In ancient Greece there were many rulers whose titles and names are so intertwined with legends and confused that it is difficult to separate them from mythological heroes and personalize them. The only thing that can be precisely stated is the common name of the Greek rulers. What were they called in ancient ancient Greek times?
High title
The ancient Greeks called their rulers Basileus - monarchs who inherited power. The history of this word has its roots in the 15th century BC, to which the found clay tablets belonged, on which was written "qa-si-re-u" - a term denoting a leader or a person standing one step below the king. In ancient Greece, the word "basileus" denoted the ruler who inherited power from the previous king. In the 5th century, the Athenians chose the post of Archbass Basileus, who combined the functions of priest and judge in their work.
According to Aristotle, the term "basileus" appeared even at the first legendary kings of Greece and has an ancient origin.
In ancient Greece, the Basileus was defined as rulers elected or voluntarily accepted by the people, in contrast to tyrants who came to power by force. So, the Basileus were called the Spartan kings, since they had power, which was limited to the institution of Ephora overseers and recognized by the common people. In Thessaly, the title of Basileus was awarded to the supreme military leader, who was elected for life in the Thessaly Union. This term was not limited to Greece. So, in Macedonia, Asia and Egypt, Alexander the Great and his generals also wore the basileus titles.
