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The first notable Alcmaeonid was Megacles, who was archon eponymous of Athens in the 7th century BC. He was responsible for killing Cylon and Cylon's followers during the attempted coup of 632 BC. As Cylon had taken refuge as a suppliant at the temple of Athena, Megacles and his Alcmaeonid followers inherited a curse and were exiled from the city. Even the bodies of buried Alcmaeonidae were dug up and removed from the city limits.

The Alcmaeonids were allowed back into the city in 594 BC, during the reign of Solon. During the tyranny of Pisistratus, the Alcmaeonid Megacles married his daughter to Pisistratus, but when the tyrant refused to have children with her Megacles banished him. When Pisistratus returned for his third tyranny in 538 BC, the Alcmaeonids were exiled once more. Nevertheless their reputation remained high, and Megacles was able to marry Agarista, the daughter of Cleisthenes of SicyonSicyon an ancient Greek city situated in the northern Peloponnesus between Corinth and Achaea. It was built on a low triangular plateau about 2 miles from the Corinthian Gulf. Between the city and its port lay a fertile plain with olive groves and orchard, from whom the Athenian reformer also named Cleisthenes was descended.

This Cleisthenes overthrew HippiasHippias was one of the sons of Pisistratus, and was tyrant of Athens in the 6th century BC. Hippias succeeded Pisistratus in 527 BC, and in 525 BC he introduced a new system of coinage in Athens. His brother Hipparchus, who may have ruled jointly with him, the son and successor of Pisistratus, in 508 BC. He had bribed the oracle at DelphiThis article is about the city of Delphi. For other meanings, see the disambiguation page on "Delphi". Delphi is an archaeological site and a modern town in Greece. In ancient times it was the site of the Delphic Oracle, dedicated to the god Apollo. Delph (which the Alcmaeonidae had helped to build while they were in exile) to convince the SpartaThis page is about the ancient and modern Greek city of Sparta. For other uses see: Sparta (disambiguation Sparta was an ancient city in Greece, the capital of Laconia and the most powerful state of the Peloponnesus. The city lay at the northern end of thns to help him, which they reluctantly did. Cleisthenes was, at first, opposed by some who felt the curse made the Alcmaeonidae ineligible to rule; the Spartan king Cleomenes ICleomenes was one of the Kings of Sparta in the 6th and 5th centuries BC. He was the son of Anaxandrides, of the Agiad royal house, and his second wife, and the half-brother of Dorieus. Although Dorieus was the son of Anaxandrides' first wife and therefor even turned against Cleisthenes and the latter was briefly exiled once more. However, the citizens called for Cleisthenes to return, and the restored Alcmaeonids were responsible for laying the foundations of Athenian democracyThe Athenian democracy was a democratic government in the city-state Athens and its surrounding lands in Attica, Greece; usually considered to have lasted from the early- 6th to the mid- 4th century BC. During the 5th century, the population of Athens com.

The Alcmaeonidae were said to have negotiated for an alliance with the PersiaPersia is the historical name for the state of Iran. The name was used in the West due to the ancient Greek name for Iran, Persis''. Persia is used to describe the nation of Iran, its people, or its ancient empire. The name Persia comes from a province inns during the Persian Wars, despite the fact that Athens was leading the resistance to the Persian invasion. Pericles and Alcibiades also belonged to the Alcmaeonidae, and during the Peloponnesian War the Spartans referred to the family curse in an attempt to discredit Pericles. Alcibiades, as the previous generation of Alcmaeonidae had done, tried to ally with the Persians after he was accused of impiety. The family disappeared after Athens' defeat in the Peloponnesian War.