Megacles

Megacles or Megakles (Greek: Μεγακλῆς) was the name of several notable men of ancient Athens:

First archon

The first Megacles was possibly a legendary archon of Athens from 922 BC to 892 BC.

Archon eponymous

The second Megacles was a member of the Alcmaeonidae family, and the archon eponymous in 632 BC when Cylon made his unsuccessful attempt to take over Athens. Megacles was convicted of killing Cylon's supporters (who had taken refuge on the Acropolis as suppliants of Athena) and was exiled from the city, along with all the other members of his genos, the Alcmaeonidae. The Alcmaeonidae inherited a miasma ("stain") that lasted for generations among Megacles' descendants.

Alcmaeonidae

The third Megacles, the grandson of the above eponymous Archon, son of Alcmaeon and member of the Alcmaeonidae family, was an opponent of Pisistratus in the 6th century BC. He drove out Pisistratus during the latter's first reign as tyrant in 560 BC, but the two then made an alliance with each other, and Pisistratus married Megacles' daughter. Herodotus says that they also tricked the Athenians into believing Athena herself had arrived to proclaim Pisistratus tyrant, by dressing up a woman named Phye as the goddess, although Herodotus himself casts doubt on the truth of this story. However, Megacles turned against Pisistratus when Pisistratus refused to have children with Megacles' daughter, which brought an end to the second tyranny.