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Aesymnetes (
Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
: , from , ''aisa'', a "just portion", hence "a person who gives everyone their just portion") was the name of an ancient Greek elected office similar to, and sometimes indistinguishable from,
tyrant A tyrant (), in the modern English usage of the word, is an absolute ruler who is unrestrained by law, or one who has usurped a legitimate ruler's sovereignty. Often portrayed as cruel, tyrants may defend their positions by resorting to re ...
. The plural is ''aesymnetai''. The title originally signified merely a judge in the heroic games, but afterwards indicated an individual who was occasionally invested voluntarily by his fellow citizens with essentially unlimited power in a Greek state.
Aristotle Aristotle (; grc-gre, Ἀριστοτέλης ''Aristotélēs'', ; 384–322 BC) was a Greek philosopher and polymath during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. Taught by Plato, he was the founder of the Peripatetic school of ph ...
called the office an "elective tyranny", and said that the power of the ''aesymnetai'' partook in some degree of the nature "both of kingly and tyrannical authority; since he was appointed legally and ruled over willing subjects, but at the same time was not bound by any laws in his public administration." Hence
Theophrastus Theophrastus (; grc-gre, Θεόφραστος ; c. 371c. 287 BC), a Greek philosopher and the successor to Aristotle in the Peripatetic school. He was a native of Eresos in Lesbos.Gavin Hardy and Laurence Totelin, ''Ancient Botany'', Routle ...
calls the office ("elective tyranny"), and Dionysius compares it with the
dictator A dictator is a political leader who possesses absolute power. A dictatorship is a state ruled by one dictator or by a small clique. The word originated as the title of a Roman dictator elected by the Roman Senate to rule the republic in tim ...
ship at Rome. Dionysius of Halicarnassus, v. 73 It was not hereditary; but it was sometimes held for life, and at other times only until some object was accomplished, such as the reconciling of the various factions in the state. There is only one recorded instant of a person expressly receiving the title of ''Aesymnetes'':
Pittacus Pittacus (; grc-gre, Πιττακός; 640 – 568 BC) was an ancient Mytilenean military general and one of the Seven Sages of Greece. Biography Pittacus was a native of Mytilene and son of Hyrradius. He became a Mytilenaean general who, with ...
, in
Mytilene Mytilene (; el, Μυτιλήνη, Mytilíni ; tr, Midilli) is the capital of the Greek island of Lesbos, and its port. It is also the capital and administrative center of the North Aegean Region, and hosts the headquarters of the University o ...
, who was appointed to this dignity because the state had been long torn asunder by the various factions, and who succeeded in restoring peace and order by his wise regulations and laws. There were, however, no doubt many other persons who ruled under this title for a while in the various states of Greece, and those law-givers bore a strong resemblance to the ''aesymnetai'', whom their fellow citizens appointed with supreme power to enact laws, as
Dracon Draco (; grc-gre, Δράκων, ''Drakōn''; fl. c. 7th century BC), also called Drako or Drakon, was the first recorded legislator of Athens in Ancient Greece. He replaced the prevailing system of oral law and blood feud by the Draconian co ...
,
Solon Solon ( grc-gre, Σόλων;  BC) was an Athenian statesman, constitutional lawmaker and poet. He is remembered particularly for his efforts to legislate against political, economic and moral decline in Archaic Athens.Aristotle ''Politics'' ...
,
Zaleucus Zaleucus ( grc, Ζάλευκος; fl. 7th century BC) was the Greek lawgiver of Epizephyrian Locri, in Italy. According to the Suda, he was previously a slave and a shepherd, and after having been educated he gave laws to his fellow-citizens. Some ...
and
Charondas Charondas ( grc-gre, Χαρώνδας) was a celebrated lawgiver of Catania in Sicily. It is uncertain when he lived; some identify him as a pupil of Pythagoras (c. 580 – 504 BC), but all that can be said is that he lived earlier tha ...
. In some states, such as Cyme and
Chalcedon Chalcedon ( or ; , sometimes transliterated as ''Chalkedon'') was an ancient maritime town of Bithynia, in Asia Minor. It was located almost directly opposite Byzantium, south of Scutari (modern Üsküdar) and it is now a district of the cit ...
, it was the title borne by the regular
magistrate The term magistrate is used in a variety of systems of governments and laws to refer to a civilian officer who administers the law. In ancient Rome, a '' magistratus'' was one of the highest ranking government officers, and possessed both judic ...
s. According to Aristotle, the office fell into disuse due to the risk of those who would not willingly relinquish the office, and the Greek States allowed it to disappear altogether.


See also

* Elective dictatorship - a similar concept in
parliamentary government A parliamentary system, or parliamentarian democracy, is a system of democratic governance of a state (or subordinate entity) where the executive derives its democratic legitimacy from its ability to command the support ("confidence") of t ...


References

: {{Reflist, 2 Dictatorship Ancient Greek titles