Western Civilization I / Unit 4 WC1 0302 short lesson, about 20 seconds
Pericles and the Democracy at Its Height
Captions available
The idea
Pericles, an aristocrat, dominated Athens without seizing power. The assembly of all adult male citizens decided; a smaller council ran daily business; ten generals, elected yearly, handled war. Rhetoric was the hinge between speaker and vote.
In practice
The anchor's fifteen hundred officials running the League's business.
Where people slip
Pericles' dates rest on the anchor. He led by persuasion, not office.
Your place on the trail
Every lesson rests on earlier ones and opens later ones. Tap any to jump.
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