The Greeks

1
The Greeks
2
Minoans

• Around 2,000 B.C.E. the Minoan civilization
  developed on the Mediterranean island of Crete
• They were influenced by the Egyptians and the
  Phoenicians, but they were very different in many
  ways
• At Knossos they build lavish palaces with
  plumbing and drainage systems for their rulers
  these palaces indicate a very sophisticated
  society
• We know a great deal about the Minoans from the
  frescoes they painted
• They developed a style of writing called Linear
  A, which uses symbols to form syllables.

3

• Gradually Crete became the center for
  Mediterranean trade
• About 1700 B.C.E. an earthquake destroyed the
  Minoan society
• The Cretans rebuilt their palaces, but their
  wealth attracted foreign invaders
• By 11000 B.C.E. the Minoans had been taken over
  by invaders

4
Mycenaean

• About 2,200 B.C.E. an Indo-European group of
  nomads settled the Greek peninsula
• The Mycenaeans emerged in present day Greece and
  transformed Linear A to Linear B.
• They expanded their influence and ventured beyond
  Greece to Sicily, southern Italy, and Crete
• About 1,200 B.C.E. they became involved in a
  struggle with the city of Troy in Anatolia
• This war was the source of Homers Iliad
• After 1,100 B.C.E. the Mycenaean civilization
  fell into decline
• Between 1,100 and 800 B.C.E. is known as the Dark
  Ages

5
Archaic Period 800 480 B.C.E.

• With no central authority the Greeks developed
  independent city-states
• Unlike the Chinese or Persians the Greeks did not
  develop a centralized state they preferred
  poleis
• These poleis became the centers for population
  and trade
• By the end of the dark Ages several had emerged
  as large and powerful
• Most notably Athens and Sparta

6
Sparta

• Sparta, located in the Peloponnesus, used their
  prisoners as helots, or slaves, and these slaves
  soon outnumbered the Spartans.
• The helots were not chained but they were not
  free either
• The role of the helot was to provide the Spartans
  with a constant food supply
• Due to this, the Spartans were forced into a life
  dictated by military stature to ensure their
  power and minimize the chance of slave revolts.

7

• The Spartans maintained a simple, austere
  lifestyle
• They did not accumulate wealth, nor did the women
  wear jewelry
• Success in Spartan society came from military
  endeavors and heroism
• Boys left their families at seven to live in
  military barracks
• At 20 they became soldiers and remained soldiers
  until they retired
• At 30 they could leave the barrack and live with
  their wife

8
Athens

• Both Athens and Sparta grew rapidly. However,
  Athens was dominated by a government for the
  people and was not driven by discipline and
  sacrifice like the Spartans
• The political process was limited to a small
  number of the people, making their democracy very
  different than modern day democracies.
• Only a few adult males could participate in
  politics and not all Athenians were citizens
• Gradually, to ease social problems more people
  were allowed to participate
• Democracy Demos (People) and Cracy (Rule)

9

• With a limited amount of farmland the Athenians
  were forced to use the sea and establish colonies
• Athenians prospered because of trade which made
  the wealthy even wealthier
• Gradually the aristocrats purchased all the small
  plots of land
• Poor people who fell into debt could sell
  themselves into slavery to pay off the debt
• With a growing population and increasing social
  problems Athens was forced to address the
  problems debt and land shortages

10
Solon

• Athens grew very rapidly, as did the gap between
  the rich and poor.
• In response, Solon negotiated a compromise that
  cancelled all debts of poor farmers and outlawed
  the process of selling yourself into slavery, but
  he let the aristocracy keep their land
• He also gave the lower class more political
  rights, setting examples for future peoples
• He allowed any person with enough time the
  opportunity to participate on the councils in
  reality only the wealthy had the spare time!
• Eventually commoners did receive payment for
  participation in the government

11
Classical period 480 323 B.C.E.

• Solons reforms help move Athens towards a
  democracy, but the greatest changes would be made
  by Pericles
• Pericles was an aristocratic leader committed to
  democratic ideals. He appointed hundreds of
  ordinary people to government positions.
• He was the leader of Athens from 443 B.C.E. until
  his death in 429 B.C.E.
• Under his leadership Athens flourished

12
Greek Expansion

• The Greeks grew rapidly and thus branched out
  across the Mediterranean, often staying close to
  the sea.
• They exchanged ideas on the coastal waterways
  through trade.
• This had a huge effect on the rest of the world
  as Greek ideologies and language spread
  throughout the world.

13
The Persians

• The Persians had also created a large empire in
  Anatolia and felt threatened by the Greeks.
• Darius, a Persian king, sent a force to destroy
  the Greeks but was defeated at the Battle of
  Marathon.
• His successor Xerxes also set out to destroy
  Greece, but after he successfully burned Athens
  he was defeated at the Battle of Salamis.

14
The Delian League

• After the Persian War Athens was supremea)
  strong navyb) democratic institutionsc)
  excellent cultural lifed) prosperous trade
• Sparta withdrew returned to isolationism
• Athens assume control of the Delian Leaguea)
  liberate Ionian citiesb) be prepared for war
• Athens supplied 200 shipsOthers paid cash

15

• Other city-states that protested were punished by
  Athens
• Pericles even used Delian League money was used
  to build the Parthenon in Athens
• The situation continued to get worse until
  several of the poleis combined to fight back

16
The Peloponnesian War

• The two powerful leaders were Athens and Sparta.
• The war started in 431 B.C.E. but neither side
  could gain an advantage
• Athens controlled the seas and could continually
  supply the city Sparta controlled the land but
  could not force the Athenians to fight
• Sparta lay siege to Athens and in 404 B.C.E. a
  massive plague hit the city, the Athenians was
  forced to surrender. However, the Spartans soon
  realized that their government was not well
  suited to oversee such a large area.

17
Philip of Macedonia

• Philip II rose to power in 359 B.C.E., building
  up the military to make himself the undisputed
  king of the Macedonians.
• He was power hungry and soon attacked the Greek
  city-states one by one. Slowly, they fell and
  all of Greece was under the control of Macedonia.

18
Alexander the Great

• After the assassination of Philip II, his son,
  Alexander succeeded him as king.
• Alexander loved Greek culture and had been
  tutored by Aristotle
• He soon amassed an empire from Macedonia to the
  Himalayas in India, controlling Egypt, Greece,
  and Persia.
• After taking his troops to India he was forced to
  return when they mutinied and refused to go any
  further
• In 323 B.C.E. Alexander died at the age of
  thirty-three
• He had created the greatest empire the world had
  seen

19
Hellenistic Age 323 30 B.C.E.

• Alexander had spread Greek culture and influence
  as far as India and opened the door to the
  Hellenistic Age
• After his death the empire was divided into three
  large states
• Antigonid Greece and MacedoniaPtolemaic
  EgyptSeleucid the Persian empire

20
Greek Rationale Thought

• Thales - water was the source of all things
• Empedocles - earth, air, water, fire
• Democritus - atoms
• Heraclitus - constant motion theory
• Pythagoras - all things were mathematical
  relationships
• Protagoras - man is the measure of all things
• Movement away from the supernatural

21

• Hippocrates of Cos - Father of Medicinestressed
  observation and experimentationtreated the
  symptoms
• Sophists - turned from the natural to the
  humanitinerant teacherslectured on rhetoric and
  composition

22
Socrates

• Socrates, a famous philosopher, employed the
  Socratic method in which he asked his pupils
  questions, making them think to gain the answer.
• Not a sophist - stonemason
• Basic views of western philosophy
• The unexamined life is not worth living
• Arrested for corrupting the youth and not
  believing the gods
• Socrates believed in arete - excellence
• Socrates committed suicide by drinking hemlock

23
Plato

• Student of Socrates
• Founded the academy
• Disliked democracy
• Wrote republic
• Good life

24
Aristotle

• Student of Plato
• Tutored Alexander the Great
• Good man-good life
• Moderation in all things
• Wrote Politics - polis
• Systemization of knowledge
• Theories lasted until the 17th century

25
History

• Herodotus - Father of History, wroteHistory of
  the Persian War
• Thucydides - more analytical and honest

26
Greek Society

• Greek trade relied heavily on wine olive oil
  because these grew easily in areas with little
  fertile soil in the mountains.
• The Olympic games, first held in 1896, were a
  huge part of the culture, allowing individuals to
  maintain their identity.

27

• Women were not really free
• They had to raise children and manage the house
• Men spent their time at the gymnasium
• Divorces and marriages arranged by males
• Girls were not usually educated at the Academy
• Boys also had two years of military service
• sound in mind and body

28
Religion

• The Greeks were polytheists
• Elements of nature were represented by gods
• Unlike the Egyptians the Greeks did not worry
  about life after death
• Greek deities had human form and had to deal with
  human emotions such as love
• The gods often fought each other in heavenly
  battles

29
Slavery

• Slavery was very popular in Greek society.
• They were highly prized, especially those with
  educated backgrounds.
• Though slaves were not considered citizens, they
  could purchase their own freedom and petition for
  citizenship.