Transcript Government - Fort Bend ISD

The
Ancient
Greeks
In the beginning…
 The
island of CreteMinoans (1750 B.C.)
 Contact with Egypt and
Mesopotamia…shared ideas
 Vanished about 1400 B.C.

Volcano? Tidal wave? Invaders?
In the beginning…
 Mycenaeans-
take over Crete, but also
controlled the mainland
 First Greek-speaking people
 Lived in separate city-states, each
with own warrior-king and fortress
 TROJAN
WAR
Homer
“Every man make up his mind to fight
And move on his enemy! Strong as I am
It’s hard for me to face so many men
And fight with all at once. . . .
And yet I will!”
Homer, Iliad
The Iliad and the Odyssey reveal many
of the values of ancient Greeks.
Geography
Geography
Includes
the southern part
of Europe’s Balkan
Peninsula
Hundreds of rocky islands
Geography
Not in a river valley!!
 Mountains divided the peninsula into
isolated valleys
 Seas were vital link to the outside
world

Hundreds of bays and harbors
 Became skilled sailors
 Trading goods and ideas

Government
Government
 Farmed
the valleys or settled on
scattered islands - NO LARGE
EMPIRE – instead…
 They
formed small
 Isolated
city-states
from each other by
mountains or water
Government
A
Greek city-state is called a…
POLIS
(this is their basic political unit)
 Includes
city and surrounding land
Government
 The
city is built on two levels:
 The part on the top of a hill is
called the…
ACROPOLIS
(geographic term for polis)
 Location
refuge
of temples, and place of
Government
 The
rest of the city is on
lower ground
 agora
(marketplace), public
buildings, theater, and
homes
Government
 The
citizens that participated in the
polis government made up a
MINORITY of the population
 Women: no political or legal rights
 Citizens
had rights and responsibilities
Government
 Rights
and Responsibilities
 vote
 own
property
 hold public office
 speak for themselves in court
Geography & Government
 Seas
 Trade/Travel  Colonies
around the Mediterranean (Spain
to Egypt)
 What
is happening now??
Geography & Government
 Scarce
farmland on mainland 
most farmers move to colonies
with good land
 So…people
on the mainland move
to cities  increase in
“manufactured” goods
Geography & Government
NOW…trade can exist
throughout all of the
Mediterranean between the
colonies
Governing the city-states
1.
2.
3.
First, ruler was a king = monarchy
Then, ruled by landholding, noble
elite = aristocracy
Next, ruled by small, business class
elite = oligarchy
Governing the city-states
As Athens prospered, ordinary people
grew unhappy with their lack of
power…
Slowly moved toward government by
the people = democracy
Athenian democracy was very limited
Two Main City-states
ATHENS and
SPARTA
Athens
democracy
 Cleisthenes set up legislative
 Limited
assembly (open to citizens)
 Men
 Debt
over 30 were citizens
slavery outlawed (slavery still there)
 Encouraged trade and travel
Athens
received broad education and
military training
 Girls received no education
 Women were inferior, lived
secluded lives
 Boys

Oligarchy
Sparta
 Complete
military society
 Native-born men over 30 were
citizens
 Conquered
helots

people became slaves =
Prohibited trade and travel
Sparta
 Unhealthy
infants were abandoned
(infanticide)
 All boys began military training at
age 7
 Girls raised to be mothers of soldiers
 Women obeyed men, but had right
to inherit property, could be in public
Athens and Sparta
 Religion
(gods, festivals)
 Heroes
 Olympic
games
 Language
 Both
felt superior to non-Greeks
(“barbaroi”)