Chapter 4

Ancient Greece
1750 B.C. – 133 B.C.
 Chapter 4,
Section 1
Early People of the Aegean
 Minoans Trade and
Prosper
 Located on the island of Crete
 The civilization was later named Minoa
after Minos, the legendary King of
Crete
 Through contact with Egypt and
Mesopotamia, they acquired ideas and
technology in fields such as writing and
architecture
 These were adopted to their culture (What
does that show us?)
 Minoan Civilization
Disappears
 Reached its height between 1600
B.C. and 1500 B.C.
 By about 1400 B.C. the Minoan
Civilization had vanished
 A sudden volcanic eruption on a
nearby island or a sudden
earthquake may have caused the
civilization to vanish
 Mycenaean Civilization
 This civilization dominated the Aegean
Sea from about 1400 B.C. to 1200 B.C.
 Like the Minoans, the Mycenaeans
were sea traders
 Learned many skills from the Minoans
such as:
 Writing
 Customs from Mesopotamia that were

adopted by the Minoans

 Mycenaean Civilization
 This civilization was located on a
steep, rocky ridge surrounded by a
protective wall up to 20 feet thick
 This protected them from almost any
attack
 Archaeologists have found treasures
from wealthy rulers of this civilization
 Fine gold ornaments were found in their
tombs
 The Trojan War
 Around 1200 B.C. the Mycenaeans fought
a 10 year war with the independent
trading city of Troy (in present day
Turkey).
 Troy controlled the straits between the
Mediterranean and Black Seas
 The War lasted approximately 10 years
until the Greeks seized Troy and burnt it
to the ground
 http://www.timelessmyths.com/classical/trojanwar.html
 Dorian Civilization
 Shortly after the collapse of the
Mycenaean civilization, the Dorians moved
to Greece
 Although the Greeks lacked writing, epics
became the method used to tell stories
(oral tradition)
 Epics: narrative poems celebrating heroic
deeds
 Homer is most commonly connected with epics
and his include The Iliad and The Odyssey
 Epics
 Homer ( 750 B.C.) was a blind poet
who wandered from village to village
speaking of heroic deeds
 Iliad  is the chief source of info
about the Trojan War
 Odyssey  tells of the struggles of
Odysseus
 Both explain a lot about Greek culture
and values of the time
 Greek Mythology
 The Greeks also developed a rich set of
Myths – traditional stories about their
Gods.
 Greeks attributed human qualities
(love, hate, jealousy, etc.) to their Gods.
 The Gods explained the un-explainable
 For many years, the area of Greece
existed with no advancement and was
isolated from the outside world
 Eventually, city-states emerge
 Chapter 4,
Section 2
The Rise of Greek City -
States
 Geography of Greece
 Lies on the Balkan Peninsula.
 It consists of approximately 1,000
islands in the Aegean and Ionian Seas.
 Mountains cover ¾ of ancient Greece
 Transportation was very difficult.
 Only 20% of the land is suitable for
farming.
 Hard to unite and build a large empire
 Instead, it was a network of city states
 Geography of Greece
 Sea travel became very important to the
Greeks
 It connected them with other societies
 Phoenician alphabet was expanded by the
Greeks and became the basis for western
alphabets
 Traded olive oil, wine, and marble around
the Mediterranean
 Expanded population forced them to set
up colonies around the Mediterranean
 Egypt, Spain etc...
 Governing the City -
States
 The Polis – or City-State, began to
emerge by 750 B.C.
 A polis is made up of the city and its
surrounding country side
 Controlled between 50 and 500 square
miles of territory
 The acropolis, or public center, was
often located on the hilltop and was
where male citizens gathered to
conduct business
 Forms of Government
Monarchy Aristocrac Oligarchy Direct
y Democrac
y
State ruled by State ruled by State ruled by State ruled by
a King nobility a small group of its citizens
Rule is citizens
Rule is hereditary and Rule is based
hereditary based on land Ruleis based on citizenship
ownership on wealth
Social status
Some rulers Majority rule
claim divine and wealth Ruling group decides vote
right support rulers’ controls
authority military Practicedin
Practicedin Athens (461
Practicedin
Mycenae (1450 Practicedin B.C.)
B.C) Athens (954 Sparta (800 –
Sparta: A Warrior Society
 Located in the southern part of
Greece, Sparta was nearly cut off
from the rest of Greece
 Unlike the other city-states, Sparta built
a military state
 Sparta’s population consisted of (1) a
small number of Spartan citizens and
(2) a large number of peasants known
as helots, who worked the land
 Sparta’s Government
 Two groups governed Sparta:
 (1) An Assembly – composed of all free
adult males, elected officials, and voted
on major issues
 (2) Council of Elders – it proposed laws

on which the assembly voted. Five

elected officials called ephors carried
out the laws the council passed
 In addition, two kings ruled over
Sparta’s military.
 Sparta’s Society
 Consisted of several social groups
 Citizens who descended from the original
inhabitants of the region.
 This included the ruling families who owned the
land.
 Non-citizens, but free, worked in
commerce and industry.
 Helots, bottom of society, higher than

slaves.
 Some served as household servants or worked
for the hoplite warriors.
 Sparta’s Education
 For men, daily life centered around
military training
 Boys left home at the age of 7 to join the
military
 Sparta had the most powerful military
in all of Greece
 All forms of individual expression were
discouraged
 Sparta is more important than the

individual
 Athens Evolves into a
Democracy
 Athens contrasted sharply with Sparta.
 Athenian government progressed
through a variety of stages:
(1) Monarchy
(2) Aristocracy
(3) Tyranny
(4) Democracy
 Repeated clashes occurred between the
aristocrats who governed Athens and the
common people
 Leaders/Reforms in
Athens
 Solon – in 594 B.C. wrote laws to:
 (1) cancel mortgages on land
 (2) free persons enslaved for debt

 (3) limit the amount of land owned by one

person
 (4) allow all male citizens to serve on juries

 (5) grant male commoners the right to vote.

 Despite all of these changes, the wealthy

still retained control of the government
 Leaders/Reforms in
Athens
 Clisthenes – in 508 B.C. expanded
democracy by extending citizenship to
more males and allowed all economic
classes to serve in the Council
 Ostracism: Being cut off from society
 Happened to anyone who was deemed dangerous
to the state
 At this time, only 1/5 of Athenian
residents were actual citizens who
could participate in government
 Women in Athens
 No share in political life
 Women played their most significant
role in religion
 Their participation in sacred
processions and ceremonies was
considered essential for the city’s well –
being
 In Athenian homes, women managed
the entire household
 Forces for Unity
 Although divided into several hundred
independent city-states, the Greeks were
united by a common culture:
 Language and literature
 Religion  shared a polytheistic religion
throughout city – states
 Olympic Games  used to honor the Gods,
especially Zeus
 The first events were composed of racing, jumping,
discus, boxing, and wrestling
 Fear of Persia  feared the Persians would
try to conquer them
 Review
1) Another name for city – state is?
 A New York
 B Spain
 C Polis
 D Acropolis
2) In Athenian households, women managed
which of the following?
 A Entire household
 B Garage
 C Cooking/cleaning
 D Laundry
 Chapter 4,
Section 3
Conflict in the Greek World
 The Persian Wars
 The Persians controlled the entire
Middle East, including Greek
colonies in Asia Minor
 In 500 B.C. these colonies revolted and
received military aid from Athens
•The King of
Persia was
determined to
punish Athens
and take over all
of Greece
 Persian Wars
 Athenians Win at Marathon
 Battle of Marathon – 490 B.C. the
King of Persia invaded Greece but was
defeated by a smaller Athenian force
 With the glad news, a Greek messenger

ran 26 miles from Marathon to Athens

 Themistocles led Athens to prepare for

and repel further attacks

 He rushed the construction of 200 additional warships
and organized most Greek city-states, including
Sparta, into a defensive alliance
 Greek City-States Unite
 Thermopylae – the Persians overwhelmed
the Greeks at the Pass of Thermopylae,
however 300 Spartans tried to hold the
pass.
 All were killed
 The Greeks then evacuated Athens and tried
to fight a battle in the sea
 Two great naval battles took place at the islands
of Salamis and Mycale
 The Persians withdrew
 With the Persian threat removed, the Greeks
were able to develop a rich civilization.
 Athenian Democracy
 The years after the Persian Wars (460
B.C. – 429 B.C.) were a golden age for
Athens
 Pericles wise and skillful leadership
helped the economy thrive and make
the government more democratic
 Became a direct democracy 
citizens took part directly in the day –
to – day affairs of government
 Athenian Democracy
 Athenian assembly met several times per
month under Pericles
 Assembly consisted of 500 people
 All people received stipends  fixed salary
for participating
 Pericles believed all people, regardless
of wealth or social class, should
participate in government
 Athenians could vote to banish or send
away a public figure who they believe
posed a threat
 Peloponnesian War
 Athens emerged as the most powerful
city-state and developed the Delian
League
 Many others resented Athens's power and
formed the Peloponnesian League under
Sparta
 Peloponnesian encouraged Oligarchy
while Delian encouraged Democracy
 War broke out and engulfed all of Greece
for 27 years
 Sparta Defeats Athens
 Sparta declared war against Athens
in 431 B.C. Sparta had the
advantage because the inland city
could not be attacked by the sea
 The Spartans marched into Athenian
territory, forcing all Athenians to
retreat behind Athens’s walls
 In the second year of battle, a
plague killed 1/3-2/3 of the Athenian
population, including Pericles
 Sparta Defeats Athens
 A second disaster struck Athens as a
huge fleet, carrying 27,000 soldiers,
tried to destroy the Spartan ally,
Syracuse, and this backfired
 The Athenian fleet was destroyed
 Finally in 404 B.C. Athens surrendered
 Athens lost its empire and Sparta was
weakened by the war
 The anti-democratic policies were unable
to unite Greece
 Review
1) Under the Athenian Democracy how many
people were involved in the Assembly?
 A 400
 B 25
 C 500
 D 100
2) Why did Sparta have an advantage when
fighting Athens?
 A Sparta had many more military innovations
than Athens
 B Sparta made nasty faces towards the
Athenians
 C Athens was scared to death of Sparta
 D The inland city could not be attacked by sea
 Chapter 4,
Section 4
The Glory that was Greece
 Greek Philosophy
 During this time of uncertainty for the
Greeks, people were determined to search
for the truth.
 Philosophy - Love and pursuit of wisdom
by intellectual means and moral self-
discipline.
 Looked for truth through use of logic
(reasoning)
 Questioned issues of ethics and morality
 Greece was known for three famous
philosophers: Socrates, Plato, Aristotle.
 Socrates (469-399 B.C.)
• Advocated “Know
thyself.”
• Sought truth through
persistent questioning- an
approach called the
Socratic method.
• He was brought to trial
for corrupting the minds
of youth, questioning
tradition and
disrespecting the gods.
• He was condemned to
death by drinking poison.
 Plato (427 – 347 B.C.)
•Famous work, The Republic,
explained a perfectly governed
society (rejected democracy
because it condemned Socrates)
•All citizens would fall into one
of three groups:
1. Farmers and artisans
(provide)
2. Warriors (defend)
3. Ruling class (govern)
• The person with the
greatest
insight and intellect would be
chosen as philosopher-King.
•Educated talented women
Aristotle (384 – 322 B.C.)
•Wrote about philosophy,
science, government and
literature.

•His important works

were Logic and Politics.

•He invented a method for

arguing according to rules
of logic.

•His work provides the

 Art and Architecture
 The Parthenon, was not novel in style.
 Rather, it was the style used to create Greek
temples of 200 years.
 Sculpture – figures were aimed to be
graceful, strong, and perfectly formed.
The faces did not show laughter or
anger, only serenity.
 Classical Art – came from the Greek
values of order, balance, and proportion.
Art and Architecture
 Greek Literature
 Greek Drama – the Greeks invented
drama and built the first theaters in
the west.
 The Greeks wrote two kinds of drama:
 Tragedy – a serious drama about
themes such as love, hate, war or
betrayal.
 Comedy – contained scenes filled with

funny situations and crude humor.

 Recording Events as
History
 Herodotus  Father of History in
the Western world
 Recorded events throughout history and
went beyond writing down names of
rulers and retelling war stories
 Herodotus would travel to many

different lands collecting information

from people who lived through certain
events
 Review
1) Which famous philosopher’s work was
known as “The Republic”?
 A Socrates
 B Aristotle
 C Plato
2) Which type of Greek Drama deals with
serious themes like love, hate, betrayal?
 A Comedy
 B Tragedy
 C Sit – com
 Chapter 4,
Section 5
Alexander and the Hellenistic
Age
 Empire of Alexander the
Great
 Philip II Conquers Greece
 Just north of Greece, lay the kingdom of
Macedonia
 Greeks saw them as uncivilized foreigners.
 Philip II became King of Macedonia in
359 B.C.
 He quickly formed a large army.
 Eventually the Greek cities of Athens and

Thebes joined to fight Philip, but it was too

late.
Empire of Alexander the
Great
 Philip’s son, Alexander, took over
Greece
 Because of his accomplishments
over the next 13 years, he became
known as Alexander the Great
 Alexander was 20 years old when he
became King and had studied under
Aristotle.
Alexander Defeats Persia
 Early in his days as a leader, the city of
Thebes rebelled, he destroyed the entire
city killing about 6,000 people
 The rest were sold into slavery
 Other Greek cities gave up the idea of rebellion
 Once Greece was stable, he wanted to
carry out his father’s idea to invade
Persia
 Alexander was sweeping into the Persian
Empire and although the Persian army
was larger, surprise attacks led to
Alexander gaining control of Anatolia.
Alexander Defeats Persia
 The King of Persia, Darius, tried to
negotiate peace by offering the
western third of his empire
 Alexander rejected the offer, wishing
to take over all of Persia
 He took over Egypt, founded the city
of Alexandria on the Nile and began
moving east to Mesopotamia
 Within a short time, the army
occupied the entire Persian Empire
 Alexander Moves On
 Alexander then moved east into India
 He was able to defeat a powerful Indian
army
 His soldiers were exhausted after
fighting for 11 years and Alexander
agreed to turn back
 After one year of return, Alexander
died because of a fever. He was just
short of 33 years old.
 Alexander’s Death
 After Alexander’s death, the empire was
divided into three major kingdoms:
(1) Macedonia – including part of
Greece
(2) Syria – including most of southwest
Asia
(3) Egypt
 These existed independently until they
fell under the control of Rome
 Hellenistic Culture
 Hellenistic Culture – the blending of
Greek, Egyptian, Persian and Indian
influences.
 The African city of Alexandria became the
center of commerce and Hellenistic
civilization
 There were many advances made within
the Hellenistic Culture
 Art
 Science
 Math/Astronomy
 Advancements in Science
and Technology
 Astronomy – the stars and planets were
studied. It was proposed that the earth and
other planets revolve around the sun, at first
this was not accepted
 Math and Physics – the first Geometry text was
compiled, Euclid compiled a book of geometry
propositions and proofs.
 Archimedes estimated the circumference of a
circle to its diameter
 He also invented the pulley, screw and other
scientists built a force pump and even a steam
engine
 Advancements in Art &
Philosophy
 Stoicism – founded by Zeno, believed
in a divine power who controlled the
universe. People should live a virtuous
life in harmony with natural law
 Sculpture – sculptors created more
realistic and emotional works
 The largest known Hellenistic sculpture
was the Colossus of Rhodes, which
stood more than 100 feet high and was
made of bronze
 Review
1) Why did Alexander reject the offer made by
the King of Persia (Darius)?
 A Because Alexander was selfish
 B Because Darius would have backed out
 C Because he wanted to control all of Persia
 D Because he had no choice
2) Hellenistic Culture is the blending of
what four influences?
 A African, American, Spanish, Asian
 B Persian, Canadian, Mesopotamian,
American
 C Egyptian, Persian, American, Spanish
 D Egyptian, Persian, Indian, Greek