HIST1017 ANCIENT GREECE

updated as needed, going through the slides one at a time; last updated 09/16/25

Crete

Island in the Mediterranean, advanced, wealthy civilization, impressive, well built ships

The Minoans

Heavy influence on later Greek societies, centered on Crete, named after later legendary King Minos

Linear A

early writing system developed, unable to be deciphered by scholars

Frescoes

one of the most important pieces to understand Minoan Civilizations without written language

Knossos

An early Minoan palace located here, a huge center for economic and political opportunity, no real symmetry in architecture, wandering halls; also remarkable for its association with labyrinths

Thera

Island with influence of later Greeks, island is modern day Santorini; best influences Theseus and the Minotaur

Snake Goddess Statue

Symbol of fertility & rebirth, i.e snakes loosing their skin and producing mass amounts of eggs

Art

We can understand and interpret the culture of the Minoans through their ____?

What happened to the Minoan civilization?

Palaces suddenly abandoned, invaded by outsiders, volcanic eruption on Thera

Mycenaeans

2000BCE, indoeuropean groups settled in the Greek Peninsula, influenced by nearby wealthy Minoans, took over in 1540 BCE as a power-civilization in the Mediterranean

Mycenae

Center city for Mycenean civilization, other cities include Sparta & Thebes

Linear B

Writing system developed by the Mycenaeans

Mycenaean warfare

creating walls around cities and palaces for defense, more advanced weapons and battle tactics.

The Trojan War

Greeks invading the city of Troy, 10 years long, ends with trickery of the Trojan Horse; legends of the war told by the poet Homer

What Happened to the Mycenaeans?

1100 BCE, the Mycenaean civilization ends; this can be due to a drought which caused crop failure = population loss, internal conflict after the end of the Trojan War, invasions from war with other people from the Greek Peninsula

The greek dark ages

extreme loss of civilization after the collapse of Myceneans

What was the result of the Greek dark ages?

Loss of writing, fall of most cities, no “great civilizations”

Homer

wrote the illiad and the odyssey, these stories were passed through oral traditions

The illiad

the story of the trojan war

the odyssey

the story of Odysseus’ long journey home after the Trojan war.

what were the Illiad and the Odyssey most notable for?

works that established and popularize the common values of heroism, honor, glory, the gods, etc. These works became a core identity for the Greeks

Arete

characteristic of Greek heroes; manliness, courage, excellence

c 1100 to 750 BCE

Greek Dark ages

c 800 to 479 BCE

Archaic Greece (includes Persian wars)

479 to 336 BCE

Classical Greece (Includes Peloponnesian War and Golden Age of Athens)

336 to 31 BCE

Macedonian Kings and Hellenistic Greece (Includes Philip II and Alexander the Great)

Archaic Greece

Period of recovery from the dark ages, cities and population growth, 750 BCE began using the Greek Alphabet

Agora

located in polic, marketplace in the Archaic Greece period, a center for public discourse

Polic

independent city-state in Archaic Greece

What are the different political structures used in Archaic Greece?

Monarchy, Oligarchy, Democracy, and Tyrants

Early Democracy

agricultural and social crisis in Athens, farmers unable to maintain land, debt slavery, little to no access to government

Athenian statesman Solon

limited existing debt, ended debt slavery, reorganized athens into four major economic categories, created Council of 400 to decided important city matters

Council of 400