greek history test

Minoan art

Bronze Age Crete (2000-1450 BCE), characterised by vibrant frescoes, marine motifs (appearing in the late Minoan) and naturalistic scenes. A focus on nature and movement rather than militaristic themes.

Arthur Evans

British archaeologist who excavated and reconstructed (parts of) Knossos, starting in 1900. He named the civilisation after King Minos,

Mycenaean Art

1600 - 1100 BCE, mainland Greece, militaristic and geometric compared to Minoan art (fortified palace, warriors, gold funeral masks), Mycenaean craftsmen excelled in metalwork (decorative weapons and jewellery), drinking cups have been found (bull rhyton - 1600 - 1500 BCE)

Linear B

Earliest known form of Greek writing, used by the Mycenaeans from 1450-1200 BCE for admin, deciphered by Michael Ventris in 1952. Linear A from Minoan sites hasn’t been deciphered yet.

Geometric Period

1050/900 - 700 BCE, Greece’s emergence from the dark ages, poetry becomes increasingly decorated with meanders and stylised human and animal figures. This period saw the revival/reemergence of writing, the composition of the Homeric epics, and the beginning of the polis system

Archaic Art

700-480 BCE, the development of monumental sculptures, permanent temple architecture, black figure, and later red figure pottery styles. Sculpture shows the “archaic smile” and increasing anatomical understanding. Temples start following Doric and Ionic orders.

Kore

Standing female states of the Archaic period, typically clothed in elaborate draped garments. Many Kore were found (as votive offerings) on the Acropolis, while others functioned as grave markers. They show the “archaic smile” and tend to have a rigid posture

Kouros

The male counterpart to Kore. They depict idealised, nude male youths with the left foot forward. They are inspired by Egyptian sculpture of the time, serving as votive offerings or grave markers. They show the progression towards naturalism, with later examples featuring more realistic musculature and proportions

The Classical period

480 - 323 BCE. Began after the Persian war and ended with Alexander the Great’s death. This era produced the plays of Sophocles and Euripides, the Parthenon, the philosophy of Plato, Socrates, and Aristotle, and saw Athens reach its political and cultural peak under Pericles. Many of the buildings on the Acropolis were constructed. Art and architect is defined by a focus on realism and proportions.

Pericles

495 - 429 BCE. An influential Greek statesman during the ‘Golden age of Athens’. He promoted democracy and politics, oversaw the construction of the Acropolis, and established Athens as the cultural centre of Greece. His funeral oration (recorded by Thucydides) was a statement of democratic ideal, though his policies likely contributed to the Peloponnesian war

Macedon before Philip

Peripheral, semi-Greek kingdom in Northern Greece, often considered barbaric. Politically unstable, with a weak, centralised power, frequent succession disputes, and threats from the neighbouring Illyrians and Thracians

Phillip II of Macedon

Ruled 359-335 BC. Transformed Macedon into a dominant Greek power through military innovation (the phalanx), diplomatic skill, and systematic conquests. He established the Macedonian hegemony over Greece. He died before he could carry out the planned invasion of Persia, leaving the plan to his son, Alexander.

Hellenistic Greece

323 - 31 BCE. Began with Alexander’s death and the division of his empire among his successors (the Diadochi). Greece became a battleground for rival Macedonian legacies and saw the rise of new powers like the second Achaean league.

Euergetism

“Good works”. The practice of wealthy individuals providing public benefactions to their cities (buildings, festivals, food, games). Became crucial in Hellenistic and Roman Greece, as civic elites competed for honour and public status through generosity, replacing some functions of the democratic state

Roman Greece

After the Roman republic defeated Corinth in 146 BCE in the Achaean war. The republic had been winning land through the Macedonian wars for a number of years previously. Despite political subjugation, Greek culture profoundly influenced Roman civilisation, and Greece remained an important cultural and educational centre. Many temples and public buildings were created, like the Roman Agora (started by JC) and Hadrian’s library

Sulla

A Roman general who sacked Athens in 86 BCE during the first Mithridatic War after the city supported King Mithridates VI against Rome. His siege and destruction of the city included burning the academy’s grove. He destroyed the temples of Epidaurus, Delphi, and Olympia, and the town of Piraeus

Strabo

64 BCE - 24 CE. A Greek historian and geographer whose ‘geographica’ provides invaluable information about the Mediterranean world and beyond. His descriptions of Greek cities, monuments, and customs during the Early Roman period are crucial sources for understanding how Greece appeared in the Augustan age

Hadrian

A Roman Emperor (r. 117 - 138 CE). A lover of Greece, gave benefactions to Greece (especially Athens). He completed the temple of Olympian Zeus, built a new quarter of Athens (marked by Hadrian’s gate), founded the Panhellenion (a league of Greek cities)

Pausanias

A 2nd century CE Greek traveller whose “Description of Greece” provides the most comprehensive ancient guide to Greek monuments, sanctuaries, and traditions. His detailed accounts of buildings, sculptures, and local myths have been invaluable for modern archaeologists and remain the primary source for many lost monuments

Herulians

A Germanic tribe who invaded Greece in 267 CE, devastating Athens, destroying much of the lower city. This raid marked a turning point in the history of Athens, leading to the construction of a much smaller defensive wall and the beginning of the city’s transformation from a classical city into a late antiquity fortress settlement

Tetrarchy

293-313 CE. Diocletian’s system of dividing the Roman Empire among four rulers. Greece fell within the eastern portion of the empire. This period saw administrative reorganisation, with Greece divided into smaller provinces and increased fortifications in response to neighbouring threats

Byzantine empire

330-1453 CE. The continuation of the Roman Empire in the East, with the capital at Constantinople. Greece was a core Byzantine territory, though its importance varied over the centuries. It faced Slavic invasions in the 6th-7th centuries, experienced cultural and economic revival in the middle period, and gradually lost territory to Latin crusaders and Ottoman Turks. Greek language and Christianity became common.

Frankokratia

“Frankish rule”. 1204-1600s. The period when Western European (French/Italian) crusaders ruled parts of Greece after the Fourth Crusade. The Byzantine territories were divided up and gradually fell under the control of the Ottomans

Ottoman Empire and Turkokratia

“Turkokratia” - period of Ottoman control over Greece (1453-1821/1830s, varying by region). The Ottoman Empire gave the Greek Orthodox Church significant authority over the Christian population (millet system), but Greeks faced taxation, occasional persecution, and cultural suppression. Though some prospered as merchants and administrators within the Ottoman system

The Kingdom of Greece

Started 1832. The modern Greek state established after the War of independence (1821-1829). Started with the Bavarian king Otto and eventually the Danish House of Glucksburg. The kingdom expanded through wars and treaties to incorporate most ethnic Greek territories. Marked the rebirth of Greece and the revival of Greek cultural heritage