, husband thereafter

O hard is the lot of all womankind

She's always oppressed, she's always confined

Confined by her parents until she's a wife

A slave to her husband the rest of her life

·          If the father is dead, brother or paternal grandfather, if neither

·          A guardian is appointed.

·          If husband dies, either returns to her family, her father is her Kyrios(or ...)

·          Or stay, with husband's heir (possibly her son) as her kyrios

·          Kyrios has authority over, but is responsible for upkeep of

·          An Athenian woman apparently always had a lord, but a Metic might not.

§          The head of a family (Oikos)

·          Senior male in the paternal line

¨       I.e. father

¨       Paternal grandfather, or his father

·          Controls the family property

·          Oikos is family living together

¨       Does not include slaves, concubines or illegitimate children

¨       Does include children, grandchildren, sons' wives, children, grandchildren ...

¨       What if son set up separate household while father still alive?

·          When the Kyrios of an Oikos dies

¨       His son inherits

¨       If more than one legitimate son, could divide into two or more new oikoi.

¨       Did it have to?

¨       If no sons, oikos could become extinct, thought a bad thing

·          Kyrios can hand over control to son or sons while alive if old

·          Can be compelled to do so if senile

§          The meanings are different

·          Adult son is still in the household of which is father is kyrios

·          But the father is not the Kyrios of an adult son (is of a daughter, until married)

·          And the wife of an adult son is in the household of which the father is kyrios

·          But her Kyrios is her husband.

Ø       Marriage

§          After early law change, citizen man can only marry citizen woman

§          Woman's betrothal and marriage require the consent of her kyrios, not of her

·          Dowry arranged by contract, husband holds in trust for their children

·          Uses the income from it to help support the couple

·          If he dies or they divorce, dowry reverts to kyrios

§          Cannot be married to direct ascendant, descendant

·          Or son of her mother

·          But can be to son of her father who is not son of her mother

·          Or any more distant relative--or unrelated man

§          Only one wife, but can also be a concubine (more than one?)

·          If you want to "marry" non-citizen, she has to be your concubine, not wife

·          Concubine could also be slave

§          Wife required to be faithful, husband not

§          Husband who detected adultery is required to divorce wife, could prosecute seducer.

Ø       Divorce

§          Husband could freely divorce wife without cause

§          Wife's father could end marriage, at least if no children

§          Wife could divorce husband--not clear how easily

§          On divorce, for any reason, dowry reverted to the man who provided it or his heir

Ø       Widows

§          If no children, wife returns to her oikos, her Kyrios could give her in marriage again

§          If children, wife could return to her oikos or stay in her husband's (if it still existed?)

§          Or husband could give her (and her dowry) to someone else on his deathbed or in his will.

§          In all cases, dowry goes with wife, along with obligation to support

Ø       Concubines

§          Did not have to be citizens, but apparently could be

§          If held "with regard to producing free children," children were free, were citizens if concubine was a citizen, but not legitimate

§          Otherwise concubine probably a slave, children slaves.

Ø       Children

§          Paternity depended on formal declaration by father,

·          could be compelled by legal proceedings, or

·          revoked on evidence

§          Legitimacy depended on formal marriage of parents (possible brief exception)

·          Formal marriage normally required betrothal by woman's kyrios

·          Or magistrate assigning an heiress

§          Son probably could not be disinherited save by being adopted by someone else.

§          No legal obligation to support children but couldn't kill them.

§          When parents got old, apparently legal obligation of children to support them

·          Unless son had not been taught a craft

·          Had been prostituted

·          Or not legitimate

·          All of which were father's fault

Ø       Inheritance

§          Legitimate sons divided the property

§          If they were minors

·          A guardian or guardians appointed by the Arkhon

·          Typically named by the father before dying

·          Provided food, clothing and housing

·          Served as Kyrios for the son

·          Could use the income from the property for the son's expenses, but ...

·          When son was 18, had to account for property and past use of income, turn over property and any income over expenses to son

·          Competitive bidding to lease estate of a minor, so as to keep the guardian honest

·          While a minor, anyone could prosecute the guardian for mistreating--public case.

·          When an adult, he had five years to bring a private case against the guardian for not handing over the right amount of property

§          If there was only an heiress, no heir

·          Objective is to pass the property forward to her future son(s), keep it in the family

·          She is required to marry her father's nearest male relative willing to have her, if equally near, eldest has preference

·          Even if she has to get divorced to do it, and/or he does

·          Her husband controlls the property until she had an adult son to claim it

·          If two or more heiresses, two or more male relatives could claim them