1. By:Taylin Montague

2.  The Cycladic are a large group of 200 islands east of Greek mainland in the Aegean Sea.  The people made their living by trading. Fishing, farming, and craft workers.  After 2000B.C. the culture began to weaken.  As this was going on, the people started to follow the traditions of dominant, or more powerful cultures.

3.  The culture began on the island of Crete in 1700B.C.  The name Minoan was from the King of Crete Minos.  The farming villages formed into cities.  They had a counting system and a writing system.  No one can read the oldest Minoan tablet.

4.  The culture got its name from the city of Mycenae.  The city was located on the southern peninsula of Greece.  The culture was started in 1900B.C.  By about the 1500s the Mycenaeans became the dominant culture.  They took over cultures like the Minoans.  In About 1200B.C. the culture suddenly came to an end.

5.  The Trojan culture was centered in the city of Troy. From as early as 2900B.C. Troy was surrounded by thick walls.  The people of Troy farmed, raised horses, and traded with the Mycenaeans.  The story of The Trojan Horse For ten years the Mycenaeans tried to capture Troy. Then the Mycenaeans built a giant wooded horse and hid inside it. The Trojans took the horse as a peace offering and brought it into the city. Over night the Mycenaeans crawled out and attacked the city. They then defeated the Trojans.

6.  City-states were formed from neighboring villages trying to protect themselves.  Normally theses city-states were graded by stone walls. They also were built a hilltop around an acropolis (high city).  These cities had an agora, houses, and public buildings. Beyond the acropolis were farmlands and small villages.  Cities would fight over the that lay between them.

7.  The city-state of Sparta was located inland of the Peloponnesian Peninsula.  Sparta had a military economy.  The people lived simple lives of hard work and physical activity.  The society was made up of three classes. Only males in the ruling class were citizens.  Spartan boys began military training at age 6 to 7.

8.  The city-state of Athens was located on Attica, a part of the Balkan Peninsula.  In 594B.C. the people of Athens asked a leader named Solon to make changes in the government to end there struggles.  The Athenians wanted a larger part in making decisions.  Athens then became the first to have a democracy.

9.  In English their language and civilization are known as Greek.  They call themselves Hellenes and their country Hellas named after their common ancestor named Hellen.  The Greeks believe in gods.  The Olympic Games were held every four years in honor of Zeus.

10.  A common enemy Persia brought the Greek people together for a time.  King Darius I turned his solders to the Greek mainland.  The out numbered Athenians defeated the Persian solders in one day.  Legend of the battle says that a messenger ran from Marathon to Athens.  Today people call a 26 mile run a marathon.

11.  After the defeat of the Persians there was a great since of pride. During this time Athens was ruled by Pericles.  Pericles wanted to continue the democratic reform of his relative Cleisthenes.  During his term of leadership he introduced pay for public officials.  He was a supporter of learning and arts.

12.  Herodotus was a historical writer.  Herodotus and others wrote about Sophocles(tragedies).  Aristophanes wrote comedies.  Then the plague swept through Athens and killed many people including Pericles.  After that a Athens began to fallow demagogues.

13.  A philosopher is a great thinker.  They also loved wisdom.  One great philosopher Socrates criticized the government into getting Athenians to think about the best way to live.  The government thought these were dangerous ideas and ordered him to deth by drinking poison.

14.  At age 18 Alexander commanded the Calvary.  After his father Philip was murdered his rule was past to Alexander in 336B.C.  Alexander’s army attacked the rebelling city of Thebes and destroyed it, 30,000 citizens were sold into slavery.  Alexander conquered many areas to bring under Greek rule. After Darius’s death Alexander became the most powerful ruler in southwestern Asia, earning him the name Alexander the Great.

15.  With as much area Alexander ruled he still wanted more.  In 327 B.C. Alexander married the Bactrian princess Roxane.  In 323 B.C. Alexander past away, it is said that a solider asked “who will rule the empire.” His answer “the strongest.”  No leader proved to be strong enough and the empire was divided.

16.  Alexander brought Greek language and custom to many cultures.  Alexander influenced museums were scholars wrote books and exchange ideas.  Hellenistic scientist used mathematics to estimate the distance around earth.  In 146B.C. the Romans ganed control of a large portian of land once ruled by Greeks.