• Standards:

18. Introduce Greek city-states

19. Compare and contrast the cultures of Athens and Sparta

20. List key contributions of ancient Greece in government, religion (mythology), learning, and the arts

Ancient Greece

Ancient Greece

• http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/primaryhistory/

Geography of Greece• Southeastern

Europe and over 400 islands

• Surrounded by the Mediterranean Sea– The largest,

Crete, is south of the mainland

– Rhodes is to the east of Crete

Mountainous Region

• 90% of the land is rugged mountains and hills–Little is usable farmland–Making it difficult to travel

overland

The Greek Coast

• Attica

– A peninsula in the Aegean Sea

• Has Greece’s best farmland

–Contains harbors for ships and fishing boats

Peloponnesus

• A large peninsula on the southern tip of the Greek mainland– Mountainous– Ringed by a

band of fertile land

– Several rivers• That dry up in

the summer

Economy of Greece

• Agriculture–Soil is not rich like the Nile–Rocky soil, hot dry summers,

windy rainy winters make for a tough environment• Farmers grow barley and wheat, grapes and olives

• Raise sheep, goats and cattle

Trade• Sailing was important

– Merchants traded with Phoenicia

• Traded for grain they could not grow

• Most valuable product was olive oil

–Cooking–Body lotion–Lamp fuel

The Birth of Greek Civilization

The Minoans Around 2000 B.C.

• Named after King Minos

• Minoa was located on the island of Crete

• Was a wealthy trading culture– Exported pottery,

metalwork, wine, and olive oil

The Mycenaean'sAround 1600 B.C.

• People who came from Asia and moved onto Peloponnesus

• Traded metals for Minoan exports

• Around 1450 B.C., they conquered Crete and took over the Minoan trade

• The Minoan civilization disappeared by 1100 B.C.

The Phoenicians• A land in the eastern Mediterranean

– Founded colonies around the Mediterranean

• Developed the alphabet

– The basis of what we use today

The City-States of Greece

• Shared a language and letters

• Remained independent of each other

• Polis – a region with one city at its heart

• The Greek city-states almost completely enclosed the Aegean Sea

• Built around an acropolis

– A walled hill for safety during enemy attack

• People gathered in the agora

– An open area near the acropolis

– Used for trade and town meetings

Trade• Most Greek cities were ports

– Exported wine and olive oil – Imported grain and metals

• Trade created wealth and connected the cities of the Greek world

Developing Governments

• Leaders of a city-state had to be citizens of their polis– Only men could

be citizens

– Women had few rights– Slavery was common

• Slaves could not be citizens

Kinds of Governments

• The type of government in a Greek city-state varied from city to city

• Monarchy

– A government with a single ruler

• Oligarchy

– A government controlled by a group of the richest and most powerful citizens

• Democracy

– A government where citizens held meetings to discuss and vote on important decisions

– All citizens can vote

Greek City-State Group Projecthttp://greece.mrdonn.org/city-states.html

Athens

Sparta

Megara

Corinth

Argos

Sparta

• http://www.history.com/topics/socrates/videos#spartans-deconstructed

Sparta

• Greece’s largest city-state• It’s government was an

Oligarchy• Most Spartan farm

workers were helots– Could not leave the

land they worked– Paid half of their crops

as taxes– Little better than slaves

• 600 B.C.

– There were more helots than Spartans

• The helots revolted

• The Spartans put down the revolt

– Spartan leaders decided to make Sparta the strongest military power in Greece

• To prevent helots and enemies from other city-states from conquering Sparta

• At age seven, boys and girls trained to defend their city

– Boys were taught to read and write, but spent more time training to be soldiers

• Girls could not be soldiers

– Trained to be strong mothers of strong soldiers

• To Sparta, duty was more important than individual freedom

Athens

• Life was very different from Sparta

• Girls performed household tasks

• Boys worked with their fathers

• Most Athenian boy could not afford school.

– They worked with their fathers as potters, stoneworkers, etc.

• Wealthy parents sent sons to school to read and write

– Later students went to a gymnasium to learn to fight

• Athens government began as an oligarchy

• Poorer citizens demanded a voice in their government

• Athens new government was a democracy

– Our own ideas of democracy can be traced to ancient Greece

A Common Greek Culture• Ancient Greeks were

polytheistic • All city-states had special

days to honor the gods and goddesses– But each had a special

protector• Athens honored

Athena, the goddess of wisdom

Greek Gods and Goddesses

• Ancient Greeks believed their gods and goddesses lived on Mount Olympus in northern Greece

– All Greeks worshiped Zeus, the king of the Greek gods and goddesses

– A temple to Zeus was built at Olympia

• http://adifferentplace.org/mythology.htm

The Olympics

• 776 BC - The first ancient Olympic Games

• Linked to the religious festivals of Zeus

– To show the physical qualities of young people

– To encourage good relations between the cities of Greece

• Only freeborn men and boys could take part in the Olympic Games

• Women were forbidden to watch

• Every four years Greek athletes met at Olympia for the Olympic Games

– The games were so honored that wars stopped during the Olympic contests

• The Games originally had only of foot races

• Winners were crowned with wreaths of olive leaves and hailed as heroes

• Continued for 12 centuries– 393 A.D. - Emperor Theodosius

decided the games were "pagan cults" and banned them.

– 1896 – the modern Olympics began– 14 countries are represented by

about 245 men, competing in 43 events.

– 1900 – the first women were allowed to compete - in lawn tennis and golf

• http://www.metacafe.com/watch/517817/birth_of_the_olympics/

• Olympic Activity

Homer• One of the most

famous ancient Greek poet– Created two epics

• Long poems that tells the story of a legendary hero or historical figure

• The Iliad

– Described a war between the Greek city-states and an enemy city, Troy

• The Odyssey

– Tells about the hero Odysseus, and why it too a long time for him to return home

The Odyssey

• http://library.thinkquest.org/J002356F/odyssey.htm

The Persian Wars• Greek city-states in western Asia faced the

Persian Empire– The largest empire in the world– Wars with Persia would change Greece

forever

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AuihHUFEqPM

The Golden Age in Athens• Persia focused their

attacks on Athens• The Athens large and

powerful navy helped defeat the Persians

• Athens rebuilt their city– Became leaders in

Greek affairs– And brought wealth

through trade

• http://www.history.com/topics/ancient-greece/videos#the-acropolis-deconstructed

The Parthenon• The Acropolis displayed Athens new wealth

and power• At the heart of the Acropolis was a marble

temple to Athena

• By 460 B.C. Athens had become the leading city of Greece

Athens Government

• Athens was a democracy– An assembly of

citizens voted on issues of concern

– The first government to do so

Pericles

• The leader of Athens - 450 B.C.– Allowed all citizens to take part in

government– Any citizen

(rich or poor) could serve in the assembly or sit on a jury

Schools of Philosophy

• Searched for wisdom and the right way to live

– Discussed good government and how to be a good citizen

Socrates• Had discussions with

students – Began to question

the city’s laws, customs and religion

• Was brought to trial– For urging Athens’

young people to revolt

– He was sentenced to death

Plato

• A student of Socrates

– Wrote down Socrates ideas

– Later became a teacher

Greek Drama

• A new theater form invented by Greek writers– Dramas

– Tragedies and Comedies• Plays that

examined basic questions

–Choices of an individual

–Good and evil

The Peloponnesian War

• http://www.history.com/topics/peloponnesian-war/videos#the-peloponnesian-war

• Other Greek cities grew jealous of Athens power

• Sparta and its allies formed the Peloponnesian League

• War began to tear Greece apart

Battles on Land and Sea

• Pericles ordered Athenians to move inside the city walls

• Athenian navy still controlled the Aegean Sea

– Shiploads of grain helped Athens survive

• Athens won most battles at sea

• Sparta won most battles at land

• Neither could gain an advantage

The Golden Age Ends

• A plague broke out inside Athens– About 1/3 of the population died

• Including Pericles

–Without a strong leader mistakes were made

–Athens surrendered

• The Peloponnesian War ruined Greece

• Sparta won but could not control the region

• 50 years of continuing war left Greece open to attack by a new invader

Macedonia• King Phillip II

– Determined to conquer all of Greece

– Armed his army with18-foot long spears

– Organized them into small units called phalanxes

• Demosthenes begged Greeks to unite against Philip– Only two city-

states took him seriously

• Philip defeated Greece and became its new ruler

– Two years later he was assassinated and his son proclaimed himself king

• http://www.watchknowlearn.org/Video.aspx?VideoID=34282&CategoryID=979

Alexander the Great

• Inherited the kingdom when his father was murdered

Aristotle

• Philosopher of Athens

• Alexander’s private teacher

– Taught him to respect Greek culture and tradition

Military Leader

• His army never lost a battle• He defeated the Persian king• Led his troops east to the

Indus River valley• Was forced to turn back

– Reached Babylon• Became ill and died at 33

The Greek Empire

• Alexander had conquered the largest territory in history– Founded

many new cities

Alexandria

• One of the most important cities in the Greek empire

• Port for Mediterranean trade

• Had an agora, a theater, temples, a stadium and a gymnasium

• And one of the first lighthouses in the world– A fire burning at the

top could be seen for miles

– One of the seven wonders of the world

Diverse Culture• Alexander’s empire

was a mix of people and cultures

• Temples for both Greek and

• Egyptian gods• Citizens came

together in democratic assemblies

The Great Library• Attracted scholars from

around the world– came to research

• Contained more than half a million papyrus rolls

• Thirty letters the Greeks adopted from the Phoenicians

– Made it easier for people to read and learn

– Helped spread the Greek language

The Greek Alphabet

Hellenism• Greek ideas blended

with African and Asian traditions– Encouraged

realistic statues and paintings

– Geometry & Physics• Suggested

planets revolved around the sun

• Made accurate estimate of Earth’s size

End of the Empire

• After Alexander’s death his generals carved up the empire

• Two great cities rose to power

– Carthage in Africa

– Rome on the Italian peninsula

• Which would eventually become the capital of the Mediterranean world

Legacies from ancient Greece influenced our ideas about education, philosophy, drama, art,

and government

• Up next …

Ancient Rome