Ancient Greece

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Ancient Greece
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Ancient Greece-Early People of the Aegean Sea
Europa, the beautiful daughter of the king of
Phoenicia, (fo-nee-sha) was gathering flowers
when she saw a bull quietly grazing with her
father's herds. The bull was actually Zeus, king
of the gods, who had fallen in love with her.
When Europa reached to place
flowers on his horns, he

suddenly bounded into the air
and carried the weeping
princess
far across the
Mediterranean Sea to the
island of Crete.
Europa married the king of
Crete and gave her name to
a new
continentEurope.
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Ancient Greece-Early People of the Aegean Sea
This Greek legend carries seeds of truth. Crete
was the cradle of an early civilization that
later influenced Greeks on the European mainland.
The people of Crete, however, had absorbed many
ideas from the older civilizations of Egypt and
Mesopotamia. Europa's journey from Phoenicia to
Crete thus suggests the movement of ideas from
east to west.
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Minoan Civilization
Ancient Greece-Early People of the Aegean Sea
CRETE was home to a brilliant early civilization.
Called MINOANS after Minos, a legendary king of
Crete. Minoans are credited as the first
European civilization. Minoan civilization
reached its greatest success between 1750 BCE and
1500 BCE Minoan civilization was based on trade,
setting up outposts throughout the Aegean world.
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Minoan Civilization
Ancient Greece-Early People of the Aegean Sea
PALACE AT KNOSSOS Knossos is an expansive
palace atop a low hill just a few kilometers
outside Heraklion in Crete The palace of Knossos
is the grandest of the four Minoan palaces that
have been unearthed in Crete It housed 800
rooms for the royal family, banquet halls, and
work areas for artisans. The walls of the
palace are covered with colorful FRESCOES,
watercolor paintings done on wet plaster.
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The Palace of Knossos Today from the air
The Palace of Knossos What might have been
The Palace of Knossos Frescoes
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Minoan Civilization
Ancient Greece-Early People of the Aegean Sea
PALACE AT KNOSSOS The palace of Knossos was the
stage for a number of fascinating myths in
ancient Greece. Its complex architecture has
been identified as the legendary LABYRINTH or
maze
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Ancient Greece-Early People of the Aegean Sea
Knossos was the place where
the MINOTAUR - a terrible
monster with the
body of a
man and the head of a bull He lived in the
Labyrinth,
tormenting and then eating
six youths and six
maidens
who were sent by Athens
every 9 years in tribute to
king Minos'
rule.
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Ancient Greece-Early People of the Aegean Sea
The Athenian hero Theseus put an end to this
tradition by slaying the beast with the aid of
the daughter of Minos, Ariadne She fell in
love with him and gave him a ball of thread
which he unraveled as he entered the
labyrinth, and after killing the
minotaur, he followed it on his
way back towards the exit.
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Ancient Greece-Early People of the Aegean Sea
This is the palace and its famous Labyrinth that
was built by the famed architect Dedalus who
after completing its construction was held
prisoner by king Minos so he would be unable to
divulge the palace's plan to anyone else As the
story goes, Dedalus and his son Ikaros
constructed wings made of feathers and wax, and
thus were able to fly off the island to freedom.
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Ancient Greece-Early People of the Aegean Sea
In a tragic turn of events, during their escape
youthful Ikaros soared higher and higher in the
sky despite his wise father's advise.
Getting close to the sun was his
undoing as the heat melted the wax
which held the wings together and he
plunged to his death somewhere in the
Aegean sea, near the island we now call
"Ikaria".
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Ancient Greece-Early People of the Aegean Sea
Mycenaean Civilization
The MYCENAENS (mi suh nee uhnz) the first
Greek-speaking invaders who helped with the
destruction of Minoan civilization.. Mycenaean
civilization dominated the Aegean world from
about 1400 b.c.e. to 1200 b.c.e. They were sea
traders. They reached out beyond the Aegean to
Sicily, Italy, Egypt, and Mesopotamia. They
learned writing the Minoans.
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Ancient Greece-Early People of the Aegean Sea
Mycenaean Civilization
They conquered the Greek mainland before
overrunning Crete. The Mycenaeans lived in
separate CITY-STATES on the mainland. Wealthy
rulers amassed hoards of treasure, including fine
gold ornaments that archaeologists have unearthed
from their tombs.
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Ancient Greece-Early People of the Aegean Sea
Trojan War
The Trojan War, took place around 1250 BCE It
may have had its origins in economic rivalry
between Mycenae and Troy. Troy controlled the
STRAITS, or narrow water passages, that connect
the Mediterranean and Black seas. Many believed
the Trojan War as purely a legend. In the 1870s,
Heinrich Schliemann, excavated the site of
ancient Troy, finding evidence of fire and war
dating to about 1250 BCE
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Ancient Greece-Early People of the Aegean Sea
Trojan War
Greek legend, as written by Homer, attributes the
war to the Trojan prince Paris, who kidnapped
Helen, the beautiful wife of a Greek king. The
Mycenaeans sailed to Troy to rescue her. For
the next 10 years, the two sides battled until
the Greeks finally seized Troy and burned the
city to the ground. The heroes Odysseus,
Achilles, Ajax, Hector and Paris became legendary
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ACHILLES
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KING PRIAM
HECTOR
PARIS
PARIS AND HELEN
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Ancient Greece-Early People of the Aegean Sea
Homer The Iliad and The Odyssey
After the fall of Troy, Mycenaean civilization
crumbled under the attack of sea raiders.
Another wave of Greek-speaking people, the
Dorians, invaded from the north. As Mycenaean
power faded, people abandoned the cities, and
trade declined. 1100 BCE to 800 BCE Greek
civilization DARK AGE. People forgot many
skills, including the art of writing. 
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Ancient Greece-Early People of the Aegean Sea
Homer The Iliad and The Odyssey
We get hints about life during this period from
two great epic poems, the Iliad and the Odyssey.
They are credited to the poet HOMER, who
probably lived about 750 BCE According to
tradition, Homer was a blind poet who wandered
from village to village, singing of heroic deeds.
Homer's tales were passed on orally for
generations before they were finally written
down. 
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Ancient Greece-Early People of the Aegean Sea
Homer The Iliad and The Odyssey
The Iliad is our chief source of information
about the Trojan War. At the start of the poem,
Achilles, the mightiest Greek warrior, is sulking
in his tent because of a dispute with his
commander. Although the war soon turns against
the Greeks, Achilles stubbornly refuses to listen
to pleas that he rejoin the fighting. Only after
his best friend is killed does Achilles return to
battle. 
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Ancient Greece-Early People of the Aegean Sea
Homer The Iliad and The Odyssey
The Odyssey tells of the struggles of the Greek
hero Odysseus to return home to his faithful
wife, Penelope, after the fall of Troy.
Odysseus encounters a sea monster, a race of
one-eyed giants, and a beautiful sorceress who
turns men into swine. 
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Ancient Greece-Early People of the Aegean Sea
Homer The Iliad and The Odyssey
The Iliad and Odyssey reveal much about the
values of the ancient Greeks. The heroes
display honor, courage, and eloquence. For
almost 3,000 years, the epics of Homer have
inspired European writers and artists.
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Ancient Greece-The Rise of Greek City-States
We live around the sea like frogs around a
pond, noted the Greek thinker Plato. Indeed, the
Mediterranean and Aegean seas were as central to
the development of Greek civilization as the Nile
was to the Egyptians. The ancient Greeks absorbed
many ideas and beliefs from the older
civilizations of Mesopotamia and Egypt. At the
same time, they evolved their own unique ways. In
particular, the Greeks developed new ideas about
how best to govern a society.
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Ancient Greece-The Rise of Greek City-States
Geography of the Greek Homeland
Mountains and Valleys  Greece is part of the
Balkan peninsula, which extends southward into
the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Mountains divide
the peninsula into isolated valleys.
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Ancient Greece-The Rise of Greek City-States
Geography of the Greek Homeland
The Greeks farmed the valleys or settled on the
scattered islands They did not create a large
empire They built many small city-states, cut
off from one another by mountains or water.
Greeks fiercely defended the independence of
their tiny city-states. Endless rivalry led to
frequent wars.
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Ancient Greece-The Rise of Greek City-States
Geography of the Greek Homeland
THE SEAS The seas were a vital link to the world.
Its hundreds of bays, the coastline provided
safe harbors They became skilled sailors around
the eastern Mediterranean. They returned not
only with grains and metals but also with ideas.
The Greeks expanded the Phoenician alphabet
into the Greek alphabet which became the basis
for all western alphabets.
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Ancient Greece-The Rise of Greek City-States
                                                
             Chart
Our alphabet comes to us from the Phoenicians by
way of the Greeks. The word alphabet itself comes
from the first two Greek letters, alpha and beta.
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Ancient Greece-The Rise of Greek City-States
Geography of the Greek Homeland
By 750 BCE, rapid population growth was forcing
many Greeks to leave their own overcrowded
valleys. With fertile land limited, the Greeks
expanded overseas. Gradually, a scattering of
Greek COLONIES, territories settled and ruled by
people from another land, took root all around
the Mediterranean from Spain to Egypt. Wherever
they traveled, Greek settlers and traders carried
their ideas and culture.
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Ancient Greece-The Rise of Greek City-States
Governing the City-States
The Greeks evolved a unique version of the
city-state, which they called the POLIS. The
city itself was built on two levels. On a
hilltop stood the ACROPOLIS, or high city, with
its great marble temples dedicated to different
gods and goddesses. On flatter ground below lay
the walled main city with its AGORA, or
marketplace, theater, public buildings, and
homes.
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Ancient Greece-The Rise of Greek City-States
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Ancient Greece-The Rise of Greek City-States
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Ancient Greece-The Rise of Greek City-States
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Ancient Greece-The Rise of Greek City-States
Governing the City-States
The population of each city-state was fairly
small. This helped citizens share a sense of
responsibility. In the warm climate of Greece,
free men spent much time outdoors in the
marketplace, debating issues that affected their
lives. The whole community joined in festivals
honoring the city's special god or goddess.
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Ancient Greece-The Rise of Greek City-States
Governing the City-States
EARLY GOVERNMENTS Between 750 BCE and 500 BCE,
the ruler of the polis was a king. A government
in which a king or queen exercises central power
is a MONARCHY. Slowly, power shifted to the
noble landowners and military defenders of the
city-states. The result was an ARISTOCRACY, or
rule by a landholding elite.
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Ancient Greece-The Rise of Greek City-States
Governing the City-States
As trade expanded, a new middle class of wealthy
merchants, farmers, and artisans emerged in some
cities. They challenged the landowning nobles
for power and came to dominate some city-states.
The result was a form of government called an
OLIGARCHY, where power is in the hands of a
small, powerful elite, usually from the business
class.
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Ancient Greece-The Rise of Greek City-States
Changes in Warfare
Changes in military technology increased the
power of the middle class. By about 650 b.c.e.,
iron weapons replaced bronze ones. Since iron
was cheaper, ordinary citizens could afford iron
helmets, shields, and swords. A new method of
fighting emerged. The PHALANX was a massive
formation of heavily armed foot soldiers. It
required long hours of drill, creating a strong
sense of unity among citizen-soldiers. 
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Ancient Greece-The Rise of Greek City-States
Changes in Warfare
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Ancient Greece-The Rise of Greek City-States
Changes in Warfare
By putting the defense of the city-state in the
hands of ordinary citizens, the phalanx reduced
class differences. The new type of warfare,
however, led the two most influential city-states
to develop very different ways of life. While
Sparta stressed military virtues and stern
discipline, Athens glorified the individual and
extended political rights to more citizens.
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Ancient Greece-The Rise of Greek City-States
Sparta A Nation of Soldiers
The Spartans conquered the region of
PELOPONNESUS, the southern part of Greece.
Sparta turned the conquered people into
state-owned slaves, called HELOTS, and made
them work the land. Because the helots greatly
outnumbered their rulers, the Spartans set up a
brutal system of strict control. 
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Ancient Greece-The Rise of Greek City-States
Sparta A Nation of Soldiers
The Spartan government included two kings and a
council of elders who advised the monarchs. An
assembly made up of all citizens approved major
decisions. Citizens were male, native-born
Spartans over the age of 30. The assembly also
elected five ephors, officials who held the real
power and ran day-to-day affairs.
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Ancient Greece-The Rise of Greek City-States
Sparta A Nation of Soldiers
THE RIGORS OF CITIZENSHIP  From childhood, a
Spartan prepared to be part of a military state.
Officials examined every newborn, and sickly
children were abandoned to die. Spartans wanted
future soldiers or mothers of soldiers to be
healthy.
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Ancient Greece-The Rise of Greek City-States
Sparta A Nation of Soldiers
Boys began training for the military at the age
of 7. They moved into barracks, where they
endured a brutal existence. Toughened by a
coarse diet, hard exercise, and rigid discipline,
Spartan youths became excellent soldiers. At
the age of 20, a man could marry, but he
continued to live in the barracks for another 10
years and to eat there for another 40 years. At
the age of 30, after further specialized
training, he took his place in the assembly.
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Ancient Greece-The Rise of Greek City-States
Sparta A Nation of Soldiers
Girls, too, had a rigorous upbringing. As part
of a warrior society, they were expected to
produce healthy sons for the army. They therefore
were told to exercise and strengthen their
bodiessomething no other Greek women did. Like
other Greek women, Spartan women had to obey
their fathers or husbands. Under Spartan law,
they had the right to inherit property.
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Ancient Greece-The Rise of Greek City-States
Sparta A Nation of Soldiers
The Spartans isolated themselves from other
Greeks. They looked down on trade and wealth,
forbade their own citizens to travel, and had
little use for new ideas or the arts. While
other Greeks admired the Spartans' military
skills, no other city-state imitated their
rigorous way of life. Spartans are willing to
die for their city, some suggested, because
they have no reason to live.
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Ancient Greece-The Rise of Greek City-States
Athens A Limited Democracy
Athens was located just north of the
Peloponnesus. Athenian government evolved from
a monarchy into an aristocracy. Around 700
BCE, noble landowners held power and chose the
chief officials. Nobles
judged major cases in court
and dominated the assembly.
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Ancient Greece-The Rise of Greek City-States
Athens A Limited Democracy
Under the aristocracy, Athenian wealth and power
grew. Discontent spread among ordinary people.
Merchants and soldiers resented the power of
the nobles. Foreign artisans, who produced
many goods that Athens traded abroad, were
resentful that foreigners were barred from
becoming citizens. Farmers, during hard
times, were forced to sell their land to nobles.
Some even sold themselves and their families
into slavery to pay their debts.  As
discontent spread, Athens moved slowly toward
DEMOCRACY, or government by the people.
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Ancient Greece-The Rise of Greek City-States
Athens A Limited Democracy
SOLONS REFORMS  SOLON was appointed ARCHON, or
chief official, in 594 BCE Athenians gave him
power to make needed reforms. outlawed debt
slavery and freed those who had already been sold
into slavery for debt. opened
high offices to more citizens granted
citizenship to some foreigners gave the
Athenian assembly more say in important
decisions.  He encouraged an export policy
helped merchants and farmers by increasing demand
for their products.
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Ancient Greece-The Rise of Greek City-States
Athens A Limited Democracy
Although Solon's reforms ensured greater fairness
and justice to some groups, citizenship remained
limited, and many positions were open only to the
wealthy. Widespread and continued unrest led to
the rise of TYRANTS, or people who gained power
by force. Tyrants often won support of the
merchant class and the poor by imposing reforms
to help these groups. (Although Greek tyrants
often governed well, the word tyrant has come to
mean a vicious and brutal ruler.)
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Ancient Greece-The Rise of Greek City-States
Athens A Limited Democracy
LATER REFORMS  The first Athenian tyrant
PISISTRATUS seized power in 546 BCE He helped
farmers by giving them loans and land taken from
nobles. New building projects gave jobs to the
poor. By giving poor citizens a greater voice,
he further weakened the aristocracy. 
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Ancient Greece-The Rise of Greek City-States
Athens A Limited Democracy
In 507 BCE, CLEISTHENES, broadened the role of
ordinary citizens in government. He set up the
COUNCIL OF 500, whose members were chosen by lot
from among all citizens. The council prepared
laws for the assembly and supervised the
day-to-day work of government. The assembly was
a genuine LEGISLATURE, or lawmaking body. All
male citizens over the age of 30 were members of
the assembly.
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Ancient Greece-The Rise of Greek City-States
Athens A Limited Democracy
LIMITED RIGHTS Athenian democracy was quite
limited. Only male citizens could participate
in government Citizenship was severely
restricted. Tens of thousands of Athenians were
slaves without political rights or personal
freedom. Still, Athens gave more people a say
in decision making.
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Ancient Greece-The Rise of Greek City-States
Athens A Limited Democracy
WOMEN In Athens, women had no share in public
life. The respected thinker Aristotle saw women
as imperfect beings who lacked the ability to
reason as well as men. The man is by nature
fitter for command than the female, he wrote,
just as an older person is superior to a
younger, more immature person. In wealthy
Athenian homes, women lived a secluded existence.
Poorer women worked outside the home, tending
sheep or working as spinners, weavers, or
potters.
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Ancient Greece-The Rise of Greek City-States
Athens A Limited Democracy
EDUCATION OF DEMOCRACY  Girls received little or
no formal education. Boys attended school if
their families could afford it. They
learned reading writing music
poetry ORATORY, public speaking
military training
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Ancient Greece-The Rise of Greek City-States
Athens A Limited Democracy
FORCES OF UNITY   Religious Beliefs  The
Greeks were polytheistic. They believed that
the gods lived on MOUNT OLYMPUS in northern
Greece. The most powerful Olympian was ZEUS,
who presided over the affairs of gods and humans.

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Ancient Greece-The Rise of Greek City-States
Athens A Limited Democracy
FORCES OF UNITY   Religious Beliefs  Greeks
honored their gods with temples and
festivals. Greeks consulted the ORACLES, priests
or priestesses through whom the gods were thought
to speak. Although religion was important, some
Greek thinkers came to believe that the universe
was regulated, not by the will of gods, but by
natural laws.
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Ancient Greece-The Rise of Greek City-States
Athens A Limited Democracy
FORCES OF UNITY   View of Non-Greeks  Greeks
felt superior to non-Greeks and called them
barbaroi (English word BARBARIAN ), people who
did not speak Greek. These barbarians
included such people as the Phoenicians and
Egyptians, from whom the Greeks borrowed
important ideas and inventions.