1. By: Alex, Farzan, Hezron, and Zoran
Ancient Greece Unit
By: Alex, Farzan, Hezron, and Zoran

2. Introduction to Ancient Greece
Ancient Greece consisted of many civilizations inhabiting the surrounding islands of the Aegean sea. During the Bronze Age, the Minoans and Mycenaean both rose and declined heavily on the island of Crete. Ancient Greece contained civilizations rich in culture, philosophy, and mythology. During the Classical Greek Period (500 – 323 BCE), an intellectual revolution occurs in many areas surrounding Ancient Greece, including city-states (except for Sparta of course)

3. Handout Review – Matching Questions
A) Doric                              
B) Xerxes                          
C)Socrates                       D) Agamemnon                
E) Agora                                
F) Zeus                          
G) Persian Immortal           
H) Salamis                      
I) Theatre plays                  
J) Aristotle                          
K) Hellenistic Age                
L) Olympics                        
M) Athena                            
N)The Oresteia                    
O) Trireme                            
P) Palace of Knossos
Q) Pentathlon           I) J) F) O) D) B) M) N) P) L) A) G) E) H) C) K) Q)
Were only played by male actors
Plato’s most famous student
Supreme ruler of the Olympian Gods
Fast and manoeuvrable warship of the Greek
Commanded the united Greek Forces against Troy
Persian Emperor who attempted to invade Greece
Greek Goddess of wisdom and deity of Athens
Famous tragedy play written by Sophocles
Capital of the Minoan civilization in Crete
An athletic and religious event that began in 776 BC
Used in mainland Greece without a base, plain
One of Xerxes’ strongest units with 10,000 men
The marketplace of major city-states
Famous naval battle where the Greeks are victorious
Known as the father of philosophy (smartest man)
Time period where Greek culture dominated the Mediterranean Sea
A five sport competition: running, throwing disks, throwing javelins, jumping, and wrestling

4. Handout Review – Key People
Alexander the Great: an undefeatable leader who had won all of his battles (a total of 18 major battles). Had spread Greek culture amongst the civilizations he had conquered after defeating and conquering the Persian Empire.
Aristotle: Plato’s most famous student who taught Alexander the Great as his personal tutor. He was also a “polymath” (one who is excellent of everything)
Heinrich Schliemann – German archaeologist who had discovered ruins of Mycenae and other prehistoric Greek sites.

5. Handout Review – Key People Continued
Herodotus – known as the father of history because he used facts instead of stories including Gods in his book, “The History.” His book covers the origins of Athens and Sparta and the Persian wars. He would write down history as it was happening.
King Philip II – Macedonian king who conquered Greece with plans of invading the Persian Kingdom. Was assassinated before he could carry out his plans.
Pericles – leader of Athens who built the Parthenon. Had a goal of transforming Athens into a powerful democracy by creating changes in the government. He had defeated Persia in 449 BC.

6. Handout Review – Key People Continued
Sappho – female poet famous for her poems that expressed women’s issues.
Socrates – known as the father of philosophy who was interested in the nature of thought and life. Taught Athenians to question what they observe. He was the smartest man in Athens.

7. Handout Review – Key Locations
Athens – had been the center of Greek civilization for thousands of years while being one of the major city-states in Ancient Greece. Known as the cradle of democracy because the very first democratic style of government had occurred in Athens. Athens’ name derives from the patron Goddess Athena, the Goddess of wisdom.
Crete – contained thriving civilizations that existed on the island. The Minoans originate and had controlled Crete for hundreds of years until their civilization was destroyed by natural disasters. Mycenaean inhabited the island of Crete and had become the rulers of the island until they were destroyed by wars.

8. Handout Review – Key Locations Continued
Mt. Olympus – in Greek mythology, was the dwelling of the Olympian Gods after the Olympians had defeated the Titans.
Sparta – a warrior society in Ancient Greece that reached it’s height in power after defeating Athens in the Peloponnesian War. Were famous for their undefeatable land army.

9. Handout Review – Key Events
The disappearance of the Minoan civilization - two theories regarding the disappearance of a thriving civilization: invasion and natural disaster theory. Invasion theory claims Mycenaean pirates from the mainland invaded. The Natural disaster theory states that the island of Thera erupted around 1500 BCE resulting in ash clouds and tidal waves destroying the civilization.
The Olympic Games – athletics and religious event to honour the Greek God, Zeus. The games were held in Olympia where citizens of city-states competed against one another for victory. During the Olympics there was a temporary peace treaty among the city-states.

10. Handout Review – Key Events Continued
The Trojan War – the Achaeans, under king Agamemnon, waged war against the city of Troy after Paris took Helen, the wife of Spartan King Menelaus, away back to Troy.
The Persian War – consisted of three major battles: the battle of Marathon, Thermopylae, and Salamis. The battle of Marathon took place during the first Persian invasion of Greece where the Athenians were able to defeat the Persians with a much smaller army (this was a turning point in the war). The battle of Thermopylae is where 300 Spartans, under the leadership of King Leonidas, held their last stand against the Persian empire during their second invasion. After the Spartan defeat at the “Hot Gates” (Thermopylae), the Persian armies were able to reach Athens and burn it to the ground. The battle of Salamis consisted of all naval battles where the Persians were lead into a trap and ultimately destroyed by Greek triremes.

11. Handout Review – Key Events Continued
The Peloponnesian war – takes place after the Persian wars. Athens form the Delian league and threaten Sparta as they expand. Corinth, Sparta’s ally, is bullied by Athens and force Sparta to war. Athens was favoured to win the war but they surprisingly did not. Pericles’ strategy seemed to secure a victory for Athens until a play had struck in the city walls, killing one third of the population, including Pericles, the man with the ideas. Sparta wins the Peloponnesian war and destroys Athens’ walls.
Macedonian era – Macedonia rose in power under its ruler, King Philip II. Philip conquered Greece and had the strongest army in the world. He planned to defeat and conquer the Persian Empire but was unfortunately assassinated before doing so. His son, Alexander, had taken the throne and carried out his father’s plans with great success. Alexander was never defeated in battle and had spread Greek culture throughout the civilizations he had conquered.

12. Handout Review – Short Answer Questions
A) the two genres of theatre in Greece were tragedy and comedy.
C) The Greeks believed a healthy body was just as important as a healthy mind. It was also a way for the Greeks to compete amongst each other without going to war.
D) Due to the rugged interior, the Greeks were dependant on seas. Greece’s culture was heavily effected by the geography because the city-states were cut off by mountains and the seas (ISOLATED!) This lead to very few interactions or unity.
E) Alexander the Great conquered Greece’s ancient rival, the Persian Empire and established it as under Greek control. While conquering civilizations, he spread Greek culture throughout the conquered civilizations (known as the Hellenistic age).
F) Women had very few rights and were expected to marry and spend their time managing household affairs as well as raising their children. Women in Sparta could only own property. Women were expected to marry and raise healthy children.

13. Handout Review – Fill in the Blanks
The first Olympic Games were held in 776 BCE.
The Minoans’ culture reached its height around 1500 BCE.
The archon was to solve ongoing disputes between aristocrats and common citizens. The most famous archon was Solon who made changes in the law code and helped the poor relieve debt.
The practice of Ostracism allowed any citizen of a city state into exile for 10 years.
Plato was Socrates’ most famous student who established a school that lasted 900 years.
Thespis is credited with inventing the tragedy genre in theatre.

14. Ancient Greece Note
The Aegean sea was the heart of Ancient Greece because the Greeks sailed across it to trade goods and ideas with one another.
The Minoans were seen as a barbaric people because of the Minotaur myth but the Minoans were truly a peaceful people:
They had paintings of the natural world
No evidence of an army or navy fleet
The palace of Knossos had no walls, meaning the Minoans were not a war civilization because they had never experienced it
The Minoans developed a writing referred to as “Linear A” (it has still not been deciphered)
When the Mycenaean had conquered Crete, they had “stolen” the Minoans’ writing system and adapted it for their own use.

15. Ancient Greece Note – Continued
The Greeks believed humans would face consequences for violating moral and ethical principles, as well as attempting to avoid their fate or disobeying the Gods.
The Greeks appreciated physical grace and beauty because they believed a beautiful body was just as important as a beautiful mind. As seen in sculptures, beautiful human bodies are depicted.
The famous tragedy play, the Oresteia, focuses on King Laius who attempts to avoid his fate that his future son would kill him. Due to this, Oedipus, Laius’ son, is exposed in the open as a baby and raised by another city-state king. Oedipus attempted to avoid his fate of killing his father but did not succeed. After he has fulfilled the prophecy he returns to his home city-state and marries his mother.

16. Ancient Greece Note – Continued
The Athenians were defeated in the Peloponnesian war because:
They were struck with a deadly plague that spread easily when everyone was behind city walls
During the war, the Athenians decide to invade Sicily and fail miserably, costing them 2 fleets of their naval army (50,000 men killed). There was no strategic reason to invade Sicily, the Athenians were motivated by greed and territory expansions
The Athenians ostracised many of their generals after they had lost their battles (including Alcibiades, a very important general for the war).
Persian mercenaries aid the Spartains by providing them a navy
Socrates is made the scapegoat for their defeats because he publically attacks Athenian culture (lowering moral and corrupting youth). He is later on sentenced to death by poison.

17. Ancient Greece Note – Continued
Alexander the Great managed to conquer Greece and the entire Near East (including the Persian Empire). Under his ruling, he attempted to make Greek culture the uniting force. Unfortunately, Alexander died of an illness and his empire shortly split apart between his three best generals.
Alexander was very cruel or a fair ruler. When he had put down the “rebellion” in Thebes he had the inhabitants slaughtered or sold into slavery and had every building razed except for temples.
The reasoning behind Alexander’s decision to invade Persia was because the Persian Empire had been interfering with Greek cities in the Asia minor. The main reasons however were for glory and identification within Greece (he know the best way to gain recognition was to defeat Greece’s ancient rival). In addition, he wanted to prove that he was very Greek while accomplishing his father’s goal.

18. Handouts for Ancient Greece
1. Greece land and sea note
2. Ancient Greece map
3. The geography of Greece – the land and its people note
4. Ancient Greece Timeline note
5. The Minoans note
6. The Mycenaean's note
7. Greek Mythology Activity
8. The Trojan war and Troy Movie sheet
9 Warfare in Ancient Greece “Last Stand of the 300” note

19. Handouts for Ancient Greece Continued
10. Greece: A moment of Excellence (Athens) note
11. Video: Life, Times and Wonders of Athens and Ancient Greece
12. Greek Athletic Games sheet
13. Athena: On the road to Democracy note
14. The Arts, Culture and Philosophy in Classical Greece
15. The Peloponnesian War (431 – 404 BCE)
16. Persian Immortals and Spartan Hoplite questions
17. The Persian Wars: Greece Unites in Conflict
18. Classical Greece Culture

20. Handouts for Ancient Greece Continued
19. Athens and Sparta computer lab worksheet
20. Alexander the Great questions
21 Alexander the Great word search
22. Alexander the Great overview
23. Pelopnnesian War and Macedonian Era sheet
24. Ancient Greece Puzzle Quiz
25. Textbook pg , pg. 141 #3, pg. 143 #1ab, 2a
Greece – History crossword puzzle

21. Ancient Greece Test Format
50 marks
14 matching marks
4 x 2 marks = 8 marks Key People of Ancient Greece
7 fill in the blanks marks
3 x 2 marks = 6 marks Key Events / Key Locations
2 x 5 marks = 10 marks Long Answers
5 marks map label