Classical Greece: 2000 B.C - 300 B.

Section 1

Cultures of the Mountains and the Sea

Setting the stage

● Not a united country

● A collection of separate lands where Greek-speaking people
lived

The sea

● Shaped the Greek civilization (river in Egypt)

● Transportation routes -> linked most parts of Greece
● Sea travel -> other societies
○ Did not have a lot of natural resources

The land

● 3⁄4 = rugged mountains

○ Irregular terrain with sharp peaks, deep valleys, cliffs, and uneven
surfaces
○ Land transportation difficult -> Few hours = days
● Mountains divided the land
○ Greek political life -> small, independent communities

The land

● Stony -> only a small part was suitable for farming

● 1⁄4 -> fertile valleys
● Never able to support a large population

The climate

● Varied climate -> cold in the winter and warm in the summer
● Outdoor life
○ Public events
○ Discuss public issues
○ Exchange news

Mycenaeans
● Indo-Europeans settled in Greek -> Mycenaeans
● Their leading city: Mycenae
○ Southern Greece
○ Surrounded by protective wall -> no attack
○ Warrior-king -> ruled surrounding villages and farms

Minoan civilization

● Trade or war -> Mycenaeans and the Minoan civilization

○ Mycenaeans saw now the value of seaborne trade
○ Adapted the writing system to the Greek language
● The core of Greek religious practice, art, politics and literature

Greek culture declines under the Dorians

● 1200 B.C -> sea raiders attacked and burned many Mycenaens cities
● New group -> Dorians -> dialect of Greek
○ Less advanced
○ The economy collapsed
○ No trade
○ Lost the art of writing

Greek culture declines under the Dorians

● Learned about their culture through spoken word

● Greatest storyteller -> the blind man Homer

Greek create myths

● Myths = traditional stories about their gods

● Understand the mysteries of nature and the power of human passions
○ Explained the changing of the seasons
● Gave the gods human qualities -> love, hate, jealousy...
● The gods argued and competed with each other
● Zeus (the ruler), Athena...

Section 2

Warring City-States

Setting the stage

During the Dorian-period

● Dorians & Mycenaeans
○ Ancestors -> local area
○ Tribal control -> formal governments (city-states)

City-state (polis)

● 750 B.C = Fundamental political unit in ancient Greece

● City and its surrounding countryside -> villages
● Fewer than 10.000 residents
● Marketplace -> acropolis -> discuss city government

Greek political structures

● Different forms of government

○ King (monarchy)
○ Ruled by a small group of noble, landowning families (aristocracy)
○ Ruled by a few powerful people (oligarchy)

Tyrants seize power

● City states -> clashes between rulers and common people

● Tyrants = powerful individuals (nobles...) took control over the government by
appealing to the common people for support
○ Not harsh and cruel
○ Leaders
○ Ordinary people
○ Building programs -> jobs and housing

Athens builds a limited democracy

● Representative government -> Athen

○ Power struggle between poor and rich
○ Democracy -> rule by the people
○ Citizens -> Directly in political decision making

Building democracy -> Athen

● First step towards democracy

○ Nobleman Draco took power
○ 621 B.C -> All Athenians were equal under the law
○ Every crime = death
○ Debt slavery = allowed

Athens Builds a Limited Democracy

● Solon -> power in 594 B.C
○ No citizen owns another citizen
○ Debt-slavery no longer allowed
○ Four social classes -> according to wealth
○ Top three -> political office
○ All citizen could could participate in the Athenian assembly
○ All citizen could bring charges against wrongdoers

Building democracy -> Athen

● 500 B.C -> Cleisthenes

○ The citizens - 10 groups - were they lived
○ All citizens could could submit laws for debate
○ Only free adult male property owners born in Athens = citizen

Athenian Education

● Most part -> sons of wealthy families

● 7 year old
● Goal: A good citizen
● Reading, grammar, poetry, history, mathematic and music
● Expected to debate issues in the assembly = training in logic and public
speaking
● Train and develop the body = athletic activities
● Military school

Athenian Education

● Girls
● Educated at home
● How to raise a child, weaving clothes, preparing meals, managing the
household...
● Some got educated

Sparta builds a military state

● 725 B.C Sparta conquered the neighboring region of Messenia

● They forced them to work on the land
● Demanded half of their crops
● 650 B.C -> Rebelled -> Sparta barely won
● Sparta -> City-state

Sparta’s Government and Society

● Assembly: All Spartan citizens, elected officials = voted on major issues
● The Council of Elders -> 30 older citizens -> proposed laws -> the assembly
voted
● Five elected officials carried out the laws
○ Also controlled education and prosecuted court cases
● Two kings ruled over Sparta’s military forces

Sparta’s social order

● Several groups
1. Citizens descended from the original inhabitants of the region
2. Noncitizen who were free, worked in buying or selling goods and services and
industry
3. Same levels as slaves -> worked in the fields or as house servants

Spartan daily life - art

● 600 - 371 B.C = most powerful army

● No individual expression = no arts, literature...
● Valued duty, strength and discipline over freedom, individuality, beauty and
learning

Spartan daily life - military

● Army - 60 years - military training

● 7 - 30 years old -> lived in military camps
○ Marching, exercising and fighting
○ All weathers, little clothes, no shoes
○ At night: no blankets, hard benches
○ Little food
○ Steal food -> tough, resourceful soldiers

Spartan daily life - girls

● Military training, ran, wrestled and played sports

● Service to Sparta above everything - family
● Large freedom - husbands away
● Surprised other Greek city-states

The Persian wars

● Danger of the slaves revolt = military state

● Struggles between poor and rich = democracy
● Danger of invasion by Persian armies = Sparta and Athens greatest glory
A new kind of army emerges

● Dorian age = only rich could afford weapons, shields, chest armor, horse
carts....
○ Only rich served in the army
● Later iron replaced bronze in the manufacture of weapons
○ Cheaper
○ Ordinary people could afford to arm and defend themself
○ New army

The Persian war begins in Ionia

● Persian war -> Greece vs the Persian Empire

● Began in Ionia -> The Greeks had long been settled there -> Persian
conquered the area
● The Greek revolted -> Athen sent ships and soldiers -> The Persian King
Darius the Great won
● Wanted to destroy Athen in revenge

Battle at Marathon

● 490 B.C -> 25 000 Persians came to northeast of Athens = Marathon

● 10 000 Athenians
● The Athens had a great army (how they were organized)
● The Persians = light armor, lacked training
● The Persian fled
● 6000 dead Persians and 200 dead Athenian

Pheidippides bring news

● Marathon -> now defenseless

● The runner Pheidippides ran to Athen -> bring the news about the
Persian defeat -> don’t give up the city without a fight
● Soldiers travelled to Athens
● Persians saw how many soldiers it was there -> went away

Xerxes

● 10 years later = Darius the Great’s son Xerxes planned a enormous invasion
force to crush Athens
● The Greeks divided -> fight back & let them destroy Athens and then they are
gone
● Some Greek fought on the Persian side
● Xerces’ army went down the eastern coast of Greece -> no resistance

Athens and the Spartas

● Narrow mountain pass -> Thermopylae -> 7000 Greeks blocked his way (300
Spartans)
● The Greeks fighted good (Xerxes was surprised)
● Stopped them for three days
● A traitor informed the Persians about a secret path around
● The Spartas held the Persians back while -> all were killed

Themistocles and Salamis

● How to defend Athens the best?

● Themistocles (Athenian leader) -> fight at sea
● Evacuated and and located in a narrow channel near the island Salami
● Xerxes sat fire on Athen -> sent warships to block both ends of the channel

Thermopylae and Salamis

● Channel = very narrow = persian chips had difficulty turning

● Smaller Greek ships attacked the Persians -> puncturing hulls in Persian warships
● 1⁄3 of the Persian ships sank

Battle of Plataea

● Persian leader Xerxes also lost against the Greeks at the Battle of Plataea in
479 B.C
● Persia = always on the defensive

Delian League

● Several Greek city states = an alliance

● League members = press against the Persians for years
● Drove the Persians away from territories surrounding Greece

Consequences of the Persian wars

● The Greek city-states = new sense of confidence and freedom

● Athen = leader of the Delian League -> 200 city-states
● Athens used its power to control other league members
● Headquarters in Athen = military forces against members thats challenged its
authority
● Athenian empire -> other city states
Section 3

Democracy and Greece’s Golden Age

Setting the stage

● Athenian empire
● Set the stage for creativity
● Golden Age of Athens
● Drama, sculpture, poetry, philosophy, architecture, science....

Pericles

● Pericles -> led Athens during much of The Golden Age

○ Honest and fair
○ Popular support for 32 years
○ Politician
○ Inspiring speaker
○ Respected general

Pericles’ three goals

1. To strengthen Athenian democracy

2. To hold and strengthen the empire
3. To glorify Athens

Pericles - Stronger democracy

● Increased the number of public officials who got paid

○ Before -> Unpaid
● Before -> Only wealthier Athenian citizens
● Now -> Even the poorest citizen could serve if elected

Pericles - direct democracy

● Citizens rule directly -> not through representatives

● Important legacy of Pericles’ Athens -> few other city-states

Pericles - Athenian Empire

● After the defeat of the Persians -> The Delian League

○ Athens took over leadership over the league
○ Dominated all the city-states
○ Usted money from The League to make the Athenian navy the strongest
○ Strong navy = safety of the empire

Pericles - Athenian Empire

● Strong navy
○ Overseas trade
■ Seeds of plants like wheat, rice, corn, oats...
■ Other raw materials

● Some members of the Delian League -> a part of the empire

● Others -> resided and made their own alliances

Pericles - Glorifying Athens

● Money from the Delian League -> beauty Athens

Glorious Art and Architecture

● Pericles goal
○ Magnificent sculptures and buildings
● In the center of his plan: Parthenon
○ Built to honor Athena, the goddess of wisdom

Drama

● The Greek -> Drama -> an art form

● First theaters
● Expression of community pride and tribute to the god
● Wealthy citizen bore the cost
● Colorful costumes, masks...
● Leadership, justice and the duties owed to the gods
● Dancing, singing and poetry

Tragedy and comedy

● Two kinds of drama

● Tragedy -> Love, hate, war or betrayal
● Comedy -> Made fun of politics and respected people and ideas of the time

History

● No written records from Dorians period

● Homers epic poems -> not accurate
● Herodotus -> pioneered the accurate reporting of events
● The greatest historian -> Thucydides

Athenians and Spartas go to war

● Athen grew in wealth, prestige and power

● Other city states began to view it with hostility

● Especially between Sparta and Athens

● Did not try to avoid conflict, they pressed for a war
● Sparta declared war against Athens

Peloponnesian war

● Athen = strong navy

● Sparta = strong army
● Sparta was inland -> not easy to attack from the sea
● Pericles strategy: avoid land battles, and wait for an opportunity to strike from the
sea

Peloponnesian war

● Sparta marched into Athenian territory

● Swept over the countryside and burned Athenian food supply
● Took residents from surrounding region inside the city walls
● Safe from hunger = ships with supplies

Peloponnesian war

● Second year of war = Plague in Athens, 1⁄3 died, Pericles

● Many year of war
● 421 B.C = two sides worn down, signed a truce

Sparta gains victory

● The peace did not last

● 415 B.C -> huge fleet with 20 000 Athenian soldiers
● Plan: destroy the city-state Syracuse -> Sparta’s wealthiest allies
● Athens was destroyed
● Athens lost their empire, power and wealth

Philosophers search for truth

● After the war = many Athenians lost confidence in democratic government and
began to question their values
● Great thinkers
● Seek the truth

The Sophists

● The Sophists: Challenged people's beliefs and ideas about justice and traditional
values that they hadn't thought much about.
● Protagoras
○ Questioned the existence of the gods
○ No universal standard of truth

Socrates

● Critic of the Sophists

● Absolute standards exists for truth and justice
● Encouraged the Greeks to question themselves and their moral character

Plato

● Student of Socrates
● A vision of a perfectly governed society
○ Not democracy
○ Naturally into three groups
■ Farmers and artisans
■ Warriors
■ The ruling class -> Philosopher- king (insight and intellect)

Aristotle

● Pupil of Plato
● Questioned the nature of the world and of human belief, thought and
knowledge
● He believed that everything in life has a purpose and that we should use
reason and experience to understand the world.

Section 4

Alexander’s Empire

Setting the stage

● The Peloponnesian war (Sparta vs Athens)

● Weakened several Greek city-states
○ Rapid decline in their military and economic power
● Nearby kingdom of Macedonia -> King Philip II
○ Dreamed of taking control of Greece
○ Then Persia

Macedonia and Greece

● North of Greece -> Rough terrain and cold climate

● Most Macedonian nobles -> thought of themself as Greeks
● The Greeks = looked down on the Macedonians
○ No great philosophers, sculptors or writers
● Their important resource: fearless kings

Phillip’s army

● 23 years old = Philip II became king of Macedonia

● Brilliant general and a ruthless politician
● Well-trained professional army
● Won against the people in north with good tactics -> began to prepare an invasion
of Greece

Conquest of Greece

● Tried to warn Greece about Macedonia -> Unite against Philip II

● Difficult because the Greek city-states could not agree on anything
● Athen and Thebes -> against Philip II -> to late

Conquest of Greece

● The Macedonians won over the Greeks at the battle of Chaeronea

● Ended Greek independence
○ Greek city-states retained self-government in local affairs
○ Greece itself under Philip II

Philip II and Alexander

● Planned to invade Persia

● Stabbed in his daughter's wedding
● Philip’s son Alexander became king
○ 20 years old

Alexander the Great

● Learned early how to ride a horse, use weapons and command troops
● The people of Thebes rebelled
○ Alexander destroyed the city
○ 6000 Thebans were killed
○ The survivors were sold into slavery
● The other Greek city-state gave up the idea of rebellion

Invasion of Persia

● Alexander invaded Persia

● 35 000 soldiers from Alexander vs 40 000 soldiers from Persia
● Met at Granicus river
● Alexander smashed Persia

Darius III

● The victory at Granicus alarmed Darius III

● Raised an army of 50 000 - 75 000
● Alexander’s army was smaller, but sent his army in a weak point in the Persian lines
● Darius and his army fled

Conquering the Persian Empire

● Darius tried to give Alexander some of his land = said no

● Wanted to take the entire Persian empire
● Took over Egypt without a fight
● Took many Persian cities and ended Persia’s power

Alexander’s other conquests

● More interested in expanding his empire than in governing it

● Wanted to conquer Persia’s remote Asian provinces
● Reached Indus Valley
● Morale low, 11 years of fighting, a lot of walking and different kinds of weather
● The soldiers wanted to go home, and Alexander said yes (bitterly disappointed)

Alexander’s Legacy

● Back in Babylon = Plans to organize and unify his empire but died
● Macedonian generals tried to control his empire
● Three different leaders took
○ The Greek city-state ○ Egypt ○ Most of the old Persian empire