The Story of Ancient Greece Geography of Greece

The Story of Ancient Greece

Geography of Greece • Greece is a small country in Europe. • Greece is near the Mediterranean Sea. • The main part of Greece in on a peninsula. • A peninsula is a body of land surrounded by water on three sides. • The rest of Greece is made up of islands.

Greek City-States • Because Greece is made up of many islands, and has many tall mountains, the Greeks began to build city-states instead of one country. • A city-state is a city with its own laws, rulers, and money. • City-states were cities that acted like countries.

Technology results from necessity • Since Greek coastal cities were sandwiched between the ocean and the sea, they developed an awesome navy for trading and fighting.

Sparta • Sparta was a Greek city-state. • Sparta was very powerful and had its own army. • Sparta conquered other city-states to gain wealth and power. • There were three classes of people in Sparta. • Citizens, non-citizens, and slaves.

Sparta’s Classes • Only men born in Sparta were citizens. • Women were not allowed to become citizens, however, women were allowed to own land businesses, which gave them more freedom than other Greek city-states. • The second class in Sparta was people who came from other city-states or other countries. They could own businesses but not become citizens. • The third class was slaves.

Sparta warriors • Learning to read and write in Sparta was not very important. • Training to become a good soldiers was important. • Young boys at age 7 were taken from their parents and trained to be soldiers as well as good in sports such as running. • Girls were also trained to be good in sports.

Athens • Athens was another important Greek citystate. • The people of Athens wanted to rule themselves and not have a king or queen. • Athens became the world’s first democracy around 508 B. C. • A democracy is a government in which all citizens can vote and have equal say in what happens.

Democracy in Athens • Athens was a democracy because all citizens could vote, but only half the people in Athens were citizens. • Women, people born outside of Athens, and slaves could not vote.

Megara • Megara was a coastal city-state. • Megara was highly respected in the ancient Greek world. • Megara was similar to Corinth. They people were ruled by a king. They had their own coinage. They had public work programs to keep people employed. Megara had beautiful statues and open air arenas for plays. Their boys went to school. Their girls learned at home; there was a great deal of freedom in Megara. You could move there from another citystate and rent a home, or even buy one.

Megara • Like all the Greek city-states, Megara loved to establish new towns. • They were great sailors, trading with other Greek citystates. Megara, like all the Greeks, were trained warriors. • Megara was famous for its textiles. Richly colored and beautifully designed fabrics.

Thebes • Strategically situated on a low plateau commanding the surrounding plains of Boeotia. • Thebes (also known as Kadmeia) was first inhabited around 3000 BCE. • From 2500 BCE there is evidence of food and wool production and storage - grinding stones and terracotta loom-weights and spools, and bronze carpentry tools.

Thebes • Following the Dark Ages in Greece (c. 1100 to 700 BCE), Thebes re-emerged as an influential Greek city -state and for the next four centuries the city would be a constant rival to Athens and Sparta for regional dominance. • In 480 BCE Thebes sided with Persian when Xerxes invaded Greece. • The city was a major protagonist in the Peloponnesian War from 431 to 404 BCE, siding with Sparta against Athens.

Corinth • Located on the isthmus which connects mainland Greece with the Peloponnese. • First inhabited in the Neolithic period (c. 5000 BCE), the site became more densely populated from the 10 th century BCE. The historical founders of the city were the aristocratic descendants of King Bacchis, the Bacchiadae, in 750 BCE.

Corinth • Bacchiadae ruled as a body of 200 until in 657 BCE. • The popular tyrant Cypselus took control of the city, to be succeeded by his son Periander (627 -587 BCE). • Cypselus funded the building of a treasury at Delphi and founded colonies which included Ambracia, Anactorium, and Leucas. • These added to the existing Corinthian colonies of Corcyra (Corfu) and Syracuse in Sicily which had been founded in 734 BCE.

Delphi • Delphi was an important ancient Greek religious sanctuary sacred to the god Apollo. • The site was first settled in Mycenaean times in the late Bronze Age (1500 -1100 BCE) but took on its religious significance from around 800 BCE. • 560 BCE The oracles of Delphi and Thebes both tell King Croesus of Lydia that if he attacks the Medes, he will destroy a great empire. Seeing this as a good omen, he goes to war, loses, and the Lydian Empire is destroyed.

Oracle's Prophecy The oracle stated that if Croesus went to war then a great empire would surely fall. Reassured by this, the Lydian king took on the mighty Cyrus. However, the Lydian were routed at Sardis and it was the Lydian empire which fell, a lesson that the oracle could easily be misinterpreted by the unwise or over-confident.

Oracle's Prophecy • In 480 BC, when Xerxes, the son of Darius the Great of Persia, returned to finish the job of conquering the Greeks in which his father had failed, the Athenians consulted the oracle. They were told: • Now your statues are standing and pouring sweat. They shiver with dread. The black blood drips from the highest rooftops. They have seen the necessity of evil. Get out, get out of my sanctum and drown your spirits in woe. • It was unambiguous. When persuaded to seek advice a second time, the oracle gave a way for the Athenians to escape their doom. • When Athena approached her father to help her city, Zeus responded that he would grant that • "a wall of wood alone shall be uncaptured, a boon to you and your children. " The oracle again advised the Athenians to flee: Await not in quiet the coming of the horses, the

Oracle's Prophecy • The oracle again advised the Athenians to flee: Await not in quiet the coming of the horses, the marching feet, the armed host upon the land. Slip away. Turn your back. You will meet in battle anyway. O holy Salamis, you will be the death of many a woman's son between the seedtime and the harvest of the grain. • Meanwhile, the Spartans also consulted the oracle and were told: The strength of bulls or lions cannot stop the foe. No, he will not leave off, I say, until he tears the city or the king limb from limb. • or in a version according to Herodotus: Hear your fate, O dwellers in Sparta of the wide spaces; Either your famed, great town must be sacked by Perseus' sons, Or, if that be not, the whole land of Lacedaemon Shall mourn the death of a king of the house of Heracles, For not the strength of lions or of bulls shall hold him, Strength against strength; for he has the power of Zeus, And will not be checked until one of these two he has consumed

Oracle's Prophecy • The Spartans withdrew in consternation, wondering which fate was worse. The Delphians themselves then asked how Persia could be defeated. The oracle replied: Pray to the Winds. They will prove to be mighty allies of Greece

OUTCOME • Events overtook the prophecy when the Persian army assaulted Thermopylae Spartan-led coalition and allies held the pass against them. • King Leonidas, the Lion, resisted the Persian advance until betrayed by treachery. • Refusing to retreat, the entire Spartan contingent, including their King (as foretold), lost their lives, but in so doing gained immortal fame

• • OUTCOME The Persian armada then sailed to nearby Cape Artemesium, where they were met by the Athenian fleet. The Athenian ships fought against great odds, but in three battles managed to hold their own. A tremendous storm then arose at Artemesium, with the most violent winds attacking the ships for three days. The Persians lost about 20% of their warships and perhaps the same number of transport vessels to the storm. The stormy winds and huge waves did not harm the Athenian ships.

OUTCOME • Back in Athens Themistocles argued that the wall of wood referred to the Athenian navy and persuaded the Athenians to pursue their policy of using wealth from their Attic silver mines at Laurium to continue building their fleet • On the grounds that the oracle referred to the nearby island of Salamis as "holy", he claimed that those slain would be Greece's enemies, not the Athenians. For these the oracle would have said "O cruel Salamis". • Athenian fleet and its allies destroyed the Persian fleet at Salamis.

Olympia • Olympia is the birthplace of the Olympic Games and Zeus' sacred place • Olympia has cultivated ideals since ancient times. • It was never just the games, but also the honor, the peace, the struggle and the body - all in one.

Pericles • Pericles was the leader of creating democracy in Athens. • He had many buildings constructed. • Pericles had the Parthenon and the Acropolis built.

Parthenon and Acropolis

Education in Athens • Education was very important in Athens. • Boys went to school to learn to read and write. They also learned many sports. • Girls were not allowed to go to school or learn to play sports.

The Greek Alphabet • The Greeks borrowed their alphabet from the Phoenicians. • Most European languages, including English borrowed ideas from the Greek alphabet.

Socrates • Socrates was a philosopher of Ancient Greece. • A philosopher is someone who tries to explain the nature of life. • Socrates taught by by asking questions. This method of questioning is still called the Socratic method.

Plato • Plato was a student of Socrates. • He started a school called The Academy. • Plato’s writing took the form of a dialogue between teacher and student.

Aristotle • Aristotle was another Greek philosopher and student of Plato. • He wrote about science, art, law, poetry, and government.

Alexander the Great • Alexander the Great was the son of King Phillip II of Macedonia. • Alexander conquered Persia, Egypt, the Middle East and Northern India. • He died at age 33, historians believe from malaria.

Greek Military • This is a catapult, a Greek invention. • It could throw 300 pound stones at walls and buildings

Greek Military • This is a hoplite, a Greek infantry soldier. • Hoplites were middle-class freemen who had to pay for their own weapon and shield.

Greek Military • This is a phalanx. • Soldiers get in a tight box. They each have a large shield and a 9 foot long spear.

Flamethrower!!!!!

Alexander’s Empire