Athens was under control of self-serving aristocrats who stoodheavily on the majority who were small-farmers. While Solon hadbeen appointed in 594 BCE to resolve a looming revolution becauseof this, he compromised heavily, and the problem was notsolved.Peisistratos was appointed tyrant by popular acclaim to resolvethe next looming crisis. He and his successor sons did a good jobin equalising peoples' living conditions. The weakness was that thetyrants had to hire a large bodyguard to protect them fromassassination by the aristocrats (Julius Caesar style) an had tolevy taxes to pay for the guards.The Greeks hated taxes, and by 510 BCE, after 51 years under thetyrants, a new generation had forgotten the evils of the oligarchicrule by the aristocrats, and just wanted to get rid of the tyrantstaking their money.They expelled the third tyrant Hippias who was now in power, andthe oligarchs made a bid to return to power. FortunatelyCleisthenes intervened and set up a form of limited democracy.