Monarchy, oligarchy, democracy and republic: who holds power
Grade 6 Social Studies Worksheet
NameDate
Circle the best answer.
Read this first
Three ancient governments
Columns City | Who held power | What the sources say: Babylon | one king, Hammurabi | a code of laws set out in the king's name; Sparta | two kings and a Council of Elders of 28 | usually called an oligarchy, with parts of monarchy and democracy; Athens, during its war with Sparta | a Council of 400 | Aristotle calls it the oligarchy; it lasted about four months. Then, below the table: Cause and effect chain "Sparta": [1] Who holds power? Two kings and a Council of Elders; [2] By tradition the Council had 28 elders, so 30 men with the 2 kings; [3] A few men, not the many, make the main choices; [4] Sparta is usually called an oligarchy, with some monarchy and some democracy. Arrows: 1 → 2, 2 → 3, 3 → 4. Below the chain: Sparta's Council of 28 is by tradition, told by a Greek writer long afterward. The war between Athens and Sparta lasted from 431 to 404 BCE. Sources: Harper, The Code of Hammurabi (1904); Plutarch, Life of Lycurgus; PBS, The Greeks; Aristotle, The Athenian Constitution (Kenyon, 1891).
1.
How many elders sat on Sparta's Council, by Noah's chain?
400
2
30
28
2.
How long did the Council of 400 last, by Pia's chain?
About forty years
About four weeks
About four years
About four months
Three ancient governments
Columns City | Who held power | What the sources say: Babylon | one king, Hammurabi | a code of laws set out in the king's name; Sparta | two kings and a Council of Elders of 28 | usually called an oligarchy, with parts of monarchy and democracy; Athens, during its war with Sparta | a Council of 400 | Aristotle calls it the oligarchy; it lasted about four months. Then, below the table: Cause and effect chain "Babylon": [1] Who holds power? One king, Hammurabi of Babylon; [2] Laws are set out in the king's name; [3] The people of Babylon live under the king's laws; [4] This form of government is a monarchy. Arrows: 1 → 2, 2 → 3, 3 → 4. Below the chain: Sparta's Council of 28 is by tradition, told by a Greek writer long afterward. The war between Athens and Sparta lasted from 431 to 404 BCE. Sources: Harper, The Code of Hammurabi (1904); Plutarch, Life of Lycurgus; PBS, The Greeks; Aristotle, The Athenian Constitution (Kenyon, 1891).
3.
What form of government is Babylon's, by Ren's chain?
A monarchy
A republic
An oligarchy
A democracy
Three ancient governments
Columns City | Who held power | What the sources say: Babylon | one king, Hammurabi | a code of laws set out in the king's name; Sparta | two kings and a Council of Elders of 28 | usually called an oligarchy, with parts of monarchy and democracy; Athens, during its war with Sparta | a Council of 400 | Aristotle calls it the oligarchy; it lasted about four months. Then, below the table: Cause and effect chain "Sparta": [1] Who holds power? Two kings and a Council of Elders; [2] By tradition the Council had 28 elders, so 30 men with the 2 kings; [3] A few men, not the many, make the main choices; [4] Sparta is usually called an oligarchy, with some monarchy and some democracy. Arrows: 1 → 2, 2 → 3, 3 → 4. Below the chain: Sparta's Council of 28 is by tradition, told by a Greek writer long afterward. The war between Athens and Sparta lasted from 431 to 404 BCE. Sources: Harper, The Code of Hammurabi (1904); Plutarch, Life of Lycurgus; PBS, The Greeks; Aristotle, The Athenian Constitution (Kenyon, 1891).
4.
What is Sparta usually called, by Tala's chain?
An oligarchy
A monarchy
A republic
A democracy
5.
What does Aristotle call the rule of the Council of 400, by Zee's chain?
A democracy of the citizens
A monarchy under one king
A republic with elected consuls
The oligarchy
6.
What came after the Council of 400, by Ari's chain?
Use the picture in question 5.
Athens chose one king
Power went to one general
The 400 ruled for life
Power went to 5,000 men
Three ancient governments
Columns City | Who held power | What the sources say: Babylon | one king, Hammurabi | a code of laws set out in the king's name; Sparta | two kings and a Council of Elders of 28 | usually called an oligarchy, with parts of monarchy and democracy; Athens, during its war with Sparta | a Council of 400 | Aristotle calls it the oligarchy; it lasted about four months. Then, below the table: Cause and effect chain "Sparta": [1] Who holds power? Two kings and a Council of Elders; [2] By tradition the Council had 28 elders, so 30 men with the 2 kings; [3] A few men, not the many, make the main choices; [4] Sparta is usually called an oligarchy, with some monarchy and some democracy. Arrows: 1 → 2, 2 → 3, 3 → 4. Below the chain: Sparta's Council of 28 is by tradition, told by a Greek writer long afterward. The war between Athens and Sparta lasted from 431 to 404 BCE. Sources: Harper, The Code of Hammurabi (1904); Plutarch, Life of Lycurgus; PBS, The Greeks; Aristotle, The Athenian Constitution (Kenyon, 1891).
7.
Sparta's two kings sat on the Council of Elders too. How many men sat on the Council in all, by Bo's chain?
30
26
56
28
Three ancient governments
Columns City | Who held power | What the sources say: Babylon | one king, Hammurabi | a code of laws set out in the king's name; Sparta | two kings and a Council of Elders of 28 | usually called an oligarchy, with parts of monarchy and democracy; Athens, during its war with Sparta | a Council of 400 | Aristotle calls it the oligarchy; it lasted about four months. Then, below the table: Cause and effect chain "Babylon": [1] Who holds power? One king, Hammurabi of Babylon; [2] Laws are set out in the king's name; [3] The people of Babylon live under the king's laws; [4] This form of government is a monarchy. Arrows: 1 → 2, 2 → 3, 3 → 4. Below the chain: Sparta's Council of 28 is by tradition, told by a Greek writer long afterward. The war between Athens and Sparta lasted from 431 to 404 BCE. Sources: Harper, The Code of Hammurabi (1904); Plutarch, Life of Lycurgus; PBS, The Greeks; Aristotle, The Athenian Constitution (Kenyon, 1891).
8.
Why do the sources call Hammurabi's laws a king's code, by Esme's chain?
Sparta's elders wrote them
A council of 400 voted for them
They were set out in the king's name
The citizens of Babylon voted on them
9.
Which sentence about Athens in the table is careful, Kira asks?
Athens kept the same government forever
Athens had an oligarchy for its whole history
A Council of 400 ruled for about four months
Athens was a monarchy under Hammurabi
10.
Does the table show which form of government is best, Luz asks?
Use the picture in question 9.
Yes: an oligarchy, because Sparta was strong
No: it shows who held power, not which is best
Yes: a democracy, because Athens changed it
Yes: a monarchy, because Babylon had written laws
Monarchy, oligarchy, democracy and republic: who holds power
Answer Key - Grade 6 Social Studies Worksheet
Circle the best answer.
Read this first
Three ancient governments
Columns City | Who held power | What the sources say: Babylon | one king, Hammurabi | a code of laws set out in the king's name; Sparta | two kings and a Council of Elders of 28 | usually called an oligarchy, with parts of monarchy and democracy; Athens, during its war with Sparta | a Council of 400 | Aristotle calls it the oligarchy; it lasted about four months. Then, below the table: Cause and effect chain "Sparta": [1] Who holds power? Two kings and a Council of Elders; [2] By tradition the Council had 28 elders, so 30 men with the 2 kings; [3] A few men, not the many, make the main choices; [4] Sparta is usually called an oligarchy, with some monarchy and some democracy. Arrows: 1 → 2, 2 → 3, 3 → 4. Below the chain: Sparta's Council of 28 is by tradition, told by a Greek writer long afterward. The war between Athens and Sparta lasted from 431 to 404 BCE. Sources: Harper, The Code of Hammurabi (1904); Plutarch, Life of Lycurgus; PBS, The Greeks; Aristotle, The Athenian Constitution (Kenyon, 1891).
1.
How many elders sat on Sparta's Council, by Noah's chain?
400
2
30
28
2.
How long did the Council of 400 last, by Pia's chain?
About forty years
About four weeks
About four years
About four months
Three ancient governments
Columns City | Who held power | What the sources say: Babylon | one king, Hammurabi | a code of laws set out in the king's name; Sparta | two kings and a Council of Elders of 28 | usually called an oligarchy, with parts of monarchy and democracy; Athens, during its war with Sparta | a Council of 400 | Aristotle calls it the oligarchy; it lasted about four months. Then, below the table: Cause and effect chain "Babylon": [1] Who holds power? One king, Hammurabi of Babylon; [2] Laws are set out in the king's name; [3] The people of Babylon live under the king's laws; [4] This form of government is a monarchy. Arrows: 1 → 2, 2 → 3, 3 → 4. Below the chain: Sparta's Council of 28 is by tradition, told by a Greek writer long afterward. The war between Athens and Sparta lasted from 431 to 404 BCE. Sources: Harper, The Code of Hammurabi (1904); Plutarch, Life of Lycurgus; PBS, The Greeks; Aristotle, The Athenian Constitution (Kenyon, 1891).
3.
What form of government is Babylon's, by Ren's chain?
A monarchy
A republic
An oligarchy
A democracy
Three ancient governments
Columns City | Who held power | What the sources say: Babylon | one king, Hammurabi | a code of laws set out in the king's name; Sparta | two kings and a Council of Elders of 28 | usually called an oligarchy, with parts of monarchy and democracy; Athens, during its war with Sparta | a Council of 400 | Aristotle calls it the oligarchy; it lasted about four months. Then, below the table: Cause and effect chain "Sparta": [1] Who holds power? Two kings and a Council of Elders; [2] By tradition the Council had 28 elders, so 30 men with the 2 kings; [3] A few men, not the many, make the main choices; [4] Sparta is usually called an oligarchy, with some monarchy and some democracy. Arrows: 1 → 2, 2 → 3, 3 → 4. Below the chain: Sparta's Council of 28 is by tradition, told by a Greek writer long afterward. The war between Athens and Sparta lasted from 431 to 404 BCE. Sources: Harper, The Code of Hammurabi (1904); Plutarch, Life of Lycurgus; PBS, The Greeks; Aristotle, The Athenian Constitution (Kenyon, 1891).
4.
What is Sparta usually called, by Tala's chain?
An oligarchy
A monarchy
A republic
A democracy
5.
What does Aristotle call the rule of the Council of 400, by Zee's chain?
A democracy of the citizens
A monarchy under one king
A republic with elected consuls
The oligarchy
6.
What came after the Council of 400, by Ari's chain?
Use the picture in question 5.
Athens chose one king
Power went to one general
The 400 ruled for life
Power went to 5,000 men
Three ancient governments
Columns City | Who held power | What the sources say: Babylon | one king, Hammurabi | a code of laws set out in the king's name; Sparta | two kings and a Council of Elders of 28 | usually called an oligarchy, with parts of monarchy and democracy; Athens, during its war with Sparta | a Council of 400 | Aristotle calls it the oligarchy; it lasted about four months. Then, below the table: Cause and effect chain "Sparta": [1] Who holds power? Two kings and a Council of Elders; [2] By tradition the Council had 28 elders, so 30 men with the 2 kings; [3] A few men, not the many, make the main choices; [4] Sparta is usually called an oligarchy, with some monarchy and some democracy. Arrows: 1 → 2, 2 → 3, 3 → 4. Below the chain: Sparta's Council of 28 is by tradition, told by a Greek writer long afterward. The war between Athens and Sparta lasted from 431 to 404 BCE. Sources: Harper, The Code of Hammurabi (1904); Plutarch, Life of Lycurgus; PBS, The Greeks; Aristotle, The Athenian Constitution (Kenyon, 1891).
7.
Sparta's two kings sat on the Council of Elders too. How many men sat on the Council in all, by Bo's chain?
30
26
56
28
Three ancient governments
Columns City | Who held power | What the sources say: Babylon | one king, Hammurabi | a code of laws set out in the king's name; Sparta | two kings and a Council of Elders of 28 | usually called an oligarchy, with parts of monarchy and democracy; Athens, during its war with Sparta | a Council of 400 | Aristotle calls it the oligarchy; it lasted about four months. Then, below the table: Cause and effect chain "Babylon": [1] Who holds power? One king, Hammurabi of Babylon; [2] Laws are set out in the king's name; [3] The people of Babylon live under the king's laws; [4] This form of government is a monarchy. Arrows: 1 → 2, 2 → 3, 3 → 4. Below the chain: Sparta's Council of 28 is by tradition, told by a Greek writer long afterward. The war between Athens and Sparta lasted from 431 to 404 BCE. Sources: Harper, The Code of Hammurabi (1904); Plutarch, Life of Lycurgus; PBS, The Greeks; Aristotle, The Athenian Constitution (Kenyon, 1891).
8.
Why do the sources call Hammurabi's laws a king's code, by Esme's chain?
Sparta's elders wrote them
A council of 400 voted for them
They were set out in the king's name
The citizens of Babylon voted on them
9.
Which sentence about Athens in the table is careful, Kira asks?
Athens kept the same government forever
Athens had an oligarchy for its whole history
A Council of 400 ruled for about four months
Athens was a monarchy under Hammurabi
10.
Does the table show which form of government is best, Luz asks?
