Transcript greece_0 - James M. Hill High School

Ancient Greece
Where in the world is Greece?
What continent is it located on?
Asia, Europe, Africa, North America, South America,
Antarctica, Australia.
Ancient Greece is located in
Europe
Where is
Greece located
in Europe?
What can you tell about the
geography of Ancient Greece?
Look at
the
Elevation
Key
What can we conclude about the
geography of Ancient Greece?
Greece has a lot of coastline. In fact it is
made up of peninsulas(piece of land that is
bordered by water on three sides but connected to the
mainland)
Island of
Cyprus
and more than 400 islands
The land in
Greece is
covered with
rocky, hilly land
and several
mountain ranges
that make 90
percent of the
land unfarmable.
The mountains isolated Greeks from
one another, causing different Greek
communities to develop their own
way of life.
The rivalry between the communities
led to warfare that devastated Greek
societies.
Seas
The sea also influenced the evolution of
Greek society. The Aegean,
Mediterranean, and Ionian Seas make
up the eastern, southern, and western
boarders of Greece.
-Lots of coastline and harbors.
-It was easy for the Greeks to spread their
civilizations throughout the Mediterranean
world.
Minoans and Mycenaeans
2800 BCE Bronze Age civilization
established on Crete (The Minoan
civilization- The first Greek civilization)
Earthquake or Mycenaean??
The Mycenaeans were warrior people.
They had monarchies and extensive
commercial network.
Homer tells the story of the Mycenaean
Greeks, led by Agamemnon, king of
Mycenae, sacking the city of Troy.
Unfortunately, Mycenaeans states fought
each other too much, and earthquakes
caused too much damage. Oh, and we cant
forget the Dorians.
1600BCE-1100BCE
The Dorians
It is believed they originated in northern and
northwestern Greece, i.e., Macedonia and
Epirus. From there they apparently swept
southward into central Greece and then into
the southern Aegean area in successive
migrations beginning about 1100 BC, at the
end of the Bronze Age.
The invading Dorians had a relatively low
cultural level, and their only major
technological innovation was the iron
slashing sword. The Dorians swept away
the last of the declining Mycenaean and
Minoan civilizations of southern Greece and
plunged the region into a dark age out of
which the Greek city-states began to emerge
almost three centuries later.
The Dark Ages
During the Dark Ages of Greece the old
major settlements were abandoned (with the
notable exception of Athens), and the
population dropped dramatically in
numbers.
300 years of bad times for the Greeks.
The old Mycenaean economic and social
ways (hierarchy) were forgotten. They were
eventually replaced with a new sociopolitical institutions that eventually allowed
for the rise of Democracy in 5th c. BCE
Athens.
What is Democracy you ask??
NOT THIS
Greeks relearned how to write, but this time
instead of using the Linear B script used by
the Mycenaeans, they adopted the alphabet
used by the Phoenicians (civilization
situated on the western, coastal part of the
Fertile Crescent) . A Greek version of the
alphabet eventually formed the base of the
alphabet used for English today.
The Greek City-States
Greece slowly recovered during the late part
of the Dark Age. Several Greek centres of
trade established themselves during the
ninth century BCE, and population growth
in the following century fueled a growth in
agriculture. Increased trade stimulated
craftwork and shipbuilding. Greek
communities were growing and gaining
wealth.
Polis
The Polis or city-state was the central
focus of Greek life. The citizens of the Polis
had defined rights and responsibilities, as
well as a strong identity and loyalty that
kept the city-states divided.
Our word politics is derived from the Greek
word polis.
It was a town, city, or a village, along with
its surrounding country side. Where
people could meet for political, social
and religious activities.
Acropolis
The main gathering place was usually on
top of a hill known as an acropolis.
It served as a refuge during an attack. A
religious centre on which temples and
public buildings were built.
Agora
Below the acropolis was an agora, an
open area that served as a place were people
could assemble and as a market.
City-states varied greatly in size, from a few
square miles to a few hundred square miles.
They also varied greatly in population.
Athens had a population of more than
300,000 by the fifth century BCE.
Most city-states were much smaller than
Athens. Usually only a few hundred to
several thousand people.
As the polis (city-state) developed so did
their military system.
By 700BCE the military system was based
on hoplites, who were heavily armed
soldiers. Each carried a rounded shield, a
short sword, and a thrusting spear about 9
feet long.
As long as they kept their order it was
difficult for enemies to harm them. Hoplites
went into battle as a unit, marching shoulder
to shoulder in a rectangular formation
known as a phalanx. This close formation
created a wall of shields to protect the
hoplites.
Sparta
Like other Greek city-states Sparta needed
more land because of its population growth
and need for more agriculture.
Instead of starting new colonies the
Spartans conquered neighboring
communities, making the conquered work
for them. These people became known as
helots.
To ensure control over the helots, the
Spartans made a conscious decision to
create a military state.
Between 800 BCE and 600 BCE the lives of
the Spartans were rigidly organized and
tightly controlled.
The word “Spartan” means “highly selfdisciplined”
Males spent their childhood learning
military discipline.
Enrolled in the military at age 20
Allowed to marry but lived in military
barracks until age 30.
At the age of 30 Spartan males were
allowed to vote.
They could live at home but were in the
army until the age of 60
Spartan women had a higher degree of
freedom than other woman in Greece
because their husbands lived elsewhere.
Spartan women were expected to stay fit to
bear and raise healthy children.
The Spartan government was an oligarchy
(all power is put in the hands of a few)
headed by two kings, who led the army on
their campaigns.
The art of war was the Spartan ideal. They
turned their backs on the outside world.
Spartan citizens were discouraged from
studying philosophy, literature, or the arts.
Athens
How was Athens different than
Sparta?
1. Athens’ population was of Ionian descent
while Sparta traces its ancestry to the
Dorian invaders.
2. Athens used democratic rule while Sparta
had an oligarchy.
3. Athenians were noted architects and
builders while Spartans were famous
soldiers.
4. Athens traded for wealth while Sparta
took it by force.
5. Athens fostered creativity and intellectual
work among its residents while Sparta
expected all men in their ranks to become
soldiers.
6. Athens developed new techniques to
improve food production and built a great
navy while Sparta focused solely on
agriculture and land warfare.
Classical Greece
Classical Greece is the name given to the
period of Greek history from around 500
BCE – till about 338 BCE. This period was
not only marked not only by a brilliant
culture but also by a disastrous war among
the Greeks, the Peloponnesian War.
However, before the Peloponnesian
War……………..
As Greeks were spreading throughout the
Mediterranean, they came in contact with
the Persian Empire from the east, who were
ruled by Darius I (This is before Xerxes).
In 490BCE The Persians, upset after a
previous revolt from the Greek Ionian
states, landed on the plain of Marathon
(only 42km from Athens).
The Persians were outnumbered and
defeated. Rumor has it that an Athenian ran
from Marathon to Athens to declare the
victory before he dropped dead. Today’s
marathon races are based on his heroic
story. A Marathon
Xerxes
After Darius’ death Xerxes came into
power and vowed revenge by invading
Greece.
In spite of their differences, Athenians,
Spartans, and other Greeks were united by a
common goal of defeating the Persian
invaders.
The Greeks tried to delay the Persians at the
pass of Thermopylae. A Greek force of
about 7000 held off the Persian army for 2
days. 300 Spartan soldiers were especially
brave.
Unfortunately, a traitor told the Persians
how to use a mountain path to outflank the
Greek force, leading to a Spartan defeat.
A few months later, early 479BCE, the
Greeks formed the largest Greek army up to
that time and eventually beat the Persians
northwest of Athens.
Peloponnesian War
The Peloponnesian War, 431 to 404 BC, was an
ancient Greek war fought by Athens and its
empire against the Peloponnesian League led by
Sparta.
Sparta eventually defeated Athens by building
blockade around the walls of the city. The people
of Athens could not leave to get supplies or food
from the countryside. Faced with starvation,
Athens surrendered to Sparta in 404BC.
Due to the Peloponnesian War, much of
Greece was in a weakened state.
In continuing their petty wars, the Greeks
ignored the growing power of Macedonia to
their north.
Alexander the Great
Why “the Great”?
In ten years, Alexander of Macedonia
created the largest empire in the world up to
that time
Alexander spread Greek culture, ensuring
cultural diffusion and the survival of the
qualities of classical Greece
Alexander’s Empire
Alexander’s origins
Born in Pella, Macedonia. Tutored by the
Greek philosopher, Aristotle
His father, Philip, was king of Macedonia,
and had conquered the Greek city states
during his 27 year reign
Philip was murdered in 336 B.C. by an
assassin…maybe hired by his wife,
Olympia…
So, Alexander was only 20 when he became
king of Macedonia
Expanding the Empire
Alexander’s forces of over 40,000 crossed
at the Dardanelles into Asia, where he
declared that the whole of Asia would be
won by the spear
Defeating Darius of Persia
Alexander’s army fought their first battle
against the Persian army, losing only 110
men (legend)
Alexander was victorious, and Darius III
was forced to flee, abandoning is mother,
wife and children to Alexander
Major cities in Asia Minor and along the
Phoenician coast surrendered to Alexander
Alexander proceeded to Egypt, where he
established the city of Alexandria and was
made pharaoh.
Yet again, Alexander’s forces defeated
Darius, this time in Mesopotamia…
Alexander was proclaimed king of Persia
and Darius’s royal city and palace were
burned to the ground…
Again, Darius III fled… Alexander
pursued…
When Darius was eventually found
murdered by his own men, Alexander
executed the assassins and gave Darius III a
royal funeral
Ruins of
Persepolis
The limits of his expansion
In the spring of 327 BC, Alexander and his
army marched into India
As he conquered regions he allowed rulers
to continue to govern in his name
Bucephalus
In India, Alexander’s horse was killed…
He mourned his loss and named a city in his
honor
Securing a legacy
Alexander made Babylonia the capital of
his Empire
He married one of Darius’ daughters and
“encouraged” 10,000 of his soldiers to take
Persian wives
He died the following year at 33 before he
could produce an heir and his kingdom was
divided among his generals
The mystery of Alexander’s
death
Alexander died of a fever at 33… but why?
Some believed that he had been plagued by
several bad “omens”
Some others from the time claimed
Alexander was poisoned during his drinking
binge
What did Alexander the Great do
to contribute to modern day
civilization?
“His main goal can be summarized as "One
world, One people, One ruler".
As a matter of fact he wanted people to
freely trade and travel/live wherever they
want to. He wanted to combine the best and
the worst of all the cultures and create 1
nationality where everybody is equal.”
~wiki.answers.com