Athens



Athens as a city-state was ruled by a king. Unlike Sparta, Athens' history was not dominated by invasion of a neighbor country. No other city has contributed more to the civilization of mankind than Athens. It is the place where Socrates was born, Plato, Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides and many others.The aristocratic families which had lost most of their power due to the monarchy of the Dark Ages, elected a statesman who would represent the city for one year. This practice carried on to create a democratic tradition within Greece.