Syracuse and the Laws: Plato's Political Experiments

Plato did not only theorize about politics; he tried to influence it. He traveled to Syracuse in Sicily around 388 BCE, and later, in 367 and 361 BCE, at the urging of his friend Dion, he returned to advise the young tyrant Dionysius II in the hope of making him a philosopher-ruler. Both later visits failed amid court intrigue, and Plato was effectively held at court before leaving. Dion later seized power and was assassinated in 354 BCE.

In old age Plato wrote the Laws, his longest work, which describes a more practical 'second-best' city called Magnesia. Instead of relying on philosopher-kings, it emphasizes the rule of law, a mixed constitution, education and preambles that explain laws to citizens. Many scholars see the Laws as Plato's response to experience: since perfect rulers are rare, good laws must do the work. It influenced later ideas of mixed government.