Cypselus ( grc-gre, Κύψελος, ''Kypselos'') was the first

tyrant A tyrant (), in the modern English usage of the word, is an absolute ruler who is unrestrained by law, or one who has usurped a legitimate ruler's sovereignty. Often portrayed as cruel, tyrants may defend their positions by resorting to re ...

Corinth Corinth ( ; el, Κόρινθος, Kórinthos, ) is the successor to an ancient city, and is a former municipality in Corinthia, Peloponnese (region), Peloponnese, which is located in south-central Greece. Since the 2011 local government refor ...

in the 7th century BC. With increased wealth and more complicated trade relations and social structures,

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

city-state A city-state is an independent sovereign city which serves as the center of political, economic, and cultural life over its contiguous territory. They have existed in many parts of the world since the dawn of history, including cities such as ...

s tended to overthrow their traditional hereditary priest-kings; Corinth, the richest archaic ''

polis ''Polis'' (, ; grc-gre, πόλις, ), plural ''poleis'' (, , ), literally means "city" in Greek. In Ancient Greece, it originally referred to an administrative and religious city center, as distinct from the rest of the city. Later, it also ...

,'' led the way. Like the '' signori'' of late medieval and Renaissance Italy, the

s usually seized power at the head of some popular support. Often the tyrants upheld existing laws and customs and were highly conservative as to cult practices, thus maintaining stability with little risk to their own personal security. As in

Renaissance Italy The Italian Renaissance ( it, Rinascimento ) was a period in Italian history covering the 15th and 16th centuries. The period is known for the initial development of the broader Renaissance culture that spread across Europe and marked the trans ...

, a cult of personality naturally substituted for the divine right of the former legitimate royal house. After the last traditional king of Corinth, Telestes, was assassinated by

Arieus Cypselus ( grc-gre, Κύψελος, ''Kypselos'') was the first tyrant of Corinth in the 7th century BC. With increased wealth and more complicated trade relations and social structures, Greek city-states tended to overthrow their traditional her ...

and

Perantas Cypselus ( grc-gre, Κύψελος, ''Kypselos'') was the first tyrant of Corinth in the 7th century BC. With increased wealth and more complicated trade relations and social structures, Greek city-states tended to overthrow their traditional her ...

, there were no more kings; instead ''

prytanes The ''prytaneis'' (πρυτάνεις; sing.: πρύτανις ''prytanis'') were the executives of the '' boule'' of ancient Athens. Origins and organization The term (like '' basileus'' or ''tyrannos'') is probably of Pre-Greek etymology (po ...

'' taken from the former royal house of the Bacchiadae ruled for a single year each. Cypselus, the son of Eëtion and a disfigured woman named Labda, who was a member of the Bacchiad family, the ruling dynasty, usurped power, became tyrant and expelled the Bacchiadae. According to

Herodotus Herodotus ( ; grc, , }; BC) was an ancient Greek historian and geographer A geographer is a physical scientist, social scientist or humanist whose area of study is geography, the study of Earth's natural environment and human society ...

the Bacchiadae heard two prophecies from the Delphic oracle that the son of Eëtion would overthrow their dynasty, and they planned to kill the baby once it was born; however, Herodotus says that the newborn smiled at each of the men sent to kill it, and none of them could go through with the plan. An etiological myth-element, to account for the name Cypselus (cf. κυψέλη, ''kypsele'', "chest") accounted how Labda then hid the baby in a chest, and when the men had composed themselves and returned to kill it, they could not find it. (Compare the infancy of Perseus.) The

cedar Cedar may refer to: Trees and plants *''Cedrus'', common English name cedar, an Old-World genus of coniferous trees in the plant family Pinaceae *Cedar (plant), a list of trees and plants known as cedar Places United States * Cedar, Arizona * ...

chest of Cypselus, richly worked with mythological narratives and adorned with

ivory Ivory is a hard, white material from the tusks (traditionally from elephants) and teeth of animals, that consists mainly of dentine, one of the physical structures of teeth and tusks. The chemical structure of the teeth and tusks of mammals i ...

and

gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile me ...

, was a votive offering at Olympia, where

Pausanias Pausanias ( el, Παυσανίας) may refer to: *Pausanias of Athens, lover of the poet Agathon and a character in Plato's ''Symposium'' *Pausanias the Regent, Spartan general and regent of the 5th century BC * Pausanias of Sicily, physician of t ...

gave it a detailed description in his 2nd century AD travel guide. When Cypselus had grown up, he fulfilled the prophecy. Corinth had been involved in wars with

Argos Argos most often refers to: * Argos, Peloponnese, a city in Argolis, Greece ** Ancient Argos, the ancient city * Argos (retailer), a catalogue retailer operating in the United Kingdom and Ireland Argos or ARGOS may also refer to: Businesses ...

and

Corcyra Corfu (, ) or Kerkyra ( el, Κέρκυρα, Kérkyra, , ; ; la, Corcyra.) is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea, of the Ionian Islands, and, including its small satellite islands, forms the margin of the northwestern frontier of Greece. The isl ...

, and the Corinthians were unhappy with their rulers. At the time, around 657 BC, Cypselus was

polemarch A polemarch (, from , ''polemarchos'') was a senior military title in various ancient Greece, ancient Greek city states (''poleis''). The title is derived from the words ''polemos'' (war) and ''archon'' (ruler, leader) and translates as "warleade ...

, the archon in charge of the military, and he used his influence with the soldiery to expel the Bacchiadae. He also expelled his other enemies, but allowed them to set up

colonies In modern parlance, a colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule. Though dominated by the foreign colonizers, colonies remain separate from the administration of the original country of the colonizers, the '' metropolitan state'' ...

in northwestern

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders ...

. He also increased trade with the colonies in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

and

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

. He ruled for thirty years and in 627 BC was succeeded as tyrant by his son Periander, who was considered one of the

Seven Sages of Greece The Seven Sages (of Greece) or Seven Wise Men (Greek: ''hoi hepta sophoi'') was the title given by classical Greek tradition to seven philosophers, statesmen, and law-givers of the 7–6th century BC who were renowned for their wisdom. The ...

. The treasury Cypselus built at Delphi was apparently still standing in the time of

. Cypselus' second son Gorgus became tyrant of the Corinthian colony

Ambracia Ambracia (; grc-gre, Ἀμβρακία, occasionally , ''Ampracia'') was a city of ancient Greece on the site of modern Arta. It was captured by the Corinthians in 625 BC and was situated about from the Ambracian Gulf, on a bend of the navigabl ...

, followed after his death by his son Periander of Ambracia. Another known Cypselid from Ambracia was named Archinus, whose wife later married Peisistratus of Athens. While some consider him a tyrant as well, the sources aren't definite about that, and there is no reason to believe Ambracia had any Cypselid tyrants other than the aforementioned two.L. G. Pechatnova, ''A History of Sparta (Archaic and Classic Periods)'' Cypselus' other grandson by Gorgus was Psammetich, who followed the sage Periander as the last tyrant of Corinth.

Notes

External links

Mary McHugh, Brief biography of Cypselus
{{Rulers of Corinth 627 BC deaths Ancient Corinthians Ancient Greek rulers 7th-century BC Greek people Archaic tyrants Year of birth unknown