In this interview, David Graeber, author of Debt: The First 5,000 Years says:
Debt abolition has also at times produced positive social change. Take the Athenian and Roman constitutions. At the origin of each was a debt crisis resolved in such a way that structural political reform ensued. The Roman republic and Athenian democracy were the offspring of debt crises.
But reading Wikipedia about these reforms, I don't see any mention of debt. Is there some truth to what Graeber says?
History tells us The Roman republic began with the ousting of the last Etruscan King, Tarquinius Superbus and The Athenian Democracy with the murder of the tyrant Hipparchus in 528BC. They both seem to be results of revolt rather than debt.