Download Chapter 5: The Greek City-States

Chapter 5: The Greek City-States
Section 1: Early Greeks and the Rise of City-States
The Sea and the Land
 Mainland Greece lies on the southern part of the
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Balkan Peninsula
This is located at the northeastern end of Med.
Sea
Aegean Sea separates Greece from Asia Minor in
the east
Ionian Se divides Greece from Italian Peninsula in
the west
Many Greeks became fishers, sailors, and traders
Geography made it hard for Greeks to unite
Mountains kept villages apart
Greeks formed city-states instead of large
kingdoms
Early Greek Peoples
 People first lived in Greece 55,000 years ago
 Found Minoan civilization
 Developed on the island of Crete in 2000 B.C.
The Minoans
 named after legendary king of Crete, King Minos
 had palace in Knossos and built great civilization
 artists covered palace walls with frescospaintings made on wet plaster walls
 also carved figures from bronze, gold, ivory,
silver, and stone
 worshipped the bull and an Earth goddess
 many Minoans became sailors and traders
 traded for food cause soil was bad
 in about 1628 B.C. a volcano erupted on nearby
island
 tidal waves destroyed many coastal settlements
on Crete
 Minoan civilization grew weak
 1400 B.C. Mycenaeans conquered mainland Crete
The Mycenaeans
 Warring people who grouped themselves into
clans and tribes
 Related families formed a clan that was headed
by a warrior
 Clans made up a tribe that had its own chief
 Built fort-like cities in the Peloponnesus(southern
part of Greece) and north-central Greece
 Carried out raids through eastern Mediterranean
 Adopted many elements of Minoan civilization
 Used Minoan system of writing
The City-States of Greece
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The Greek word for city-state is polis
Usually developed around a fort
Based on three ideas
The geographical territory of the city-state, the
community that it represented, and the political
and economic independence that it produced
Inhabitants were loyal to it
City-sates were alike in many ways
Covered a small area of land
Had a population of fewer than 10,000 people
In most city-states the original fort was built on
an acropolis or hill
Eventually each city-state had an agora or
marketplace
Served as main public meeting place
Citizens believed they owed loyalty to their polis
Willing to die for their city-state
Formed their own kind of government and laws
Had its own calendar, money, and system of
weights and measures
All ancient Greeks spoke the same language
Great festivals brought them together
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Section 2: Greek Government and Society
Greek Culture in the Homeric Age
 Not a very advanced civilization
 Few people could write
 Most communication was oral or spoken
 Epic- a long poem about heroes and great events
The Iliad and the Odyssey
 Much of oral poetry was gathered into these two
epics
 blind poet Homer wrote these epic
 this period was called the Homeric Age
 the Iliad tells the legend of the Trojan War
 story begins with Paris falling love with Helen,
the wife of a Mycenaean king
 kidnaps Helen and takes her with him to Troy
 Mycenaeans lay siege to Troy for 10 years
 Mycenaeans win by building a big wooden horse
that can fit all of their best soldiers inside
 They give the horse to the Trojans as a gift and
Trojans bring it into the city
 That night Mycenaean soldiers conquer troy
 In the story located in the Odyssey, it takes
Odysseus 10 years to reach his home of Ithaca
Greek religious beliefs
 Greek religions did not emphasize high standards
of personal mortality
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Looked to religion for three things
Wanted religion to explain nature
Wanted religion to explain the emotions that
sometimes cause people to lose self-control
 The believed religion could bring them certain
benefits: long life, good luck, and good harvest
 Did not expect religion to save them from sin
 Believed spirits of most all people went to a gray,
gloomy underworld ruled by the god Hades
 Greeks created myths
 Myths- traditional stories about gods, goddesses,
and heroes
 Gave human qualities and personalities to their
goads
 Zeus was the king of the gods
 His daughter was the goddess Athena, protector
of wisdom and womanly goodness
 Athens was named in her honor
 Apollo, a son of his, was the god of light, music,
and poetry
 Dionysus was god of fertility and wine
 Oracles- special places believed to have been
where priests and priestesses spoke to the gods
 Most important contests were the Olympic Games
 Held every four years in honor of Zeus
 Only men could watch and compete in these
games
 Included boxing, foot races, javelin and discus
throwing, and wrestling
 Winners received wreaths of olive branches
Greek Government: From Kings to Democracy
 Only wealthy land owners could afford expensive
horse, chariots, and bronze weapons
 A small group of land owners called aristocrats
came to represent each city-state
 The nobles gained more land and power
 City-states that were controlled by nobles were
known as aristocracies
 Hoplites emerged in many parts of Greece
 Hoplites were heavy infantry who carried long
spears and who fought in closely spaced rows
 Leaders who were able to bring a better life to
the people were tyrants
 Tyrant- someone who illegally took power but
had the people’s support
 Ruled many city-states
 Ended nobles’ fights for power and promoted
more trade
 These powerful rulers became unjust
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Tyrant became to mean someone who uses
absolute power brutally
Greek city-states eventually overthrew tyrants
Popular government began to take root
Pop. Government- idea that people can and
should rule themselves
Some formed a democracy- government in which
citizens take part
Political rights were allowed to only some of
population
Women had no political rights
Slaves has none either
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Section 3: Sparta and Athens
Sparta: The Military Ideal
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Invaders from the north had overrun most of the
Peloponnesus and forced peeps to work for them
 Called conquered people helots
 Invaders conquered village which became Sparta
 Located in a valley not on a hill
 Not surrounded by walls for defense
 Rigid and highly militarized society
Spartan Society
 Had three social groups
 1st group- known as the equals; descended from
invaders; controlled city-state
 2nd group- half-citizens; free, paid taxes, served
in the army, no political power, some farmed,
some live in town, some became rich
 Helots were the 3rd group; slaves of city-state,
Spartans decided how they lived and worked
 Helots hated the Spartans
Government in Sparta
 Had two kings
 One led the army
 Other took care of the home matters
 Council of Elders was made up of 28 male
citizens over the age of 60
 They were wealthy, aristocratic men
 Council proposed laws and served as criminal
court
 Final part of government was an assembly
 Included all male citizens over 30 years old
 Voted to accept or reject laws proposed by
Council of Elders
 Assembly elected five ephors for one-year terms
 Ephors made sure the kings stayed within the law
Life in Sparta’s military society
 Sparta controlled life of citizens from birth to
death
 Goal was to make every male part of the military
 Development of Spartan fighting men began at
birth
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Athens: The
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Group of officials would examine newborn babies
Any child that seemed unhealthy was left to die
At age of seven, boys left home to go to military
barracks
From ages 18 through 20, they trained for war
At age 20, males began their military service
Could now marry but not live at home until age
30
No trade or business
Believed that love of money interfered with
discipline
Retired from military at 60
Spartan girls had to be strong and healthy
Received physical training and had to be devoted
to city-state
Both boys and girls studied music to learn
discipline and coordination
This lead to strong government and unbeatable
army
Created art, literature, philosophy, and science
Birth of Democracy
Located on Attic peninsula
Not very fertile lands
Became sea traders
Introduction of coined money made trading
easier
 Constructed Piraeus as their special port
 Typical polis built around rocky hill of Acropolis
Athens Society
 Citizens formed the top group in society
 Either were rich aristocrats or farmers
 Only men had political rights
 Females could not vote or hold office
 Next group was the metics
 Non-citizens because they had been born
outside Athens
 Worked as artisans or merchants
 Free and paid the same taxes as citizens
 Could not take part in government or own land
 Slaves were at the bottom of society
 Athenians considered slavery natural and
necessary
 Slaves were people who were captured in war
 Owned by masters and treated as property
Early Government in Athens
 Only citizens who owned land were in office
 Adult men met in an assembly
 Elected nine archons- rulers who served one-year
terms
 Laws were not written down
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Archon named Draco created Athens’s first
written law code
 Laws were harsh and severe
 Nobles and metics became wealthy from trade
 Farmers became poorer
 More citizens were sold into slavery to pay debts
 Discontent and anger spread
 Solon, an archon, settled disputes
 Freed people who have became slave to pay their
debt
 Divided citizens into four groups
 Two richest groups could hold office
 Set up a court made of citizen jurors
 Peisistratus ruled over Athens as a tyrant
 Improved economy and after he ws gone the
nobles returned to power
Athenian Democracy
 Cleisthenes seized power and turned Athens into
a democracy
 Divided citizens into 10 tribes
 Had each tribe choose 50 men
 Formed the Council of Five Hundred
 Served for one year
 Assembly had authority over council
 Courts became more democratic
 Direct democracy- citizens participate directly in
making decisions
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