Ancient GreeceWorld History 1

Unlike Mesopotamia and Egypt, Greece is small

It consists of a mainland covered with mountains and dozens of islands

In fact, Greece is some 90% rock, making farming very difficult.

On the other hand, there are very few places more than 50 miles from the sea.

Thus, where do you suppose the Greeks had to make their living?

The Impact of Geography

Made of Mountains

Through much of modern times, the kingdom of Minos on the island of Crete was myth.

Little or no concrete proof existed until the 19th century.

However, amateur archaeologist Arthur Evans discovered a rich, sophisticated civilization on the island of Crete.

Flourishing from 2700 to 1450 BC, the Minoans were not Greek but influenced Greek culture

Island Kingdom

Ancient Crete

Crete was ideally situated to trade with everyone or act as middle man for everyone

Crete traded finely crafted pottery, gold, silver for other goods.

Cretans borrowed techniques from others to improve their own

They traded all over the eastern Mediterranean: Greece, Asia Minor, Egypt and Palestine

Merchants and Middlemen

Location, Location, Location

The palace of King Minos in Knossos was a masterpiece of engineering and architecture

Equipped with indoor plumbing, workshops for making decorated vases, ivory figures and fine jewelry.

Rooms were decorated with murals depicting sporting events and nature scenes

Storerooms held gigantic jars of olive oil, wine and grain paid as taxes to the king

A Wonder of the Age

Nice place but does it have a view?

In 1450 BC, Crete civilization ended in a sudden catastrophe

One theory: a massive tidal wave caused by a massive earthquake on or near the island of Thera consumed the island.

The most commonly held belief is that the sudden demise came due to an invasion from mainland Greece

The invaders were competitors who decided to muscle out their main rivals

Sudden, Mysterious End

The Minoans were replaced by their former competitors, the Mycenaeans.

The Mycenaeans came from Asia, migrating to Europe and into Greece ca. 1900 BC

They intermarried with locals and controlled Greece by 1600 BC

Flourishing from 1400 to 1200 BC

The new boys on the block

New Power in the Eastern Med.

Mycenaean civilization was made up of powerful monarchies (warlords?)

Each had his own fortified palace situated on a hill surrounded by high walls.

The warlords likely formed a loose confederation of independent states

They were a warrior people who valued heroic deeds in battle

Their murals show battle and hunting scenes

Society of warriors

The Mycenaeans made use of the trade network inherited from the Minoans

Their pottery has been found from Syria to Egypt, Sicily and southern Italy to the west.

Their military expanded the reach as well throughout Greece and the Aegean Sea

A Wide Reach

Warriors with Artistic Taste

Homer used the Mycenaean Greeks in his description of the Trojan war.

The wife of a Mycenaean king was stolen by visiting Trojans

To avenge the insult, Kings Agamemnon and Menalaos launched a force of 1,000 ships.

The siege of Troy lasted 10 years, ending with the trick of the Trojan Horse and the sack of the city.

The Stuff of Legends

Trojan War

By the late 13th century BC, the Mycenaean civilization was tearing itself apart

The warlords fought each other while major earthquakes laid waste their cities

In the 12th century BC, Greek-speaking Dorians from the north moved in.

By 1100 BC, the Mycenaean civilization had collapsed

Living and Dying by the Sword

With the fall of the Mycenaeans, population declined, food production dropped.

From 1100 to 750 BC there is little in the way of literature to describe what happened

Farming did not start to revive until 850 BC Many Greeks emigrated to the islands or

Asia Minor in search of land or work. Some trade did come back and iron

replaced bronze as the metal for weapons and tools

Dark Ages in Greece

Toward the end of the 8th century BC, Greece adopted and modified the Phoenician alphabet

This made communication and writing easier

Not coincidentally Homer penned the Illiad and the Odyssey at this time

These epic poems gave the Greeks a heroic past, with heroes of courage and honor, who strive for excellence.

Muse of a new Greece

Alphabet and Hero

Greek hero ideal: Perseus

As life began to return to Greece, the polis became the center of life

The polis consisted of the city proper plus the surrounding countryside

The town, village or city was the center of the polis where political, religious and social activities took place

The Polis

The Early Polis

The main gathering place in the polis was the acropolis on top of a hill

It served as a refuge in case of attack and as a religious center with temples and public buildings

Below the acropolis was the agora, an assembly area and market place

These city-states ranged in size from a few square miles to a few hundred.

Population varied from a few hundred to hundreds of thousands such as Athens.

Center of Greek Life

Centers of the Polis

Acropolis – fortress on a hillAgora – central assembly and marketplace

The polis was a community of people with shared identity and goals

Usually 3 types of citizen: those with political rights (adult males), no political rights (women and children) and noncitizens (slaves, nonresident aliens and migrant farm workers)

Rights also carried responsibilities: each citizen belonged to the state

The fierce loyalty to one’s polis bred distrust of others and contributed to Greece’s ruin.

More than buildings or land

As the polis grew, so did its need for more men to serve in the military.

Before, the military was a noble class of horsemen who also dominated politics

Now with the new hoplites (heavy infantry) arranged in a phalanx (rectangular box),

A phalanx consisted of soldiers in close order with shields up and long lances, hard to penetrate as long as the line held.

Political participation broadened (?)

A new military order

Hoplites & the Phalanx

As the poleis grew, it became obvious that the land could not support many people

Thus, to find more farmland, provide jobs and create trade,

Greeks set out and established colonies throughout the Aegean, Asia Minor, the Black Sea, Sicily, Italy, even France and Spain

Each colony became an independent city-state in its own right

Expansion by Necessity

A Long Reach

With colonies established throughout the Mediterranean, the money flowed in.

Farmers switched from food production to commercial agriculture growing olives and wine for export.

The wealth created problems though – a new class of new rich merchants.

These merchants were a middle class that wanted a share of political power equal to their wealth.

Unintended Consequences

The men in power, military men, landowners had held power for a long time.

They were not inclined to share power the new rich

The merchants felt they should have a vote and a say in government

The merchants allied with the poor who merely wanted debt relief and to keep their land

The Immovable Object

So much turmoil was created in this battle for a piece of the pie that

A single leader arose who had the trust of the rich and the merchants.

They ended the class war, restored order. They cut through the red tape to create

public works projects and Try to ease the lot of the poor

Battles and then the tyrants

The tyrants were neither all good or all bad. They had the power to do great good or

great evil. Some men started off doing good before the

power and paranoia went to their heads. Before long the tyrants passed from the

scene, the idea of single man rule went against the grain.

Good and bad

Two city-states (poleis) exemplify the independence and uniqueness of the concept

Sparta is the best example of a city-state which chose a different path.

Instead of sending out colonists, they invaded their neighbors and made them slaves.

These slaves (helots) were forced to work their former lands for the Spartans

An uprising took 20 years to put down

Sparta

Ancient Sparta

To prevent another revolt, the Spartans decided to become a military state.

Boys started young and stayed until they were 60 years old.

Even married they lived in the barracks, training constantly.

Spartans became known as the finest, most professional, best disciplined soldiers in the world.

And the most feared.

A military state

Spartan phalanx

Spartans in battle

Because their men were away, Spartan women had more freedom to run the household

They were expected to remain fit so as to bear strong, healthy children to serve the state

Most women adhered to the military code, expecting their men to be brave in battle

The traditional send off: Come home carrying his shield or on it. Victory or death.

Spartan women

Women in Sparta

Government was oligarchical, headed by two kings who lead the army in battle.

A group of five ephors supervised education and citizen conduct

A council of elders – 28 citizens over 60 and the 2 kings – decided what issues to present to the assembly

The assembly did not debate, it only voted.

Spartan government

To protect their way of life, Spartans turned their backs on the outside world

Foreigners who might bring new ideas were discouraged from visiting

Spartans were not allowed to travel abroad except for military reasons

Literature, philosophy, the arts were all discouraged

The military arts were the only ones allowed.

A closed society