Transcript File

Identify the three underlying causes for the fall
of the Athenians from power.
Detail the events surrounding the trial and
death of Socrates.
Understand the role the plague and the
Peloponnesian War had on Athens.
Demonstrate an understanding of the
contributions of Alexander the Great and the
Hellenistic Age.
•Three events led to
the downfall of the
Golden Age of Greece.
•In addition, a young
leader from
Macedonia, named
Alexander, will reshape the world.
•1. The Trial of
Socrates.
•Socrates criticized
many leaders and
politicians.
•Socrates was put
on trial in Athens, in
339 BC.
•Accused of corrupting the youth of
Athens, and abandoning the gods, or
creating other gods.
•He had embarrassed many wealthy
and powerful men who wished to
humble him.
•They asked for a formal apology from
Socrates.
•In a speech called “The
Apology”, Socrates did
not apologize to the
Senate.
•He was found guilty and
sentenced to death.
“The Death of
Socrates”
•Many saw this as the
symbolic end of Athens.
Socrates was forced to take poisoned hemlock.
•2nd – Cause for the fall of the
Greeks:
•A deadly plague broke out in
Athens in 430 BC.
•Ripping through the city, it
killed thousands.
“…men were seized first with intense
heat of the head…sneezing, and
severe coughing…when it settled in
the stomach, vomits of bile
ensued…patients died, as most of
them did on the seventh or ninth
day…”
- Excerpts from “The Plague in Athens” by
Thucydides in 430 BC.
•3rd - The
Peloponnesian War Athens versus Sparta
– Athens had been
expanding territories.
•This was threatening
to the allies of
Sparta.
•In 404 BC, the
Spartans forced
the surrender of
Athens.
A Greek Phalanx – image
courtesy of Wikipedia
Commons.
•The entire Greek
world continued
to decline after
this.
•In 330 BC, the king of
Macedonia, Alexander
began to exert his
control over the Greek
peninsula.
Bust of Alexander the Great
– image courtesy of
Wikipedia Commons.
•Tutored by Aristotle
and trained in war by his
father, Alexander was a
very strong leader.
•In 330 BC,
Alexander the
Great defeated the
Persian King,
Darius III.
“Alexander attacking Darius”
Mosaic from Pompeii. Courtesy
Wikipedia Commons.
•Alexander went on
to conquer the
known world.
•The extent of Alexander’s empire is seen
above. He spread the Hellenistic (Greek)
culture east. Image courtesy of Wikipedia Commons.
•Alexander was
“great” because he
never lost a battle.
•He united the east
and the west.
“Alexander attacking Darius”
Mosaic from Pompeii. Courtesy
Wikipedia Commons.
•He spread the
Hellenistic (Greek)
culture with the
east.