Different city- states had different sorts of arrangements, but it does not much concern me, since I made specific historical reference to European aristocracy having a purpose in the Middle Ages, and being reduced to a more or less parasitic role as courtiers thereafter.
For an aristocracy to function as a social class, it must be based on birth, not achievement. In any event, the aristocrats of Europe were not bred for brains, primarily, but for brawn, for martial prowess. That is one of the reasons why, as the modern age developed, so many continued to be sportsmen, and to devote themselves to hunting or yacht racing or skiing. |
