Chapter 5.2
Guided Reading and Review
The Rise of the Greek City-States
A. Main Ideas
1. Effect: Greeks built individual city-states
cut off from one another by land or sea.
A. Main Ideas
2. Effect: Greeks became skilled sailors,
bringing back goods and ideas to Greece.
A. Main Ideas
3. Cause: as trade expanded a new Greek
middle class emerged that challenged the
nobles for power and came to rule in some
city-states.
A. Main Ideas
4. Effect: Spartans became excellent
soldiers who were prepared for their roles
as citizens.
A. Main Ideas
5. Cause: Turmoil in Athens increased when
farmers fell on hard times and had to sell
themselves and their families into slavery.
B. Reviewing Key Terms
6. Polis:
A unique version of the city-state where the citystate was built on two levels. On the hilltop was
the acropolis with temples. On the flatter ground
below stood the marketplace, homes, and public
buildings.
B. Reviewing Key Terms
7. Aristocracy:
Government rule by the land holding elite.
B. Reviewing Key Terms
8. oligarchy:
Government rule by a powerful elite, usually the
business class.
B. Reviewing Key Terms
9. Democracy:
Government by the people
B. Reviewing Key Terms
10. Tyrant:
Person who gained power by force. In ancient Greece, tyrants were
influential opportunists that came to power by securing the support of
different factions. The word "tyrannos" then carried no ethical censure; it
simply referred to anyone, good or bad, who obtained executive power in a
polis by unconventional means. Support for the tyrants came from the
growing middle class and from the peasants who had no land or were in
debt to the wealthy land owners. It is true that they had no legal right to
rule, but the people preferred them over kings or the aristocracy. The Greek
tyrants stayed in power by using mercenary soldiers from outside of their
respective city-state.
B. Reviewing Key Terms
11. Legislature:
A law making body.
B. Reviewing Key Terms
6. Zeus:
Most powerful god on Mount Olympus..
• Take out Textbooks
• Open to Page 109
• Answer Questions 1 through 6 on the back
of the worksheet
• On Question # 1 just identify
“Peloponnesus” “Solon” and “Cleisthenes”
• On Question # 2 just define “acropolis”
“monarchy” “phalanx” and “helot””
• On Questions 3 through 6, write question
and answer in complete sentence(s)