Download Civilizations Become Empires

Civilizations Become Empires
The first civilizations continued to grow and ultimately evolved into the
world’s first empires
empire (define):
A. Trade became the impetus that helped civilizations grow into empires
1. The Minoans (who lived on the island of Crete) were a seafaring
people that exported their goods and culture throughout the
Mediterranean Sea
2. archeologists discovered the Minoan capitol city of Knossos
a. what they discovered (explain):
3. historians believe that the end of the Minoan culture may have
been caused by a series of natural disasters
B. As the Minoans declined in power throughout the Mediterranean, the
Phoenicians grew
1. the Phoenicians did not have a large single country, rather
they owned trading posts throughout the Mediterranean Sea
2. some of their incredible accomplishments (explain):
3. the Phoenician trading cities grew extremely wealthy
4. in order to gain this wealth, the Phoenicians had a product of great
value
a. what it was:
b. from where it came:
c. significance:
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5. perhaps one of the greatest achievements of the Phoenicians was
one of the “5 C’s”
a. they used symbols to represent sounds – the first alphabet
b. why it was needed (explain):
6. unfortunately for the Phoenicians, their major trading cities existed
along the western part of Mesopotamia – an area that was
continually attacked by various groups
C. During this time the Hebrews emerged as a powerful group in the
eastern Mediterranean
1. what made the Hebrews different from other groups in the area
(explain):
2. Abraham is considered the “father” of the Hebrew people
3. Moses was the one who led the Hebrews out of Egypt and
ultimately received the “10 Commandments” (explain):
4. when the Hebrews settled in Canaan, the most
powerful of the 12 tribes emerged – the tribe of Judah
a. Hebrews became known as – Jewish
b. the religion became known as – Judaism
5. the Jewish people established the Kingdom of Israel and powerful
rulers brought peace and prosperity to the region
a. they built a capitol (explain):
b. what King Solomon built (explain):
6. again because of Israel’s location it became difficult to defend
against constant attacks
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D. At this time Egypt was transforming into an empire with powerful
rulers
1. after removing an invading force of Hyksos, a period of
prosperity began for Egypt
2. Hatshepsut was a unique pharaoh (explain):
3. her rule, coupled with the military rule of later pharaohs, helped
make Egypt a more diverse empire
4. ultimately one group proved too powerful in the area and their
military expertise soon won out – the Assyrians
E. The Assyrians grew into the greatest military power of Southwest Asia
1. the Assyrians had distinct advantages in battle (explain):
2. at the height of their empire, the Assyrians controlled
Mesopotamia, Egypt, and into present day Turkey
3. how the Assyrians organized their empire (explain):
4. conquered people were forced to pay taxes or . . . . (explain):
5. the Assyrians created a capitol city of Nineveh
a. what interesting building would you find their (explain):
b. significance (explain):
6. ultimately the cruelty the Assyrians showed to their conquered
enemy destroyed them. No one wanted to live under their rule
7. the Chaldeans came to power
a. what they did (explain):
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8. Nebuchadnezzar’s (Chaldean king) contribution (explain):
F. After the unrest in the area, the Persians emerged as the powerful rulers
in the area
1. how the Persians differed from the Assyrians (explain):
2. Cyrus helped Persia reach its greatest height
a. land that comprised the empire (explain):
3. what allowed Cyrus to be so successful was the respect he had for
conquered people
a. he allowed the Jewish people to return to Jerusalem after
being removed by the Babylonians
b. Cyrus set a precedent that future leaders of Persia would
follow
4. with such a large empire, Persia took vital steps to maintain control
Step Taken
Significance
Divide empire into 20
provinces
Appoint:
 Satrap
 Tax collector
Build roads
Create standard currency
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Towards the very western edge of the Persian Empire lay the Greek citystates. This area developed into its own powerful and unique culture and
eventually defeated the Persian Empire and spread their own civilization
G. The physical setting of Greece had a tremendous impact on the
development of the Greek culture
1. Greece is a peninsula in the Mediterranean Sea
a. it consists of 2,000 islands in the surrounding seas
b. the Greeks became excellent sailors and relied on the sea for
their survival
2. mountains cut through the peninsula of Greece
a. significance (explain):
3. the land was not suitable to support a large population
a. significance (explain):
Eventually two powerful city-states emerged as the cultural and
political leaders of Greece
H. The city-state of Athens created a government which attempted to
“level the playing field” between the wealthy and poor
1. Athens developed a democracy (explain):
2. several steps were taken to ensure the Athenian democracy
a. Draco’s Code (explain):
b. all citizens could participate in government (regardless of
class)
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c. any citizens can charge another with “wrongdoing”
d. any citizen could submit a law for passage
3. there were some problems with the Athenian democracy (explain):
I. Education in Athens was seen as vital to the continued success of the citystate
1. what Athenian BOYS studied (explain):
2. Athenian girls were taught at home and their education focused on
domestic roles
J. Unlike the Athenian culture rooted in democracy, their rival, Sparta
created a government and society strictly tied to the military
1. the requirement of men in Sparta (explain):
2. historians point to the strict education of boys in Sparta as an
example of the emphasis on military power
3. boys left home at age 7 to enter military school
What happened to
students
The “Curriculum”
Desired Outcome
Given one article of clothing
all year
Given little food throughout
the day
Endured regular beatings
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4. women in Sparta played an active role in society
a. they received military training
b. they were expected to take active roles on individual
estates (why):
K. These two rivals (Athens and Sparta) briefly united (along with the
other Greek city-states) to stop the invasion of the Persians in what
became known as the Persian War
1. through military cunning and stories of great bravery, the Greeks
were able to stop the Persians from conquering Greece
2. after the war, the Greek city-states united to form the Delian
League
a. Athens emerged as the “leader” of this union and thus
began a golden age of Athens
L. As Athens grew more powerful, other city-states grew weary of
Athenian control
1. their old rival (Sparta) soon declared war on Athens and began
the Peloponnesian War
a. who would have the advantage (explain):
2. ultimately Sparta won because of terrible plagues and hunger that
struck the Athenians
3. result of the Peloponnesian War (explain):
4. philosophers attempted to find logic in this time of chaos
a. Socrates –
b. Plato –
c. Aristotle –
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The Greek city-states despised the rule of Sparta and soon became what they
started as – a loose confederation of diverse city-states. Now they were
susceptible to outside invasion.
M. The invasion of Greece came from the land north known as Macedonia
1. King Philip of Macedonia was the leader who organized and
successfully carried out his invasion of Greece
a. his goal (explain):
2. Philip was killed at his daughter’s wedding and his plan for the
invasion of Persia fell to his son – Alexander
3. important points about Alexander the Great (explain):
4. how he created his reputation as a ruthless warrior (explain):
5. Alexander used unconventional tactics to work his way through
the Persian Empire
a. he moved from west to east conquering the areas in his
path
b. when he got to Egypt (explain):
6. Alexander wanted the entire empire – all the way to India
a. what happened in India (explain):
7. as Alexander began his march back west he contacted a terrible
fever in Babylon and died (he was 32 years old)
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N. Perhaps Alexander’s greatest achievement was in beginning and
spreading the Hellenistic culture
1. this was a blend of the Greek culture along with the various
cultures that comprised the Persian Empire (Egypt, Mesopotamia,
India)
2. “THE” Hellenistic city (explain):
3. Hellenistic scholars made tremendous advancements in many areas
Person/Area of
achievement
Contribution
Astronomy
Euclid
Archimedes
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