Download Where is Greece?

Where is Greece?
• Sunny Greece is
1,500 miles from
England.
• It’s capital city is
Athens
• It is famous for its
beautiful beaches and
sea!
Ancient Greece
• In Ancient Greece,
the different cities
were at war with each
other.
• The most fearsome
fighters came from
the town of Sparta.
The Climate
• The climate is
Mediterranean.
• The Mediterranean Sea
affects the Greek climate,
cooling the air in summer
and providing warmth in
winter.
• The warm summers are
cooled by a seasonal
breezes from the
Mediterranean called the
‘Meltemia’.
The Climate - Summer
• The Greek summer is hot
and dry.
• On average the sun
shines for 3,000 hours
per year.
• The average temperature
is 33°.
• In Britain it is 15°.
• The average rainfall is
6mm.
• In Britain it is 76mm.
The Climate - winter
• The Greek winter is
moderate. It can be rainy
on costal regions and
snowy in the mountains.
• The average temperature
is 15°.
• In Britain it is 4°,
sometimes falling to -10°.
• The average rainfall is
65mm.
• In Britain it is over
100mm.
Ancient greece - terrain
• Greece has a very
scenic landscape.
• The terrain of Greece
is very varied.
• There are mountains,
valleys and coasts.
• The high mountains
are separated by
deep valleys through
which rivers flow.
Ancient greece - terrain
• No part of Greece is
more than about forty
miles from the coast
(a couple of days
walking).
• There are lots of
islands surrounding
Greece.
• However, millions of
years ago the seabed
was completely dry!
soil and plants
• Vegetation is dependent
on geographical regions.
• Due to the variety of land,
there a some 6,000
indigenous species in
Greece.
• In Ancient Greece,
farmers grew olives, figs,
grain, fruit and grapes in
the fertile valleys.
Soil and plants
• However, other parts of Ancient
Greece had drier soil and less
vegetation, particularly around
the cities.
• Although surrounded by sea
water, they found it difficult to
find fresh water away from the
valleys.
• The high mountains also
prevented large-scale farming,
so the Greeks were forced to
look beyond their own country
for fertile land.
volcanic
• Another important aspect of
the Greek environment is that
it is very unstable.
• Greece is in the middle of a
very volcanic zone, between
the European and African
tectonic plates.
• There are several active
volcanoes and earthquakes
are common.
The
Greek
World
Time
Line
776 BC
about 750 BC
The first Olympic games.
Early Greek culture. Homer '.
writes the epics 'The Iliad' and the
'Odyssey
650 - 580 BC
508 BC
Corinth is ruled by the tyrant Kypselos
and then his son Periander.
Democracy begins in Athens
490 and 480 BC
Greeks defeat Persian invaders at the
battles of Marathon (490 BC)and
Salamis (480 BC).
by 450 BC
Athens becomes a very powerful city,
and controls an empire.
472 - 410 BC
Greeks theatre thrives in Athens. Many
of the most famous Greek plays are
written during this time.
Trade, very important…
Why?
• Greek farmers could not have sustained a
civilization like we saw in Egypt or
Mesopotamia
• Colonies shipped goods to mainland
• Money replaced the barter system
Distinct City-States…
Common Cultural Features
•Strong city-state ties and
identity
•an independent spirit
•Bitter economic rivalries
•All led to continuous
fighting among the Greek
city-states BUT Despite
these divisions, the
Greeks shared a common
culture.
Unifying Culture Forces of
the City-States
1. They honored the same ancient
heroes and Homer’s writings.
2. They participated in common
festivals and holidays.
3. They prayed and shared the same
gods.
4. They shared the Greek language.
5. They felt superior to non-Greeks,
whom they called “barbaroi,”
people who did not speak Greek.
Aegean
Civilizations
3000 B.C. – 1000 B.C.
• Minoans
• Mycenaeans
The Minoans
2500 B.C. – 1400 B.C.
• Located on the island
of Crete
• Sir Arthur Evans
discovered the
Minoan civilization in
1894
• Evans names them
from his findings of
King Minos
Extensive Trade Travel
• A trading
empire… took
ideas from
Egypt and
Mesopotamia
• Traders not
fighters… Why?
• Dominated the
seas with no
competition
What happens to the Minoans?
• Civilizations just disappears:
Destroyed around 1400 B.C. no one
really
knows…
• Possible theories:
-tidal wave
-Mycenaean invasion
-Volcanic eruption
•
The Minoans,
2000 B.C.-1400B.c.
• Left us a legacy of
fantastic frescoes.
Frescoes reveal much
about Minoan life
-Worshipped a
Mother Earth
Goddess
-the bull
Women appeared to
have more freedom
Fresco of three
Minoan women
N Entrance of the Palace of Kno
ssos
HistoryWiz: The Minoans
Rulers of Mycenae
• Around 1900 B.C.E., a central Asian people
began settling in mainland Greece
• Spoke Greek
• Intermarried with the locals
• Became a interested in trade because of the
poor soil and few natural resources
The Mycenaean World
of Ancient Greece
•Very Aggressive warriors
•They invade Crete and adopt
and spread many features of the
Minoan culture:
-adapted Minoan writing system
to Greek
-Copies images from pottery
-Minoan legends influence Greek
religion, art and politics
• Mycenaeans located
their cities on hills so
they could watch for
invaders by land or
sea
• Each city centered
around a hilltop or an
acropolis on the
mainland of Greece.
• Lived in a fortified
city with walls 20 feet
thick
Mycenaean
Tomb
Lion gate of
Mycenae
Mycenaean Goddess
More Mycenaean Artifacts
The Trojan War
• The traditional
legend is believed
to reflect a real war
• Between mainland
Greeks and the
inhabitants of Troy
Why So Remembered???
The war probably
resulted from the
desire of either to
plunder the
wealthy city or to
put an end to
Troy's commercial
control of the
Dardanelles
purely economic
BUT… legend “tells us” that is about a Trojan
youth kidnapping the wife of a Greek king!
Why? Because he could not live without her…
We love it don’t we… and so did the Greeks!
Helen being stolen by Paris!
• Modern archaeological excavations have
shown that Troy was destroyed by fire
sometime between 1230 BC and 1180 BC.
• Which supports the time frame of the Trojan
War…
•
How did the war end…
• The war lasted ten years
• With both sides wellmatched only a masterful
scheme could end the
war:
The Mycenaeans would
give Troy a gift…
THE TROJAN HORSE
Dark Age in Greece
• Dorian invaders sweep onto the peninsula
(Brown lines)
• Iron weapons give them the advantage
• The Mycenaeans never recover.
Dark Age in Greece
• Dorians continue
their advance around
the Greek mainland
and Crete
• Artistic skills and
writing were
forgotten; not valued
by the new rulers.
• Many Greeks fled to
Asia Minor and their
the Phoenician
alphabet is adopted
The Iliad and The Odyssey
by Homer
• Homer, blind poet
• Poems appear at the
end of Greek’s Dark
Age -750 BC
• They are orally
passed to the next
generation
The Epics of Homer
•Homer’s heroes display
honor, courage, and
eloquence
•The Iliad and the
Odyssey reveal many of
the values of ancient
Greeks.
Greek Religion: Its Gods and
Goddesses
• Greeks were
very religious
people
• No priestly
class or
sacred
scripture.
• Polytheistic
Greek Myths
• A rich tradition developed about
their Gods
Greeks used these myths/stories to
try and understand human passion
and mysteries of nature
Myths would explain the changing
seasons or
-Try to explain death or disease
Greek Gods
1.People emulated the
Gods’ behavior
2. Influenced peoples’
actions
3. Gods lived on Mt.
Olympus
4. Each God controlled
a specific part of the
universe.
Greek Religion:
Its Gods and Goddesses
• Each city-state had a
patron god.
• Over 60 days a year
were dedicated to the
celebration, worship
and partying!
Athena, Goddess of Athens
Can you name some
popular Greek Gods?
Zeus: king of the gods
Ares: god of war
Aphrodite: goddess of love
Athena: goddess of wisdom
Apollo: god of light
Poseidon: god of the sea
The Olympic Games
• Stressed athleticism in
their school curriculum
• Held to honor Zeus
• Trade and wars stopped
during games
• Athletes came from all
over the world to
compete
• Individual events rather
than team
• Women were not allowed
Cities represented at Olympic games
Governing the City-States
Between 750 B.C. and 500 B.C., the
Greeks evolved different forms of
government.
At first, the ruler was a king. A
government in which a king or queen
exercises central power is called a
monarchy.
Governing the City-States
Slowly, power shifted to a class of
noble landowners. At first, the nobles
defended the king, but in time, they
won power for themselves. A
government ruled by a landholding,
noble elite is called an aristocracy.
Governing the City-States
As trade expanded, a new
class of wealthy merchants,
farmers, and artisans came to
dominate some city-states. A
government in which power is
in the hands of a small,
powerful elite, usually from
the business class, is called
an oligarchy.
Review of Governments
1. monarchy: [‘single ruler'] A
government in which a king or queen
exercises central power (chosen by
birth; hereditary)
2. aristocracy: ['best-rule'] noble landholding families (hereditary distinction)
3. oligarchy: ['few-rule'] small group of
business elites like, merchants,
farmers and artisans (wealth
distinction)
New Kind of Military
•Each city-state had
citizen-soldiers
•Each city-state provided
its own defense
•Hoplite name comes
from the Greek word
“hopon” for shield
Hoplite
New Technique: Phalanx
• A new method of
fighting emerged
called “phalanx”
• A massive
formation of
heavily armed foot
soldiers that moved
in unison
• Required hours of
drill and practice!
Ancient Sparta
Sparta
• Peloponnesus
region in
southern
Greece
• Founded by
descendants of
Dorian invaders
• Map shows
Sparta and its
colonies
Sparta
• Military Society;
largest and most
sophisticated army in
the known world
• Forbade: trade, travel
and free speech!
• Needed army to
control slave
population
• Control lasted over
250 years.
• All conquered people
became…
– Government owned
slaves named helots
– 20 to 1 of the
population
• Government: Monarchy
puppet
• Oligarchy in reality
2 kings and 28
counselors
who had the real power
• No interest in trade or in
education other than in
the arts of war
Spartan Military Life
Army governed life
What did it mean for a
man?
Trained in military
-Started at age 7
-Marry at 20 but live
in barracks
-Retire at 60
53 years of service!
•Males can vote at 30
Reading: Sparta, The
training of Youth
Spartan Women
How did Spartan women
live?
• Taught to read and write
• Did not perform many
domestic tasks
• Women were trained in
athletic events:
javelin, discus, foot races,
and staged battles
• Would have to run naked in
front of males
Spartan Women
• Expected to produce
healthy children or?
• Fed better
• Taught loyalty to the state
• Had Property Rights
• Protect home for husband
• The Wedding – Nothing
most women would
want…Listen and Decide!
•
Athens
• No other city has contributed more to the
civilization of mankind than Athens.
• It is the place where democracy was born.
Athens
• Founded by
Mycenaean
descendants.
• Encouraged trade,
dominate naval
power!
• Stressed a balance
of the mind and
body.
Athenian Women
•The status of an Athenian woman in Greek
society was minimal.
•Married 14-16 years old, chosen by their father
•Upper class had beautiful weddings!
"Teaching a woman to read and write? What a
terrible thing to do! Like feeding a vile snake
on more poison."
-Menander
•
Athenian Women
Describe the life of an
Athenian women:
1. Take care of home
2. Raise the children
3. Seldom allowed in public; not even
the marketplace
4. No formal education
5. Could not own property
6. Lower class women actually had
more freedom because they
worked and came in contact with
people.
Athens
• World’s first
limited democracy
• Path to limited
democracy took
years and lots of
blood shed!
• Revolts of the
lower classes and
former slaves.
Path to Athenian
Democracy
Draco
• First written code of laws for
Greece
• Took power away from
aristocrats
Path to Athenian
Democracy
Solon
• First real political reformer
• Ordinary citizens gained greater power
through the new courts system
• He made decisions to benefit the all
people in a crisis, not just the wealthy!
• But still no land reform ‘aka’ land to the
landless poor
Path to Democracy
Peristratus:
• Helped the poor
• Extended citizenship
with right to vote to
non-landowning
Athenians
• Gave some land to
the peasants
Path to Democracy
Cleisthenes:
• Credited with establishing
democracy in Greece
• Established the law making
assembly the Council of
500 to propose laws
• Former slaves got
citizenship
• Tried ostracism*
*banishment from the city for 10 years
with 6,000 votes!
•
Cleisthenes
Limited Democracy
• This form of government
was used at a meeting place
which the Greeks called the
Assembly.
• Here the citizens of Athens
met monthly and discussed
the affairs of state.
• There were no decisions
made by government
without first asking the
Assembly met 40 times a
year
Athenian Democracy
• Only those with both parents born in
Athens could have citizenship
• Athens had a direct democracy:
all male citizens had the right to attend
the Assembly and a vote.
• No elections, leaders chosen by drawing
lots