Republics
Need your help and/or advice.  The British Wikipedian Republican Party sought fit to delete Wikinfo:Classical definition of republic from Wikipedia.  There is a terrible brouhaha at Talk:Republic. They won't even allow an external link! SimonP really doesn't know what he is doing.  They deleted the Classical definition of republic and created mixed government and politeia instead.  The official title of mixed government is a Republic and the Romans translated "politiea" as Republic.  And then to top it off the new article Classical republicanism doesn't refer to the Classical republics of Crete, Sparta, Solonic Athens, or Rome but to Machiavelli's ideology.  How can that be when Venice in the 13th century instituted a mixed government and called herself a "Republic".  

With Jwrosenwieg and Kim Bruning there was a tacit agreement a year ago to have republic be the modern meaning and a [Classical definition of republic] to describe the ancient republics of Hellas and Rome and their influence.  To say the least the "Republic section" is all messed up. We need some clarification.  I have new information but User:Snowspinner won't let me bring this back up for undelete. (I do grant that a little bit of the Classical definition is original but the rest is not.) I will not let Sparta be called anything but a republic!  I will not let the British wikipedian modern republicans strip Sparta, (my heritage and roots) of her rightful name.  She is a Classical republic and needs to be called such!  At the least, where is the damage in having an external link?

I saw your many edits on Athens.  I am sorry to report that she was a Republic under Solon.  Solon was an admirer of the Doric Greeks.  I think you need to rethink your knowledge base and I point you to User talk:WHEELER/Confusion over the term republic and ask you to take a good look at the references to the classical definition at Wikinfo. 15:26, 17 Mar 2005 (UTC)