Download Greek Ancestors

MINOANS
2000-1400 BCE
LIVED ON THE ISLAND OF CRETE
VERY ADVANCED CULTURE
ENDED MYSTERIOUSLY
This civilization was both powerful, and
advanced. Their might allowed them to control
the Aegean Sea, keeping it free from criminals,
and pirates.
Evidence from archeological finds show that the
Minoans curled their hair, wore gold jewelry and belts.
Just as this society was growing and seeing great
success, it suddenly disappeared.
Many archeologists believe it
was destroyed by a giant
tidal wave.
Others believe they
were conquered by another
group of people known as
the Mycenaeans.
1600 – 1200 BCE, GREECE
WARLIKE PEOPLE
•After 1500 B.C., Mycenaeans adopt
Minoan sea trade and culture
FOUGHT THE TROJAN WAR
AGAINST TROY
•Once thought to be fictional,
archaeological evidence has been found
In order to protect their
people, the Mycenaeans built
large fortresses astride the
hills and mountain tops of
their villages.
These fortresses offered a
place of refuge during
times of danger.
Troy
Another major Bronze Age civilization in the Aegean was
Troy. It was located at the Hellespont, today called
Dardanelles, a narrow strait of water from the
Mediterranean to the Black Sea. The Mycenaeans and the
Trojans often battled for supremacy of the Aegean Sea.
Hellespont
Asia
Minor
Troy
Mycenea
Crete
Epics of Homer
•Oral tradition grows, especially epics of Homer a
blind storyteller
•Epic—a narrative poem about heroic deeds
•Homer’s epic the Iliad, about Trojan War, shows
Greek heroic ideal
Depiction of funeral games in honor of Patroclus, influenced by
Homer's Iliad (book 23).
The Trojan War: The Myth
According to Homer, the
Trojan War began when the
Greek gods Peleus and Thetis
forgot to invite Eris, the
goddess of discord, to their
wedding.
Eris came uninvited and
played a trick at the wedding.
She threw a golden apple on
the banquet table and said that
it belonged to the most
beautiful goddess at the party.
The goddesses Hera, Athena,
and Aphrodite all reached for
the apple at the same time.
Zeus, the King of the Gods,
decided that Paris, prince of
Troy and most handsome
human on earth, would decide
which of the goddesses was
most beautiful.
Discord – absence of
agreement
The Trojan War: The Myth
Each goddess offered Paris a
prize.
Hera promised power, Athena
promised wealth, and Aphrodite
promised the most beautiful
woman in the world, Helen, wife
of Spartan King Menelaus.
Paris chose to have Helen and
left for Sparta.
While in Sparta, Paris was
treated as a royal guest.
However, when Menelaus left
Sparta to go to a funeral, Paris
captured Helen and took her to
Troy to be married.
This occurred around 1200
BCE.
Helen of Troy
by Evelyn de
Morgan 1898
The Trojan War: The Myth
Menelaus gathered more than a
thousand ships under the
command Agamemnon and set
sail for Troy.
In total, 100,000 men from 28
city states throughout the Greek
mainland joined Menelaus to
attack Troy.
Achilles, the greatest warrior of
the Trojan War, would defy
Agamemnon and challenge his
authority.
Achilles in Armor
Achilles was known as the
warrior of destiny.
Achilles was killed by Paris, the
weakest warrior, with an arrow
to the heel, his weakest point.
Achilles Death
The Trojan War: The Myth
The Trojans, led
by Hector
(brother of
Paris), had
allies from citystates
throughout Asia
Minor. Hector
was later killed
by Achilles.
Hector’s body returned to Troy.
Arriving at Troy, Agamemnon sent Odysseus, known for
his great speaking abilities, and Menelaus to ask King
Priam, Paris’ father, to return Helen. Priam refused. For
nine years the Greeks and Trojans fought without either
side gaining a victory. The wall surrounding Troy held
back the Greek army.
The Trojan War: The Myth
The Greek soldiers
invaded Troy as the
Trojan soldiers slept.
All males,
including infants,
were killed; all
females taken as
slaves, and all of
Troy’s treasures
taken as booty.
The city was
completely
demolished.
Troy: the archaeologist’s story
For thousands of years Troy was a legend. However, using
clues from the Iliad, an amateur archaeologist named
Heinrich Schliemann discovered the location of Troy at
Hisarlik, Turkey in 1871.
Heinrich Schliemann
Ruins of ancient Troy
The Nine Cities of Troy
In total, there were nine
cities built at the location
of Troy, each on top of the
other.
The sixth city is the
most grand and resembles
the Troy in Homer’s Iliad,
but it was destroyed by an
earthquake, not by war, in
1250 BCE.
The seventh layer of the
city appears to be the
legendary Troy and has
been dated to 1180 BCE.
Its towers and walls can
still be seen in the ruins
and there are arrowheads
lying in the streets.
Troy, archeological ruins
of two small walls.
Trojan Horse
In Greek legend, a huge hollow
wooden horse used by the attacking
Greeks to gain entrance to the city of
Troy, thus ending the Trojan War.
Unable to capture the city after a
siege of ten years, the Greeks
resorted to stratagem.They sailed
away and left the horse, filled with
armed warriors on the shore. Sinon, a
Greek spy, persuaded the Trojans to
take the horse into the city,
convincing them that to do so would
mysteriously Troy invulnerable.
That night, Sinon let out the armed
Greek troops; killing the guards,
they opened the gates to the Greeks
and Troy was captured and burned.
DORIANS – 1200 – 800 BCE
By 1200 B.C.E. the
Mycenaean fortresses, which
had fallen into disrepair due
to neglect and battle, were
conquered by a new people
from the North called
Dorians, who spoke the
Greek language.
Using iron weapons, they
had little difficulty
defeating the Mycenaeans.
The Dark Ages 1200 –800 BCE
Dorians were uncivilized, lacking a written
language.
After conquering the region,
the Dorians fell into a ‘Dark
Age’.
Poverty became widespread,
and important skills such as
reading and writing were lost.
This dark age lasted for 300 –
400 years.