Ephialtes of Athens

Ephialtes stripped the Areopagus of its powers and was assassinated shortly afterwards. He came to prominence in Athens in the late 470s and 460s BC, and almost nothing is known of his origins beyond that he was poor and had a reputation for incorruptibility that even hostile sources concede. He first appears prosecuting members of the Areopagus for misconduct. The Areopagus was the council of former archons, holding office for life, and it had accumulated a general supervisory authority over the constitution — reviewing magistrates, guarding the laws, and trying a range of cases. Since archons were drawn from the wealthier classes, it functioned as an aristocratic check on the assembly. The opportunity came in 462 BC. Sparta, facing a helot revolt at Mount Ithome, asked Athens for help; Cimon, the leading conservative and a friend of Sparta, took four thousand hoplites there. The Spartans then dismissed them, apparently fearing their democratic sympathies — a public humiliation that destroyed Cimon's position. With Cimon and much of the hoplite class absent, Ephialtes carried reforms transferring almost all of the Areopagus's functions to the council of five hundred, the assembly and the popular jury courts, leaving it only homicide and certain religious cases. The effect was to place judicial and supervisory power in bodies chosen by lot from the whole citizen body, which is the point at which Athens became a radical democracy. Cimon was ostracised on his return. Ephialtes was murdered within a year, and the killer was never identified. Pericles, his associate, inherited the leadership.

• Lived: 495 BCE – 461 BCE
• Nationality: Greek
• Roles: statesman