Cultures of the Mountains and the Sea

A.P. World History

Mr. Schabo

Crestwood High School

Greece

• Mainland Greece is a mountainous peninsula.

• Its coastline has excellent harbors.

• As a result the Greeks became seafarers

http://rad.usuhs.mil/rad/greece/greece0027.jpg

Effects of Geography

http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/europe/greece.jpg

• Did not live on land, but around the sea– International trade

– Colonization

• Organized into city-states– Each city state was fiercely

independent & resisted outside interference.

• Moderate climate encouraged outdoor living

The Mycenaeans

• Indo-European group that settled in Greece in roughly 2000 B.C.

• Mingled with the Minoans and traded and settled the Mediterranean area.

http://www.flashcardmachine.com/greek-art-arch.html

Mycenae

http://www.oneonta.edu/faculty/farberas/arth/ARTH209/minoan_mycenaean.html

Then

Now

Trojan War• Mycenaeans fought a 10

year war against Troy, because a Trojan prince absconded with Helen, the wife of a Mycenaean king

• Believed to have been a legend, but in 1870s, German archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann discovered what he believed to be the remains of the city of Troy.

http://www.crystalinks.com/trojanwar.html

The Dorian Period was an era of decline in Ancient Greece.

Here is what was accomplished in the

Dorian Period.

???

The Greek City-States

By 750 B.C. the fundamental political unit in Greece was the polis.

The polis was made up of a city and the surrounding countryside for 50 to 500 square miles. Average population=10,000 residents or less.

AGORA

ACROPOLIS

Citizens gathered in one of these two places to discuss government.

Greek Political Structures

• Some city-states had a king—monarchy

• Some ruled by group of noble landowners—aristocracy

• In some, wealthy merchants and artisans took control—oligarchy.

• In some city-states tyrants, rulers who represented ordinary people took control.

Athens Moves Toward Democracy

In 621 B.C. a nobleman named Draco came to power and developed a legal code based on the idea that all men were equal. Under Draco’s code death was the punishment for almost every crime. Thus, it is from this we get the word draconian, meaning extremely harsh or severe.

The Reforms of SolonSolon came to power in Athens in the year 594 B.C. and instituted some far-reaching democratic reforms.

•First, he outlawed debt slavery.

•Next he organized Athenians into four different classes based on wealth. The top 3 classes could hold political office.

•Any citizen could bring charges against wrongdoers.

Around 500 B.C. Cleisthenes broke the power of the nobility and organized local government groups.

Gave all citizens the right to submit laws for passage.

Created the Council of 500, who advised the assembly on proposed laws.

Any adult male property owner was a “citizen.”

Athenian Education

Only the sons of wealthy families received a formal education.

They began at age 7 and studies grammar, reading, history, math, poetry, and music.

Well done Seppalaclese.

They also learned . . .

• Logic and public speaking

•Athletic activities

•Girls stayed home and were educated by their mothers. They learned weaving, cooking, child-rearing, and managing the household.

The Spartan WaySparta built a disciplined military state.

The Spartan government consisted of an assembly in which all citizens could vote. It also had a Council of Elders, 30 older citizens who proposed laws. Five elected officials carried out the laws.

Sparta also had two kings.

The kings ruled over the military.

One king could not veto the actions of the other.

The Spartan Social Order

• At the top were citizens descended from the original inhabitants of the region. This included wealthy landowners.

• Next came non-citizens who were free and worked in industry and commerce.

• The helots were at the bottom and were little more than slaves.

Spartan Daily Life

• All forms of individual expression discouraged. Thus, there was no value placed on the arts, literature, or intellectual pursuits.

• The Spartans stressed duty, strength, and discipline. As a result they had the most powerful army in Greece.

Typical Boys Life

• When a male child was born it was immediately dipped in a vat of wine. If it survived that ordeal in good shape, it was kept. If, however, the baby became weakened or ill, it was left on a mountainside to die. Deformed or crippled babies were also left on the mountainside.

• Boys left home at age 7 and moved into an army barracks. Here they would stay until the age of 30. They were expected to serve in the army until 60.

Spartan boys• Spent their days marching, exercising, and

fighting.• They were whipped regularly to desensitize them

to pain.• They were given only light tunics to wear, and no

shoes.• The slept without blankets on hard benches.• Their daily diet consisted of coarse porridge.

Spartan girls

• Also received some military training.

• They ran, wrestled, and played sports.

• They were taught to put service above everything—even love of family.

• Spartan women were given considerable freedom compared to Greek women in other city-states.

The Persian War• Began on the coast of Anatolia, where

Athenians supported a rebellion against the Persian Empire.

• Darius was ticked and vowed to teach the Athenians a lesson.

When does this Schabo guy shut up???

The First Persian Invasion 490 B.C.

• 25,000 Persians invade Greece• Battle of Marathon: 10,000 well-armed, highly-

disciplined Greeks defeat the Persians.• Persian casualties=6,000 plus• Greek casualties=Less than 200• Pheidippides ran 26 miles from Marathon to

Athens to deliver news of the victory so Athenians would not give up the city. Then he died.

Enter Xerxes 480 B.C.• The Persian king leads an enormous

invasion force down the coast of Greece toward a narrow mountain pass known as Thermopylae.

• 7,000 Greeks, including 300 Spartans blocked his path.

The Tragic Outcome King Leonidas dismissed

most of the Greek forces and battled the Persians with his force of 300, stalling the Persian advance for 3 days. This gave the Athenians, under Themistocles, time to evacuate their city and position their naval fleet in the narrow bay of Salamis.

Thermoplae today

Meanwhile, back at Athens

• After destroying the Spartan force and advancing on Athens, Xerxes found the city deserted and burned it to the ground.

• Then he pursued the Greek navy into the Bay of Salamis.

• The small, maneuverable Greek ships, equipped with battering rams, destroyed the bigger, clumsier Persian fleet.

Xerxes retreated back to Asia

Home, James!

And don’t come back you big, fat king person!

One Year Later

• Several Greek City-States, led by Athens, formed the Delian League (an alliance) for protection.

• Soon the Delian League grew to 200 city-states.

• Athens was about to enter its Golden Age.