The Cry from the Herald’s Stone: The Revolutionary Logic behind the Rhodian Democratic Uprising of 395 B.C.E.

summary:

I adduce a neglected but illuminating historical parallel, the performance of Solon’s “Salamis” poem as reported by Plutarch, to show that the actions of Rhodian conspirators during the democratic revolution of 395 b.c.e. (Hellenica Oxyrhynchia 18.1–3 Chambers) are best understood as an attempt to solve a “coordination problem,” to use the language of contemporary social science. The exhortation of a few conspirators was expected to trigger a mass uprising among the wider population. The episode illustrates the distinctive strategies utilized by different political groups in Classical Greece, democrats and oligarchs, depending on their numbers and their popularity.