We will bring you all the myths on history for you & pictures.

The Thirty in Athens

After the great Peloponessian wars Sparta installed oligarchies in the cities of several former allies of Athens. Often these oligarchies consisted of ten men, the so-called decarchies, which were supported by a Spartan garrison lead by a reconciler, who's main function it was to collect taxes for Sparta. One of the cities that got an oligarchy was Athens: Sparta installed an oligarchy of thirty men here in 404.

Under the personal pressure of Lysander, the Spartan admiral who had a keyrole during the Peloponessian wars, recognised the people's council of Athens this committee of thirty, and gave it all the power to these men. The assignment of the committee was formally to create a structure in the laws of Athens, which had become messy due to their increasing number during the fifth century. The real reason was of course to prevent Athens from becoming a democracy again, and thus a threat to Sparta. That is why it is not surprising that all thirty members were very much against democracy, who were lead by the extremist Critias. Without any shame did he bring the sophistic theory of the right of the strongest into practise: democratic benefits disappeared, and many democrats and rich citizens became the victim of a number of mock trials that were covered up by Lysander.

Modern Days

In September 1687 was the Acropolis sieged by Venetian troops. The Turkish commander ordered to tear down the Nike temple and to use the debris to construct a barrier in front of the Propylaea. In the night of 26 September 1687 a Venetian projectile hit the Parthenon, which was used as storage room for the Turkish explosives. With a tremendous bang a large part of the wonder of Phidias exploded. Because of this the Turkish surrendered and the Venetian troops started to loot the Acropolis systematically. Most of all they wanted to bring some statues back to their city, but luckily it never came that far as they had to retreat after a few months.

In the 18th century people started to develop a big interest for the ancient Greek civilisation. Those who wanted to collect things in Greece had to get a "firman", an official permit of the sultan. The French ambassador in Constantinopel, Choiseul-Gouffier had an agent in service, a certain Fauvel, who was collecting statues and other things for him.

Even more known than his French colleague was the English Lord Elgin. He had managed to get his hands on a firman that said that he got permission to erect scaffolds against the buildings of the Acropolis to do scientifically research. It also said that he was allowed to retrieve small pieces with figures of the buildings. Between 1800 and 1803 he collected 12 statues, 15 metops and 56 fragments of the great frieze of the Parthenon, a caryatid, a Ionic column of the Erechteum and fragments of the frieze of the Nike temple and shipped them to England.

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