You all know that India is a democracy, but do you know what a democracy is? Democracy, in Greek, means the rule of the people. In a democracy, the government is run by the people, and the citizens make their own laws. The earliest democracy in the world began in Athens in 510 BC.
However, Athens did not always have a democracy. In the beginning it was ruled by a king, or monarch, and this system of government is called a monarchy. Later, soldiers handpicked a new leader and put him in power. The leader would do what was best for him and the soldiers. This system, which is known as a tyranny, was quite often unjust and oppressive. By 800 BC, yet another form of government was established in Athens. It was the rule by a few rich and powerful families, and this system, known as an oligarchy, was not fair either. The Athenians decided that they wanted a just and fair means of government, and so, democracy was born.
In Athens, democracy meant that the administration was in the hands of the many and not the few with equal justice given to all. Each year, 500 names were drawn from all the citizens of Athens. Those 500 citizens had to serve for one year as the law makers of ancient Athens.
All the citizens of Athens were required to vote on any new law that this body of 500 citizens created. Each man had one vote, and the majority ruled. Women, children, and slaves were not citizens, and thus, could not vote.