ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the applicability and usefulness of Weber’s category of charisma to ancient Greek leadership by discussing his examples of Greek charismatic leaders, namely, tyrants, demagogues, and Pericles. Also included are Alexander the Great and the Hellenistic kings, whom scholars have identified as charismatic. The results suggest that Weber’s charisma offers a limited workable model. His proofs of Greek charisma are largely faulty on factual or methodological grounds, and when a Greek leader displays charismatic characteristics, the concept adds little insight into his rule. The chapter offers an alternative ancient concept to Weber’s charisma that is more historically apt.
