He was an educated and a successful businessman: an aristocrat who wrote poetry. According to Plutarch, Solon had four character traits seldom found in one man: patriotism, integrity, political genius, and intelligence. And we must not leave out ambition – he wanted the job of saving the Athenian state.
Solon was elected first Archon in 594 B.C. and immediately set to work remaking the Athenian government. His fellow aristocrats were confident he would serve their interests until be began canceling the debts of the poor farmers. He devalued the mina giving relief to the landless poor, and received from the stunned power brokers supreme authority over all offices of the government for the remainder of the year. The government of Athens was now in the hands of a single individual.