STRĂTĒGUS

( στρατηγός ), general. This office and title seems to have been more especially peculiar to the democratic states of ancient Greece: we read of them, for instance, at Athens, Tarentum, Syracuse, Argos, and Thurii; and when the tyrants of the Ionian cities in Asia Minor were deposed by Arista goras, he established strategi in their room, to act as chief magistrates. The strategi at Athens were instituted after the remodelling of the constitution by Clisthenes, to discharge the duties which had in former times been performed either by the king or the archon polemarch us. They were ten in number, one for each of the ten tribes, and chosen by the suffrages ( χειροτονία ) of the people. Before entering on their duties they were required to submit to a docimasia , or examination of their character; and no one was eligible to the office unle he had legitimate children, and was po e ed of landed property in Attica. They were, as their name denotes, entrusted with the command on military expeditions, with the superintendence of all warlike preparations, and with the regulation of all matters in any way connected with the war department of the state. They levied and enlisted the soldiers, either personally or with the a istance of the taxiarchs. They were entrusted with the collection and management of the property-taxes ( εἰσφοραί ) raised for the purposes of war; and also presided over the courts of justice in which any disputes connected with this subject or the trierarchy were decided. They nominated from year to year persons to serve as trierarchs. They had the power of convening extraordinary a emblies of the people in cases of emergency. But their most important trust was the command in war, and it depended upon circumstances to how many of the number it was given. At Marathon all the ten were present, and the chief command came to each of them in turn. The archon polemarch us also was there a ociated with them, and, according to the ancient custom, his vote in a council of war was equal to that of any of the generals. Usually, however, three only were sent out; one of these ( τρίτος αὐτός ) was considered as the commander-in-chief, but his colleagues had an equal voice in a council of war. The military chiefs of the Aetolian and Achaean leagues were also called strategi . The Achaean strategi had the power of convening a general a embly of the league on extraordinary occasions. Greek writers on Roman affairs give the name of strategi to the praetors.