Cleander of Gela
Encyclopedia
For other persons with the same name, see Cleander
Cleander was a tyrant
who ruled the Sicilian
city of Gela
, which had been previously subject to an oligarchy
. He reigned for seven years, and was murdered 498 BC
, by a citizen of Gela named Sabyllus who wanted to see the introduction of democracy in the city. Instead power is transferred to Cleander’s brother, Hippocrates of Gela
.
Cleander
Marcus Aurelius Cleander , commonly known as Cleander, was a Roman freedman who gained extraordinary power as chamberlain and favourite of the emperor Commodus, rising to command the Praetorian Guard and bringing the principal offices of the Roman state into disrepute by selling them to the highest...
Cleander was a tyrant
Tyrant
A tyrant was originally one who illegally seized and controlled a governmental power in a polis. Tyrants were a group of individuals who took over many Greek poleis during the uprising of the middle classes in the sixth and seventh centuries BC, ousting the aristocratic governments.Plato and...
who ruled the Sicilian
Sicily
Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...
city of Gela
Gela
Gela is a town and comune in the province of Caltanissetta in the south of Sicily, Italy. The city is at about 84 kilometers distance from the city of Caltanissetta, on the Mediterranean Sea. The city has a larger population than the provincial capital, and ranks second in land area.Gela is an...
, which had been previously subject to an oligarchy
Oligarchy
Oligarchy is a form of power structure in which power effectively rests with an elite class distinguished by royalty, wealth, family ties, commercial, and/or military legitimacy...
. He reigned for seven years, and was murdered 498 BC
498 BC
Year 498 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Siculus and Flavus...
, by a citizen of Gela named Sabyllus who wanted to see the introduction of democracy in the city. Instead power is transferred to Cleander’s brother, Hippocrates of Gela
Hippocrates of Gela
Hippocrates was the second tyrant of Gela and ruled from 498 BC to 491 BC. He was the brother of Cleander and succeeded him to the throne after his death. With him, Gela began its expansion phase; Hippocrates aimed to conquer all of southeastern Sicily in order to build a great state with Gela as...
.