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Classical Civilizations
Overview of the world at the time
 China, India & Mediterranean civilizations all create well developed Empires
 Mediterranean culture – 1st cultures that developed without having a river next to it
 But did NOT dominate the classical period as many believe in the west
 Was an amazing time period for certain cultures worldwide
 Social mobility was tough in most societies – couldn’t move from poor to rich
Section 1
The Persian Empire
The Persian Empire (Greek term) – an amazingly powerful Empire from Iran
 Achaemenid dynasty (648-330 BCE) – golden age of the Persian Empire
 Created by Cyrus the Great (576-529 BCE) – 1st person to get the title “the great”
 Unified the 2 great Iranian tribes (Medes & Persians) into 1 Empire through conquest
 Took over lots of territory – often bloodless victories – largest empire to this point
 Very tolerant to conquered people – allowed them to have near total autonomy
 Freed the Jews from the Babylonian Captivity – let them go back to Israel
 Gave Babylonians the 1st human rights charter ever (the Cyrus Cylinder)
 Religious tolerance & freedom of choice of profession
 Really into Zoroastrianism – religion of the Kings family, not big with the people
 Government created by Cyrus – creates the most well developed Empire in the west
 Organized HUGE amount of land into provinces/states called satrapies
 Would influence Greeks & Romans – lots of ideas that were used later (even America)
 Other Great leaders of Persia – centralized state leads to great & horrible Kings
 Darius the Great (r. 521-485 BCE) – 1 of the greatest leaders in Persian history
 1 of most organized leaders EVER – revised lots of administration (20 satrapies)
 Standardized money (Golden Daric), length (royal cubit)
 Great military strategist – conquered in all directions – India, Egypt, Greece (fails)
 Done through military reforms – conscription, pay for soldiers & military training
 Building projects – Persepolis (60 ft. walls, 33 ft. thick) & huge road system
 Outlawed slavery in Persia – still VERY popular in the rest of the world
 Not all changes positive – forced the religion of Zoroastrianism on the people
 Xerxes (r. 485-465 BCE) – the son of Darius who continued most of his father’s work
 Spent most of his life trying to avenge his father’s loss in Greece
 1 of the greatest military planners of all time – shown in invasion of Greece
 Invasion of Greece with 250,000 people rivals the planning of the pyramids
 Constructs 2 bridges across the Hellespont – 100’s of ships – 7 days to cross
 Slowly loses power after loss against Greece – eventually murdered by his Vizier
Later Persian Empire
 Seleucid Dynasty (330-150 BC) – Dynasty under Greek rule
 This Hellenistic Empire re-established trade through Empires that didn’t trade before
 Major spread of Buddhism into the West during this time – influenced Judaism
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 Declined quickly – Greek leaders after Alexander didn’t have the same power he did
 Would eventually be conquered by Parthia & Rome
 Parthian Empire (150 BCE-226 CE) – Iranians take land back (share border with Rome)
 Huge jump in Persian culture – re-establishing their own culture over Greek (Seleucid)
 Big rival of Rome – share border (Euphrates) – Rome tries, but never conquers
 Their cavalry stopped Rome every time
 Empire lacked political unity – governors had more power than King (feudal)
 Sassanid Empire (226-650 CE) – overtook Parthians in a large scale rebellion
 Wanted to restart greatness of Achaemenid’s – successors to Darius & Cyrus?
 Highly centralized state – didn’t want to fall the same way the Parthians did
 Organized into caste system – priests, soldiers, scribes, & commoners
 Zoroastrianism official state religion – but persecuted other religions
 Tried to conquer too much – areas revolted – Muslims would take over
Section 2
The Greek Culture
Early Greek History
 Minoans (2600- 1450 BCE)(Crete) – 1st major culture
 Migrated from N. Africa when the Sahara got way too dry to live there
 Might have stopped at Egypt 1st – a HUGE amount of Egyptian influence
 Women have rights – actually worshipped many Goddesses (hard to be sexist)
 Best plumbing in the world – wouldn’t see better plumbing until the 1800’s
 Built economy on the trading of Bronze – lost power while people went to Iron
 Collapse – due to Iron trading & the eruption of the Thera volcano
 Mycenae Kingdom (1400-1100 BCE) – takes most of Greece from capital Knossos
 Very powerful society that becomes most well-known for the Trojan War
 The Trojan War (1194-1184 BCE??)(Achaeans vs. Trojans)
 Probably fought over trade – Troy controlled Dardanelles (best trade location)
 Helen of Troy probably not true – had to have another reason for attack?
 A unified Mycenae Greece attacks the Trojans – known from Homers Iliad
 May have taken 10 years – but it also could be a figure of speech
 Great story (from the Iliad) – Achilles love, Patroclus dies, Hector vs. Achilles
 Achilles dies from blow to Achilles tendon – only spot he wasn’t invincible
 Heinrich Schliemann proves the war happened by finding the actual city of Troy
 Complete jerk of history – tried to plant evidence to prove he found Troy
 He actually did – just didn’t know it – they found out later
 Life after the Mycenaean’s – slow collapse followed by attack by the Dorian’s
 Indo-Europeans (Dorian’s) take over – launch a mini Dark Ages in Greece (illiterate)
 Would take 100’s of years before they got out of the dark ages
Classical Greek Culture
 Politics – city-states with separate gov’ts divided by very rocky geography
 They are grouped by a common culture by historians – almost never actually united
 Very diverse in terms of gov’t – usually monarchies (but tyrants hurt this)
 Democracy – concept attempted in city-state of Athens
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Often called the 1st direct democracy – everyone votes on every issue
 Only about ¼ voted though – women, slaves, foreigners excluded from voting
 Leaders chosen randomly – similar to the way we run jury duty now
Culture – very similar in each city-state but there were differences in each city-state
 Olympics – athletic competition – only time Greeks came together totally
 In times of war all athletes were allowed safe passage to the games
 Education – was private (except in Sparta) – only rich men could afford it
 Studied philosophy (moral guide in life) & rhetoric (persuasive speeches)
 Women only get home ec – read, write, do math only for this
 Good education started their golden age – from Phoenician alphabet
 Slavery (600 BCE) – 1/3rd population in most polis – Athens the worst
 No revolts – too different/scattered to organize
Military – very similar – use Phalanx (defensive formation, great for terrain)
 1st used by Sumerians (Stele) – then copied by Egyptians & Greeks
 Made of Hoplites – 4 deep – protect man on left – spear thru hole
 Became a pushing match if both sides using – deeper 1 wins
 Weakness – not offensive, guy on end (flanking?) – worked best in Greece
Religion (Greco-Roman religion) – polytheistic Gods & goddesses of nature
 Gods had human emotions & fought often – explains reasons for war
Art & literature – tried to make things look & sound real (very important to Europe)
 Well known for plays (drama, comedy & tragedy) – focused on human flaws
Athens in the Golden Age
 Athens – most well-known city-state (due to the rise of Democracy)
 Ancient Athens – had been a minor settlement for 1000’s of years
 The only city not taken over by the Dorian’s – different ethnicity than other Greeks?
 Law systems – the Greeks would create law systems that inspired many (including US)
 Draco (700’s BCE) – a king of Athens known as the lawgiver for his law code
 Punishment for ALL offenses were death – shouldn’t have broken the law
 This is why we call harsh laws Draconian now
 Solon (638-558 BCE) – made other laws due to a moral decline in Athens
 His laws would lay the foundations for Athenian Democracy
 The slow rise of democracy – didn’t truly become a democracy until well later
 Sparta took over Athens (510 BCE) – would back off later when revolts started
 After they left Cleisthenes came up with democratic reforms to Athens
 Was a response to Spartan invasion & the harsh rule of Draco
 Pericles (495-429 BCE) – had no official position but amazingly influential
 Officially pushes for start of democracy in Athens – fully developed
 His life starts the “golden age” of Athens – known as the “Age of Pericles”
 Democracy? – not a true democracy – only male land owners in gov’t (10-20%)
 Direct Democracy – every person in the society votes on every issue
 The problem with this style is that quick decisions are hard to make
 Women in Athens – 1 of the worst places in the world to be a women
 Not allowed to leave the house without male accompany – like Middle East?
 Woman is held liable if they do leave & something happens (even if raped)
 Aspasia (470-400 BCE) – 1 of the few women who were viewed positively
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1 of Pericles women – but not from Athens so he couldn’t marry her
VERY smart – even Socrates made commented on how smart she was
Sparta During The Golden Age
 Sparta – Civ. built around military!!!!!! – set up by Lycurgus (700-630 BCE)
 EVERYTHING THEY DID WAS TO BECOME BETTER WARRIORS
 Helots (slaves) taken over to make food – so Spartans can concentrate on military
 Made no city walls on purpose – forced people to be a better warrior
 Individuals didn’t matter (only state) – selfless warriors are better
 Horrible food on purpose – makes sure that no 1 overeats
 1 Athenian had some & said “now I know why they don’t fear death”
 Only large babies were allowed to live – no reason to feed wimpy kids
 Everyone had to be good in a phalanx or else they would all die
 Small, sickly, deformed kids left to die or thrown off a cliff
 Made some men ask their friends to impregnate their wives (keep the baby)
 Tombstone – only way to get name on tombstone is to die in battle/childbirth
 Agoge (Spartan military school) – trained to be phalanx warrior from ages of 7-30
 Helped by older boy (inspirer) through process – responsible for getting kid ready
 Punished if you screamed in battle – beaten by leaders until you passed out
 Inspirer got beat too if the kid screamed during the beating
 Set up to weed out the weak kids – make sure every Spartan warrior was great
 Not fed enough to live – encouraging stealing (survival of the fittest)
 But stealing was against the rules – force them to be sneaky too
 Not allowed to marry until they were 20 – but can’t leave barracks until 30
 Forced them to marry in secret (sneaky) – get their wife pregnant soon
 Government – most stable gov’t in the history of ancient Greece (oligarchy)
 Everyone was given an equal share of food (no $) – original version of communism?
 Dual monarchy – 2 kings were created so that no 1 person had too much power
 Council – 28 nobles of over 60 who had retired from the military (big deal)
 Led by the Ephorate – 5 men that controlled the assembly
 Democratic assembly – decisions made by all free males over the age of 30
 Culture – very strong culture that had no connection to others on purpose
 If Spartans traveled they might decide they like other city-states more
 Crazy respect for elders – makes perfect sense in a military society
 Story about all Spartans offering an old man their seat at the Olympics
 Women had way more rights than most places – & were taught to fight too
 Gorga – influenced politics in a big way by pushing the men to do stuff
 Cynisca – beat the men to win gold metal at chariot racing in the Olympics
 May seem easy but chariot racing was VERY dangerous at the time
The Persian Wars (500-448 BCE) – series of wars between Greece & Persia
 Knowledge of this comes from Herodotus (father of history)
 Don’t have as much history from the other side – Persian sources were burnt way later
 Cause – Greeks tried to help a group they thought were like them
 Ionian revolts (502 BCE) – Athens helped the city-state of Naxos against the Persians
 Was a city-state within the Persian Empire that wanted to break away
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 The Athenians believed this city-state (in western Turkey) was ethnically Greek
 They burnt down a few Zoroastrian temples during the rebellion
 King Darius wants to punish Athens for getting involved in Persian issues
 Battle of Marathon (490 BCE) – Darius’ attempt to get revenge against Athens
 Done during Spartan holy month on purpose – so they wouldn’t help the Athenians
 Had a former King from Sparta (that had been kicked out) advising them
 Athens attacks when cavalry away – the only way they can win is without the cavalry
 Used double envelopment to beat them – great tactic that people still use
 Persians retreat – hacked to pieces during retreat by the Athenians
 UNBELIEVABLE win – quite possibly the greatest upset victory ever
 1st defeat of Persians since Cyrus – & Athenians only lose 192 men total
 Pheidippides ran to Athens to tell the people – dies after 24 miles (marathon?)
 Athenians create Parthenon to commemorate the win at Marathon
 Preparation for the next war – both sides knew there would be another war soon
 Everyone knew Greeks were in trouble – mostly because of the great Persian navy
 Themistocles lies to the Athenian people to get them to create a naval fleet
 Huge fleet was built with the $100 million he got from this
 Darius planned another invasion – paid a servant to remind him daily – died too soon
 Xerxes eventually invaded – taking conscripts from a country of 70 million people
 Most amazing invasion in history – 250,000 soldiers (plus more courtiers/slaves)
 Go back & look at section on Xerxes for more info
 Sent messengers to every city-state in Greece – expecting them to surrender
 The VAST majority back the Persians in the invasion – playing the odds
 Athenians & Spartans refuse – Spartans too cocky to back out
 Spartan issues – the Persians again plan to attack during the Spartan holy festival
 Ask the Oracle at Delphi what to do – say a Spartan King must die to win
 Leonidas chooses to lead a suicide mission – was a way out of trouble he was in
 Chooses 300 men that all had kids to keep their family going
 Sent to PROVE they would die down the very last man – suicide mission!
2nd Half of the Persian Wars
 The Battle of Thermopylae (480 BC) – the 1st battle between the Persians & Greeks
 Greek army (led by Leonidas) picked a narrow pass to defend – cut down on #’s
 Wanted to slow the Persian advance – let the Greeks prepare for bigger war
 Ends up being 250,000 Persians against 7,000 Greeks (led by 300 Spartans)
 Greeks massacre Persians in fighting – piles of bodies with rivers of blood flowing
 Greek armor was FAR superior to Persian – Persian army built for speed
 By 2nd day Persian army is too scared to go into battle – being forced with whips
 Xerxes sends Immortals into battle (10,000 best warriors) to raise the spirits
 Immortals do better but still lose to the Spartan army
 Would fake a retreat if things were going bad – then regroup quickly
 Now who is going to fight this battle? – would you go if the Immortals just lost
 Local farmer (Ephialtes) sells out the Greeks to keep his family protected
 Informs the Persians of a pass that would allow them to go around the Greeks
 Leonidas had sent a group to protect this pass – but they ran away
 Greeks now know the battle is over – Spartans sent everyone else home (cover retreat)
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Thespians decide to stay because they are the closest city – protect their home
 Spartans & Thespians make oaths to be allies for eternity
 Last Stand – Greeks defend to the last man (Thespians back off right near the end)
 Major fight over Leonidas’ body – then last few Spartans fight to the death
 Persians so afraid of Greeks they stand back & shoot arrows at the last few
 Aftermath – Xerxes VERY worried about the moral of his troops (after losing so many)
 Had the 20,000 dead Persians buried so his men only saw the dead Greeks
 But the troops heard the stories – this would cause problems later
 The Battle of Salamis (Sep 480 BCE) – naval battle at same time as Thermopylae
 Greeks not known for naval war at all – the Persians had the best navy in the world
 1207 Persian ships find & attack the 371 Greeks in the strait of Salamis
 Greeks use similar tactics as they did at Thermopylae – using the straits
 Persian navy was too large to maneuver in the strait – Greeks left themselves room
 Greeks massacre the Persians & win – bodies wash up during Thermopylae
 Set it up to get Persians stuck & have the wind at their backs
 Egyptian ship that allied with Persians was the only 1 to do well – led by a woman
 Major turning point – invasion real tough without Navy 2 back them up
 Harder to get supplies if your navy is at the bottom of the ocean
 Historians often say this is the most important battle in history
 Xerxes returns to Persia after the loss at Salamis – too much of a chance they might lose
 Gen. Maronius was put in charge when Xerxes left
 The Battle of Plataea (479 BCE) – final big battle of the war (with 45,000 Spartans total)
 The Greeks were outnumbered 3-1 – but again used good strategy to get around that
 Used the mountains to protect themselves from the cavalry – too rocky for horses
 Persians retreat after Gen. Maronius dies – slaughtered during the retreat
 Persian lost 200,000 in the battle & only 1,000 Greeks die in it
After The Persian Wars
 Counter-attack against the Persians – Greeks chase Persians back to Asia
 Spartan King Pausanias (new King after Leonidas) led the Greeks in counterattack
 Falls in love with Persian culture & makes side deals to switch sides
 Sent back to Sparta in shame – Spartans stop helping in counterattack
 Themistocles also switches sides – would eventually become a Persian Satrap
 The Peloponnesian War (431 BCE) – 27 year civil war in Greece between Athens & Sparta
 Most city-states aligned with 1 of the 2 power houses – didn’t want others to be powerful
 Delian League (Athens) vs. Peloponnesian league (Sparta)
 Different militaries – Sparta were the land warriors & Athens was the great navy
 So they never actually fought a decisive battle – each wanted it on their own terms
 Wouldn’t actually fight the whole time – many of these people would go back to farm
 The longest continuous stretch of fighting during the war was 40 days
 Athens tried to get helots to revolt – didn’t work
 Bubonic Plague breaks out in Athens from boats carrying grains & supplies (rats)
 20% of Athens population died (20,000 people) – piles of body in the streets
 All law & order broke down
 Both sides resort to serious violence by 425 BCE – murdering whole cities
 Athens would eventually be forced to surrender after years of fighting
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 The Tyranny of the 30 – Athens was taken over after the war & run by 30 Spartans
 1,500 people were killed under their short rule & more than 5,000 left the city
 They would eventually leave – allowing democracy to return to Athens
 Decline of Sparta & Athens – the length of the Peloponnesian War caused a major decline
 Thebes beats Sparta at the Battle of Leuctra (371 BCE) – becomes the new powerhouse
 Changed the phalanx to include longer spears – keep people further away
 Demosthenes (384-322 BCE) – the most well-known orator in Athenian history
 Developed his speaking skills despite his major stuttering problem as a child
 Warned Athens about the rise of Macedon – worried they might take over Athens
Rise of the Macedonians
 King Phillip II of Macedon (382-36 BCE) – starts to conquer Greece from Macedon
 Changes the military – elongates spears (20 ft.) & gives them straps to make them usable
 Also paid his army so they could only concentrate on military – made Sparta great
 & created different positions within army – started to use archers
 Takes over all of Greece & plans a Greek takeover of Persia – led by him
 Was assassinated at his daughter’s wedding (336 BCE) – interesting stories surround
 Alexander III (the Great)(356-23 BCE) – took over Greek confederation from his Dad
 Only conqueror who never lost a battle – really crazy since he LED his men in battle
 Educated by Aristotle as a young man – inspired him to take over the world
 Started to believe that he wasn’t Phillip’s son but was the son of Zeus (invincible)
 City-states revolt against the 19 year old Alexander when he becomes Greek leader
 Alexander takes over Thebes (main culprit) – burnt it down & killed everyone
 Why? – he has to make a statement that rebelling against him will be dealt with
 Conquers Egypt – actually pretty easy due to the slow decline of Egypt
 The Egyptians make him the Pharaoh & call him a God – Alexander eats it up
 Took to the idea of being a God way too far – truly believed he was invincible
 Built amazing preplanned city in N. Africa called Alexandria – SO well built
 Had roads lined with trees & lamps with water & food storage underground
 Created lighthouse (could be seen from 30-miles away) – more on this later
 Had AMAZING library with books taken from all over the world
 With universities inside that did great things – Julian calendar made there
 & Alexander was eventually laid to rest in Alexandria
 Gordian Knot (Excalibur like story) – if you could untie it you will become King of Asia
 Alexander cut it when he couldn’t untie it – believed that was good enough
 Conquest of Persia – invades with 42,000 troops total (after visiting Troy & praying)
 Beats Persians with great strategy after 3 battles – truly LED his men into battle
 Battles of Granicus, Issus, Tyre, Gaugamela (334-1 BCE)
 King Darius III runs from last battle field – kicking family off chariot
 Would be killed by his protectors before Greeks track him down
 Founded the city of Kandahar Afghanistan while tracking Darius down
 Major city & military base for the US troops in Afghanistan
 Conquest of India – attacks India right after finding the body of Darius III
 Had MAJOR battle against King Porus at the Battle of Hydaspes (326 BC)
 Nearly loses this battle due to war elephants & Alexander almost dies himself
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The Fall & Impact of Greek Dominance
 Death of Alexander – he loses popularity with his troops because of some decisions
 Fell in love with Persian culture once he took the city of Babylon – pisses others off
 Married a “barbarian” named Roxana – friends thought he should marry Macedonian
 Many start to believe he is pushing away from Macedonian culture for others
 Mutiny – his men tire of trying to take over the world (been away for 10 years)
 King Porus told them they weren’t near the end of the world
 & that the Greeks would never take over India or especially China
 Army has total mutiny – refuses to go further into India – Alexander backs off
 He & the army go back to Babylon to plan another trip (into Russia)
 Death – dies of mysterious illness (Jun 11, 323 BCE) – no 1 knows why (murder?)
 Asked on his deathbed who should be King – he said the strongest should be
 Would lead to civil war between the 4 powerful Generals of Greece – OR!
 They decide to split the empire into 4 pieces to avoid a civil war
 Cassander was given Macedon & Greece
 Ptolemy was given Egypt
 Antigonus was given the Persian Empire
 Seleucus was given India
 Hellenistic Culture – the conquests of Alexander had a HUGE impact on the world
 Conquests connected lands much more clearly & they begin to share ideas
 This blend of culture & knowledge becomes known as Hellenistic Civilization
 Blend of Greek, Roman, Egyptian, Persian & Indian cultures
 The Fall of Greece as a powerhouse – there was a long decline after the death of Alexander
 Each separate country given to Alexander’s Generals would eventually fall
 India was won back only a few years after the death of Alexander
 Greece would fall to the Romans by 86 BCE – Athens was the last to fall
 Would continue to be under foreign control until 1832 CE (Ottomans)
 Egypt would last until the death of Cleopatra (31 CE) – taken over by the Romans
 Library at Alexandria was burnt by Julius Caesar (48 BCE) – lost amazing history
 Later burnt again by Christian Monks (389 CE) – not Christian enough?
 Was a time when free thinking was not embraced by Christianity
 Persia would fall to revolts by the Persian people – would start Parthian Empire
 Jews in Israel revolt under priest named Mattathias & Maccabaeus (167-64 BCE)
 Their victory is celebrated every year as the celebration of Hanukkah
Section 3
The Roman Empire
Early Roman History
 Monarchy (800-509 BCE) – good times for a while – overthrown when Kings abused power
 Lots of legends surround the beginning – most of them pretty ridiculous
 Aeneas & Julus (from Troy) & Romulus & Remus (raised by wolves)
 Needed heroes of their own to keep up with Greek – Horatius (ridiculous story)
 Republic (509-45 BCE) – gov’t run by group of elites in the Senate
 Senate (started as Council of Elders) – 300 members (at 1st) who held position for life
 The only way to lose a position on the senate was to do something deemed immoral
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Could only be in the senate as a Patrician (the aristocrats of Rome)
 The Plebeians (regular people) received no representation until well later
 Positions were based on jobs of ancestors during early monarchy
 Consuls – elected leaders of the senate/military – similar to 2 kings of Sparta
 1 consul led Senate & 1 led the military – would switch positions & be re-elected
 Became emergency dictator in times of war – need quick decisions
 Tribune – position created later to serve the Plebeians – had veto power on any law
 Still elected from Patrician class – usually bought off by other senators
 Only 2 Tribunes really used power correctly – both were killed for doing it
 Tiberius & Gaius Gracchus made many changes to help the regular people
 Eventually led to major protests in Rome – senate calls it a revolution
 Kills the Gracchus brothers for inciting revolution (separate time periods)
 This was a large part of the reason regular people backed Emperors later
Military – changed the Greek phalanx to make different jobs within it
 Made up of legions (5,000 men) – created the 1st modernized army
 Standardized, organized, disciplined army
 Not much of a navy – 1st few naval battles were total disasters
 Treated conquered people well – allowed to keep leaders & religion – add Roman Gods
 Citizenship was used as a tool to make people do the things that the Republic needed
 Needed to be earned if you were not born in Rome – helps Romanize conquered
 Believed outsiders were barbarians – & that there was nothing to learn from them
 Became a citizen through joining the military – often given land afterwards
Law – amazing feat in history – but lacked specific individual rights for the people
 Had 2 separate types of law – 1 for citizens & another for everyone else under Rome
 Civil law (for citizens)/Criminal law (everyone else under Roman rule)
 Developed ideas of: Innocent till proven guilty, face your accuser, equal under law,
clearer than daylight evidence,
Slavery – Roman Empire was the largest slave holding Empire ever
 Spartacus (73-71 BCE) – the leader of the largest slave revolt in Roman history
 Started at a Gladiator training camp – but slaves join the cause from all over
 Army balloons to 70,000 slaves & beats a few Roman armies in battle
 Has battle where they were stuck on a mountain when Romans show up
 Part of the army repels down a cliff face to surprise Romans from behind
 Had a chance to leave Rome & decided against it – no 1 really knows why
 Have a battle with Crassus & lose badly – would he be a hero for this?
 No! – Pompey catches the last fleeing people & crucifies them
 Claims he ended the war & not Crassus – the 2 hate each other after this
Had lots of adversaries with really interesting stories
 Pyrrhus – great general – pyrrhic victory (victory at too much cost – lose war)
 Mithridates VI – took out 3 Roman generals
 Boudica – Celtic queen – smarter than all the men – made Nero leave Britain
Culture of Rome
 Stole nearly everything from the Greeks – wanted to have a great history like theirs
 This is the reason that historians refer to this culture as Greco-Roman
 Greek Gods were taken & renamed – Zeus=Jupiter, Poseidon=Neptune
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 Stole Greek art – wanted to make their history heroic like Greeks
 Roman Pantheon was created to be similar to Greek Parthenon – same in front
 Virgil wrote Aeneid – a Roman version of the Odyssey (need Roman heroes too)
 Women had very little rights – put them on par with Chinese for treatment of women
 Could own property but that’s it – under the rule of men for their whole lives
 Entertainment – was a huge deal to the Romans (lots of $ spent on it)
 Chariot races were by far the most popular – regular people of Rome were allowed to go
 VERY dangerous – allowed to beat each other from the chariots
 Gladiators – recreated bloody wars for the amusement of the people (not even battles)
 Gladiators were taken from Christians, slaves, POW’s & criminals
 Christians got it the worst – 90% odds of being killed (10% was the avg.)
 Advancements – Roman society made HUGE leaps in learning/inventions in Europe
 Pythagoras (Greek) – known for his algebraic theory (India had it 300 years before)
 Euclid (Greek) – wrote “the elements” & became known as the “father of Geometry”
 Aristarchus (Greek) – an astronomer who proposed the heliocentric model to Europe
 Already known in most of the world – Europe would deny for another 2,000 years
 Archimedes (Greek) – physicist, mathematician, war inventor
 Caught ships on fire in a battle using mirrors to start the fire (2nd Punic War)
 Figured out laws of density & buoyancy while in the bath
 Great story where he cries out “Eureka” & then ran around naked
 Believed could move anything using a lever & a pulley – no matter how big
 Hippocrates (Greek) – a physician who later became known as the Father of medicine
 Tried to move passed the magical side of medicine & make it more scientific
 Also outlined how to deal with patients – a major part of the Hippocratic Oath
 Galen (Roman) – a doctor who made a medical encyclopedia – used for 1000 years
 Romans built aqueducts to bring water into the city – too many people without it
The Punic Wars (264-146 BCE) – a set of wars with the Phoenicians (& city of Carthage)
 1st Punic War (264-41 BCE) – Rome & Carthage come to help allies & fight each other
 Rome believed N. Africans were barbarians – even though they were more advanced
 Still thought they were barbarians because they were a matriarchal society
 Carthage was winning big time – mostly behind their Gen. Hamilcar Barca
 Carthaginian politicians get tired of war & make a lopsided treaty – don’t get enough
 Barca gets really upset that his win was taken away from him by politicians
 HUGE deal for Rome that started a period of expansion for Rome
 2nd Punic War (218-01 BCE) – tempers fire up again between Rome & Carthage
 Hannibal (247-182 BCE) – Hamilcar Barca’s son who was brought up to hate Rome
 He invades through the Alps (not expected) – but loses many men because of it
 Starts a campaign of guerrilla warfare in Rome – too smart to get caught
 Roman consuls are scared of him – he beats them over & over again
 Lose horrible battle at Cannae – 70,000 Roman troops die in the battle
 They back off & start a war of attrition – hoping to outlast him by delaying battle
 Carthage gov’t abandons war – stops sending supplies & screws Hannibal
 Rome attacks Carthage – knowing Hannibal would go back to defend his home
 Gov’t still gives Hannibal no help – sends him no supplies & only a few troops
 Hannibal loses the Battle of Zama (202 BCE) – goes into hiding
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 Eventually found & drank poison instead of getting caught by Romans
 3 Punic War (149-46 BCE) – final fight between the 2 (not much of a war)
 Senator Cato kept pushing Romans to finish off the city-state of Carthage
 Still pissed about Hannibal – had become the boogey man to Roman kids
 Other N. African cities sold out Carthage – hoping to end their domination of Africa
 Rome surrounded Carthage & didn’t attack – waiting for the people to starve to death
 Carthaginians gave up but Romans wouldn’t let them – wanted them to starve
 Eventually invaded & killed or enslaved every person in Carthage
 Burnt down the city – taking out an amazing library during this
 Legend is they spread salt there – probably not true (too much $ to do this)
 Legacy – by the 3rd war Rome had taken over the entire Mediterranean
 Start calling the Mediterranean “Mare Nostrum” – Latin for “our sea”
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A Powerful Man Emerges
 2 major problems in the Roman Republic lead to change from Republic to Empire
 Military more connected to their Consuls & Generals than to Rome
 1 consul (Sulla) actually took over Rome for a short time using this idea
 Makes a few changes & then gives his power back – hoping to help
 Plebeians (majority) were cut out of politics & really wanted that to change
 Julius Caesar (100-44 BCE) – guy who came from nothing to make a name for himself
 Saves a few people & made a name for himself in the military for this
 Able to make a treaty with Bithynia (HUGE deal) – no 1 thought he would be able to
 Some people believed he had a romantic relationship with the kings to do it
 He was later captured by pirates – who ransomed him for the $ (has them raise the $ too)
 Got to be friendly with them – told them 1 night he would hunt them down (haha)
 Actually did hunt them down & crucified them – slitting their throats to be nice
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 1 Triumvirate – 3 leaders come together to effectively run Rome (very powerful)
 Caesar talks Pompey & Crassus into joining forces – he keeps them together (hate)
 Got Pompey to marry his daughter to seal the political connection
 Keeping these 2 together was a HUGE political boost to Caesar
 Triumvirate falls apart due to deaths – dissolves because of this
 Crassus was killed while trying to take over Parthia – would make him rich
 Parthians were pissed at him – poured molten lead/gold in his mouth to kill him
 Caesars daughter (Julia) dies in child birth – no more family connection to Pompey
 Pompey was jealous of Caesars popularity – young handsome man with power
 Tells the Senate that his true goal is to take over the Republic & become King
 So Pompey accuses Caesar of war crimes in Gaul – get him out of power
 Caesar has 2 choices – rock & a hard place (jail or break the law)
The Fall of the Republic
 Invasion! – Caesar chooses to break the law by invading his own country
 His troops choose to back Caesar instead of Rome – normal for Rome
 Army crosses Rubicon (45 BCE) – was made against the law to cross after Sulla
 Caesar says “the die is cast” – now we broke the law so we have to finish it
 Pompey & the Senators ran away from Rome – were not prepared for invasion
 Numerous wars ensued after these men met up with their personal armies
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 Pompey nearly beat Caesar at 1 point but wasn’t able to finish him off
 Caesar gave his men the equivalent of 26 years pay in 1 lump sum – for having his back
Egypt – Pompey loses the war & escapes to Egypt instead of surrendering to Caesar
 The young Egyptian King Ptolemy has him killed – believing Caesar would appreciate it
 When Caesar arrives he is handed a basket with Pompey’s head in it (& more)
 Caesar gets upset instead – mad that a former friend was killed by barbarians
 Is given a nice apartment for the night while he tries to decide what to do about this
 Cleopatra (69-30 BCE) – had been banished by her brother for trying to take over
 Cleopatra has herself smuggled into the city to see Caesar – rolled in a carpet
 Caesar replaces Ptolemy with Cleopatra as Pharaoh – after a romantic night
 She would soon have a son by Caesar – named Caesarian (little Caesar)
 But Caesar refused to marry her being that she is a “barbarian” non-Roman
 He would finally leave Egypt (after months) to handle a minor rebellion in Turkey
 Showed up, led the victorious battle & left saying “I came, I saw, I conquered”
Becomes very popular – had to become popular to Plebeians (majority) to keep his power
 Had to find a way to keep king-like power without making the people think he was a king
 So he kept the Senate & claimed they were still in power – troops kept them in line
 He made himself Consul for life – had to come up with a name other than King
 He also made sure that he could hold any other office he wanted
 Believing this would give him the power to slowly take more power
 Made changes to the gov’t to help the Plebeians – things the Gracchus Bro’s wanted
 Regulating grain output to help the poor
 Gave jobs & land to the poor & unemployed
 Created a shopping mall for the people in the heart of Rome (Caesars Forum)
 Started using what he called the Julian Calendar – made things easier
Death of Caesar – warned by a soothsayer to beware of the Ides of March (March 15th)
 Brutus comes to get him for senate business on March 15th – Caesar sees him as a son
 He leaves with Brutus even though his wife was worried – had a bad dream
 Handed a paper on the way that he doesn’t look at – trying to tell him he’s in danger
 Gets to Pompey’s theater (ironic?) & sits down to hear what the Senators want
 Starts with normal conversation until a senator stabs him with a small concealed knife
 60 senators surround him & stab him to death – leaving him under Pompey’s statue
 Only thing he says is “you too Brutus, my son” – hurt that his “son” was involved
 Mark Antony (Caesars best friend) had been trying to warn Caesar but couldn’t find him
 Forced to make friends with the assassins after the death – or they would get him too
Funeral – 1 of the biggest funerals in history – amazing number of Plebeians show up
 Anthony gives a speech where he tells the crowd which senators killed Caesar
 Senators flee the city in fear as the crowds try to hunt them down
 Caesars 2 top generals (Antony & Lepidus) chase the senators & their armies
 Would have numerous battles over this but the senators lose to the Generals
The Start of the Empire
 Inheritance – leaders read Caesar’s will to see who inherited his power after his death
 Power falls to Caesar’s 19 year old grandnephew Octavian
 Interestingly enough, the next person on the list was Brutus (who killed him)
 Rise & fall of the 2nd Triumvirate – was a time of serious uncertainty in Rome
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 The Senate tries to talk Octavian into giving power back – which he agrees to
 But he has to have ceremony to get the power 1st – then give it back to the Senators
 Senate makes him Consul for life under the agreement that he would give it up
 Instead he takes the power & then uses the military to show he will keep the power
 Caesar’s personal army backs him due to the fact that he was Caesars choice
 Antony & Lepidus not having the 19 year old take over – they bring their armies back
 What they both lack is the political clout to rule Rome – which Octavian has
 He talks them into making another triumvirate – they all really need each other
 Octavian finds ways to kick many senators out for moral violations – really powerful
 Lepidus makes a bad political move which Octavian uses to get him out of power
 Then he reads Antony’s will to the people of Rome – infuriates the crowd!!!!!!
 He had chosen to give his $ to his kids with Cleopatra instead of his Roman wife
 Roman people think he chose a barbarian over a Roman – not good
 Especially since his wife had died while he was in Egypt
 He is kicked out of the triumvirate & Rome attacks Antony in Egypt
 End of Antony & Cleopatra – the 2 had fallen in love soon after Caesar’s death
 Cleopatra needed the help from Roman leaders to keep herself on the throne in Egypt
 Now Rome is invading because of her relationship with Antony
 Battle Of Actium (31 BCE) – Naval battle between Rome & Egypt (with Antony)
 Egyptians lose badly & Antony is killed in the lighthouse of Alexandria
 Cleopatra is captured – the Romans decide to make her a slave in her own country
 She kills herself with a poisonous snake instead of dealing with this
 Marcus Tullius Cicero (106–43 BCE) – really important philosopher & politician
 Rags to riches story – started out as a Plebeian & would eventually become a Consul
 Rose due to his knowledge & writing in philosophy (completely unheard of in Rome)
 Was asked to be in the 1st Triumvirate – but was worried it would lead to a dictatorship
 Played both sides in the civil war – pardoned by Caesar because he needed him
 Was the politician who tried to play Octavian after Caesars death (most powerful)
 Really hated Mark Antony – would eventually be assassinated because of these issues
 Not unheard of – Antony was a gambler & a huge womanizer
 Legacy – his republican philosophy greatly influenced the Founding Fathers of the US
 John Adams talked about him like he was a political god
Rise of the Roman Empire – Octavian takes slow steps to create an Empire
 Had to slowly work his way to Emperor & disguise his real power so the people were ok
 People always believed Senate was still in control – but he controlled the Senate
 Octavian shows how politically savvy he is as he takes over more power
 Started to ask for more positions he wanted – giving him more power
 The Senators were obviously not going to go along with this & said no
 So Octavian quit his position! – the senate rejoices due to having their power back
 But the Plebeians revolt – Octavian was the only 1 who looked out for them
 Becomes major revolt & the senate is worried for their safety
 Senators beg Octavian to come back & end the riots – which he knew would happen
 Octavian of course adds even more positions to his list & gets what he wants
 He would continue to pull this trick 2 more times during his life
 & this is the principle move that allowed him to become Emperor
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 New positions – Octavian took many new positions – but 2 that were really important
 Princeps (1st citizen of Rome) – used this title instead of Emperor to mask his power
 Augustus (spiritual leader of Rome) – gave him power over religion (huge deal)
 This is the reason history books refer to him as Octavian Augustus
 Creates the Praetorian Guard – military men whose job it was to protect the Emperor
 Prior to this military wasn’t allowed in Rome – crossing the Rubicon?
 But the presence of this military is what kept Octavian in power
 Later in history they would participate in the downfall of many Emperors too
 Pax Romana (27 BCE-180 CE) – a period of Roman peace started by Augustus
 Would end with the death of the great Marcus Aurelius (180 AD)
Great & Crazy Emperors
 Trajan (53-117 CE) – Greatest conqueror in Roman history
 Was Emperor at the time that the Roman Empire was at its greatest extent
 Hadrian (76-138 CE) – most well known for making Hadrian’s Wall in England
 The wall divided the country between Roman Territory & ancient English territory
 Was also the 1st Roman Emperor to wear a beard – would become popular later
 Marcus Aurelius (121-180 CE) – 1 of the greatest Emperors in the history of the world
 A philosopher Emperor who was well known for the great things he did for Rome
 His son (Commodus) would signal the beginning of the end for Rome – crazy
 Nero (37-68 CE) – youngest Emperor ever (17) – but was REALLY crazy
 Matricide – tried many times to kill his mother (poison, rigged ceiling, collapsible boat)
 Finally had her executed on a charge of conspiracy (beaten to death with a club)
 Not a great husband – killed his 1st wife because she didn’t give him a son
 Kicked the next 1 to death because she complained when he came home too late
 Really horrible because she was actually pregnant at the time
 Actor & singer (unheard of) – not allowed to leave while he performed
 Even the woman who gave birth – 1 guy faked his own death & got out of it
 Great Fire of Rome (64 CE) – many believe he set the fire – caught singing during it
 Built a garden for himself in the area of the city that was burnt down
 The 1st Anti-Christ – named this by the Catholic Church for what he did to Christians
 Known for crucifying Christians – even killing St. Peter
 Burnt Christians to serve as lighting for the grand opening of his garden
 Forced to commit suicide by his own Praetorian Guard – really tired of him
 His last words were “what an artist dies in me”
 Caligula (12-41 CE) – took craziness to a whole new level
 Soothsayer said he couldn’t be Emperor – as much chance as riding horse on water
 So he built a floating bridge & did it (in Alexander the Greats armor)
 Family man – banished his mother & impregnated his sister (then disemboweled her)
 Had relationships with the senators wives – then sold them as prostitutes to others
 Obviously the senators hated him more than any other Emperor
 Loved his horse – gave it a seat on the senate & made him his military Consul
 Would roam the halls of the palace at night ordering the sun to rise
 Shut down granaries to watch people starve – & watched executions while he ate
 loved to watch the people of Rome starve because of this
 Attack on Britain – went to take more land in England – changed his mind
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Had the entire army collect sea shells on the beach when he got there
 Believing it was spoils of war in his victory against Neptune
 Had a parade through the streets of Rome holding up the sea shells
 Eventually murdered by own Praetorian Guard – for embarrassing the military
Long Decline Of Rome
 Crisis of the 3rd Century (235-84 CE) – central power in Rome declines
 Major succession issues – who would be the next Emperor was always an issue
 Go through 25 Emperor’s in 50 years – with only 2 of them dying naturally
 Leaders have less power – can’t control military & gov’t structures as well
 Economies crumble – trade was really dangerous – lots of thief’s on the road
 Farmers go to work with landlords & trade starts to fall off
 Emperors try reforms to save Rome – postpones the fall for another 200 years
 Diocletian (r. 284-305 CE) – quit acting like the Senate had power
 Had the gov’t start calling him “your majesty” – a new term at this point
 Focused on religious authority – in order to take away from the power of the military
 Forced people to worship him (the Emperor) as God – & persecuted Christians
 Tetrarchy – Diocletian’s reform to solve succession issues – make things better
 Divided the Empire in 4 – creating 2 Emperors & 2 junior Emperors
 Making the succession very well managed
 Improved administration of the gov’t – tax collection & regulation was better
 He abdicated afterwards – showing that he really didn’t care about being the Emperor
 Died of old age instead of being killed like so many Emperors were
 Constantine I (The Great)(272-337 CE) – known as the 1st Christian Emperor (sort of?)
 A junior Emperor who killed the other leaders in the Tetrarchy to take over Rome
 Really lucky – a bridge collapsed while the other army was crossing it
 Explained what happened through a dream – seeing a Chi Rho (Christianity?)
 Painted crosses on their shields before the battle because of the dream
 Edict of Milan (313 CE) – the law he made to give religious tolerance to Rome
 Partially done because his mother was Christian – very bad to be in Rome
 Christian Emperor? – some say he was baptized on his death bed (not sure)
 The story of his baptism wouldn’t pop up until well after his death
 Constantinople (330 CE) – a city created by Constantine at the spot of Byzantium
 Wanted to attack Parthia – made more sense to have the capital closer
 Created a new capital of Rome & called it new Rome (didn’t stick)
 WELL planned city – city walls & location made it REALLY hard to conquer
 Wouldn’t fall for 100’s of years – when gunpowder use allowed cannons
 Constantine died on his way to conquer Parthia (was in Israel at the time)
 Importance of Constantinople – the city literally split the Empire into 2 parts
 ½ of the country wanted to keep Constantinople as the capital & the other ½ didn’t
 2 possible Emperors arise to claim power – each in a different capital
 The argument would split the country – Eastern Roman Empire & Western
 Many lasting effects of this move – including the eventual split of the Catholic church
 The Eastern Roman Empire would later be renamed the Byzantine Empire
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The Fall of The Western Roman Empire (395-476 CE)
 Many reasons for the fall of the Empire – all revolve around loss of central power
 Weak leaders become corrupt (party instead) – lose support of the people
 Trade system breaking down was a HUGE part of this – economy completely collapses
 Thief’s roam the roads & steal from people – people stop trading completely
 Plagues start to spread through trade also – even more of a reason to stay at home
 Loss of trading leads to MAJOR inflation - $ becomes worthless
 The people move away from using $ & instead go back to a barter system
 Military lost discipline & training – the Emperors are forced to hire mercenaries instead
 Taxes go through the roof due (in part) to the payment to mercenaries
 Division made by Constantine weakened Rome (divide & conquer) – wasn’t intended
 Reliance on slave labor discouraged creativity & invention – what reason to invent?
 Health decline – diseases spread from water in lead pipes & waste in street
 People stopped having kids & instead focused on pleasure seeking activities
 HUGE amount of prostitutes in Rome – spreads diseases even more
 Invasion of the “Barbarians” – everyone & their mother invades Rome
 Many groups try to take over Rome (Visigoth’s, Goths, Huns, ect)
 Most just take things & leave – allowing Rome to continue for a while
 Odoacer (435-93 CE) – a Goth (we think) who took over Rome as Emperor
 Only invader who actually stays to rule the Empire
 Would later be killed by the man who he appointed as Emperor (Zeno)
 Invasion of the Huns – most well-known invasion of Rome
 Little is known of them before this – some say the attacked China 1st (& lost)
 Europeans called them the “Scourge of God” – attacked many places in Europe
 Great military due to the cavalry – whole military on horseback
 Led by Attila the Hun (405-53 CE) – short, stocky, scary leader
 Had over 400 wives – but was so scary that no 1 looked him in the eye
 Some say he was a cannibal – story said his wife fed him his own son
 Took over lots of the Eastern Roman Empire – they finally paid him off to leave
 Attack on Western Rome – Romans stand on top of a mountain in the battle
 This made the Huns get off their horses – gave up their biggest advantage
 Lost because of this – went back to regroup for another war
 Death of Attila – died on his wedding day (to another wife)
 Was so intoxicated he actually died of a nosebleed – drown in his sleep
 Legacy of the Roman Empire – a shining empire at 1st – then turns Europe into Dark Ages
 Turns into crude small cities – sense of inferiority to classical Rome – then forgotten
 Literacy falls – people forget about glorious past – Arabs keep information for later
 Everyone later says they are successor to Roman Empire – Byzantine, Russia, ect
 Invented form of gov’t that would last for years – US steals ideas almost completely
 Most of the Western world takes its intellectual history from the Greeks
 But took its methods of living, ruling, & governing from the Romans
Section 4
Classical Chinese Civilization
The Fall of the Qin Empire
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 2nd Emperor conspiracy – PM Li Si plants the younger brother he liked on the throne
 Was worried about his role if Fusu took over – so he forged a letter to change that
 The younger brother (Huhai) became the 2nd Emperor – under the name of Qin Er Shi
 Qin Er Shi – wasn’t a strong leader – screwed up everything his father had done
 Always punished the wrong people (even his closest ministers) – letting others go
 At 1 point called a horse a deer – & killed anyone who tried to correct him
 Raised taxes to huge levels to pay for his army & building projects
 Revolts started right away – people were tired of all the persecutions of civilians
 Officials from old states revolted – calling themselves Kings again
 Most claiming that Fusu was the rightful King – gave them justification
 Unhappy soldiers, prisoners & peasants all joined in the revolts against the state
 The Daze Village Uprising (209 BC) – 2 generals who rebelled against the king
 They showed up late on a mission due to flooding – was punishable by execution
 They would die fighting for their freedom rather than by execution
 Peasants from all over China joined them – but they lost to the mighty Qin Army
 Chu Rebellion – finally able to beat the Qin after numerous other rebellions weakened them
 The Battle of Julu (207 BCE) – battle between the Qin & Chu rebels led by Xiang Yu
 Xiang Yu killed his commanding officer when he wouldn’t be aggressive enough
 Then sunk his ships after crossing the river – so that no 1 could retreat from battle
 Cut off the Qin supply lines & then won a major battle – outnumbered greatly
 Aftermath – many switched to Xiang Yu’s side due to his heroics in this battle
 But he would bury 200,000 alive due to fears of them revolting
 This made the rest of the battles tough – Qin forces refused to surrender
 Qin Er Shi was blamed for the loss – & the people refused to be led by him
 So the chief eunuch Zhao Gao forced him to commit suicide to save the country
 Ziying (AKA Qin San Shi or 3rd Emperor)(?-206 BCE) – made the new Emperor
 Was done to energize the people but didn’t work – was too much like Qin Er Shi
 Liu Bang took the unguarded city of Guanzhong while Xiang Yu was fighting battles
 This complicated the issue – due to a promise to whoever took the city
 King Yi (of Chu) said whoever took the city would become the King
 Ziying killed his advisors & surrendered to Liu Bang – knowing he would lose
 His people were much happier with that since he was much more reasonable
 Liu ordered his troops to not kill civilians or loot cities captured
Chu-Han Contention (206–202 BCE)
 Fight between the 2 major Generals for the rule of China (Liu Bang & Xiang Yu)
 Most leaders wanted China to be separate states again – except for these 2
 But the people were hoping that a unified China would end the constant warfare
 Xiang Yu was 1 of the best warrior-commanders in Chinese history
 But in most battles he rarely paid sufficient attention to resource logistics
 Was cocky from a young age – wouldn’t listen to his uncle, teachers or other leaders
 Never had enough humility to learn from his mistakes
 Problems between the 2 – Xiang Yu didn’t trust Liu Bang
 Xiang Yu separated China into 18 states – putting his friends in as leaders
 But gave Liu Bang a small position in the Han state – made him mad
 He & other Generals who were shut out started rebellions
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Xiang Yu became wildly unpopular with the people – the burying of soldiers
 He made King Yi the Emperor of Chu – but would kill him later & take over
 War – Liu Bang decided to reclaim his rightful territory (Guanzhong)(206 BCE)
 Many rallied behind him – justifying it with the killing of Emperor Yi of Chu
 Xiang Yu nearly captured Liu Bang on more than 1 occasion – with a few lucky escapes
 Liu Bang was popular but not a great military leader – lost nearly every battle
 But was smart enough to exploit Xiang Yu’s weak spot (his cockiness)
 Liu Bang had his generals attack Xiang Yu’s supply lines – & kept at it
 The loss of supplies would eventually cause the loss
 But Xiang Yu was too bold to realize he was wrong – didn’t believe it
 Wasn’t a saint himself – once abandoned his family to get away from a loss
 Once dammed a river until the Chu army crossed it – then they collapsed the dam
 Which drowned the majority of the troops in the flood waters
 Was 1 of the last major losses for Xiang Yu – who was running out of soldiers
 Use of Treaties – Liu Bang offered a few treaties during the war – which were accepted
 But they were always used for him to regroup – then attack later
 Was once used to get his family back – after a ploy by Xiang Yu failed
 He threatened to murder & eat Liu Bang’s family to get him to stop
 Liu Bang asked him to save him a bowl – knowing he would never do it
 End of the War – Xiang Yu tried to force a final decisive battle with Liu Bang
 Xiang Yu & the Chu army were running out of supplies – without a decisive battle
 The Battle of Gaixia (202 BCE) – Xiang Yu was attacked by a coalition of Kings
 Lost this major battle – & decided to bring his men back to the capital
 But was ambushed all the way back – with his wife being taken in 1 attack
 He took troops to retrieve her & fell into a trap in a deep canyon - surrounded
 He escaped the trap & committed suicide before being caught – slit his throat
 Xiang Yu lost a battle of attrition in the end – Bang never took the decisive battle
Han Dynasty (202 BCE–220 CE)
 Considered a golden age in Chinese history – 4 centuries
 China’s majority ethnic group refers to itself as the “Han people” still today
 Liu Bang proclaims himself Emp. Gao (or Gaozu)(202 BCE) – starts the Dynasty
 1 of the few Emp. that was a peasant – faked refusal of the position a few times
 Increased his power by ending the war – Generals go home & don’t push for power
 Reign – tried to differentiate his dynasty from the Qin – not be so tough
 Built a new capital at Luoyang & immediately lowered taxes – making him popular
 Made lighter punishments in the law system – not hard after crazy Qin laws
 Freed those who had been sold into slavery to avoid hunger during the war
 Military campaigns – known for fighting Xiongnu & losing badly
 Started with a trade embargo – to keep them from learning how to make iron weapons
 The Battle of Baideng (200 BCE) – major loss against Xiongnu
 Had to bribe the Xiongnu to save his life – signed Heqin treaty
 Heqin treaty (198 BCE) – China gave 1 princess & money each year to the Xiongnu
 1 of the few times in history China takes a subservient roll to anyone
 Takes subservient roll to Xiongnu – giving them money (& a princess)
 Personal life & attitude – always trying to justify his low birth (many disliked the idea)
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There were stories of his mother & a virgin birth – impregnated by a dragon?
 Quite possibly his way to justify the position – part God
 Charismatic but shrewd leader – manipulated people but acted like a righteous king
Society & culture – very different society than most
 The 1st dynasty to embrace Confucianism – became basis for all later dynasties
 Dong Zhongshu (179–04 BCE) – united Confucianism with older Chinese beliefs
 Made them more popular – would later be basis for whole culture
 Partially because it justified the power of the Emperor & men in general
 Imperial Univ (124 BCE) - would pave the way for Civil Service Exam (big deal)
 Started with 50 students – would be 30,000 by the end of the Dynasty
 Gender – highly patrilineal society with arranged marriages being the norm
 Women expected to obey their father, then husband, then son when he grew up
 Marriages – arranged between 2 clans – parents made the decision for you
 Law & order – talked bad about the harsh laws of the Qin – but were pretty tough too
 Taxation & property – could pay with money or crops depending on who you were
 Had to work for gov’t in building proj (1 month) & military (when needed)
 Could buy your way out of service if you had enough money
 Economy – well known for extreme prosperity most of the time
 The coins minted (119 BCE) remained the standard until the Tang Dynasty
 Occasionally nationalized the private salt & iron industries (117 BCE)
Scientific Improvements – great time for science – came up with many things independently
 Had developments in metallurgy, mining, seismometers, pipelines, math, ect
 Sailing – the invention of the junk ship with steering rudder allowed serious sea travel
 Writing – formally introduced paper (Cai Lun 105 CE) – been used before that though
 Would spread to the Middle East & then to Europe through war (Crusades last step)
 Written vertically still because they had used vertical strips of bamboo before
 Agriculture – they used the spade, shovel, pick, & plow to till the soil
 Rice paddies – grown in the water to keep the weeds away & provide for water
History – Sima Qian is well known for writing The Records of the Grand Historian
 The 1st systematic Chinese historical text – similar to Herodotus in Greece
 Recording history from the Yellow Emperor to his own time
The Silk Road – an extensive network of trade routes across the Asian continent
 Opened up again by the conquest of Emp. Wu – pushing back the Xiongnu
 Used from ancient times on – named after the most popular product (silk)
 Became so popular in Rome they tried to outlaw it – losing money to China
 Very few travelled the whole route (4,000 miles) – traded at markets on the way
 This created important market towns along the way – middle men got rich
Political Power in Han China
 The Lü Clan Disturbance (180 BC) – a break in the line of Emp’s by Emp. Gao’s wife
 Grand Empress Dowager Lü starts to control the gov’t over her kids & grandkids
 Empress Dowager (widow of old Emp.) – Grand Empress is mother of dead Emp.
 Good administrator of gov’t but pretty cruel – executed anyone in her way
 Finally tries to place her family in charge – clan from before her marriage to Emp. Gao
 Han leaders thought she was trying to take over Dynasty with her clan
 They killed the entire Lü clan & her – warning for later Empress Dowagers
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 The Han clan placed Emp. Gao’s grandson on the throne (Emperor Wen)
 Golden Age – many arguable great leaders of the Dynasty
 Emperor Wu (Liu Che)(156-87 BCE) – 1 of the greatest Emp in Chinese history
 Grandson of Emp Wen – although mother claimed to be impregnated by a God
 Would sneak out of the palace in early years to hunt or see the sights
 Expansion – great military leader! – doubled the size of China during his time
 Conquered roughly 1.7 million mi2 of new land – largest in Chinese history
 Taking most of his land in fights with the Xiongnu – sending colonists
 Long tough war – needed horses – could get out of war if you gave a horse
 Land taken to the south would be a problem for years (Korea especially)
 Witchcraft – 10’s of 1000’s were executed for witchcraft (false accusations)
 But he allowed magic when it was for him – looking for an immortality drug
 Abusing his power – adopted tougher (Legalist-like) laws & wasted money
 Killed a minister for moving his lips – thinking he meant to say something bad
 Actually publicly apologized for his mistakes (Repenting Edict of Luntai)
 Legacy – created an Empire larger than that of the Roman Empire
 But also created a very centralized & organized Confucius state
 Arguably making China the most powerful state in the world at the time
 Problems start to arise – eunuchs & Empress Dowagers gain power & make a mess
 Eunuchs start to wield more power – even making decisions on succession later on
 Rebellion of 7 States (154 BCE) – actually started with an argument over a board game
 Emp. Gao had put his family in semi-independent states after taking over
 Emp. Jing threw the bored at his cousin & killed him – rebellion done for revenge
 7 semi-independent states revolt against Han – & lose badly in the end
 The Han take power away from independent states – under the Han now
 Princes from areas could no longer appoint their own ministers
 Economic problems – huge population growth made growth & problems too
 Monopolies used when needed – but they were really unpopular
 The Reformist Party tried to go back to fiscal responsibility – didn’t change much
 The rich eventually got richer & the poor got poorer – started problems
The Xin & the Eastern Han Dynasties
 The Xin (“New”) Dynasty (9-23 CE) – short lived dynasty that cut Han Dynasty in 2
 Not even technically a dynasty – since it only had 1 Emperor
 Started by Wang Mang (45 BCE-23 CE) – An official who took the throne
 Was regent for a few young Emp’s – who died at really young ages
 Started saying the Han Dynasty had lost its Mandate of Heaven
 He had a fake decree written by Emp. Gaozu saying he should be Emperor
 So he took the throne and declared the Xin Dynasty (9 CE)
 Government – he was a competent administrator but didn’t have people skills
 Rebellions started against him (Chimei, or Red Eyebrow Rebellion)
 Instituted a land redistribution system (wangtian) – super rich gave to the poor
 Made 28 types of coins – confused people & hurt the economy bad
 Burdens from the wars & the corruption eventually led to revolts
 Rebels took pieces of the country for themselves – gov’t couldn’t stop it
 End of the Dynasty – the whole country turned on him eventually
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Massive floods – hurt 1000’s of peasant farmers who revolted
The Battle of Kunyang (23 CE) – army quit on him against the Han forces
The people stormed the palace & killed Wang Mang before the Han got to him
 Actually cut his body into pieces & played soccer with the head
 Eastern Han (25 CE) – the name historians give the new Han dynasty (old 1 is Western)
 Emp. Guangwu restarts the Han Dynasty – moving the capital to the East
 Had the help of the aristocrats in uniting the country – better than redistribution
 It helped that he was a great military strategist – didn’t need to listen to Generals
 Also dealt with the Trưng sisters in Vietnam (40 CE) – more on that later
 Problems with eunuchs – court officials who gained WAY too much political power
 Get way more into politics (after 92 CE) – fight with Emp, clans, & Empress Dowagers
 They would change alliances between different groups – & depose rulers a few times
 Emp. Ling (156-189 CE) – gave eunuchs full power cause he wanted to party
 The corruption that followed lead to the fall of the Dynasty
 Between eunuchs decisions & his policy of selling offices for money
 His reign left the Eastern Han Dynasty weak and ready to crumble
The End of The Han Dynasty
 Problems that led to decline – mostly about money & power
 Gap between rich & poor grew – taxes easier for rich to pay due to more land
 Poor couldn’t keep up so rich bought more land – think of Wal-Mart
 This led to less taxes for the gov’t & the need to raise them to make $
 Fighting between clans & eunuchs for who would be in power – major corruption
 The Yellow Turban Rebellion (184 CE) – peasant rebellion under Emp. Ling
 Started from secret Taoist societies the sprung up after floods displaced people
 Named after color of scarves the rebels wore on their heads
 Was a semi-religious group based loosely on Taoist ideas
 Mad at corrupt eunuchs & landowner who made money taking advantage of workers
 But flood showed people that the Dynasty had lost their Mandate of Heaven
 Fighting – small skirmishes were won by Han due to lack of leadership
 The Han had assassinated rebel leaders after locals turned them in for $
 Impact – they destroyed large sections of the country & killed leaders in many areas
 The economy was in shambles & 100’s of 1000’s were dead
 The gov’t was forced to give local leaders more power to deal with small uprisings
 This led China right back into a period of important warlords
 Power struggle after Emp. Ling died (189 CE) – eunuchs vs. He Jin over power
 Gen. He Jin plotted to kill the eunuchs to end their corruption – asked the Empress
 Eunuchs had him killed instead – which united the people against the eunuchs
 He Jin’s friends (Yuan Shu & Dong Zhou) massacred the eunuchs in the palace
 Dong Zhou uses his military to force an Emperor change – making a puppet king
 He then kills the Empress Dowager & the former Emp. – solidifying his power
 Other officials backed Yuan Shu – thinking Dong Zhou was trying to take over
 Zhou got worried & moved his capital to Chang’an (the Western Han capital)
 Burning down the old capital of Luoyang – making it a ruined city
 Dong Zhou was finally killed by his adopted son (Lü Bu) who had tired of him
 He was killed in the streets & they left his body there for days
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 The Empire was carved into 8 spheres of influence – each ruled by warlords
 They still claimed loyalty to the Han – need to keep the position to takeover
 The rise of Cao Cao (155–220 CE) – a commander of cavalry during the Yellow Turban Reb
 A brilliant ruler & military genius who really listened to subordinates
 But he is often portrayed as a cruel & merciless tyrant
 Used Emp. Xian who was too weak to protect himself – makes him a puppet Emp.
 Then starts taking over the other warlords using the Imperial army & his
 Other leaders could have beat him but they couldn’t work together against him
 The Battle of Guandu (200 CE) – a victory for Cao Cao over warlord Yuan Shao
 Cao Cao was really outnumbered & was dealing with rebellions in the capital
 He attacked Yuan Shao’s supply line while the Shao attacked his main troops
 Hurt them so bad they had to retreat – many soldiers switched to his side
 Legacy – probably the greatest win of his career – against huge odds
 The Battle of Red Cliffs (208-09 CE) – VERY important battle in Chinese history
 Cao Cao surrounded the last 3 warlords – who were forced to work together
 Zhou Yu acted like he was surrendering his navy – was a trap to lure Cao Cao in
 He set fire to his ships & rammed Cao Cao’s – burning the majority of the fleet
 A plague was also weakening Cao Cao’s forces at the same time
 Cao Cao tried to retreat on land & ran into another army – fighting in mud
 His forces were routed (even drowning in the mud) - death rate over 50%
 Legacy – would end Cao Cao’s ability to unify the country
 & lead directly to the later 3 Kingdoms Period
 Emp. Xian would abdicate to Cao Cao’s son (Cao Pi)(220 CE) – forced to do it
 Cao Pi created the state of Cao Wei – thinking it would be the new Chinese dynasty
 But other leaders instead created their own kingdoms
 Liu Bei made himself Emperor of the Shu Han province (221 CE)
 Sun Quan broke away from Cao Wei & created Eastern Wu (222 CE)
Long Era of Instability
 6 Dynasties – the chaotic period after the fall of the Han
 Historians name it after the 6 major dynasties – but there were LOTS of others
 The following are periods & dynasties that all fall into this era
 The 3 Kingdoms period (Wei, Shu, & Wu) – all claimed they were legitimate Emperors
 1 of the bloodiest eras in Chinese history – losing well over ½ their population
 But is still romanticized in history – much like the middle ages in Europe
 The Wei State was the most powerful – under Cao Wei & others
 But never quite able to take the others over completely
 Cao Huan was eventually forced to abdicate to Sima Yan – in a coup
 He would end the Wei Dynasty & create the Jin Dynasty
 The Jin would eventually take over the rest of China
 Romance of the 3 Kingdoms – written by Luo Guanzhong (1321 CE)
 A novel partially based on history of the 3 Kingdoms period
 Combined themes of legend, magic, & morality to appeal to the peasant class
 Some say the novel consists of 70% history & 30% non-history
 The Jìn Dynasty (265–420) – founded by Sima Yan (later called Emp. Wu)
 The Western Jìn Dynasty (265–316 CE) – provided a brief period of unity
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United the people after conquering the state of Eastern Wu (280 CE)
Emp. Wǔ (236-290 CE) – the 1st Emperor of Jìn
 Extravagant man – 10,000 concubines & only drank HUMAN milk
 Left his empire to his developmentally disabled son – couldn’t rule
 & his family were all corrupt & pushing for more power
 War of 8 Princes (301-305 CE) – major civil war within the dynasty
 Emp Wu placed relatives in states as princes – thinking he could trust their loyalty
 This backfired after he died – princes all fought for control of the country
 Wu Hu uprising (304-316 CE) – revolt of northern nomads
 Decided to revolt after seeing turmoil from the War of 8 princes – unstable China
 The Jin forces were completely overwhelmed by their forces
 Capital of Luoyang was sacked – killing over 30,000 in the process
 The next capital (Chang’an) was sacked later – executing another Emp.
 The remaining court fled to the southeast to restart the dynasty
 Eastern Jìn Dynasty (317- 420 CE) – the new Empire under Emp. Yuan
 Was limited to territory in the Southeast after losing to the Wu Hu
 Emp. Yuan was picked due to lack of options – didn’t have support of all nobles
 This led to MAJOR problems – everyone & their mother revolted
 Many new dynasties were eventually started due to these conflicts
 Liu Yu gained power & placed Emp. An on the throne – had severe down syndrome
 Would eventually become powerful enough to take over
 Had Emp. An strangled & forced the new Emp. Gong to abdicate to him
 Southern & Northern Dynasties (420–589 CE)
 Extremely unstable period with many dynasties – many different cultural aspects arise
 Generals would take over through military power – but dynasties were often short
 Couldn’t find a replacement that was as powerful as they were
 N. China was ruled by 16 Kingdoms – many were founded by non-Chinese people
 Many ethnic groups were involved – ancestors of the Turks, Mongolians, & Tibetans
 Also a time of flourishing in the arts, culture, & advancement in technology
 Most important invention was the stirrup – helped cavalry big time
Sui Dynasty (589–618 CE) – reunited China after centuries of Civil War
 Was able to unify China – but didn’t last long because of its tough policies
 Sometimes a ruthless dynasty – often compared with the Qin
 Well known for using conscription to build the Grand Canal & expand the Great Wall
 But the people resented the gov’t for the amount of work that people did on these
 Fully established Imperial examinations – determined who could get gov’t positions
 Now anyone could take the test – had to be selected before this
 Usually rich people passed though – the only 1’s who could pay for the tutors
 Helped stabilize the country – less possibility of regions breaking off
 Only about 5% who tried were able to pass the exam & get a position
 There were other positions for those who failed – like teacher
 The examinations lasted 24-72 hours in 1370 – had 2 boards to make a bed, desk or chair
 Lasted 1300 years – until 1905
 The Grand Canal in China – the longest canal or river in the world
 Finished at this time to connect the 2 major waterways of China
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 It worked as a road way for military & postal movements
 The Equal-field system – a system of land ownership & distribution in China
 All land was owned by the gov’t – which assigned it to the people
 The system was created to make sure all land was used
 & was set to make reduce the rich-poor social gap
 Aristocratic families bought more land – paid peasants to work small parts of it
 This led to less taxable land & rebellions based on jealousy
 Wars – was a good military but lost a lot of money attacking Vietnam
 Linyi-Champa Campaign (602-605 CE) – attacked the Champa people of Vietnam
 Beat war elephants by trapping them or shooting arrows at them
 Elephants turned & ran – trampling their own troops in the process
 Sui troops had issues with disease – not immune to tropical diseases (malaria)
 The Goguryeo-Sui Wars (598-614 CE) – major loss of Sui against Korea
 Sui tried many times but lost millions of soldiers on land & at sea
 At 1 point attacking with over a million troops (maybe?)
 3,000 warships, 50,000 cavalry, 5,000 artillery
 Some say it took 30 days for all troops to leave 1 city – that big
 Aftermath – losses led to the unhappiness that led to the end of the dynasty
 The Sui dynasty fell due to the losses in Southern Manchuria & North Korea
 Rebels would eventually take control of the govt
Section 5
Classical Indian Civilizations
Patterns in Classical India
 Different than other cultures – HUGE focus on religion instead of politics
 Religion provided stability for the society – had no real need for harsh politics to do it
 Culture of India (Golden Age) – amazing time for the civilization
 Governments of India – various types (monarchies, republics, ect)
 Hard to unite due to diversity – usually dominated by warriors/priests
 Shifted between empires & network of smaller kingdoms
 Not really big into political theory though – not valued by the people at all
 Life was regulated through strict religious organization – which was valued
 Advancements & Art – not well known in common culture – but important to history
 Great scientific society – often covered astronomy & medical ideas
 Concepts of surgery & sterilization even though religion prevented dissection
 Ideas would take 100’s of years to reach the US
 Literature revolved around life & love (Romantic Adventure)
 Kamasutra (Laws of love) – covered the basics of male/female relationships
 Art wasn’t focused on realism – they were made to look stylized & interesting
 See the rise of Stupas (spherical shrines to Buddha) during this era
 Trade – no civilization was more open to others (right in the middle of a trade system)
 Buddhism spread around the world using the trade system around the Indian ocean
 Mauryan Dynasty (321-181 BCE) – military dynasty that unified India
 Chandragupta Maurya (340-298 BCE) – created the largest army in the world
 Unified the subcontinent with his army (322 BCE) – kicking Greeks out too
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A smart leader who was educated in the 1st university in India – valued education
Divided his empire into 4 states & ruled from his new capital at Pataliputra
 Led by powerful Autocratic military leaders – used army to keep their power
 Developed bureaucracy – but not as crazy as other places (like China)
 Was the 1st leader in India to convert to the religion of Jainism – gains popularity
 Would later give up the throne to be a wondering ascetic
 Ashoka the Great (r. 273-32 BCE) – Chandragupta’s grandson
 Lived an amazingly lavish lifestyle – using taxes from all the territories he conquered
 Very bloodthirsty at 1st – expanded the civilization even more than his grandfather
 Creating roads in the areas he took over – which improved trade greatly
 Eventually influenced by Buddhism – changed peoples opinion of him
 Spread Buddhism throughout empire but honored Hinduism – precedent
 Improved trade/ road network & built a lot of major buildings
 The Gupta Empire (240-550 CE) – the Golden age of Indian society
 Didn’t have the powerful leaders of the Mauyran Dynasty – but greater impact on history
 Expanded influence peacefully through trade & negotiation – like Pax Romana
 Areas that became a part of the Empire were given autonomy (like Rome did)
 Still had a great military in the few times it was used – sheer #’s were higher than most
 Had war elephants & composite bow (well before Europe)
The Decline of Classical India
 Not drastic like Rome – Emperors just lost control of local leaders (everyone separates)
 Local princes (Rajput) gain more power & stop listening to the Emperor
 Invaders – the Hun’s penetrate deeper into India than others did
 Hinduism wins out over Buddhism due to the Huns lack of patience for Buddhism
 Buddhist focus on calm, contemplation was too much for the Huns
Section 6
Other Civilizations
Beyond the Classical Civilizations
 Many other civilizations developing at the time – some entirely independent
 Japan (200 CE) – extensive agriculture – migrated from Korea over 200,000 year period
 Tribal chiefs – each tribe had own god – had tattoos to separate social classes
 Shintoism – worship political rulers & spirits of nature – eventually nationalized
 1 regional ruler took over surrounding territories (400 CE)
 Began trading/interacting with Chinese civilization by 600 CE
 Northern Europe – lagged behind Japan – most backward areas in the world
 Had regional kingdoms with no written language – except Latin imports
 Primitive agriculture & hunting
 Gods & rituals to deal with nature – Christianity wasn’t really established until 1000 CE
 Polynesian peoples spread throughout the Pacific – Fiji by 1000 BCE, Hawaii 400 CE
 Great travelers/explorers – used a sort of caste system when they settled
 Adapted local plants, brought in new animals
 Central Asia – played central role in trade – middleman between major civilizations
 Major place for horses (invented stirrup) – groups sometimes invaded civilizations
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