Classical Declines, Diversities and Directions

1. Classical Declines, Diversities and Directions The Overview Sterns World Civilizations Chapter 5 Acts of the Apostles (213) Deed of the Goths (190) St. Augustine Just War (215)

2. The Focus • Internal and external forces led to the political decline of the major classical civilizations starting in the 3d century CE • Blame it on the pastoralists! • Christianity Hinduism and Buddhism would fill the gaps and serve as conservative and unifying forces through this period of decline • This chapter also deals with lands and peoples outside of the orbit of classical civilizations

3. Key questions • What forces supported the decline of classical civilizations? What political order replaced them? • What forces shaped and diffused religion in the classical period? Why would some faiths expand and others disappear? • What were some of the features of these global religions that transcended cultural boundaries? • How did cultures develop outside of the Classical orbit in the old and new world?

4. Caution… • Read carefully. We will not have time for much lecture on this topic…

5. Classical Rome • Rome grew from a city-state to a Mediterranean Empire • Roman expansion would fuse Greek and Latin culture and spread it- The cultural legacy is most pronounced in Europe today • As a republic, Roman leaders struggled to maintain order and it became an Empire at the dawn of the Common Era • For nearly 200 years, Roman armies and Roman order would dominate from Britain to Egypt and the Middle East • Slavery would be a common feature in Greece and Rome