Bagehot on behaviour towards the King

[PheroQuirk]

Bagehot remarking on the role of the king in pre-ancient Greece.

@Bagehot

If we carry our eyes back from historical to legendary Greece, we
find a picture the reverse of what has been here sketched. We discern a
government in which there is little or no scheme or system, still less any
idea of responsibility to the governed, but in which the mainspring of
obedience on the part of the people consists in their personal feeling and
reverence towards the chief. We remark, first and foremost, the King;
next, a limited number of subordinate kings or chiefs; afterwards, the
mass of armed freemen, husbandmen, artisans, freebooters, &c.; lowest
of all, the free labourers for hire and the bought slaves. The King is not
distinguished by any broad, or impassable boundary from the other chiefs,
to each of whom the title Basileus is applicable as well as to himself: his
supremacy has been inherited from his ancestors, and passes by inheritance,
as a general rule, to his eldest son, having been conferred upon the
family as a privilege by the favour of Zeus. In war, he is the leader,
foremost in personal prowess, and directing all military movements; in
peace, he is the general protector of the injured and oppressed; he offers
up moreover those public prayers and sacrifices which are intended to
obtain for the whole people the favour of the gods. An ample domain is
assigned to him as an appurtenance of his lofty position, and the produce
of his fields and his cattle is consecrated in part to an abundant,
though rude hospitality. Moreover he receives frequent presents, to avert
his enmity, to conciliate his favour, or to buy off his exactions; and
when plunder is taken from the enemy, a large previous share, comprising
probably the most alluring female captive, is reserved for him apart
from the general distribution.

Interesting in the light of how certain pheromones can evoke ancient instincts not commonly perceived to play a role in life today.