and perioikic communities are also not compatible with autonomia . 8 Considering this list of
incompatibilities, half of all Greek poleis , at one point or another, would be classified as
having been stripped of their autonomia , yet alone just smaller states. For example, all
members of the Delian League (apart from Samos for varying periods), would have been
considered so. Moreover, Hansen places a certain degree of passive aggressive emphasis on
the fact that many of those res ponsible for these “incompatibilities” allegedly “did not
deny” that their actions infringed on autonomia . 9 On one hand, this could be considered
fair, Thucydides has Pericles well aware that the Megarians were not autonomoi and
Xenophon’s King Artaxerxes implies that his rule over Greek cities would violate their
autonomia . 10 Therefore, it is not outrageous to assume, considering how many
incompatibilities there are, that leaders of hegemonies simply did not care about infringing
upon their subject states' autonomy. On the other hand, this should be read with caution,
particularly considering Thucydides, who de Ste Croix rightly points out often puts speeches
into the mouths of his characters, as these dialogues are fictional creations of the authors. 11
The complexity of understanding what autonomia constituted is clear when
considering its use in Thucydides. The clause in the Peace of Nikias concerning Delphi is a
particularly interesting case as it uses the phrase autonomia followed by two similar
adjectives. This is typically translated along the lines of “the people of Delphi shall be
independent, having their own system of taxation and their own courts of justice”. 12 Hansen
rightly rejects Ostwald’s suggestion that the following two adjectives are separate from
8 Cleruchy: Xen. Hell, 4.8.15; Perioikic: Paus 9.2.13; Hasen, p. 35. 9 Hansen, p. 34- 35, for example “Even Pericles (Thuc 1.144.2) and Diodotos (Thuc. 3.46.5) admit [Athenian imperialism is incompatible with autonomia]”. 10 Thuc. 1.144.2; Xen. Hell . 5.1.31. 11 G.E.M de Ste Croix ‘The Character of the Athenian Empire’, Historia: Zeitschrift Für Alte Geschichte , 3.1 (1954), 1-40, (p. 3). 12 Thuc. 5.18.2.
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