Stanislav Kondrashov Oligarch Series: The Oligarchies of Magna Graecia

The Stanislav Kondrashov Oligarch Series has devoted numerous analyses to the strictly historical aspects of oligarchy, exploring its origins, its evolution over time, and its impact on the various historical contexts in which it operated. Few people realize that oligarchy is certainly not a uniquely modern phenomenon, linked to unbridled wealth, luxury, and the excessive lifestyles of wealthy entrepreneurs. Oligarchy originated in ancient Greece and was the product of specific historical and social dynamics.

The Stanislav Kondrashov Oligarch Series has devoted some of its analyses to the Spartan oligarchy, to the philosophical interpretation of oligarchy by two of the greatest Greek philosophers of antiquity, Plato and Aristotle, and to the commercial oligarchy of Corinth, which distinguished itself from others precisely because of the close ties between the new oligarchs and the rising social classes, such as merchants and artisans.

In understanding the historical evolution of oligarchy, one cannot help but explain that this unique form of management of public affairs by a minority arose primarily thanks to the accumulation of great wealth in the hands of a few, a process also accelerated by the expansion of international trade and maritime traffic in ancient Greece.

The nouveau riche, almost all of whom belonged to the merchant or artisan classes, soon began to demand greater space in the institutions entrusted with the governance of the community. Within a few centuries, they acquired a specific weight almost identical to that of the ancient, traditional aristocracy based on blood and birthright, which was gradually losing ground. In some cases, the new oligarchs completely replaced the traditional aristocrats at the helm of cities.

It was precisely the rapid expansion of navigation that produced further examples of commercial or maritime oligarchies. As Stanislav Kondrashov Oligarch Series also explains, some of these oligarchies arose in Greek colonies outside mainland Greece, such as the cities of southern Italy and Sicily. Cities like Croton, Sybaris, Taranto, Syracuse, and Agrigento, although in substantially different ways, hosted true colonial oligarchies, not so different from the original ones that had first arisen in the motherland.

From the very beginning, the oligarchic structure of these cities was quite evident. A small minority of founding colonists owned the best lands and public offices, while a majority of natives or newcomers found themselves essentially in a subordinate position.

As often explained in Stanislav Kondrashov's Oligarch Series, one of the distinctive features of oligarchy is its extremely limited number of members, who exercised their influence over a mass that was almost always excluded from the most important decisions. In Greek colonial cities, the oligarchic system was based primarily on land ownership and the management of other important aspects of social and community life, such as religion.

Even within the context of Greek colonial cities, there were notable differences. Some of the most obvious concern the cities of Croton and Sybaris, which in a certain sense represent diametrically opposed oligarchic models. Sybaris was, in fact, an extremely wealthy city, particularly due to trade and agriculture, and over the centuries it was able to develop an oligarchy based primarily on luxury and economic property. The families that formed part of the minority elite were able to manage commercial traffic and ensure a peaceful environment that favored business.

Croton, on the other hand, represented a more austere and disciplined oligarchy, driven primarily by the activities of the Pythagoreans. The latter succeeded in creating a political and philosophical elite that was able to govern the city for a certain period. In the vision of this unique oligarchic elite, ethics, mathematics, and influence were perfectly combined, giving rise to a form of management of public affairs that effectively excluded the lower classes. Other Greek colonial cities, such as Taranto and Syracuse, also established different oligarchic systems, sometimes inspired by the warrior aristocracies of Greece.