3. Geography Shapes Ancient Greek
Life
Mainland extends into Mediterranean Sea
Is a peninsula: a body of land that is nearly surrounded
by water
Greece also includes thousands of islands
Gulf of water nearly divides Greek peninsula in two
Southern tip forms a 2nd peninsula called the
Peloponnesus, it is linked to the rest of Greece by an
isthmus (a narrow strip of land)
4. Landscape and Climate
Mts. Cover most of Greece & divides land into many
regions
No large rivers
Transportation was difficult in ancient times &
difficult to unite under one gov’t
Mild, rainy winters & hot, dry summers
Warm climate encourages outdoor life
5. Agriculture
Only a small part of region was good for farming
Even though ½ of Greek were farmers or herders
Farming took place in valleys between mts.
Landowners were part of upper class
Usually only men owned property & could support
himself
Could pay for equipment (helmets, shields, & swords)
Could serve in the army and defend his homeland
To get more farmland, Greeks founded colonies in
other regions
Like in Anatolia
6. Resources
Greece also lacked natural resources like precious
metals
Had to find resources in other places
Had two important resources
Plentiful stone for building
Coastline with good sites for harbors
7. A Seafaring People
Sea influenced ancient Greece
Mediterranean Sea, Ionian Sea, & Aegean Sea
Linked most parts of Greece with one another
Used as transportation routes
Became skilled sailors and shipbuilders
Built rowing ships for fighting & sailing ships for trading
Some warships had 2 or 3 levels oars
Sea was a source of fish
8. Trade & Commerce
Greeks did not produce much grain
Surplus of olive oil, wine, wool, & fine pottery
Bought & sold surplus goods from each other
Also traded w/ other regions
Main items bought was grain, timber, animal hides, &
slaves
As well as nuts, figs, cheese, & flax
9. Mycenaean Civilization
Mycenae was 1st Greek civilization
Built on Peloponnesus
Was surrounded by a protective wall
A king rules each city of Mycenaean Greece as well as the
surrounding villages & farms
Nobles lived in luxury
Had great feasts, drank from gold cups, & had bronze
weapons
Mycenaeans were traders
Culture featured writing, gold jewelry, bronze weapons, & fine
pottery
Civilization collapsed about 1200 B.C.
Maybe invaders
10. New Advances in Greek Culture
Phoenicians
Trading people who lived on eastern coast of Mediterranean
Developed a recording system to track trade transactions
Used 22 symbols to stand for sounds
Spread their writing system as the traded w/ other people
Greeks began using Phoenician writing system between
900 and 800 B.C.
Changed some letters to suit their language
Later evolved into our alphabet of 26 letters
Greeks also learned about coins from trading w/ others
Also developed new forms of literature & gov’t
12. Greek Gods and Myths
Gods were important part of daily lives
Told vivid stories about them
Had divine & human qualities
Constantly competed against one another
Zeus
Ruler of the gods
Lived on Mount Olympus w/ 11 other major gods &
goddesses
Each city had a special god/goddess
13. Greek Mythology
Myths: stories that people tell to explain beliefs about
their world
Often begin as oral stories
Myths developed to explain creation of the world &
human beings
Other myths described the gods/goddesses & how
they related to one another & to humans
Others portrayed Greek heroes & heroines
14. Honoring the Gods
Important to honor gods
Angry gods = trouble
Created statues & built temples
Held special events
15. Holy Festivals
Certain days of each month were holy to different
gods/goddesses or to an aspect of nature
Held sacrifices & ceremonies
Most important honored 12 Olympian gods
16. The Olympics
Largest & most elaborate games
Held every 4 years as part of festival to honor Zeus
Only men competed
Started with just a foot race, but later included much
more
17. Early Greek Literature
Stories also told about ancient heroes
Stories passed down through generations and from long
poems that told stories
Epics: long poems that tell a story
Epics of Homer
Iliad & the Odyssey
Backdrop: Trojan War
18. Aesop’s Fables
Fable: a short story usually involving animals, that
teaches a moral lesson
Aesop
A slave who lived in Greece & wrote fables ?
The Hare & the Tortoise
20. The Rise of City-States
City-State (polis in Greek)
A state formed by a city and its surrounding lands
Colonies founded were also city-states
21. Greek City-States
Most were small
Limited by geographic features
Athens & Sparta were largest
50-500 square miles
Most had fewer than 20,000 people
Small size & number of people created close
community
22. Layout of the City
Agora
Open space where people came for business and gatherings
Males meet to discuss politics
Festivals & athletic contests were also held here
Statues, temples, & public buildings located in and around
agora
Acropolis
Fortified hilltop
1st used for military purposes, later a place to build temples
23. Forms of Government
Each city-state was independent
Citizens determined what form of gov’t worked for them
24. Monarchs & Aristocrats
Monarchy
Early form of gov’t
King or queen has supreme power and rules
Aristocracy
Gov’t ruled by the upper class or nobles
Upper class: descended from high-born ancestors (mythical
heroes)
25. Oligarchy
Oligarchy
Ruled by the few
Minority group controls gov’t
People rule based on wealth or land ownership
26. Tyrants
Poor not part of gov’t in monarchies, aristocrats, or
oligarchies
Resented being shut out of power & often rebelled
Sometimes a wealthy person would ask the poor to
support him in becoming a leader
Tyrant: someone who took power in an illegal way
Achieved king rule without being of royal birth
Some worked to help the poor
Played important rule in development of rule by the people;
showed common people united behind a leader could gain
power & make changes
27. Athens Builds a Limited Democracy
Lower class began demanding more political power
Citizenship
A person who is loyal to a country & entitled to protection by
the gov’t of that country
In Greece only adult males
In most places upper & lower classes were citizens, but only
upper class held power
By demanding more political power lower class were asking
for a major change to society
Gradually happened over time
Two leaders (Solon & Cleisthenes) gradually reformed to give people
more power
28. Solon
500s B.C.
Poor farmers owed lots of money & had to work land or
become slaves, this angered lower class
594 B.C.
Solon elected leader of Athens
Made reforms that prevented revolt of poor
Freed enslaved people of debts & made law that no citizen could be
enslaved
Organized citizens into 4 classes based on wealth not birth
Richest had most power
Changes allowed all citizens to serve in the assembly
(lawmaking body) & help elect leaders
Solon also reformed laws making them less harsh
29. Cleisthenes
500 B.C.
Cleisthenes increased citizens power
Reorganized assemble to take power from nobles
Organized citizens into 10 groups (called tribes)
Tribes based on place of residence, not wealth
10 commanders lead the military
Commanders elected for 1 year
Reformed the council, which helped the assembly
govern
Became known as Council of 5 Hundred
30. Direct Democracy
Council of 500
500 men, 50 from each of the 10 tribes
Any citizen over 30 was qualified
Chosen by lot (random) to serve for 1 year & could be
reelected only once
Cleisthenes’ plan
Allowed Council members to suggest laws to assembly for
debate & possible passage
Laws were passed by a majority vote
Changes moved Athens towards early form of Democracy
A gov’t in which the citizens make political decisions either
directly or through elected representatives
31. Limited Democracy & Ostracism
Direct democracy benefits limited
Gov’t did not include all people who lived in city-state
Only free adult males were citizens (women, slaves, &
foreigners were not citizens and could not become
citizens)
Democracy system included a system called ostracism
Any member of assembly who though someone was a
danger to the city-state could submit the name of the
person for a vote by the assembly. If enough votes were
received that person could be sent away for 10 years.
32. Citizens’ Responsibilities
Citizens had to
Serve in the army whenever needed
Serve on juries
All citizens were equal & argued cases directly before the jury
who then voted if person was guilty
34. Sparta’s Military State
715 B.C.
Sparta conquered neighboring land
Defeated people became slaves (called helots)
Had to work farms & give ½ of crops to Spartans
Revolted several times, but failed
Lead Sparta to focus attention on building a strong army
35. Government & Society
Gov’t was part monarchy & part oligarchy & part
democracy
2 kings(ruled), 5 elected supervisors(ran gov’t), Council of
Elders (made up of 30 citizens) proposed laws
All citizens were part of the Assembly
Elected officials and voted on laws proposed
Social Groups
Citizens: descendants from original inhabitants
Lived in city & spent all their time training to be soldiers
Free noncitizens: no political rights & lived in nearby villages
Helots: laborers; allowed Spartans to train to be soldiers
36. Education
Goal was to have strong army
Boys at age 7 move to military houses (called barracks)
Education stressed discipline, duty, strength, & military
skill (learned to read a little)
Entered army at 20 & served until 60
37. Women’s Roles
Had to be tough (emotional & physical)
Education focused on physical toughness ( athletic
training & learned to defend themselves)
Family life was less important
Husbands & wives spent lots of time apart
Women could own property
38. Athens’ Democratic
Gradually developed direct democracy
All citizens met to vote on laws
Only free men were citizens
39. Athenian Society
4 Classes
Citizens
Women
Noncitizen free persons
Enslaves: 1/3 of population; captured during war;
children of enslaved were also slaves
Worked in homes, agriculture, industry, & mines
Some earned wages & bought their freedom
Each class had smaller classes within
Example: level of citizen based on wealth
40. Education
Designed to prepare boys to become good citizens
Wealthy families started boys at age 6 or 7
Studied logic & public speaking
Reading, writing, poetry, arithmetic, & music
Athletic activities
41. Women’s Roles
Not part of gov’t
Had to be good wives & mothers
Help keep families & society strong
Religious roles
Priestesses in temples
Not much freedom
Could inherit property only if no sons
Girls did not attend school, learned from mothers
42. Persian Wars
500’s B.C.
Persia conquered Anatolia (region w/ Greek colonies)
499 B.C.
Greeks revolted
Athens sent ships & soldiers to help
Revolt failed
Persia decided to punish Athens for helping
490 B.C.
Persians arrived to Athens on the plain of Marathon
Athenians sent a runner to ask Sparta for help (Sparta came to
late)
43. Athenians were greatly outnumbered, so they had to
use a clever plan
Drew Persians toward the center of the Greek line
Greeks then surrounded them & attacked
Greek spears better than Persian arrows
Persians lost 6,400 men to Greeks 192
Marathon runner ran about 25 miles from Marathon to
Athens to tell of the victory
He reached Athens w/ the news then collapsed & died
44. Greek Victory
480 B.C.
Persia again invaded Greece
Several Greek city-states united
300 Spartans guarded narrow pass at Thermopylae
To stop Persians from reaching Athens
Held pass for 2 days before all being killed
Gave Athenians time to prepare for battle
Athenians left the city to fight naval battle against Persians
Persian fleet could not maneuver
300 Persian ships were sunk