Thirty Tyrants
Lysias's career as a speech writer, or logographer, was interrupted by the occupation of the Thirty Tyrants, an oligarchic junta placed in power by the Spartans following their victory against Athens in the Peloponnesian War, which ended in 404 BCE. Lysias, along with a small group of fellow metics, including his brother, Polemarchus, were arrested by the pro-Spartan regime on charges of general hostility and resistance to the Thirty Tyrants. According to Lysias, the group was arrested on trumped up charges just so the Thirty Tyrants could have a reason to confiscate their substantial wealth and property. The subsequent execution of Polemarchus is one of the subjects of the speech. Eratosthenes was a member of the Thirty Tyrants who oversaw the arrest of Lysias, Polemarchus, and their fellow metics. The speech was written following the collapse of the oligarchy and the restoration of democracy in Athens in 403 BCE.