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Ancient Greece
Beginning of Greece
► Geography
pg 1
of Greece had a lot to do with
how early Greeks lived.
► Greece has long uneven coastlines
► The sea was very important to the early
Greeks, many became sailors, fishers, &
traders
► People from Egypt and the Fertile Crescent
also came to Greece, bringing goods and
ideas along.
Geography
► Geography
Pg. 2
of Greece kept people from
developing a sense of unity.
► Mountain ranges cut up the Greek mainland
& kept villages apart.
► Rivers were short & did not aid travel
between villages.
► Smaller City-states arose rather than a large
united Greece country.
Early Greek People
► First
Pg. 3
people lived in Greece about 55,000
years ago.
► The Minoan Civilization was the earliest
Greek civilization. The Minoan civilization
flourished on the island of Crete around
2,000 B.C.
► The Minoan civilization was named after their
King Minos who lived in the city of Knossos.
► Minoan people were very advanced, palace
and homes were large, running water, toilets,
and drainage systems.
► Minotaur-
mythical creature that was half bull,
half man lived in labyrinth (maze) in Knossos.
►Story of Minotaur and Athenian people.
► Frescoes- paintings made on wet plaster made
by artists.
► Maintained Strong Navies
► It was said that a volcano erupted on a nearby
island causing tidal waves weakening the
Minoan civilization.
► Around 1400 B.C. Mycenaeans from mainland
Greece conquered central Crete and the Minoan
Civilization.
► Pg. 4
Mycenaean's
Pg. 5
► The
Mycenaeans controlled mainland
Greece from about 1600-1200 B.C.
► Mycenaeans were a warring people and
carried out raids throughout the eastern
Mediterranean
► Earthquakes and warfare had destroyed
most of the Mycenaean cities by 1200 B.C.
► Mycenaeans adopted many elements of the
Minoan civilization after conquering Crete.
►Used
Minoan system of writing called Linear B
►Dorian’s sent Greece into Dark Ages with no written
records????
City States of Greece
► During
Pg 6
the 800’s and 700’s B.C. the Greeks formed
a number of individual city-states
► Polis- Greek word city-state
► A polis usually developed around a fort
► Polis came to be known as the fort, its city, and
the surrounding farming villages
► Greek people were very loyal to their polis
► Each Polis was absolutely independent and selfsufficient.
City-States Cont’d
► Many
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of the city-states were alike in many
ways.
► They covered a small amount of land and
usually had a population of 10,000 people
or less.
►Most
► The
of these people were slaves or non-citizens.
largest two city-states were Athens and
Sparta which were about the size of Rhode
Island & Connecticut.
City States
► Acropolis-
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hill or mountain where city-states were
built.
► Agora- marketplace, public meeting place.
► Each city-state formed its own government, laws,
calendar, money, & system of weights and
measures.
► All ancient Greeks had certain things in common;
 Language (People who didn’t speak Greek were
considered Barbarians)
 Religious Ideas, Culture, Social Patterns & Greek
festivals.
Greek Government & Society
► Myths
– Traditional stories about gods,
goddesses, and heroes
► Homer – Blind poet who wrote about Trojan War
500 years after it took place.
► Iliad – Homer’s epic on the Trojan War
► Odyssey – Homer’s epic that tells story of
Greek hero Odysseus on way home
from Trojan War.
► Olympic Games – Greek Festival including
sports, music, and Literature.
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► Oracles
– Believed the God spoke through priest &
priestesses at these special places.
► Aristocracies – city-states controlled by Nobles
► Hoplite – Greek infantry who carried long spears
and fought in closely spaced rows.
► Tyrants – Rulers who seized power by force but
who ruled with the people’s support.
► Popular Government – idea that people should
rule themselves.
► Democracy – government in which citizens take
part.
► Pg. 10
Homeric Age
► During
Pg. 11
the Dark Ages, the Dorian people
didn’t keep written records.
► During this period few people could write,
so most communication was oral, or spoken.
► Since nothing was written, most news was
communicated through traveling poets who
sang, recited folk songs, ballads, or epics.
► Epic – long poem about heroes and great
events.
Iliad & Odyssey
► The
Pg. 12
Iliad & Odyssey were both written
around 700 B.C. by Homer???
► Homer wrote the Iliad 500 years after it
happened.
► The Iliad tells the legend of the Trojan war
that talks about the Trojan prince Paris who
falls in love with the Mycenaean kings wife
Helen.
► Paris kidnaps Helen and takes her with him
to Troy.
► The
Mycenaeans laid siege to Troy for 10
years but cannot capture the city.
► The Mycenaeans win the battle by building
a wooden horse and hiding inside it.
► Meanwhile the Trojans think it’s a “gift” and
pull the horse inside the city. Later that
night the Mycenaean soldiers leap out of the
horse and conquer Troy.
► The Odyssey tells the adventure of the
Mycenaean King Odysseus on his way home
from the Trojan war which took 10 years.
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Greek Religion
► Greeks
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looked to Religion for three things.
 1) They wanted religion to explain nature
►Ex. They wanted to know what caused
lightning, thunder, and the change of
seasons.
 2) Wanted religion to explain emotions that
cause people to lose self control.
►Considered self control very important.
 3) Believed religion could bring certain benefits
such as a long life, good luck, or a good
harvest.
► Did not expect religion to save them from sin.
Oracles
► Greeks
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gave human qualities and
personalities to their gods, who live on
Mount Olympus.
► Greeks believed gods spoke through priest
and priestesses at special places called the
Oracles.
► People often went there to ask questions
about the future.
Olympics
► Pleasing
Pg. 16
Gods was an important part of Greek life
and the most important were the Olympic Games.
► Showing strength and bravery in athletic contests
were one way to do this.
► The Olympics were held for the first time in 776
B.C. and every four years after that in honor of
Zeus.
► Only men could watch and compete and only the
winner received wreaths and olive branches.
► There were no second & third prizes.
Greek Government Pg. 17
► Greek
city-states that were controlled by
nobles were known as Aristocracies.
► Aristocracy use to mean “rule by the best”
and over time the term came to describe a
privileged social class, usually composed of
the wealthiest landowners.
► By the 600’s B.C. wealthy nonaristocrats
could afford costly weapons and armor.
► The
Hoplite emerged in many parts of Greece.
Hoplites were heavy infantry who carried long
spears and who fought in closely spaced rows.
► Aristocrats became no match for the powerful
hoplite soldiers.
► As hoplites became more important to the defense
of the city-state, they demanded more say in its
daily government.
► Poor citizens, especially farmers, were unhappy
with the rule of the nobles and many began to
look for new leaders.
Pg. 18
► Pg.
► The
19
leaders who were able to bring a better
life to the people were the Tyrants.
► Early on tyrants ruled well, then slowly they
became too powerful and unjust. The word
tyrant came to mean someone who uses
absolute power brutally.
► Around 650 B.C. many Greek city-states
overthrew their tyrants.
Government
► In
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some of these city-states, the idea of
popular government began to take root.
► Some city-states, such as Athens, developed
forms of democracy.
► Women and slaves did not have political
rights
► Other City-states maintained aristocratic
forms of government or restored rule by
kings or nobles.