Ancient Greece Part I

1. Ancient Greece Part I The Early Greeks

2. Geography Ionian Sea to west, Mediterranean Sea to south, Aegean Sea to east; Hundreds of islands stretching to Asia; Mainland is a peninsula- The Balkan Peninsula to the north and Peloponnesus to the south The inland of the peninsula is covered in mountains and hills making farming and travel more difficult. This terrain causes Spartans to conquer land and Athenians to develop trade routes in order to get goods.

3. Geography and People People worked as fisherman, sailors, traders; Others farmed despite mountains and rocky soil; Some places good for wheat, barley, olives, grapes, raising sheep and goats Communities independent from one another because of mountains and seas Geography drove the economy- they had limited goods, so trade became important. They minted coins to help with trade.

4. The Minoans- The People of Crete Were not Greek, but were first in region to later become part of Greece Island Crete- southeast of mainland where ruins of a grand palaceKnossos (that was center of Minoan civilization)was discovered by Arthur Evans in 1900; revealed riches of ancient society Minoans traded pottery and stone vases for ivory and metals; Ships made from oak and cedar controlled eastern Mediterranean Sea; carried goods to foreign ports and kept out pirates Minoan civilization collapsed in 1450 BC; historians think it was washed away by waves caused by earthquakes and others think it was invaded by a group of invaders from the mainland called Mycenaean

5. The First Greek Kingdoms(Mainland people) The Mycenaeans • Invaded and conquered Greek mainland ~ 1900 BC • What Were Mycenaean Kingdoms Like? • Mycenaean warriors became first Greek kings and noble who ruled the people they conquered • Rulers lived in fortified palace on a hill surrounded by giant walls • Beyond walls (or fortifications) were farms, or estates, belonging to nobles • Slaves and farmers lived on estates and took protection in the fortress • Mycenaean people gained power from trade and war • Palaces were busy with artisans working as government officials kept track of wealth and collected wheat, livestock, and honey as taxes and stored them in palace

6. Power Gained from Trade And War(The Mycenaens replace Minoans) • Minoan traders visited from Crete and in turn, the Mycenaean people learned ways to work with bronze, build ships, use the sun and stars to navigate and began to worship the Earth Mother (Minoans’ chief goddess) • Mycenaeans came to replace Minoan as major power on Mediterranean, as they traded across vast areas and perhaps conquered Crete and nearby islands. • Most famous victory was Trojan War in which king Agamemnon used trickery to win the war

7. The Dark Age- Or really bad times- earthquakes, wars etc. • Earthquakes and fighting led to the collapse of the Mycenaean civilization • Overseas trade slowed, poverty set in • farmers only grew enough for their own families • teaching writing and craftwork stopped and resulted in Greeks forgetting written language and how to make things • Positive population shift expanded Greek culture • People known as Dorians from Greece’s northern mountains moved south and many settled in Peloponnesus • They brought iron weapons and farm tools which were stronger than those of bronze, leading to more advanced technology

8. After the Dark Age • People began to farm again and produce surplus food which revived trade and led to new way of writing (adopted from the Phoenicians) • Greek alphabet had 24 letters that stood for different sounds, making reading and writing much simpler than ever before

9. A Move to Colonize • As Greece moved out of Dark Age, farmers could not grow enough grain to feed everyone which led to sending people outside Greece to start colonies • People went to coasts of Italy, France, Spain, North Africa, and western Asia • Colonists traded grains, metals, fish, timber and enslaved people and received pottery, wine, and olive oil from mainland • Greeks began to mint coins and merchants were soon exchanging goods for money instead of other goods • Growth of trade led to growth of industry and people began specializing in making certain products Colonize- to conquer land with abundant resources and create settlements that benefit the motherland

10. The Polis At the end of the Dark Age, many large estate owning nobles overthrew Greek kings and created city – states; city-state = polis Acropolis provided safe refuge in case of attacks and served as religious center where temples and altars were built to honor Greek gods and goddesses City-states were many different sizes and had varied populations Greek city-states were run by their citizens- early democracy Agora- open space beneath the acropolis; it was both a market and a place to meet and debate.

11. What was Greek citizenship? • Unlike Mesopotamia and Egypt, where most people were subjects, Greek society was made up of citizens who, in most city-states, were free native-born men who owned land • Some such as Athens, forwent the land-owning requirement although slaves and foreign-born residents continued to be excluded. Women and children could qualify for citizenship, but did not have rights • Rights of Greek citizens • Gather in agora and choose officials and pass laws • Vote • Hold office • Own property • Defend themselves in court • Citizens had to serve in government and fight as soldiers for polis

12. Citizens as Soldiers • Hoplites (hahp-lyts) were ordinary citizens who fought on foot and battled with heavy armor; carried round shields and marched shoulder to shoulder allowing little room for enemies to cause harm • Division of city-states caused pride, but also lack of unity

13. The Athenian Soldiers Oath 1. Not to dishonor their weapons 2. Not to desert their comrades 3. to improve the fatherland 4. to uphold and protect the constitution 5. to honor the temples 6. to honor the religion of their forefathers

14. Questions and Answers How did geography discourage Greek unity? The mountains and seas kept the Greeks apart and early Greek communities became fiercely independent. What body of water lies east of the Balkan Peninsula? The Aegean Sea. What transportation was probably most useful to the early Greeks? Boats were useful to the early Greeks because they were surrounded by water and travel on land was difficult because of the inland mountains. How did the Minoans become a trading civilization? Minoans used the islands’ trees to build ships that carried them all over the eastern Mediterranean including Egypt and Syria. Who discovered the palace at Knossos? The palace was discovered by archaeologist Arthur Evans.

15. More Questions and Answers • How did citizenship make the Greeks different from the other ancient peoples? • Other ancient peoples were mostly subjects of kings and had little or no say in government. In Greece citizens could vote. • What made Minoans wealthy? • Minoans became wealthy from trading pottery and stone vases. • How was a Greek city-state different from a city? • City-states were tiny independent countries, while cities are part of a country. •  Name the three rights granted to Greek citizens that American citizens have today. • Right to vote • Right to hold a government office • Right to own property • Right to defend themselves in court

16. Vocabulary Peninsula: a body of land with water on three sides Colony: a settlement in a new territory that keeps close ties to its homeland Polis: a tiny independent country like a city state Agora: an open area that served both as a market and meeting place- below the Acropolis

17. Comparing and Contrasting the Minoan and Mycenaean Peoples

18. Sparta and AthensTyranny in the City States Tyranny ruled throughout Greece as the city-states developed their own governments Nobles seized power from kings but were thrown over by tyrants Tyrants arose as small farmers demanded changes in power structure because they were losing their land and even becoming enslaved when they could not pay back their debts to the nobles; merchants and artisans also wanted a share in governing Tyrants built new marketplaces, temples, and walls People in general did not want rule by one and eventually oligarchies and democracies arose. Sparta – oligarchy; Athens – democracy A tyrant is a person who seizes power by force and rules with total authority.

19. This is (really) Sparta! In order to get more land, the Greeks conquered and enslaved neighbors and called them helots The Military was the most important part of Spartan life; Government controlled people Sparta; boys and men were trained for war because of fear that helots may rebel Boys went to live in barracks at age 7 and entered regular army at age 20; life was harsh Men returned home at 30 and stayed in army until 60 and were never to surrender Girls were trained in running, wrestling and throwing javelin Because wives lived at home while men were at barracks, they were freer than other Greek women and could own property and go where they wanted

20. Spartan Government Can you say oligarchy? Ol-eee-gark-eee Oligarchy - Two kings headed council of elders which included 28 citizens over age 60 who presented laws to an assembly All Spartan men older than 30 were part of assembly and voted on council’s laws and chose 5 people to be ephors(enforced laws and managed tax collection) Gov’t discouraged foreign visitors, banned travel and disliked citizens studied literature or the arts in attempt to keep people from questioning Spartan system Focus on military training kept soldiers strong but resulted in Spartans falling behind in trade, science and other subjects

21. Athens“The thinking persons polis.” Athens was a two day trip northeast of Sparta Three teachers at school for boys; 1 for reading, writing and arithmetic, 1 for sports, 1 for singing and playing lyre; males became citizens at 18 Girls stayed home where mothers taught them spinning, weaving and household duties; women stayed home to teach daughters A Budding Democracy; citizens had a say in government In wealthy families – girls learned to read, write and play lyre

22. “The Birthplace of Democracy?” • Athenians rebelled against nobles as most farmers owed nobles money and many sold themselves into slavery • Farmers wanted an end to all debt and demanded land for the poor • Nobles turned to Solon who canceled all debts and freed those enslaved, allowed all male citizens to become part of assembly and law courts • Council of 400 wealthy citizens wrote laws, but assembly had to pass them • Solon popular among common people, though farmers pressed him to give away nobles’ land, which he refused • Following 30 years of turmoil after Solon, tyrant Peisistratus seized power and won support of poor by dividing large estates among landless farmers and gave them jobs building temples and other public works.

23. Cleisthenes(No, you won’t get points off if you can’t spell it!) Cleisthenes came to power in 508 BC and reorganized assembly to play central role in governing and gave members new powers such as debating matters openly, hear court cases, and appoint army generals Cleisthenes created new council of 500 citizens to help assembly carry out daily business, propose laws, deal with foreign countries and oversee treasury; Credited with making the government a democracy Members of council were chosen using lottery so that the rich were not favored Non- citizens, including women, foreign-born men, and slaves were still excluded from political process

24. Vocabulary Tyrant- someone who takes power by force and rules with total authority Oligarchy- a government where a few people hold all of the power Democracy- a government where all citizens share in the running of the government Helot- name for enslaved or captured workers

25. Questions and Answers Why were the tyrants popular in some city-states? Tyrants built new marketplaces, temples, and walls. At what age did Spartan boys leave their families for the military? They left their home and families at seven years of age. Why did the Spartans stress military training? So they could conquer their neighbors and control the large helot population.

26. More Questions and Answers What group ruled Athens during the 600s BCE? Landowning nobles ruled during the nobles. What leader is credited with making Athens democracy? Cleisthenes is credited with making Athens a democracy. How did Cleisthenes build a democracy in Athens? He made the assembly the center of government, gave citizens more powers, created a citizen council to help them assembly.

27. Even More Q and A 1. How many miles apart were Sparta and Athens? About 100 miles. 2. Which city-states’ geography might make it more open to attack in a military battle? Athens, because it is closer to the sea and therefore easier to invade. 3. How did Greek nobles gain power? They seized power from the kings during the Dark Age. 4. Why did the tyrants fall out of favor with the Greeks? Most Greeks longed for rule by law, with all citizens participating in government. 5. How did Athenian democracy keep one person from gaining too much power? A large council chosen by lottery kept power distributed among the people.