Tuesday 8 June | 18:00 BST | 1 hour
In 403 BC, Athens re-established itself as a democracy, after a brief coup by the 30 Tyrants. The problem that now faced them was this: how to recognise this period in their history as a warning for the future without making too obvious the fact that Athens’ fabled democracy had failed and almost died. How to remember and forget the past, as well as the deeds of the individual citizens - some who had supported oligarchy and some democracy - who now once again had to live cheek by jowl with one another. Their answer was a mix of civic decree, legal reform and sophistic rhetoric, with far reaching consequences for the nature of their democracy over the following century.
This event was the second in our series of 2021 Lawyers Group events, hosted by Sir Rupert Jackson, Chair of our Lawyers Group Steering Committee.
We apologise that due to a technical error the first two minutes of Rupert's introduction are audio-only. The video resumes at 2:02.
Professor Michael Scott:
Michael is a professor in the Department of Classics at the University of Warwick. He realised he wanted to be a classicist having spent his 17th birthday at the archaeological site of Olympia. Alongside his academic work, Michael has long been passionate about communicating the ancient world to national and international audiences through articles, books and talks, as well as television and radio documentaries. He is equally committed to ensuring that everyone has access to the ancient world, and recently founded the Warwick Classics Network in conjunction with Classics for All to support the teaching of classics and ancient history in schools across the West Midlands. An Honorary Citizen of Delphi, Michael is also President of the Lytham St Anne’s Classical Association branch, the largest branch in the UK.
Sir Rupert Jackson:
Sir Rupert Jackson read classics at Cambridge for two years before defecting to study law. He has retained a lifelong interest in classics and would like to see the benefits of a classical education extended to as many state school pupils as possible. Rupert practised for 25 years as a barrister, then served as a judge for 20 years. He is now an arbitrator based in London and also a part time judge in Kazakhstan. He occasionally gives lectures on Roman history. He is an Honorary Fellow of Jesus College Cambridge and an Honorary Professor at University College London.
To find out more about the Classics for All Lawyers Group, take a look at our leaflet or get in touch at [email protected].