Chapter 3
The Civilization of the Greeks
Timeline
Early Greece
Geography
Mountains
Sea
Minoan Crete (c. 2000 – 1450 B.C.)
Knossus
Catastrophic Collapse (c. 1450 B.C.)
Map 3.1: Ancient Greece (c. 750 – 338 B.C.)
The First Greek State: Mycenae
Mycenae
Flourished between 1600 – 1100 B.C.
Indo Europeans
Powerful monarchies
Fortified palace complexes
Warrior society
Trojan War
Mycenae destroyed c. 1190 B.C.
The Greeks in a Dark Age
(c. 1100 – c. 750 B.C.)
Period of Decline
Farming revived (c. 850 B.C.)
Migrations to Ionia
Revival of some trade
Use of iron
Adoption of Phoenician alphabet
Homer
The Iliad
• Trojan War
The Odyssey
Heroes
The World of the Greek CityStates (c. 750 – c. 500 B.C.)
The Polis
Town or city and surrounding countryside
Acropolis
Agora
Citizenship
Rights and Responsibilities
New military system
Hoplites and Phalanx
Colonization and the Growth of
Trade
Migration and Colonies
Effects of Colonization
Increased trade and industry
Map 2.2: Greece and its Colonies in the Archaic Age
Tyranny in the Greek Polis
Tyrants
Outside the law
Favored interests of merchants and traders
Tyranny in Corinth
Decline of Tyranny (end of sixth century
B.C.)
Sparta
Origins in Laconia
Perioikoi and Helots
Conquest of Messenia
Lycurgan Reforms (c. 800 – 600 B.C.)
Development of a military state (early 6th c. B.C.)
Barracks and military life
Spartan women
Spartan society
The Spartan State
Two kings
Ephors
Assembly
Isolationism
Peloponnesian League
Athens
Attica
Economic Problems
Solon
Economic reforms
Political reforms
Tyrants
The Reforms of Cleisthenes
Ten Tribes – Cross section of population
Council of 500 (50 from each tribe)
Democracy
Greek Culture in the Archaic Age
Influences
Lyric Poetry
Sappho of Lesbos
Hesiod
Works and Days
Theognis of Megara
Celebration of aristocracy
The High Point of Greek
Civilization: Classical Greece
The Challenge of Persia
Ionian Revolt (499 – 494 B.C.)
Persian Invasion (490 B.C.)
• Battle of Marathon (490 B.C.)
Xerxes
•
•
•
•
Renewed Persian invasion (480 B.C.)
Battle of Thermopylae (480 B.C.)
Battle of Salamis (480 B.C.)
Battle of Plataea (479 B.C.)
Map 3.3: The Persian Wars
The Growth of an Athenian
Empire in the Age of Pericles
Delian League (organized 478 – 477 B.C.)
Pericles
Democracy
• Magistrates
• Ostracism
Athenian Imperialism
Control over Delian League
The Great Peloponnesian War (431 – 404
B.C.) & the Decline of the Greek States
Thucydides
Spartan fear of Athens
Athens – Naval Power; Sparta – Land Power
Plague (430 B.C.)
Death of Pericles (429 B.C.)
Destruction of Athenian Fleet (405 B.C.)
Athens Surrenders (404 B.C.)
Greek States continue to fight among themselves
Map 3.4: The Great Peloponnesian
War (431 – 404 B.C.)
The Culture of Classical Greece
The Writing of History
Herodotus (c. 484 – c. 425 B.C.)
• The Persian Wars
Thucydides (c. 460-c. 400 B.C.)
• History of the Peloponnesian War
Greek Drama
Tragedies
• Aeschylus (525-456 B.C.)
• Sophocles (c. 496-406 B.C.)
• Euripides (c. 485-406 B.C.)
Comedies
• Aristophanes (c. 450-c. 385 B.C.)
Outdoor theater at Epidaurus
The Arts: The Classical Ideal
Architecture
Temples
Mathematical ratios found in nature
Sculpture
Ideal Beauty
Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian Orders
The Temple of Athena on the Island of Aegina
Fifth-century B.C.
Doryphoros
The Greek Love of Wisdom
Philosophy (“Love of Wisdom”)
Sophists
The art of the argument
Socrates (469 – 399 B.C.)
Socratic method
Plato (c. 429 – 347 B.C.)
The Republic
The Academy
Aristotle (384 – 322 B.C.)
Politics
Greek Religion
Religion and Daily Life
Festivals
Gods and Goddesses
Mount Olympus
Olympic Festivals (began in 776 B.C.)
Oracle of Apollo at Delphi
Remaining Columns at the
Oracle to Apollo Delphi
Daily Life in Classical Athens
150,000 citizens – 43,000 adult males with
political power
Slavery
Agricultural Economy
Trade
Artisans
Lifestyle
Family Life
Women
Male Homosexuality
Discussion Questions
What role did geography have on Greek history and
civilization?
What brought about the Dark Ages in ancient Greece?
What were the main causes behind the development of
democracy in Greece?
Why was the polis the preferred form of government in
ancient Greece?
How did the Persian Wars lay the seeds for the
Peloponnesian Wars?
What were the defining features of Greek art?
How did Plato’s Republic challenge democratic ideals?
What impact did Greek philosophers have on the Western
intellectual tradition?
What function did festivals and public rituals play in Greek
religion?
Web Links
Ancient Greek Sites on the World Wide Web
Dēmos: Classical Athenian Democracy
Encyclopedia Mythica: Greek Mythology
Didaskalia: Ancient Theater Today
Cultural Map of Hellas
The Ancient City of Athens