TEST Review: Ancient Greece

1. : TEST Review: Ancient Greece

2. Minoan Civilization • Height of Civilization: 1750 to 1500 BCE • Trade society; set up outposts throughout Aegean Sea • Palace at Knossos offers glimpse of life • Religious shrines • Frescoes (sea themed; worshiped bull and mother goddess; more equal role for women?) • Civilization vanishes in 1400 BCE • Volcanic eruption? • Invasions by Mycenaeans? • Inspiration of Atlantis Myth?

3. Rulers of Mycenae • Indo-European people who conquered mainland Greece and Crete • Dominated Aegean from 1400 BCE to 1200 BCE • Sea trading society; contact with & influence from Egyptian & Mesopotamians • Established walled city states ruled by warrior kings • Trojan War (1250 BCE?) • Economic war between Mycenae and Troy • Inspiration for epic poem Iliad; mythical cause  kidnap of Helen

4. Age of Homer • Mycenae fell to sea raiders and Dorian Invasion (1100 BCE to 800 BCE) • 2 sources: Iliad and Odyssey (750 BCE?) • Epic poems (history/entertainment/moral instruction) • Iliad: story of the Trojan war; Achilles will not fight for the Greeks until his “friend” dies • Odyssey: story of the adventures of Odysseus making his way home from the Trojan War • After Dorian invasions Greeks lived in small isolated villages

5. Geography of Greece • Part of Balkan Peninsula • Mountains and valleys • Greek city states were cut off and independent from one another • Coastline provides safe harbors for ships • became skilled sailors and traders • 750 BCE: increasing population resulted in Greeks establishing colonies all over the Mediterranean • Carried their ideas and culture

6. Early Greek Government (750 to 500BCE) • Polis: Greek version of a city state; Acropolis: hill/high ground for temples; surrounded by flatter ground with other buildings. • At first, the ruler was a king (monarchy) • Slowly, power shifted to a class of noble landowners (aristocracy) • As trade expanded, a new class of wealthy merchants, farmers, and artisans came to dominate some city-states (oligarchy)

7. Athens vs. Sparta ATHENS SPARTA • Rulers were two kings and a council of elders. • Rulers formed a military society. • Conquered people were turned into slaves, called helots. • Rulers forbade trade and travel. • Male, native-born Spartans over age 30 were citizens. • All boys received military training. • Girls were raised to produce healthy sons for the army. • Women had the right to inherit property. • Society grew into a limited democracy, or government by the people. • Male citizens over age 30 were members of the assembly. • Rulers encouraged trade with other city-states. • Women were considered inferior. • Boys received education in many areas, not just military training.

8. Forces for Unity • Common Culture! • They honored the same ancient heroes. • They participated in common festivals. • They prayed to the same gods. • They shared the Greek language. • They felt superior to non-Greeks, whom they called “barbaroi,” people who did not speak Greek.

9. The Persian Wars – Part 1 • Athens helped Greek city states in Asia minor when they rose up against Persia; Persia puts down the rebellion • Persians sent a huge force to punish Athens; defeated at Marathon (by Themistocles) • Darius’ son Xerxes sends an even larger force to attack Greece

10. The Persian Wars – Part 2 • Athenians convince Sparta and other city states to stand against Persia; battle at Thermopylae gives people time to evacuate Athens; Athens burned • Greek fleet eventually destroys Persian fleet and army; Persian threat ended • Delian League: Greeks formed an alliance to protect against future Persian threats; Athens uses league to create an Athenian empire

11. Athens in the Age of Pericles • Golden age for Athens after Persian wars • Direct democracy; assembly voted on everyday matters; officials paid a stipend • Served on juries (over 30, one year service, stipend) • Citizens could be ostracized • Pericles’ Funeral Oration: expression of Democratic ideals • Athens’ acropolis rebuilt; thinkers writers and artists recruited

12. The Peloponnesian War • Other Greeks resented Athens’ power and wealth • Peloponnesian League formed to counter Delian League (Sparta key member) • 30 years of war between Greeks (mainly Athens and Sparta) • With Persian help Spartans defeat Athens • Greeks continued fighting, making them vulnerable to Macedonia

13. Greek Philosophers (Part 1) • Some Greek thinkers used observation and reason to find causes for what happened. • The Greeks called these thinkers philosophers, meaning “lovers of wisdom.” • Socrates: • used questions to challenge students and learn from their own answers • help others seek truth and self-knowledge • put on trial, sentenced to death

14. Greek Philosophers (Part 2) • Plato • through reason, people could discover unchanging ethical values • recognize perfect beauty, and organize society • Rejected democracy; ideal government = philosopher kings • Aristotle • believed in rule by strong and virtuous leader • good conduct was moderation between extremes • teacher of Alexander of Macedon (“the great”)

15. Architecture & Art • Balance, order and beauty • Architects tried to convey a sense of perfect balance to reflect the harmony of the universe • Parthenon • Sculpture and Painting • Early sculptors imitated rigid Egyptian poses. • Later sculptors emphasized natural poses that were • lifelike but also idealistic. • Paintings offer views of Greek life.

16. History • The Greeks applied reason, observation, and logic to the study of history. • Herodotus is called the “Father of History;” stressed the importance of research • Thucydides showed the need to avoid bias. • Herodotus and Thucydides set standards for future historians.

17. Alexander the Great (Part 1) • Philip of Macedon dreamed of conquering Greek city-states to the south and eventually the Persian Empire • 338 BCE: Greece brought under Macedonian control; Philip assassinated soon thereafter • Alexander becomes king at 20 and moved against Persia

18. Alexander the Great (Part 2) • He wing his first victory against the Persians at the Granicus River (Turkey); he then conquered Asia Minor, Palestine, Egypt, and Babylon (330s BCE) • Alexander crossed the Hindu Kush into northern India (326 BCE); there his troops faced soldiers mounted on war elephants (forced to retreat). • Soldiers refused to go onward! • Alexander died of a sudden fever; three generals divided up the empire (East, West & Egypt).

19. The Legacy of Alexander • Alexander unleashed changes that would ripple across the Mediterranean world and the Middle East for centuries! • Most lasting achievement  spread of Greek culture. • Founded many new Greek-style cities, leaving soldiers and artisans behind • Across the empire, local people assimilated, or absorbed, Greek ideas. In turn, Greek settlers adopted local customs (CULTURAL DIFFUSION!).

20. Hellenistic Culture • Gradually, a blending of eastern and western cultures occurred! • Hellenistic culture  blend of Greek, Persian, Egyptian and Indian culture • Alexander had encouraged this blending by marrying a Persian woman and adopting Persian customs. • Alexandria, Egypt: becomes center of learning and arts (Pharos, zoo and library)

21. Great Hellenistic Minds! • Zeno: founded Stoicism (urged people to accept calmly whatever life brought) • Pythagoras: derived formula to calculate the relationship between the sides of a triangle. • Euclid: wrote The Elements, a textbook that became the basis for modern geometry. • Aristarchus: theorized about a heliocentric, or sun-centered, solar system. • Eratosthenes: showed that the Earth was round and accurately calculated its circumference. • Archimedes: used principles of physics to make practical inventions, such as the lever and the pulley. • Hippocrates: studied illnesses and cures and set ethical standards for medical care (Hippocratic Oath).