Early Civilizations in Greece Chapter 4

The Impact of Geography Greece is relatively small peninsula, about the size of Louisiana, with many surrounding islands The geography consists of small plains & river valleys surrounded by mountains The mountains a very important in the development of Greece as they isolated her from other influences & allowed her to develop their own independent culture & way of life Even though Greece was isolated from many outside influences it did not stop rivalries between neighboring communities

The Impact of Geography The sea also impacted Greek history The Aegean, Mediterranean, & Indian Seas give Greece many ports that were ideal for trade No part of Greece is more than 60 miles from a body of water

The Minoans and the Mycenaeans The Minoan civilization was established during the bronze age on the island of Crete This civilizations economy was based on trade especially with southern Greece & Egypt The wealth gained through trade allowed the Minoans to adopt techniques & designs from other cultures which they applied to their own The Minoan empire lasted until 1450 B.C. when it suddenly collapsed Some believe that the collapse was due to a massive tidal wave while others believe that it was because of invasion by the Mycenaeans

MINOANS

The Minoans and the Mycenaeans The Mycenaeans were Indo- Europeans who were led by powerful monarchies who lived in fortified palaces The Mycenaeans were warriors who prided themselves on heroic deeds that were then depicted on wall murals Economically they established a large commercial network through the Mediterranean area Mycenaean Greece was troubled by internal wars, major earthquakes, & invasions By 1100 B.C. the civilization had collapsed

The Greeks in the Dark Age After the collapse of the Mycenaeans Greece entered into a period of decline as food production fell This became known as the Dark Age There was a revival in trade as many left the mainland to settle abroad By the end of the Dark Age the Greeks had adopted Phoenician alphabet making reading & writing much simpler It was during this period that Homer wrote the Iliad & the Odyssey which was based on stories of the Trojan War Homer’s hero taught values of honor & courage

The Greek City States Chapter 4-2

Polis: The Center of Greek Life By 750 Polis had become the center of Greek life People would meet at the center of polis to discuss political, social, & religious activities The meeting place was a fortified hilltop called an where it contained a large open area called the agora

AGORA

Polis: The Center of Greek Life The Polis was a community of people with common goals & identity This community was divided into 3 different groups, those with political rights (males), those with no political rights (Women & children), & noncitizens (slaves & foreigners) All were expected to be loyal to the Polis

Greek Expansion By 750 B.C. many Greeks, because of trade & need for farmland, had begun to move to distant lands New Greek colonies were established in Italy, France, Spain, & Africa This allowed the Greek culture to flourish as well as its trade Trade provided great wealth to a group of people who were blocked from political power by aristocrats This led to the rise of a new group called the tyrants The tyrants tried to help the poor & built public works However they fell out of favor with the Greeks because of the Greek belief in rule of law This rule of law would eventually lead to the end of aristocrat rule & the development of democracy

Two Rival City-States Like other Greek city-states Sparta needed more land & to get it they conquered neighboring lands The conquered people became known as the helots who were then forced to work for the Spartans Spartan life was a very rigidly controlled with military training & service as men were required to be in the army until the age of 60 Because the men were consumed with military affairs Spartan women had more power in the home than did Greek women The Spartan government was an oligarchy headed by two kings

HELOT

Two Rival City-States By the seventh century B.C. Athens was an oligarchy under the control of the aristocrats Under this rule many of the farmers had been sold into slavery for their debt To avoid civil war the aristocrats turned power to Solon who released those in slavery due to debt By 512 B.C. power was in the hands of Cleisthenes who created a new council that supervised foreign affairs, oversaw the treasury, & proposed new laws This would become the foundation for Athenian democracy