Polemarch
Encyclopedia
A polemarch was a senior military title in various ancient Greek
city states (poleis). The title is composed out of the polemos (war) and archon (ruler/leader) and translates as "warleader" or "warlord", one of the nine archon
tes (ἄρχοντες) appointed annually in Athens. The name indicates that the polemarchos original function was to command the army; presumably the office was created to take over this function from the king. Eventually military command was transferred to the strategoi (στρατηγοί), but the date and stages of the transfer are not clear. At Marathon
in 490 BC the strategoi debated and voted on strategy, but Callimachus
the polemarch had a casting vote, and he was the leader; it is disputed whether that means he was the real, or merely the titular commander-in-chief. Certainly the polemarchos no longer had military authority after 487
/486 BC
, when archontes were appointed by lot and it could not be expected that every polemarch would make a competent commander.
Thereafter the polemarch's main functions were legal. In the 4th Century BC, he had charge of trials of metic
's family, inheritance, and status cases, and of the allocation to tribe-judges (members of the Forty) of other private actions involving metics; and it is likely that at an earlier period, his responsibilities for cases involving aliens were more extensive. He also conducted certain sacrifices and arranged the funeral ceremony for men killed in war.
s. Originally, the polemarch was a commander of the army, but after 487
/486 BC
, when the Athenian magistrate
s were appointed by lot, the military duties were handled by the strategoi
. This office also had religious and legal functions.
introduced sometime in the Peloponnesian War
, a polemarchos was the commander of a mora
of 576 men, one of six in the Spartan army on campaign.(Xenophon, Rep. Lac. XI 4.) On occasion however they were appointed to head armies. The six Spartan polemarchoi seem to have been on equal power to kings at expeditions outside Laconia
and were usually descendants of the royal houses (Herodotus, VII 173.) They were part of the royal army council and the royal escort (δαμοσία) (Xenophon, Hell. VI 4 § 14.) They were supported or representation by officers (συμφορεῖς). The polemarchoi were also responsible for public meals, since, by the laws of Lycurgus, the Lacedaemonians would eat and fight in the same group. Next to their military and connected responsibilities, the polemarchoi were responsible for some civil and juridical tasks (not unlike the archōn polemarchos in Athens).
n cities used the office of polemarchos for the leader of their military forces. Thebes
for instance had two - possibly annually elected - polemarchoi.
, label their chapters' leaders as Polemarchs.
's novel Ender's Game
. In the novel, the position of polemarch was charged with the supreme command of humanity's space fleets, the International Fleet. The Polemarch, along with the positions of Strategos
and Hegemon
, was one of the three most powerful people alive. Because of a belief in their inherent luck and brilliance, all three positions were originally filled with Jewish people — an American Jew as Hegemon, an Israeli Jew as Strategos, and a Russian Jew as Polemarch — but by the time of the Formic
defeat, this superstition had died.
This title was also given to the DC Comics
character Artemis of Bana-Mighdall
, an Amazon in the Wonder Woman
comic books. For a period Artemis served as Paradise Island
's co-ruler alongside fellow Amazon Philippus
. Whereas Philippus oversaw the day-to-day rule of the island, Artemis oversaw it's military aspects.
Ancient Greece
Ancient Greece is a civilization belonging to a period of Greek history that lasted from the Archaic period of the 8th to 6th centuries BC to the end of antiquity. Immediately following this period was the beginning of the Early Middle Ages and the Byzantine era. Included in Ancient Greece is the...
city states (poleis). The title is composed out of the polemos (war) and archon (ruler/leader) and translates as "warleader" or "warlord", one of the nine archon
Archon
Archon is a Greek word that means "ruler" or "lord", frequently used as the title of a specific public office. It is the masculine present participle of the verb stem ἀρχ-, meaning "to rule", derived from the same root as monarch, hierarchy, and anarchy.- Ancient Greece :In ancient Greece the...
tes (ἄρχοντες) appointed annually in Athens. The name indicates that the polemarchos original function was to command the army; presumably the office was created to take over this function from the king. Eventually military command was transferred to the strategoi (στρατηγοί), but the date and stages of the transfer are not clear. At Marathon
Marathon, Greece
Marathon is a town in Greece, the site of the battle of Marathon in 490 BC, in which the heavily outnumbered Athenian army defeated the Persians. The tumulus or burial mound for the 192 Athenian dead that was erected near the battlefield remains a feature of the coastal plain...
in 490 BC the strategoi debated and voted on strategy, but Callimachus
Callimachus (polemarch)
Callimachus was polemarch in Athens in 490 BC, and was one of the commanders at the Battle of Marathon.As polemarch, Callimachus had a vote in military affairs along with the 10 strategoi, the generals, such as Miltiades...
the polemarch had a casting vote, and he was the leader; it is disputed whether that means he was the real, or merely the titular commander-in-chief. Certainly the polemarchos no longer had military authority after 487
487 BC
Year 487 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Sicinius and Aquillius...
/486 BC
486 BC
Year 486 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Viscellinus and Rutilus...
, when archontes were appointed by lot and it could not be expected that every polemarch would make a competent commander.
Thereafter the polemarch's main functions were legal. In the 4th Century BC, he had charge of trials of metic
Metic
In ancient Greece, the term metic referred to a resident alien, one who did not have citizen rights in his or her Greek city-state of residence....
's family, inheritance, and status cases, and of the allocation to tribe-judges (members of the Forty) of other private actions involving metics; and it is likely that at an earlier period, his responsibilities for cases involving aliens were more extensive. He also conducted certain sacrifices and arranged the funeral ceremony for men killed in war.
Athens
The most famous polemarchos is probably the Athenian archōn polemarchos. He was of the magistrates called archonArchon
Archon is a Greek word that means "ruler" or "lord", frequently used as the title of a specific public office. It is the masculine present participle of the verb stem ἀρχ-, meaning "to rule", derived from the same root as monarch, hierarchy, and anarchy.- Ancient Greece :In ancient Greece the...
s. Originally, the polemarch was a commander of the army, but after 487
487 BC
Year 487 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Sicinius and Aquillius...
/486 BC
486 BC
Year 486 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Viscellinus and Rutilus...
, when the Athenian magistrate
Magistrate
A magistrate is an officer of the state; in modern usage the term usually refers to a judge or prosecutor. This was not always the case; in ancient Rome, a magistratus was one of the highest government officers and possessed both judicial and executive powers. Today, in common law systems, a...
s were appointed by lot, the military duties were handled by the strategoi
Strategos
Strategos, plural strategoi, is used in Greek to mean "general". In the Hellenistic and Byzantine Empires the term was also used to describe a military governor...
. This office also had religious and legal functions.
Sparta
In the new structure of the Spartan ArmySpartan Army
The Spartan army was the military force of Sparta, one of the leading city-states of ancient Greece. The army stood at the centre of the Spartan state, whose citizens' primary obligation was to be good soldiers. Subject to military drill from infancy, the Spartans were one of the most feared...
introduced sometime in the Peloponnesian War
Peloponnesian War
The Peloponnesian War, 431 to 404 BC, was an ancient Greek war fought by Athens and its empire against the Peloponnesian League led by Sparta. Historians have traditionally divided the war into three phases...
, a polemarchos was the commander of a mora
Mora (military unit)
A mora was an ancient Spartan military unit of about a sixth of the Spartan army, at approx. 600 men by modern estimates, although Xenophon places it at 6000. This can be reconciled by the nature of the Spartan army with an organisation based on year classes, with only the younger troops being...
of 576 men, one of six in the Spartan army on campaign.(Xenophon, Rep. Lac. XI 4.) On occasion however they were appointed to head armies. The six Spartan polemarchoi seem to have been on equal power to kings at expeditions outside Laconia
Laconia
Laconia , also known as Lacedaemonia, is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the region of Peloponnese. It is situated in the southeastern part of the Peloponnese peninsula. Its administrative capital is Sparti...
and were usually descendants of the royal houses (Herodotus, VII 173.) They were part of the royal army council and the royal escort (δαμοσία) (Xenophon, Hell. VI 4 § 14.) They were supported or representation by officers (συμφορεῖς). The polemarchoi were also responsible for public meals, since, by the laws of Lycurgus, the Lacedaemonians would eat and fight in the same group. Next to their military and connected responsibilities, the polemarchoi were responsible for some civil and juridical tasks (not unlike the archōn polemarchos in Athens).
Boeotia
Several BoeotiaBoeotia
Boeotia, also spelled Beotia and Bœotia , is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the region of Central Greece. It was also a region of ancient Greece. Its capital is Livadeia, the second largest city being Thebes.-Geography:...
n cities used the office of polemarchos for the leader of their military forces. Thebes
Ancient Thebes (Boeotia)
See Thebes, Greece for the modern city built on the ancient ruins.Ancient Thebes was a Boeotian city-state , situated to the north of the Cithaeron range, which divides Boeotia from Attica, and on the southern edge of the Boeotian plain...
for instance had two - possibly annually elected - polemarchoi.
Other uses
In modern use, some fraternities, notably Kappa Alpha PsiKappa Alpha Psi
Kappa Alpha Psi is a collegiate Greek-letter fraternity with a predominantly African American membership. Since the fraternity's founding on January 5, 1911 at Indiana University Bloomington, the fraternity has never limited membership based on color, creed or national origin...
, label their chapters' leaders as Polemarchs.
Fictional use
This position was featured in Orson Scott CardOrson Scott Card
Orson Scott Card is an American author, critic, public speaker, essayist, columnist, and political activist. He writes in several genres, but is primarily known for his science fiction. His novel Ender's Game and its sequel Speaker for the Dead both won Hugo and Nebula Awards, making Card the...
's novel Ender's Game
Ender's Game
Ender's Game is a science fiction novel by American author Orson Scott Card. The book originated as the short story "Ender's Game", published in the August 1977 issue of Analog Science Fiction and Fact. Elaborating on characters and plot lines depicted in the novel, Card later wrote additional...
. In the novel, the position of polemarch was charged with the supreme command of humanity's space fleets, the International Fleet. The Polemarch, along with the positions of Strategos
Strategos
Strategos, plural strategoi, is used in Greek to mean "general". In the Hellenistic and Byzantine Empires the term was also used to describe a military governor...
and Hegemon
Hegemon of Earth
In the Ender's Game and Shadow series by Orson Scott Card, the Hegemon is the ruler of the planet. Even though the planet is still divided into countries, the Hegemon has power over them all....
, was one of the three most powerful people alive. Because of a belief in their inherent luck and brilliance, all three positions were originally filled with Jewish people — an American Jew as Hegemon, an Israeli Jew as Strategos, and a Russian Jew as Polemarch — but by the time of the Formic
Formics
The Formics, also known as Buggers, are a fictional insectoid alien species from the Ender's Game series of science fiction novels by Orson Scott Card.The term "Formic" is derived from formica, the Latin word for ant...
defeat, this superstition had died.
This title was also given to the DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
character Artemis of Bana-Mighdall
Artemis of Bana-Mighdall
Artemis of Bana-Mighdall is a fictional Amazon superheroine, a comic book character published by DC Comics. She debuted in Wonder Woman Artemis of Bana-Mighdall is a fictional Amazon superheroine, a comic book character published by DC Comics. She debuted in Wonder Woman Artemis of Bana-Mighdall is...
, an Amazon in the Wonder Woman
Wonder Woman
Wonder Woman is a DC Comics superheroine created by William Moulton Marston. She first appeared in All Star Comics #8 . The Wonder Woman title has been published by DC Comics almost continuously except for a brief hiatus in 1986....
comic books. For a period Artemis served as Paradise Island
Themyscira
Themyscira is a fictional island nation in the DC Comics universe that is the place of origin of Wonder Woman and her sister Amazons. Known as Paradise Island since Wonder Woman and the island's first appearance in All Star Comics #8 , it was renamed "Themyscira" with the character's February...
's co-ruler alongside fellow Amazon Philippus
Philippus
Philippus is a fictional character owned by DC Comics. She made her first appearance in February 1987 as an Amazon character in the Wonder Woman comic book...
. Whereas Philippus oversaw the day-to-day rule of the island, Artemis oversaw it's military aspects.