Transcript The Geography and Early Cultures of Ancient Greece

The Rise of Greece
The Birth of
Western Civilization
c. 2000-500 B.C.
Greece is made up of two major
peninsulas and many islands
*The Peloponnesus makes
up the lower part of the
Greek mainland
*most of mainland Greece
sits on the end of the
Balkan Peninsula
Greece has many waterways,
including the Dardanelles,
the strategic passage from
the Aegean to the Sea of
Marmara and the Black
Sea
Geography
Balkan Peninsula
Dardanelles
The Peloponnesus
• Mainland Greece is 75% mountains
– Separated different city-states from
each other
• Helped city-states gain
individuality (different
governments)
• BUT, it hurt their ability to work
together
• Each city-state thought it was
better than the others
– Greece lacked enough agricultural
output to support its population
• BECAUSE: Only 20% of the land
was arable (farmable) due to the
mountains
– overpopulation led to the Greeks
colonizing new lands for farming
AND the expansion of trade
throughout the Mediterranean
region
• The large amount of water affected Greece and enabled
them to trade primarily by water:
• Profitable trade through the Mediterranean,
Aegean, and Ionian Seas
• Early on, Greeks shifted from an economy based
on barter to one based on money, making trade
even easier
Greek City-States
• Early cities focused on two ideas:
– Promoting civic participation
• Getting citizens (free-born men)
involved in decisions of city
• Women, foreigners, and slaves had
no political rights
– Promoting commercial/business life
• Getting people to trade
products/ideas
• A city-state is known as a polis
– Polis: city and surrounding countryside
• Ex—Washington DC and its suburbs
– Agora: city center—like business district
– Acropolis: fortified (protected) area of
city
• Not all had one
• Some cities put agora in acropolis
Athenian Acropolis
Mycenaeans (a group of IndoEuropeans) ruled from c. 2000
B.C.-1200 B.C.
• Name came from premier
city: Mycenae
• Cities included Athens and
were ruled by warriorkings (monarchs)
Trojan War (c. 1200 B.C.)
weakened the Mycenaens and
contributed to their collapse
Dorians dominated from 1150750 B.C., very few written
records survive, age of Homer’s
epics –The Iliad and The
Odyssey
The Early
Greeks
Greek Religion and
Mythology
• Polytheistic system emerged by 700 B.C.
• Mythology had 3 purposes:
– Explaining natural phenomena (Storms,
thunder, lightning, etc)
– Explaining human qualities (speed,
knowledge, strength, sight, etc)
– Explaining life events (births, deaths,
marriages, etc. )
• Greek gods spread to Rome and can still be
seen in everyday life today
– Literature, art, monuments, politics,
architecture
Video Guide Questions I:
• As we watch the video clip on “The Earliest Days
of Athens,” look for evidence to help you answer
the following questions:
1. What were the general conditions in early
Athens?
2. Why was Greece an unlikely candidate to
produce a great civilization such as those of
Egypt or Persia?
3. How and why did Sparta emerge as a dominant
city-state by 500 B.C.? How did the Spartans
organize their society? Who were the helots and
how did the Spartans treat them?
The Rise of Athens
Solon of Athens (above);
Cleisthenes (below)
*Unlike militaristic Sparta, Athens took a very
different approach to government, ultimately
producing the first democracy by 508 B.C.
*Athenians generally opposed tyranny and
sought rule of law:
- Draco drafted the first code of laws in
621 B.C. (allowed debt slavery)
- Solon (“the lawgiver”) amended the
laws (starting in 594 B.C.) to
make them more responsive to
the needs of the people
*In 508 B.C., after a popular revolt against a
hated ruler, Cleisthenes was chosen to create
the first direct democracy in the world
Video Guide Questions II:
• As we watch the video clip on “The Birth of
Democracy in Athens,” look for evidence to help
you answer the following questions:
1. How and why did the Athenians revolt against
Isagoras in 508 B.C.? What role did the
Spartans play in this conflict?
2. Describe the government that Cleisthenes
established in Athens after the revolt. How did
this revolution change Athenian society and
influence the development of its culture?