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The Impact of Necessity: the Athenian Grain Trade

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The Impact of Necessity: the Athenian Grain Trade The Impact of Necessity: The Athenian Grain Trade: Politics, Economy and Sustenance Jennifer Titus, 2011 Faculty Mentor: Dr. Stacey Davis Introduction The ancient Athenian grain trade in the Mediterranean and Black seas during the 5th and 4th centuries BCE greatly affected Athenian politics, internal regulation, diplomacy and colonial expansion. Due to the society’s need to feed a large population during the height of its power, most of Athens’s political and colonial decisions were focused on securing a constant supply of grain into its harbor. Addressing this concept of necessity and its impact is important in understanding the drive behind Athens’s need to form alliances such as the Delian League and to colonize several areas around the Mediterranean and Black seas. Factors such as environment, geography, warfare, famine and disease also play an important part in Athens’s need to go outside of its borders in order to supply its populace with the much-needed subsistence. The most impactful of these explanations include the very mountainous terrain of the area, the lack of fertile fields, an arid climate and a very large population size that included male citizens, their families, slaves and metics, or foreigners. As Classical Athens developed and grew, these aspects combined to create a desperate and driving need for that which it could not provide itself: grain. In order to compensate for their lack, Ancient Athens traded with, taxed and colonized other areas of the Mediterranean world including Italy, Northern Africa, the Eastern Mediterranean and the Northern Coast of the Black Sea. As this was a major undertaking, many laws and edicts as well as diplomatic and colonial policies were influenced by this need to obtain enough grain to feed a massive population that had overgrown the area’s carrying capacity. As we take a closer look at the conversations, primary and secondary evidence, environmental aspects environmental aspects and political state of the Mediterranean, it will become evident that necessity was the driving force behind the Athenian government’s actions during the 5th and 4th centuries B.C.E. Historical Background One of the main arguments about the Athenian grain trade seems to center on the traditional split down the middle of the Mediterranean Basin between Greco-Roman and Near Eastern/ Egyptian worlds, and how this split influenced trade and supply. Another main question is how the grain trade was funded; whether it was from private loans of the rich, funded from the government’s coffers, or both. Some arguments revolve around the population and household size during the 4th and 5th centuries, including how many people Attica could support without outside supply and aid. Other aspects of concern include geographic factors, diplomacy and regulations, the honors and awards given to those citizens who contribute to the grain coffers, and also on who benefited the most from the Athenian grain trade. After taking a closer look at these conversations and the experts who are participating in them, it becomes evident that many aspects of the ancient civilization of Athens were greatly influenced by its inability to feed its massive population. One of the first things that need to be known about Ancient Greece, particularly Attica, is that the environment is fairly dry and arid. Its geography is mostly mountainous, with very few fertile fields. These geographic and climatic factors make it extremely hard to produce a large, abundant supply of crops such as wheat or barley. As these grains are a major food source in the Mediterranean, most of coastal Greece was required to trade with outside sources in order to feed their populations.1 During the height of its power, Athens was believed to have almost 200,000 people including citizens and their families. If this number is added to with the varying amounts of foreign traders, seamen, and workers that would travel in and out of the city at any given time, the population is staggering for the ancient world. When one considers that that the estimated amount of people that that the Athenian fields could supply food enough for is perhaps 60,000-70,000, it is easy to see that a very grave situation arose.2 The need to avoid the consequences of running out of grain to feed its massive population became a driving force in all of Athenian politics, diplomacy, trade and colonialism. It is believed that the city of Athens created the first form of government that resembles our modern democracy. Although the Athenian government was only made up of land-owning male citizens, it is considered a democracy because of the way it was run. Eligible men would be elected by those that were able to vote for set term periods. They 1 Churchill Semple, Ellen. “Geographic Factors in the Ancient Mediterranean Grain Trade.” Annals of the Association of American Geographers 11 (1921): 47-74. Print. 2 Famine and Food Supply in the Graeco-Roman World: Responses to Risk and Crisis. Peter Garnsey. Pg. 90. Cambridge University Press. 1988. Print. would hold elections for many different civil positions including such things as senators, magistrates and local government offices. Much as our legislature does today, these elected officials, especially those in the Senate would debate and pass various legislation including laws, taxes and edicts. The Athenian Law Courts would hear civil suits and interpret the passed legislation on an individual case basis3. Many of the cases, their outcomes and the public speeches that took place within the court were recorded on papyrus and stored away for archaeologists to find over 2,300 years later. There were many laws, edicts and taxes passed that were specifically in regards to the grain trade and the Athenian need to feed its very large population. As such, many of the recorded court cases can give us evidence to just how important full grain silos were. The Athenians traded with different peoples all over the Mediterranean and Black seas. The grain trade was perhaps the most important economic issue during the Classical era. Of all the commodities that came in and out of the Athenian harbor of Piraeus, grain was the only one that was officially government controlled. They monitored the price, the measurements, who could buy and sell at what time, and what the maximum amount a single person could possess was. They also monitored and enforced special grain related taxes and laws that were only applied to the grain dealers. All other trade goods were controlled by merchant guilds or organizations within the trader community. Large shipments of grain were funded by both government and private coffers and being a grain trader could be one of the most beneficial yet lethal trades during this period. Aside from the usual dangers of sailing across the Mediterranean and Black seas including storms, war, pirates and navigational errors, many of the laws that governed the grain trade could be lethal as well.4 However, there were many bonuses besides the profit to be had if a grain trader was successful. Athens often awarded public honors to those private citizens who donated a supply of either funds to obtain grain or even grain itself, especially during a shortage or famine. 3 Lecture on Classical Athens – The Classical World - Thomas Rainey – The Evergreen State College – Spring Quarter 2009-2010. 4 Various speeches recorded in the law courts during the 5th and 4th Centuries B.C.E. such as Demosthenes, Lysias and the writings of Herodotus and Aristotle. Participating in the Athenian grain trade was one of the most important, risky but rewarding occupations that a trader could undertake5. The Primary Sources We have numerous forms of primary sources from the era of Classical Athens. Archaeologists and historians have uncovered recorded speeches, written treatises such as those by Aristotle and Herodotus, government documents, building structures, coins and artwork. These many sources provide us with an excellent view of the Mediterranean life, including the Athenian grain trade and its impact on the 5th and 4th century B.C.E. society. One of the most numerous primary sources that we have from this era of time is inscribed public speeches, especially those from the courts of law. Originally recorded in Greek and transcribed onto clay tablets or papyrus sheets, these speeches have survived, mostly in bits and pieces, throughout the ages. Luckily enough for this research project, the Athenian grain trade seems to have been a prominent subject in the courts as well as public speeches. Many of these speeches were given in front of either a court or senate and thus were recorded and preserved as government information. Considering how prominent a topic the grain trade and the laws that are associated with it is within these speeches we learn how important a driving force it was for the Athenian government’s policies. Perhaps one of the most prominent voices from this era that we have on the Athenian grain trade was a fairly wealthy man known as Demosthenes. Demosthenes addresses several aspects of the grain trade in his speeches before the jury and often mentions the laws of Athens regarding the subject, sometimes quoting it verbatim. In his speech “Against Lacritus”, recorded around 351-338 B.C.E., he quotes a law regarding the illegality to either ship or lend money for grain going to another port other than Athens’ harbor, the Piraeus: “It shall be unlawful for any Athenian or any alien residing at Athens or for any person over whom they have control, to lend money on any vessel which is not going to bring to 5 Engen, Darel. Honor and profit: Athenian trade policy and the economy and society of Greece, 415-307 B.C.E.
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