Transcript Athens and Sparta

SSWH3 The student will examine the political,
philosophical, and cultural interaction of Classical
Mediterranean societies from 700 BCE to 400 CE.
a. Compare the origins and structure of the Greek polis, the Roman
Republic, and the Roman Empire.
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Athens and Sparta
Athens and Sparta
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After the reign of
tyrants, most citystates become either
oligarchies (rule by the
few) or democracies
(rule by the many)
The most famous
democracy in Greece
was Athens
The most famous
oligarchy was Sparta
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Sparta
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Located in
Peloponnesus- a
peninsula of southern
Greece
Founded by the
descendants of the
Dorian invaders
Did not create
overseas colonies
Invaded neighboring
city-states and
enslaved the local
people.
Sparta
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Owned slaves
known as helots,
who farmed Spartan
estates.
“perioeci” (free
individuals) =
artisans and
merchants from
conquered territories
who worked for the
Spartans.
These two groups =
200,000 and the
Spartans = 10,000.
Sparta
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Spartan slave revolt
Around 650 B.C.
 Revolted against their
Spartan masters
 Took 30 years to
quell
 Decided to maintain
power by establishing
a military society
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A Military Society
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Spartan life = army.
Men strove to be firstrate soldiers
Women worked to be
good mothers of soldiers
Repulsed by other
Greeks who lived behind
walls for protection
Spartan men = best
protection.
A Military Society
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Physical health
important for men and
women
Newborns examined for
defects
Imperfect babies placed
on a hillside to die
Warriors were told to
return from war ‘with his
shield or on it’.
The word Spartan has
come to mean highly
self-disciplined.
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Age 7
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Boys placed in military training
Taken from home and placed in
barracks
Reading, writing, and use of
weapons
Age 20
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A Military Society
they were soldiers
Sent to frontier areas
Age 30
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expected to marry
But did not maintain households
of their own
Allowed to vote and live at home,
but stayed in the army until they
were 60.
Role of Women
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Raised to be healthy
Given as much food as men,
unlike rest of Greece
Supported Spartan values and
expected sons and husbands to
be brave.
Married at age 19, not 14 (Greece)
 Increased likelihood of
healthy baby
Girls trained in:
 Wrestling
 Gymnastics
 Boxing
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Role of Women
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More rights accorded
Spartan women
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Could shop
marketplace
Attend dinners with
non-family members
Own property in their
names
Express opinions in
public
Could not participate
in polis government
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Sparta’s Government
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There were two
Spartan kings—an
oligarchy
• Didn’t have much
power
• Primarily
religious and
military
leadership
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Sparta’s Government- the
Assembly
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Made up of all males over 20
Passed laws and made
decisions on war and peace.
The Five ephors:
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Elected once a year
Could veto laws
Could perform certain
administration functions.
Council of Elders
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28 men
over 60
proposed laws to Assembly
served as a supreme court.
Council of Elders
Result of Militarism
Xerxes
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Held power over
perioeci and helots for
250 years
Suspicious of new
ideas and lagged
behind other cities in
business
Much poorer, lagged
in intellectual
development
Result of Militarism
Xerxes
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Exceptional athletes and
best protector of Greece
Xenophobic tendencies
Citizens not allowed to
travel for leisure
War was the only art
encouraged
Discouraged
philosophy, literature,
art
Athens
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On a peninsula of
central Greece named
Attica
Mycenaean
descendants
established the citystate of Athens
The polis was named
after the goddess,
Athena
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Athens
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Initially, ONLY
landowning citizens
could participate in
Athens’s Assembly.
Athens gradually
expanded its definition of
citizenship to include
more people
Eventually, all free men
could be members of the
Assembly regardless of
what class they belonged
to, even the metics —
foreign-born citizens
Draco’s Law Code
7th century b.c.e
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Draco issued an
improved code of written
laws
Aristocrats could no
longer dictate what was
legal.
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Some of his laws were
harsh: e.g., death for
stealing cabbage.
The term “draconian” is an
English idiom for
particularly harsh laws.
Positive side
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the laws were written down
aristocrats could no longer
take advantage
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Crisis
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Aristocrats:
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Farmers:
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Owned the best land
Controlled political life
Ran the Oligarchy
In debt to the aristocrats
Sold into slavery
Demanded change
Reaction:
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On the verge of civil war
594 b.c.e.- aristocrats gave
full power to Solon.
Achilles
Solon’s Reforms
 Leader
of Athens
594 B.C.
 Cancelled all debts
and freed debtors
from slavery
 Ordered fathers to
teach sons a trade
 Improved
economic
conditions
Solon’s Reforms
 promoted
trade
 fostered industry
 introduced
political reforms
that moved Athens
toward democracy
 Established 2house government
for political
equality
Radical Reformers
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Pisistratus
(pih*SIHS*truh*tuhs)
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An aristocrat
Seized power 560 b.c.e.
divided large estates
among landless farmers
extended citizenship to
men who did not own land
offered the poor loans and
jobs.
Aided trade to please
merchants
Accomplishments of Pisistratus
Cleisthenes 508 b.c.e
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Introduced laws that
established democracy
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Cleisthenes Sought to:
End local rivalries
 Break power of
aristocracy
 Extend guarantees to
more citizens
 Reorganize central
government
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Democracy-Greece circa 507 b.c.e.
Assembly
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The Assembly served
as a supreme court
and appointed
generals to run the
military.
Assembly emerged as
the major political
body.
 All citizens could be a
member of the
assembly
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Assembly
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Held a lottery each year
Athenian citizens chose
members of the Council
of 500
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The Council carried out
daily government
business.
Lottery:
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All citizens had a chance
to hold office.
Citizens thought
everyone was capable
(citizens)
Assembly
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Elections
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unfavorably favor the
rich
Rich had advantage of
fame and training in
public speaking.
20 percent of
Athenians were
citizens
BUT, laid the
foundation for the
Western concept of
democratic
government.
Athenian Democracy
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Education was important
for public office. (boys
only, not girls)
Jury system decided court
cases
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From 201 to 1001 members
The more jurors = fewer
chances for:
Bribery
 Threatened
 show prejudice
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Cleisthenes reforms lasted
200 years
Athenian Education
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Athenian men educated b/c
expected to hold public office
Private tutors educated
wealthy boys
Agora = location for much
education
Educated from 7-18yrs
Main textbooks were Iliad
and Odyssey & were
memorized
“high culture”- Arithmetic,
drawing, geometry, art, music
SSWH3 The student will examine the political,
philosophical, and cultural interaction of Classical
Mediterranean societies from 700 BCE to 400 CE.
a. Compare the origins and structure of the Greek polis, the Roman
Republic, and the Roman Empire.
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List five facts that will help you remember this lecture:
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