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Early Civilizations in Greece
Chapter 4
The Impact of Geography
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Greece is relatively small
peninsula, about the size of
Louisiana, with many
surrounding islands
The geography consists of
small plains & river valleys
surrounded by mountains
The mountains a very
important in the development
of Greece as they isolated her
from other influences &
allowed her to develop their
own independent culture &
way of life
Even though Greece was
isolated from many outside
influences it did not stop
rivalries between neighboring
communities
The Impact of Geography
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The sea also impacted
Greek history
The Aegean,
Mediterranean, &
Indian Seas give
Greece many ports
that were ideal for
trade
No part of Greece is
more than 60 miles
from a body of water
The Minoans and the Mycenaeans
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The Minoan civilization was established during
the bronze age on the island of Crete
 This civilizations economy was based on trade
especially with southern Greece & Egypt
 The wealth gained through trade allowed the
Minoans to adopt techniques & designs from
other cultures which they applied to their own
 The Minoan empire lasted until 1450 B.C. when it
suddenly collapsed
 Some believe that the collapse was due to a
massive tidal wave while others believe that it
was because of invasion by the Mycenaeans
MINOANS
The Minoans and the Mycenaeans
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The Mycenaeans were IndoEuropeans who were led by
powerful monarchies who
lived in fortified palaces
The Mycenaeans were
warriors who prided
themselves on heroic deeds
that were then depicted on
wall murals
Economically they
established a large
commercial network through
the Mediterranean area
Mycenaean Greece was
troubled by internal wars,
major earthquakes, &
invasions
By 1100 B.C. the civilization
had collapsed
The Greeks in the Dark Age
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After the collapse of the
Mycenaeans Greece entered into
a period of decline as food
production fell
This became known as the Dark
Age
There was a revival in trade as
many left the mainland to settle
abroad
By the end of the Dark Age the
Greeks had adopted Phoenician
alphabet making reading &
writing much simpler
It was during this period that
Homer wrote the Iliad & the
Odyssey which was based on
stories of the Trojan War
Homer’s hero taught values of
honor & courage
The Greek City States
Chapter 4-2
Polis: The Center of Greek Life
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By 750 Polis had
become the center of
Greek life
People would meet at
the center of polis to
discuss political,
social, & religious
activities
The meeting place
was a fortified hilltop
called an where it
contained a large
open area called the
agora
AGORA
Polis: The Center of Greek Life
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The Polis was a community of people with
common goals & identity
 This community was divided into 3
different groups, those with political rights
(males), those with no political rights
(Women & children), & noncitizens (slaves
& foreigners)
 All were expected to be loyal to the Polis
Greek Expansion
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By 750 B.C. many Greeks,
because of trade & need for
farmland, had begun to move to
distant lands
New Greek colonies were
established in Italy, France, Spain,
& Africa
This allowed the Greek culture to
flourish as well as its trade
Trade provided great wealth to a
group of people who were blocked
from political power by aristocrats
This led to the rise of a new group
called the tyrants
The tyrants tried to help the poor
& built public works
However they fell out of favor with
the Greeks because of the Greek
belief in rule of law
This rule of law would eventually
lead to the end of aristocrat rule &
the development of democracy
Two Rival City-States
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Like other Greek city-states
Sparta needed more land & to get
it they conquered neighboring
lands
The conquered people became
known as the helots who were
then forced to work for the
Spartans
Spartan life was a very rigidly
controlled with military training &
service as men were required to
be in the army until the age of 60
Because the men were consumed
with military affairs Spartan
women had more power in the
home than did Greek women
The Spartan government was an
oligarchy headed by two kings
HELOT
Two Rival City-States
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By the seventh century B.C.
Athens was an oligarchy under
the control of the aristocrats
Under this rule many of the
farmers had been sold into
slavery for their debt
To avoid civil war the aristocrats
turned power to Solon who
released those in slavery due to
debt
By 512 B.C. power was in the
hands of Cleisthenes who created
a new council that supervised
foreign affairs, oversaw the
treasury, & proposed new laws
This would become the
foundation for Athenian
democracy