Transcript Greece at War

Greece at War
Chapter 4
Section 3
I
will be able to
describe the effect the
Persian War had on
Greek civilization.
Learning Goal
 As
the Greeks spread throughout the
Mediterranean, they battled with the
Persian Empire to the East.
 Began in Ionia, Greeks had long been settled
there but around 520 B.C., the Persians
conquered the area.
 When Ionian Greeks revolted, Athens sent ships
and soldiers to their aid.
 The Persian King Darius defeated the rebels and
then vowed to destroy Athens in revenge.
Challenge of Persia
Persian Empire Map
 After
the Battle at Marathon, which reportedly
numbered 6,400 Persians dead to only 192
Athenians, the tensions between the two grew
stronger.
 Sometime after, Darius the Great, leader of
Persia died, and Xerxes (Darius’ son) became
the new Persian King.
 Xerxes vowed and planned to invade Greece
just like his father had envisioned.
Bridge created by Persians
 Greek
city-states formed a defensive
league under the Spartans.
 Xerxes led a massive invasion force
into Greece.
-Included 180,000 troops and thousands of
warships.
 In
spite of their differences, Athenians,
Spartans, and other Greeks joined
together to defeat Persian invaders
Ready for War
Persian Army
 When
Xerxes came to a narrow mountain
pass at Thermopylae, 7000 Greeks including
300 Spartans blocked his way.
 Xerxes figured an easy victory but
underestimated their fighting ability.
 The Greeks stopped the Persian advance for
3 days.
 Unfortunately, a traitor told the Persians how
to use a mountain path to surround the Greek
force.
300
Narrow mountain pass
 When
told that Persian arrows would darken the
sky in battle, one Spartan responded, “That is
good news. We will fight in the shade!”
 Fearing defeat, the 300 Spartans held the
Persians back while the other Greek forces
retreated.
 All 300 Spartans died and are remembered
for their bravery.
“We will fight in the dark”
 Meanwhile,
Athenians debated how to best
defend their city, which was at sea
 They positioned their fleet in a narrow channel
near the island of Salamis.
 Xerxes set fire to Athens and then sent warships
to block both ends of the channel.
- The channel was too narrow for the Persian ships
and the smaller Greek ships armed with battering rams
sunk about a 1/3 of his fleet.
Battle of Salamis
Greeks vs Persians
Narrow Channel at Salamis
A
few months later, in 479 B.C., the
Greeks defeated the Persian army at
Plataea.
 Greece fought two Persian wars.
 Greece won both wars and ensured
that the roots of western civilization
would include Greek thought.
Persian Defeat
Peloponnesian War Notes
Ch 4 Sec 3
I
will be able to
describe the effect the
Peloponnesian War had
on Greek civilization.
Learning Goal
 After
the Persian Wars, Greece was
divided into two power blocs.
- Peloponnesian League led by Sparta
- Delian League led by Athens
 Both
sides would attempt to conquer
the other and dominate Greek affairs.
Greece Divided
 Sparta
declares war on Athens.
 Athens had the stronger navy and
Sparta had the stronger army.
 The Delian league (Athens) used its navy
to supply itself with food, and to harass
the home cities of its enemies.
 Eventually, the Spartans marched onto
Athenian territory burning the Athenian
food supply.
Peloponnesian War
 In
the 2nd year of the war disaster
struck Athens.
- A frightful plague (deadly disease) swept
through the city, killing perhaps 1/3 of the
Athenian population.
- Although weakened, Athens continued to
fight for several years.
- Then, in 421 B.C., both sides, worn down by
the war, signed a truce (did not last long)
 In
415 B.C., Athenians sent a huge
fleet carrying more than 200,000 soldiers
to destroy the city-state of Syracuse,
one of Sparta’s wealthiest allies.
- Ended in a crushing defeat for
Athens
 Finally the Athenians and their allies
surrendered and Sparta was
victorious.
Peloponnesian War
 Peloponnesian
War weakened the
major Greek States and all would
struggle to dominate Greek affairs.
 Still Greek States would continue to have
their petty wars, ignoring the growing
power of Macedonia, a Greek State to
their North.
Effects of Peloponnesian War