CH. 5 ANCIENT GREECE

Section 1: Early People of the Aegean

MINOANS AND MYCENAEANS• Minoans first set up their civilization in Crete

• Archaeologists think they may have called themselves Minoans, but are unsure

• Their location led to success in trading since it was near the sea. They also became technologically advance due to their ability to travel to the Nile Valley region.

• Woman had more rights than in most ancient civilizations.

• Due to unknown reasons, they disappeared around 1400 B.C.

• Mycenaeans were successful sea traders who dominated the Aegean world from around 1400 to 1200 B.C.

• They lived in separate city-states and learned a lot from Minoans.

• Each city state had its own warrior-king and built a fortress around the surrounding land he ruled.

TROJAN WAR• Conflict due to economic rivalry between Mycenaeans and Troy.

• Greek Legend tells that a Trojan prince kidnapped the Mycenaean King’s wife.

• Fighting went on for ten years until Mycenaeans surrendered and offered a wooden horse to the Trojans.

• Once the “Trojan Horse” was inside the city walls of Troy, Mycenaean soldiers hidden inside jumped out.

• These soldiers opened the gates, allowing the rest of the Mycenaean army into Troy and overpower the Trojans.

SECTION 2: THE RISE OF GREEK CITY-STATES

GREEK GEOGRAPHY

• Greece is part of the Balkan peninsula.

• There are many mountains that divide this peninsula into valleys.

• There were hundreds of rocky islands.

• A lot of the land was not very fertile.

• The surrounding seas were important for resources and transportation.

THE POLIS

• polis- unique version of a city-state

• The acropolis was the high city with a building on top of a hill dedicated to a god or goddess

• Greek governments started out as monarchies, but power slowly shifted to certain landowners.

• Aristocracy (rule by landholding elite) began when kings gave warriors land for protection

• Some city-states had oligarchies, or a government where a small, powerful elite usually from the business class held power.

SPARTA• The Spartans were Dorians who conquered Laconia.

• They turned conquered people into slaves called helots.

• From childhood, Spartans trained for the military.

• Children were examined, and the sickly were killed.

• Boys joined the military at age seven. They weren’t given much food and were encouraged to steal it. If they were caught, however, they were beat.

• Men could marry at 20, but lived in the barracks for 10 more years. At 30, he took his place in the assembly.

• Woman needed to become strong so they could produce strong babies.

ATHENS

• Athens developed a democracy, or government by the people.

• In 594 B.C. Athens allowed Solon to make reforms. He created new laws, gave citizens high offices, allowed citizenship, and also made economic reforms.

• There was still unrest and this led to the rise of tyrants, or those who gain power by force.

• Athens made many other reforms such as a legislature, or lawmaking body.

• Women managed the entire household, but had no share in public life.

SECTION 3: VICTORY AND DEFEAT IN THE GREEK WORLD

THE PERSIAN WARS• Athens was the wealthiest Greek city-state by 500 B.C. However, the Persians were a possible threat to them.

• Ionian Greeks rebelled against Persia, and Athens sent ships to help them. This angered the Persians.

• The Persians fought with Athens three times and lost each time.

• Persians landed at Marathon in the first attack, but were forced to retreat to their ships even though they had a 2 to 1 advantage in terms of men.

• In the second attack, the Spartans led by King Leonidas drove the Persians out of northern Greece.

• The Persians attacked Greece and they burned Athens but nobody was there. Athens withdrew to safety and later fought off the Persians.

• Later on the Persians were defeated on land by Athens during the third attack.

AGE OF PERICLES

• This was the Golden Age of Athens.

• Athenians had a direct democracy, or a government in which a large number of male citizens took part in the day to day governmental affairs.

• Athens prospered greatly economically through trade.

• They also prospered culturally, rebuilding the Acropolis and through other advancements.

• The Age of Pericles lasted from 460 to 429 B.C.

PELOPONNESIAN WAR

• In 431 B.C. war broke out between Sparta and Athens. This led to the Peloponnesian War, which lasted 27 years and involved all of Greece.

• Sparta sided with the Persians to fight against Athens.

• Though Athens had a strong navy, they faced a geological disadvantage.

• In 404 B.C. Sparta took over Athens.

SECTION 4: THE GLORY THAT WAS GREECE

ARTS

• Greek architecture was greatly admired. The most famous buildings was one of the Seven Wonders of the World, the Parthenon.

• People were sculpted in rigid poses. Images of people were often sculpted in athletic poses.

• Greeks created incredible pottery. The only paintings to survive were on pottery.

POETRY AND DRAMA

• Poets wrote about joys and sorrows of their times.

• Greek plays started as religious festivals.

• Dramas were based on myth and legends.

• Greeks performed tragedies, or plays that told of human suffering usually ending in disaster.

• Playwrights also wrote comedies, or humorous plays that mocked people or customs.

ALEXANDER THE GREAT

• He invaded Persia by crossing the Dardanelles.

• In 331 B.C. he conquered Babylon and seized Persian capitals.

• Alexander also took a lot of India where he crossed the Hindu Kush and fought soldiers mounted on elephants.

• Alexander never lost a battle. Suddenly, he fell ill and died due to a bad fever.

• His legacy lived on through the land he conquered that was kept for 300 years and through the city named after him called Alexandria.

HELLENISTIC CIVILZATION

• New schools of philosophy rose.

• Pythagoras developed the Pythagorean Theorem (a2+b2=c2).

• The idea was passed that the earth rotated on its axis.

• Doctors kept the business of patients private.

• The Hellenistic Period was when a powerful new state called Rome began to become powerful.

REGENTS REVIEW QUIZ1) The Ancient Athenians are credited with

1. inventing and using the wheel

 2. eliminating slavery

 3. establishing governments that had democratic elements

 4. inventing the printing press

2) Which ancient civilization established the basis of western democracy?

 1. Phoenician

 2. Egyptian

 3. Sumerian

 4. Greek

3) Which societal condition was basic to the development of Greek philosophy?

 1. rigid social classes

 2. emphasis on individualism

 3. religious uniformity

 4. mass education

4) The Ancient Greek city-state of Sparta

 1. was primarily concerned with the health of their people

 2. was a powerful military state

 3. granted universal suffrage to their people

 4. placed great emphasis on literature and the arts

5) Alexander the Great’s conquests of Greece, Asia Minor, Egypt, and Persia led to the

 1. spread of Hellenic culture

 2. adoption of a feudal system

 3. establishment of representative democracy

 4. spread of Islamic culture throughout Europe

ANSWERS

1) 3

2) 4

3) 4

4) 2

5) 1