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The Decline of the Citystates Persian Wars Greek colonization brought the city states in conflict with the Persian Empire Result was the Persian Wars (500-479 B.C.) Ionian Rebellion As Persian emperors Cyrus and Darius tightened their grip on Anatolia, the Greek cities on the Ionian coast became increasingly restless In 500 B.C.E., they revolt and expel the Persian administrators Athens sends a fleet in support of their fellow Greeks and commercial partners In 493, Darius represses the rebellion Cyclades Islands Persian Wars To punish the Athenians and discourage future interference, Darius attacks Athens in 490 The Athenians repel the invasion Marathon Battle of Marathon The Persians landed at the Plains of Marathon on September 9, 490 For eight days, the two armies faced each other On the ninth day, the Persians started to advance, forcing Miltiades, the commander in chief of the Athenian army, to deploy his army of 10,000 Athenians and 1,000 Plataeans for battle Battle of Marathon The Athenians surround the Persians in a double envelopment Although the Athenians were outnumbered, their spears are superior to the Persians’ bows and short lances The Persians flee to their ships Persians lose 6,400 men and seven ships Athenians lose 192 Battle of Marathon However, Miltiades realizes that the Persian fleet could sail and attack the undefended city of Athens According to legend, he calls upon Phidippides to run to Athens to tell them of the victory and warn them of the approaching Persian ships Phidippides runs the 26 miles from Marathon to Athens in about three hours, successfully warning the Athenians who repel the Persian invasion Phidippides is exhausted from the fight at Marathon and the 26 mile run and dies upon announcing the warning Miltiades Olympic Marathons The marathon was part of the 1896 Olympics The course was from Marathon to Athens (24.85 miles or 40 km) At the London Olympics in 1908, the Olympic marathon course was set at 26 miles, 385 yards (42.195 km) to accommodate the Royal Family’s viewing In 1921 the International Amateur Athletic Foundation made 42.195 km the official distance of a marathon Xerxes Darius’ successor Xerxes tries to avenge the Persian losses by launching another attack in 480 Thermopylae Thermopylae The Greeks send an allied army under the Spartan king Leonidas to Thermopylae, a narrow mountain pass in northeastern Greece The point was to stall the Persians long enough that the city states could prepare for later major battles after the Persians broke through Persians attempting to force the pass at Thermopylae Thermopylae Twice the Greeks repel the Persians Then Ephialtes, a local farmer, traitorously leads a force of Persian infantry through a mountain passage and the next morning they appear behind the Greek lines Leonidas orders the rest of the army to withdraw and holds the passage with just 300 Spartans As true Spartans, they choose death over retreat All die but they do hold off the Persians long enough to ensure the safe withdrawal of the rest of the Greek army. Leonidas Thermopylae “Stranger, go tell the Spartans that we lie here in obedience to their laws.” (Inscription carved on the tomb of Leonidas’ Three Hundred) Leonidas at Thermopylae by David After Thermopylae The Persians capture and burn Athens but are defeated by the Athenian navy at Salamis In 479, the Persians are defeated at Plataea and forced back to Anatolia Delian League After the Persian threat subsided, the Greek poleis (city-states) had conflicts among themselves The Athenians formed an alliance called the Delian League Athens supplied most of the military force and the other poleis provided financial support In the absence of the Persian threat, eventually the other poleis came to resent financing Athens’ bureaucracy and construction projects The resulting tensions led to the Peloponnesian War (431-404) in which the poleis divided up into two sides led by Athens and Sparta The Peloponnesian War (431-404 B.C.) The war goes back and forth until 404 when the Spartans and their allies (Peloponnesian League) force Athens to surrender Conflicts continue however, and the world of the poleis steadily loses power Alexander the Great is going to step into this power vacuum Alexander the Great Advances in Warfare King Philip II • Ruled Macedonia from 359336 B.C. and transformed it into a powerful military machine • Moved into northern Greece and met little resistance due to effects of Peloponnesian War (city-states weak) • By 338 he had Greece under his control (battle of Chaeronea) Macedonia Alexander the Great Philip intended to use Greece as a launching pad to invade Persia, but he was assassinated before he could begin his plan Instead the invasion of Persia would be left for Philip’s son Alexander who was just 20 when Philip was assassinated “Alexander inherited from his father the most perfectly organized, trained, and equipped army of ancient times.” J.F.C. Fuller, The Generalship of Alexander the Great Professional, well-paid army, combined conquered greeks with his troops, new plans and weapons Conquests of Alexander Ionia and Anatolia 333 Syria, Palestine, Egypt 332 Founds Alexandria Mesopotamia 331 Persepolis 331 King of Persia (darius III) 330 India 327 Returns to Susa 324 Dies (age 33) 323 Warfare in the Age of Alexander Phalanx: A formation of infantry carrying overlapping shields and long spears, developed by Philip II and used by Alexander the Great Warfare in the Age of Alexander Hoplite The main melee warrior of the Macedonian army. Worked mainly in the tight phalanx formation, creating impregnable lines that often left the enemy demoralized. Hoplites in Action Warfare in the Age of Alexander Companions Alexander’s elite cavalry, the offensive arm of his army, and his elite guard. They would be used in conjunction with the phalanx. The phalanx would fix the enemy in place and then the companion cavalry would attack on the flank. ATTACK FROM THE REAR Alexander would lead the charge with his cavalry, normally in a wedge formation. These troops would also protect the flanks of the Macedonian line during battle. Warfare in the Age of Alexander Sieges involved the surrounding and blockading of a town or fortress by an army trying to capture it. A variety of weapons were built to hurl projectiles over city walls (catapults), scale or batter (rams) the walls, and transport soldiers over them. 5th Century Greek Battering Ram Defeat of Persia Darius’ escape frustrates Alexander because it prevents him from full claim to being king of Persia Eventually Darius’ followers assassinate him As Alexander becomes king of Persia and continues to advance east, he takes on an increasingly Oriental attitude The End of the Empire Alexander Marries Roxanna and has his men also intermarry Adopts Eastern dress and habits Publicly insists upon his descent from the gods Begins giving key positions to Persians The Macedonians are tired of campaigning and resent the changes in Alexander’s behavior and become mutinous Alexander dies in June 323, perhaps as a result of poisoning or fever "The Marriage of Alexander the Great and Roxanna" by Ishmail Parbury After Alexander After Alexander dies, his generals jockey for power and by 275 they have divided up his kingdom into three large states Antigonus took Greece and Macedon Ptolemy took Egypt and started a dynasty of pharaohs (Cleopatra’s ancestor) Seleuces took the former Persian empire The period of Alexander and his successors is called the Hellenistic period to reflect the broad influence of Greek culture beyond Greece’s borders The Hellenistic World Greek Cities Library at Alexandria (333 BCE) Center of Learning Aristotle was Alexander’s teacher In Alexandria, famous Greeks met to share discoveries and learn from each other Euclid Archimedes Aristarchus Hellenistic Culture Cultural Diffusion Greek governors ruled the land Spread greek language and customs Also dopted local (eastern - Persian) customs Hellenistic culture was a mix of the two