Transcript Main Ideas - John Q. Adams Middle School

Chapter 9
ANCIENT GREECE:
THE GREEK WORLD
Greece and Persia
The Big Idea
Over time the Persians came to rule a great empire which
eventually brought them into conflict with the Greeks.
Main Ideas
 Persia became an empire under Cyrus the Great.
 The Persian Empire grew stronger under Darius I.
 The Persians fought Greece twice in the Persian Wars.
Main Idea 1:
Persia became an empire under Cyrus the Great.
 Cyrus the Great won independence for Persia from the
Medes, marking the beginning of the Persian Empire.
 Cyrus conquered many people but let them keep their own
customs.
 This kept people from rebelling against his strong empire.
The Persian Army
The army was
composed of
Immortals,
which were
10,000
soldiers
chosen for
their bravery
and skill.
The army also
had a cavalry,
a unit of
soldiers who
ride horses.
Cyrus used
the cavalry to
charge at and
shoot enemies
with arrows.
This army was
strong because
it was well
organized and
loyal.
Together the
components of
the army could
defeat almost
any enemy.
Main Idea 2:
The Persian Empire grew stronger under Darius I.
 Within four years of Cambyses’ death, a young prince
named Darius I claimed the throne.
 He killed all his rivals for power and then worked to restore
order in Persia.
 Darius organized the empire into 20 provinces, each led by
a governor called a satrap. They collected taxes, served as
judges, and put down rebellions.
Persian Society
 He built many roads that connected various parts of the
empire.
 He also built a new capital, called Persepolis.
 During his rule a new religion arose, called
Zoroastrianism.
 This
religion taught that two forces were fighting in the
universe: a good force and an evil force.
 Darius expanded the empire by conquering the entire
Indus Valley.
Main Idea 3:
The Persians fought Greece twice in the Persian Wars.
 Darius was angry that the Greeks had aided a revolt
against the Persians, so he invaded Greece in a series of
battles known as the Persian Wars.
 Greece won these battles because it had better weapons
and more clever leaders.
The Second Invasion of Greece
 Years later, Xerxes I tried to conquer Greece again, this
time joined by the Persian navy.
 The Spartans slowed the Persian army at Thermopylae,
giving Greece enough time to gain the upper hand and
eventually beat the Persians at Plataea, ending the Persian
Wars.
Sparta and Athens
The Big Idea
The two most powerful city-states in Greece, Sparta and Athens,
had very different cultures and became bitter enemies in the
400s BC.
Main Ideas
• The Spartans built a military society to provide security and
protection.
• The Athenians admired the mind and the arts in addition to
physical abilities.
• Sparta and Athens fought over who should have power and
influence in Greece.
Main Idea 1:
The Spartans built a military society to provide security and protection.
 Daily life in Sparta was dominated by the army, and boys were
trained from an early age to be soldiers.
 Spartan men reached full citizenship at age 30 and could then
move back home, but they stayed in the army until they turned
60.
 Courage, strength, self-discipline, and obedience were the most
important qualities to have.
 Because men were often at war, women had more rights than
other Greek women.
 They ran the household and owned property.
 They also received physical training and sometimes competed
with men in sporting events.
Government
 Sparta was officially ruled by two kings who jointly led the
army, but elected officials actually had more power than
the kings.
 These officials handled dealings between Sparta and other
city-states.
 Sparta’s government was set up to control the city’s helots,
or slaves.
Main Idea 2:
The Athenians admired the mind and the arts in addition to physical abilities.
Boys and Men in Athens
• Sparta’s main rival in Greece was Athens.
• Though they also worked to improve their bodies, they
had to devote only two years to the army.
• They learned to read, write, count, and sing.
• Wealthy boys continued their education with a private
tutor.
• Boys from poor families usually became farmers.
Girls and Women in Athens
• Unlike boys, girls received almost no education, because
men did not think they needed to be educated.
• Athenian women had fewer rights than women in many
other city-states; in fact, they hardly had any at all.
Main Idea 3:
Sparta and Athens fought over who should have power and influence in Greece.
 Sparta and Athens worked together to win the Persian
Wars.
 After the Persian Wars, city-states joined an alliance,
which historians call the Delian League.
 “Alliance”
means they agreed to work together.
 Sparta formed its own alliance, called the Peloponnesian
League.
The Peloponnesian War
• Sparta declared
war on Athens,
starting the
Peloponnesian
War.
• The war lasted
for ten years
before they
decided to call
a truce.
• The war started
up once more
when Athens
tried to expand
its empire. The
Spartans won.
• Other citystates started
to resent
Sparta, leading
to a period of
war.
• With the defeat
of Athens,
Sparta became
the most
powerful citystate in
Greece.
• Control of
Greece shifted
from one citystate to
another for
years.
Alexander the Great
The Big Idea
Alexander the Great built a huge empire and helped
spread Greek culture into Egypt and Asia.
Main Ideas
• Macedonia conquered Greece in the 300s BC.
• Alexander the Great built an empire that united much of
Europe, Asia, and Egypt.
• The Hellenistic kingdoms formed from Alexander’s
empire blended Greek and other cultures.
Main Idea 1:
Macedonia conquered Greece in the 300s BC.
• Phillip II became
king of
Macedonia and
targeted Greece
for an invasion.
• He beat Athens,
and the rest of
Greece agreed to
make him their
leader after
seeing Athens’s
defeat.
• Phillip was a
brilliant military
leader.
• His soldiers
fought as a
phalanx with
spears that were
longer than the
Greeks.
• He also had a
cavalry and
archers
supporting the
phalanx.
• When Phillip
died, his throne
and his plans
were passed on
to his son,
Alexander.
Main Idea 2:
Alexander the Great built an empire that united much of Europe, Asia, and Egypt.
 Alexander began his rule by ending the revolt in Thebes, setting
an example to the Greeks not to rebel.
 He then set out to build an empire and earned the name
Alexander the Great.
 He went on to conquer Egypt and was crowned pharaoh without a
fight.
 He then defeated Persia and became the ruler of the Persian
Empire.
 Alexander wanted to push into India, but his troops were
exhausted and refused to go. He began the march home, but died
from sickness before making it back to Greece.
Spreading Greek Culture
 Alexander’s empire was the largest the world had ever seen.
 An admirer of Greek culture, he worked to spread it
throughout his empire.
 He encouraged Greek settlers to move to the new cities he
conquered.
 These
settlers passed along the language and culture of
Greece.
 Alexander also encouraged people to keep their own culture,
so Greek and native customs blended. Historians call the
culture Hellenistic, or Greek-like.
Main Idea 3:
The Hellenistic kingdoms formed from Alexander’s empire blended Greek and other
cultures.
• After Alexander
died, his
generals fought
for power and
divided the
empire among
themselves.
• The three
kingdoms were
Macedonia,
Greece, and
Syria.
• Macedonia had
the weakest
government and
had to put down
Greek revolts.
• Syria was
weakened by
rebellions.
• Egypt, especially
Alexandria,
became a great
cultural center.
• Each empire
was eventually
taken over by
the Romans.
Greek Achievements
The Big Idea
Ancient Greeks made lasting contributions in the arts,
philosophy, and science.
Main Ideas
• The Greeks made great contributions to the arts.
• The teachings of Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle are the basis
of modern philosophy.
• In science, the Greeks made key discoveries in math,
medicine, and engineering.
Main Idea 1:
The Greeks made great contributions to the arts.
 Greek statues look as though they could come to life at any
time, because Greek artists wanted to show how beautiful
people could be.
 Greek paintings are known for their realism and detail.
 The Greeks made temples with rows of tall columns
rounded in the middle so they appear perfectly straight.
 The Parthenon was their most impressive temple.
 The Greeks excelled at writing.
 They
created dramas, or plays.
 The Greeks were the first to write about history.
Main Idea 2:
The teachings of Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle are the basis of modern philosophy.
 Socrates taught by asking questions, a technique we call the
Socratic method.
 He
wanted people to question their beliefs and look for
knowledge. This angered and frightened people.
 He
was arrested and condemned to death for
questioning the authority of the gods.
 Plato and Aristotle followed after Socrates in their pursuit
for knowledge and deeper understanding.
Plato and Aristotle
 Plato had been a
student of Socrates.
 Plato created a school,
the Academy, to discuss
ideas.
 Aristotle was Plato’s
student.
 He taught about living
life in moderation, or
balance.
 He also wrote The
 He believed moderation
Republic, which
described his ideal
society.
was based on reason, or
clear and ordered
thinking.
Main Idea 3:
In science, the Greeks made key discoveries in math, medicine, and
engineering.
 Euclid spent his life studying mathematics, especially
geometry.
 Greek doctors studied the human body to understand how
it worked.
 Hippocrates was a Greek doctor known for his ideas about
how doctors should behave.
 Engineers like Archimedes made great discoveries, such as
the water screw, which brought water to the fields.