Transcript Ancient Greece

Ancient Greece
Geography
Athens vs. Sparta
The Persian War
TIMELINE
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2000 BC - Crete – Minoans rule
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1600 BC – Greece – Mycenaean Kings rule
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1450 BC – Crete – Mycenaeans invade Crete
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1400 BC – Crete – Minoans disappear
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1200 BC – Anatolia – Trojan War Dorian Age
Review of Geography
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Part of the Balkan Peninsula
Greece is mountainous
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Development of independent city-states
The soil is rocky and therefore unfertile
Seas were important for communication but
also for trade
Review of Geography
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Because so little farmland and freshwater
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Never able to support a large population
Diet based on staple crops such as grains,
grapes, and olives
Desire for additional resources and adequate
farmland probably the motivation to establish
colonies
Review of the City-State
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Polis – Greek version of the city-state
Divided into two levels
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Acropolis – located on the hilltop
Agora – located on the flatter land, the walled
city, the marketplace, and public buildings
The Two Main
Greek Powers
Athens and Sparta
Athens
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Eventually create a limited democracy
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Only free adult males counted as citizens
Foreigners gain citizenship
Women had no say in public life (imperfect)
Council of 500
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Prepared laws and supervised work of the
government
Athens (cont’d)
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Education
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Boys attended school if families could afford it
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Studied to become skilled public speakers (orator)
Also studied music and poetry, received military
training
Girls received little or no formal education
Stronger navy than army
Sparta
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Government
 Ruled by a pair of kings
 Advised by a council of elders
 Assembly – consisted of all male citizens over 30
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Citizenship – male, native-born Spartan, over 30
Approved major decisions
Ephors – five selected overseers
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Held the real power and ran day-to-day affairs
Sparta (cont’d)
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Women
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Treated and fed like boys. Trained in various
sports
Married at age 19
More personal freedoms than women of other
city-states, but no political rights
Important Role – producing strong men for
military
Sparta (cont’d)
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The Training of Soldiers
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Examined at birth
Age 7 – boys taken for military training
Age 20 – men become soldiers, get married
Age 30 – men become citizens and part of
assembly
Age 60 – men could retire from military
Obviously men were groomed to be strong
soldiers throughout their lives
Sparta (cont’d)
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Story of Example
About a young boy in military training who followed
the Spartan code of conduct. The boy had captured a fox
which he intended to eat but shortly after catching it he
noticed soldiers coming and hid the fox in his shirt. He
was confronted by the soldiers and as they spoke to the
boy the fox began to chew on his stomach. Instead of
confessing, he allowed the fox to continue to chew on his
side without expressing any sign of pain. Eventually, the
boy collapsed and the soldiers discovered the fox inside
his shirt. The boy had allowed the fox to eat his side
which resulted in his death.
Persian Wars
The Persian Wars
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Conflict began in Ionian Greece in Anatolia
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These self-governed Greek city-states which
were under Persian rule would rebel
Ask for aid from the Greek mainland, Athens
comes to their aid
Persians are slow to mobilize but finally
arrive.
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Rebellion ended quickly by naval battle
Persian War (cont’d)
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Aristagoras is killed and the city-state of
Miletus is destroyed.
Persian emperor Darius (Father of Xerxes)
vows to punish Athens for its involvement