[1] Aristotle claims that Theagenes of Megara convinced the Megarians to give him a bodyguard, which he then used to seize control of the city.
[3] It is unclear how reliable these stories are: the bodyguard is a stereotypical trope in accounts of ancient tyrants' seizures of power and the meaning of the slaughter of the flocks is disputed.
Aristotle presents the event as an example of a tyrant gaining power by intervening in social conflict between the rich aristocracy and the poor masses on the side of the latter.
Greg Anderson suggests that it was part of Theagenes' efforts to assert his dominance over the Megaran aristocracy, while Thomas Figueira has proposed that the episode reflects a religious conflict over the ownership of sacred flocks.
Having consulted the Delphic Oracle, Cylon decided to take control of Athens by seizing the Acropolis during the Olympic Games in 630 BC, with a force provided by Theagenes.