Demades
- a famous Athenian orator who sided with Macedon, a contemporary of Demosthenes, Cic. Brut. 9, 36; id. Or. 26, 90; Quint. 2, 17, 12 sq.; 12, 10, 49; Nep. Phoc. 2.
(Δημάδης). An Athenian orator, who belonged to the Macedonian party, and was a bitter enemy of Demosthenes. He was put to death by Antipater in B.C. 318. Demades was a man without principle, but a vigorous and brilliant orator, always speaking extemporaneously, and with such freshness and force as to rival Demosthenes himself. A long fragment of an oration (Περὶ Δωδεκαετίας) bears the name of Demades, but is probably spurious.
Demades (c. 385-319 BC); was a prominent Athenian politician after the battle of Chaeronea (338), whose sympathies were generally pro-Macedonian. He had a reputation as an exceptionally fine speaker but no work of his survives, On the Twelve Yearsbeing a later composition.
life and WorksWe know nothing of Demades’ early life, but he came from a “working-class” family and claimed to have been self-taught. Class differences may have influenced his opposition to Demosthenes, which we hear of as early as 349 when he differed with Demosthenes on the matter of Olynthus. After the battle of Chaeronea, in which he fought and was taken prisoner, Demades gained prominence for his role as an intermediary between the Athenians and Philip, Alexander and their successors. He continued to play a prominent role in Athens after the death of Alexander, and although he was fined for his part in the Harpalus affair (324), he was called on again to negotiate a settlement with Antipater after Athens’ defeat in the Lamian war (322). The settlement required the executions of Demosthenes and Hyperides. In 319 he was convicted of conspiring with the enemy and executed along with his son.
Demades was known as a brilliant orator, especially skilled at extemporaneous speech. Phrases and witticisms of his were remembered long after his time, but no speech survived, probably because he committed none of his speeches to writing. We have part of a speech On the Twelve Years (Demad. 1), purporting to give a defense of Demades’ life for the twelve years preceding its delivery (about 326), but this speech is of poor quality and is generally agreed to be a later forgery.
SignificanceDemades was a controversial figure in his day and remains so today (Williams 1989). He appears to have differed from Demosthenes not only politically and socially, but morally as well, for he apparently made no secret of his venality and readily admitted taking bribes. Witty and colorful, he both made money and spent it rapidly. It is a pity none of his speeches survive, for they would have given us not only a different political perspective from the views of Demosthenes but also (if the reports are true) some of the finest examples of Attic oratory.
Blass, Friedrich, Die attische Beredsamkeit. 2nd ed. vol. 3.2 Leipzig 1898. Kennedy, George, The Art of Persuasion in Greece. Princeton 1963. Williams, J. M. “Demades’ Last Years, 323/2-319/8 B.C.: A ‘Revisionist’ Interpretation,” Ancient World19(1988) 19-30. Michael Gagarin- an Athenian traitor: Paus. 7.10.4