Download Invaders, Traders and Empire Builders Empire – Group of states or

Invaders, Traders and Empire Builders
Empire – Group of states or territories controlled by one ruler.
Monotheism – Belief in one god.
Civil law – Body of law dealing with the private lives of individuals.
Rule of law - Government by law. The rule of law implies that government authority may only be exercised in accordance with
written laws, which were adopted through an established procedure.
Civilization – complex, highly organized social order. Democracy – government in which the people hold ruling power.
Republic – system of government in which representatives are chosen by the people. It is a form of democracy
I.
The First Empire Builder
Invasion and conquest were prominent features of the ancient Middle East. About 2300 BC, Sargon, the ruler of
neighboring Akkad, invaded and conquered the city-states of Sumer. He built the first empire known to history. II.
II.
Successive Mesopotamian Empires
A. Babylonian Empire – ca. 1790 BC Hammurabi’s Code
B. Hittite Empire – ca. 1400 BC
1. Ironworking Technology
2. -Attacks of a mysterious sea peoples around 1190 on the Aegean (Greece), Hittite (Turkey), Mesopotamia
(Syria), and the Nile River Delta (Egypt) are evidence of a crisis in the Mediterranean world. There was
widespread instability of populations driven by hunger and land shortages. This was largely caused by
ecological frailty and unstable competitive politics.
3. Quote Ramses II
“ Barbarians conspired in their islands…no land could withstand their arms. They were heading for Egypt, wile
we prepared flame before them…They laid their hands on the land as far as the edges of the Earth, their hearts
confident and trusting,’We will succeed’…The nile delta made like a strong wall with warships…I was the
valiant war-god, standing fast at their head. Those who came forward together on the sea, the full flame was in
front of them at the rivers mouth, while a stockade of lances surrounded them on the shore. They were dragged
in, enclosed, and prostrated on the beach, killed and made into heaps.”
C. Assyrian Empire – ca. 1000 BC
Most extensive, except for the Persian Empire Contributions of the Assyrians
1. Improved iron weaponry.
2. Warfare was central to the culture.
3. Encouraged a well-ordered society.
4. First rulers to develop extensive laws regulating life within the royal household.
5. At Nineveh, King Assurbanipal founded one of the first libraries, collecting cuneiform
tablets from all over the empire.
6. Ruled through fear: by 750 B.C.E. King Tiglath-pilaser III adopted the title of king of the Four Quarters
(King of the World)
7. The Assyrian Empire fell in the 620’s under Ashurbanipal: Why? The Kings claimed control of nature.
Constant
rebellions plagued the empire (especially in the cities of ancient Sumeria and Babylonia)
D. Babylon Revisited – ca. 612 BC
King Nebuchadnezzar builds the Hanging Gardens.
Strabo: Babylon has turned to waste by the blows of invaders and the indifference of rulers. The great city has
become a great desert.
III.
Greek Civilization 1750 BC – 133 BC
A. Early Minoan civilization – the forerunner for Greece - began on the island of Crete, around 1700 BC. Evidence
shows extensive trade and a very advanced culture, which was exported to mainland Greece at Mycenae. Minoan
Civilization was one of the earliest examples of what has come to be called Greek civilization. Minoans were trading
at the same time as the Phoenicians, Egyptians and Babylonians. Very unequal social structure with a malnourished
lower class.
B. Mycenaean 1600 BC – 1200 BC
Sea traders – beyond Aegean to Sicily, Italy, Egypt and Mesopotamia. Warriors, living in several city states. The
Mycenaean city state became the mainland Greek civilization. Best known for Trojan War. 1200 BC Mycenaean
Civilization collapsed because of sea invaders and Dorian Greeks. Trade and culture are at a standstill for about 100
years.
IV.
Phoenicians – ca. 1200 BC
A. While powerful rulers subdued large empires, the Phoenicians gained fame as sailors, traders and colonizers. They
occupied a string of cities along the coastal Mediterranean and traded as far away as Africa and India.
-Ezekial on Tyre (the Phoenician trading port) “Their ports ring with precious metals, exude aromas of spice, and swirl
with dye-steeped textiles. But the basis of everything is shipbuilding; the timbers from Lebanon, the oak for the oars,
benches of ivory, sails of Egyptian linen, and mariners and builders from the Phoenician coast” Contributions of the
Phoenicians
B. Traded extensively in the Mediterranean. Trade goods included royal purple dye, glass, rare cedar wood, linen fabric,
metal ware and papyrus
V.
C. Introduced the Phoenician alphabet, which we use today.
Athens and Sparta 1200 – 0 BC
Greece itself was made up of separate city-states, which were constantly at war.
City-state: Political unit made up of a city and the surrounding lands.
A. Athens
Government: Limited democracy (only male citizens could participate), Council of 500 which made the laws, voting
Assembly.
Soldiers: Citizen soldiers – only during wartime
Slaves: No political rights or freedoms. Owned by individuals
Women: Cared for the home, limited political rights.
Education: Upper class boys only. Military training and preparation for government involvement. Knowledge was
important for a democratic government.
B. Sparta
Government: Two kings (military generals) and a council of elders. Citizens were male, native born, over 30.
Soldiers: Military society, all males prepared to be soldiers from birth. Soldiers from age 7 – 30.
Slaves: Owned by the State
Women: Prepared physically for fighting, right to inherit property, and must obey men.
Education: Boys only. Military based training from age 7. Taught to fight. Prohibition against trade, travel and mixing
with other city-states.
VI. Cyrus & Darius the Great 580 – 529 B. C. E.
A. Cyrus: A tolerant ruler. He allowed different cultures within his empire to keep their own institutions. The
Greeks called him a “Law-Giver.” The Jews called him “the anointed of the Lord.” (In 537, he allowed over
40,000 to return to Palestine).
B. Darius 526 – 485 B. C. E. : Established a tax-collecting system. Divided the empire into districts called
SATRAPIES. Built the great Royal Road system and also created a standard monetary system adopted by the
Lydians. Established a complex postal system. Created a network of spies called “the King’s eyes and ears.”
VII. Silk Road Traders
Ancient trade was not limited to the Mediterranean region. The Chinese Emperor Wudi opened up a trade route, later called
the Silk Road that linked China and the west for centuries. Silk Road trade goods included silk, whose production secrets
were carefully guarded by the Chinese, jade, and porcelain in return for glassware, linen, fabric and cedar wood.
VIII. Persian Wars 490 – 479 BC
The Greek city-states did not unite until faced with a common enemy: Persia
A. Delian League By 479 BC, the Greeks had defeated the Persians on land in Asia Minor and stopped their advance.
Athens emerged from the war as the most powerful city-state in Greece. To continue the struggle against Persia, it
organized the Delian League, an alliance with the other Greek city states. Athens dominated the Delian League and used
its wealth to create an Athenian empire.
1. Athens – The City Pericles Built
Direct Democracy – Citizen assembly voted directly on laws
Huge construction projects – Acropolis and Parthenon (giant temple) rebuilt
Emphasis on arts, architecture, philosophy and medicine
B. Athens – Conquered by Sparta
In 404 BC, Sparta attacked and conquered the fading Athenian empire in what came to be known as the
Peloponnesian War. For the next century, fighting continued to dominate the Greek city-states. By 359 BC, the
Macedonians from the north, under the leadership of Philip II invaded and conquered all of Greece.
Alexander the Great
1. Conquers the Known World
2. Puts his generals in charge of Conqered peoples
a. Creates Seleucid, Ptolemic, and Antigonid Kingdoms
3. Responsible for spread of Hellenistic Culture
4. Hellenistic- A vibrant new culture that combined Greek (or Hellenic) culture with the influences of Egypt, Persia, and
India.
XIII. Zarathustra [Zoroaster]
1. Sixth Century BCE: Good Thoughts, Good Deed, Good Words
2. Dualistic Battle of Good vs. Evil A.
3. Ahura Mazda: “Holy Spirit”
4. Ahriman: “Destructive Spirit”
5. Zend-Avesta : (The “Book of Law”)
6. The “Sacred Fire”: the force to fight evil:
Greek Philosophers (Lovers of Wisdom) Socrates
Socrates was born in the mid 400's B.C He taught philosophy and taught Plato.
Before 400 B.C., he began questioning Athenian values, laws, customs, and religion.
In 399, he was brought to trial and found guilty of treason to the gods. He was sentenced to death. His teachings were written down by
his student, Plato.
He was the first to make a clear distinction between the body and soul, placing a higher value on the soul. He had a noble life, and his
calm acceptance of death made him a model for other philosophers to follow.
Plato
Plato, one of the most famous Greek philosophers, was born in Athens.
In 403 B.C., democracy was restored to Athens. Plato then tried to get involved in politics, but was repelled again when his friend and
teacher Socrates was sentenced to death in 399 B.C. Plato left Athens after Socrates was killed. He returned in 387 B.C., and founded
a school of philosophy called the Academy.
The Academy was considered the first university by many people.
He wrote the republic in which he described a perfectly governed society divided into three groups: Farmers and Artisans; Warriors;
and the Ruling Class. In his book the person with Greatest Insight and the best Philosopher was the King.
Aristotle
Aristotle was born in Stagira. His father was Nichomachus, who was the personal physician to Amyntas II, king of Macedonia. King
Amyntas was the grandfather of Alexander the Great. Aristotle's parents died when he was young, so a man named Proxemus raised
him as his own.
When he was 18, he attended the Academy, where he was a student for 20 years. He was known as "the intelligence of the school" and
"reader".
In 347 B.C., when Plato died, Aristotle joined a group of Plato's disciples that lived with Hermias, a former Academy student. In 343
or 342 B.C., Philip II of Macedonia asked Aristotle to supervise the education of his son, Alexander, who later conquered Greece.
Aristotle returned to Athens in 334 B.C. and founded the Lyceum, a school of philosophy.
After Alexander the Great died in 323 B.C., Aristotle was charged with impiety, which was a lack of reverence for the gods, by the
Athenian people. The Athenians resented his friendship with Alexander, who conquered them. Aristotle went to Chalcis, remembering
similar charges against Socrates in 349 B.C. He died one year later in Chalcis.
XIV. The Hebrews: Empire Builders of another Kind – Religion
These words, the first of the Ten Commandments – set the Hebrews apart from all other people of the Fertile Crescent. Instead of
worshipping many gods (polytheism) they prayed to one God (monotheism).The basis for their Code of Laws is known as “the Ten
Commandments.” This is the root of Judaism. -The Jews sacred writings tell a story of disillusionment; of defeats and dispossessions
by their enemies. -Two kingdoms: Israel and Judah: large-scale deportations from Jerusalem incited a “diaspora mentality: exiles
sense of loss, resignation, nostalgia, defeat, and hope “By the waters of Babylon, we lay down and wept…If I ever forget Jerusalem,
let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth”
A. Contributions of the Hebrews: Ethical Monotheism
Monotheism – belief in one God
Covenant – belief that they had made a binding agreement with God
Ethical Law Code – A law code sent by God himself based on personal morality: the Ten Commandments
XVIII. Review of Government Systems: A. Monarchy
State ruled by King
Rule is Hereditary
Some rulers claim divine right
Practiced by Mycenae (1450 BCE)
B. Aristocracy
State ruled by nobility
Rule is hereditary & Based on land ownership
Social Status & Wealth support rulers’ authority
Practiced by Athens (594 BCE)
C. Oligarchy
State ruled by small group of citizens
Rule is based on wealth
Ruling group controls military
Practiced by Sparta (800-622 BCE)
D. Direct Democracy
State ruled by its citizens
Rule is based on Citizenship
8 Majority rule decides vote
Practiced in Athens (461 BCE)