The era of the monarchy was over. The power of the royal house decreased until they were not much more than a member of the upper class, formed by aristocratic families. Suddenly the economy increased when the Greeks took over the concept of money from Lydia in the seventh century. This meant a huge stimulant for the trade and industry, and soon people from outside the traditional aristocratic families gained wealth. Because of their richness this new class of traders demanded more political power, which led to tensions between the traders and the ruling class.

These were not the only tensions in the politics of a Polis. Among the nobility itself there was much envy and competition too. The oligarchy consisted of several aristocratic families, and each family was led by one man. This man was responsible for the power, and for the future of his oikos. Of course every house had the ambition to become the strongest one in the Polis, which of course resulted in much tension. Tension also existed between the nobility and the "middle class" of free farmers, the above mentioned traders, and artisans. This undermining of the power of the nobility was only increased by the awakening self-consciousness of this middle class, which was the result of a different form of warfare.

In earlier times success on the battlefield was determined by the aristocratic cavalry, and by single noblemen who fought a duel for the victory of the battle. The lower classes did not have a significant role because of their inferior weaponry. The introduction of iron in combination with a better way of working metal lead to an increasing production of cheaper suits of armour. Such a panoply consisted of a helmet, shield, breastplate, greaves, a sword and a spear. Now the less rich people could also afford a decent suit of armour, and their importance on the battlefield increased steadily.

At a certain moment enough fighters had a panoply and a new strategy was invented: the phalanx. The idea of a phalanx was that the fighters formed a tight rectangle of mostly eight rows deep, and marched towards the enemy. The principle was that uniformity, and strong collectivity became the decisive factors for victory. Around 675 BC was this strategy perfected, and the phalanx became superior on the battlefield. Thanks to this the hoplites, who were mostly a member of the middle class, demanded more political power.

The final form of tension was the one between the lowest classes and the upper class. Thanks to the increasing economy had the way of living of the upper classes increased. This put more pressure on the lowest classes, which were already neglected. The laws, which were in the hands of the nobility, became an excellent way to control the lower classes. That is why it is not surprising that they demanded legal justice and a better economical protection. In many Poleis was decided to listen to their demands, and the laws were reformed and written down.

Tyrants take the power.

In other cities where the laws were not reformed and written down, and where mediation failed the time had come for an often violent and "illegal" attempt to gain total power of a tyrant. Such a tyrant was always a noble himself, though he was an enemy of the same nobility and its monopoly. The word tyrant, a Lydian word, did not have the same bad meaning as today. A tyrant was simply a single man who ruled a city. In many cities such a tyrant took over the power, and often their actions were good for the cities. By breaking the privileges of the upper class they prepared the cities for some form of more democratic government. They also looked after the farmers and the lower classes, and encouraged trade and industry. In Ionia tyrants could also be found but they did not change very much in the structure of the cities as their leadership had little political character.