Chapter 8 The Ancient Greeks By: Hallie Mosher

Lesson 1 The Cycladic, Minoan, Mycenaean, and Trojan Cultures.

The Cycladic and Minoan Culture The Cyclades are a group of 200 islands which were located east of the Greek mainland in the southern Aegean Sea. Archeologists have learned that most Cycladic people made their living by fishing or trading. The Minoan culture began on a large island in Crete. In about 2000 B.C. the Minoans began to build large, richly decorated places.

The Mycenaean and Trojan culture The Mycenaean culture takes its name fron the city of Mycenae. Archeologists believe that a settlement at Mycenae. The Trojan culture was centered in the ancient city of Troy. The Trojans couldn’t defeat the Mycenaeans so they built a Trojan horse to get in and defeat them.

Lesson 2 The Rise of the City-states, Athens, Sparta, and to be Greek

The Rise of the City-states and Athens The development of the Classical Greek civilization began with the rise of the city- states. Among the best-known and most powerful Greek city-states which were Sparta and Athens. Most city-states were located in coastal areas and had economies based on trade. The Spartans were made up of three classes.

Sparta and to be Greek The city-state of Athens was located on Attica which is a part of Balkan Peninsula, which is northeast of the Peloponnesus. More reforms in 508 B.C. made the Athenian city-states the world’s very first democracy. Since the city-states were independent, people didn’t think of belonging to a country as Americans do.

Lesson 3 The Persian wars, the Age of Pericles, achievements to the Golden Age, and Greek Philosophers.

The Persian Wars and the Age of Pericles For Hundreds of years the Greek city-states fought over land and trade. Soldiers from the Athens met a larger Persian Force on the plain of Marathon which was not far from the Athens. The Athens felt pride in new leadership position after the defeat of the Persians. Pericles was a relative of Cleisthenes, the Athenian leader who had taken governing authority away from the Aristocracy and given it to the city-states assembly.

The End of the Golden Age and Greek Philosophers Pericles was a relative of Cleisthenes, the Athenian leader who had taken governing authority away from the Aristocracy and given it to the city-states assembly. Pericles wanted to make Athens not just the “school of Greece” but also its most powerful city-state. After the Peloponnesian War there were still many great thinkers and teachers and teachers in Athens.

Lesson 4 The making of an empire, building of an empire, end of an empire, and Alexander’s Legacy.

The making of an empire and building of an empire Alexander was born in 356 B.C. in Macedonia. His father was Philip II, a Macedonian who had spent part of his boyhood in Greek lands. With the Greek city-states under his control, Alexander turned to completing his father’s plan for attacking the Persian Empire.

The End of the Empire and Alexander’s Legacy Alexander the Great ruled a wide area, but he wanted still more lands. Beyond Persia lay the Indus Valley. Alexander the Great and his army came into contact with many different cultures. Many of the conquered peoples learned to speak and write in toms.