Ephor

ephor

(Greek ephoros) Title of the five highest Spartan magistrates. With the two kings of Sparta they formed the state's executive wing. The list of ephors dates back to 754 BC. Every male citizen was eligible for election to the ephorate, which conducted meetings of the gerousia and apella and executed their decrees. The ephors' extensive police powers allowed them to declare war on the helots annually, with legal license to attack and kill them if necessary. In an emergency they could even arrest and try a king.

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Ephor 

a member of a collegium of supreme officials in Sparta, in ancient Greece. Five ephors were elected annually by the assembly of citizens.

The collegium of ephors was established in the mid-eighth century B.C The ephors convened and presided over meetings of the Gerousia (council of elders) and the Apella (popular assembly); they managed the state treasury, announced troop call-ups, appointed military commanders, and handled legal matters. The ephors supervised the activities of the kings and officials; they also watched over the behavior of citizens and of the dependent population—the Perioeci and the Helots. The ephors were the bulwark of the oligarchic regime that existed in Sparta.