What is a ephors in ancient Greece?
ephor, (Greek ephoros), title of the highest Spartan magistrates, five in number, who with the kings formed the main executive wing of the state. In antiquity, time periods were recorded by the names of the ephors on a list that dated back to 754 bc.
Did the ephors betray Sparta?
Ephialtes, who betrays the Greeks, is likewise changed from a local Malian of sound body into a Spartan outcast, a grotesquely disfigured troll who by Spartan custom should have been left exposed as an infant to die. According to Herodotus, Leonidas led an army of perhaps 7,000 Greeks.
How many ephors were there?
five ephors
The five ephors are the highest authority in Sparta after the two kings. They are elected annually by the assembly, composed of all Spartan citizens over the age of thirty.
How were Spartan ephors chosen?
The ephors were elected by the popular assembly, and all citizens were eligible. They were forbidden to be re-elected and provided a balance for the two kings, who rarely co-operated. Plato called the ephors tyrants who ran Sparta as despots while the kings were little more than generals.
What does the word ephors mean?
1 : one of five ancient Spartan magistrates having power over the king. 2 : a government official in modern Greece especially : one who oversees public works.
Who elected ephors?
popular assembly
The ephors were elected by the popular assembly, and all citizens were eligible. The position of ephor was the only political office open to the whole damos (populace) between the ages of 30–60, so eligible Spartans highly sought after the position.
How were ephors chosen?
How old are ephors?
The ephors were elected by the popular assembly, and all citizens were eligible. The position of ephor was the only political office open to the whole damos (populace) between the ages of 30–60, so eligible Spartans highly sought after the position.