Ancient Greece Notes

Mountains cover ¾ of Greece, dividing the land into regions and influencing the development of Greek political life.
Mountainous terrain both helped and hindered the development of city-states.
- Lack of irrigation limited the population Greece could support.
- The terrain forced Greeks to trade with neighbors and colonize, leading to the spread of Hellenistic culture.

The physical geography of the Aegean Basin profoundly shaped economic, social, and political developments.
The expansion of Greek civilization through trade and colonization led to the spread of Hellenic culture.
Greek cities promoted civic and commercial development through trading, business, and politics.
The Greeks transitioned from a barter economy to a money economy using coins.

Greek mythology was based on polytheistic beliefs that were central to culture, politics, and art.
Greeks created myths about gods and goddesses to explain their religion.
Many western symbols, metaphors, words, and images originate from ancient Greek mythology.
Key Greek Gods and Goddesses:
- Zeus
- Hera
- Apollo
- Artemis
- Athena
- Aphrodite

Athens was a city-state in Ancient Greece that developed the first democratic system of government, which became the foundation of modern democracies.
Evolution of Athenian Government:
- Began as a monarchy (ruled by a king).
- Around 750 BC, a revolt established an aristocracy (rule by a few wealthy people).
- Experienced a period of tyranny (rule by one powerful leader).

Draco:
- In 621 BCE, he wrote Greece’s first legal code, covering property ownership, debt slavery, and contracts.
- The code was known for its harsh punishments and lack of conflict resolution mechanisms.
Solon:
- Appointed head of government in 594 BCE.
- Reformed the economic and legal system.
Cleisthenes:
- In 508 BCE, he created direct democracy, where all citizens vote directly on each issue.
- This differs from the representative democracy used in the USA, where elected representatives vote on issues.
- Athens was the first to use concepts of public debate and civic duty.

Citizens had political rights and the responsibility of civic participation in government, including voting.
Citizenship was limited to free adult males; women, foreigners, and slaves had no political rights. This was true in most Greek city-states.
While Athens developed a democracy, Sparta developed an oligarchy.

Two main series of wars in Ancient Greece: the Persian Wars and the Peloponnesian Wars.
Persian Wars (499 - 449 BCE):
- Began when Persia invaded and conquered Greek colonies in 499 BCE.
- Greek city-states united against the Persian Empire.
- Athenians led Greeks to victory in the Battle of Marathon and the Battle of Salamis, defeating the Persians.
- This preserved Greek political independence and established Athens as the most powerful city in Ancient Greece.
- Athens continued to lead in innovation and culture.
Peloponnesian Wars (431 – 404 BCE)

Formed during the Persian Wars as an alliance system of Greek city-states to protect against future attacks.
Athens led the Delian League, but Sparta did not join.
140 city-states were members.
Tensions arose due to Athens controlling everything, leading to unhappiness among members.
Extreme tension between Sparta and Athens led to the collapse of the Delian League and the creation of the Peloponnesian League, a Spartan-led alliance system.

A time period primarily between the Persian and Peloponnesian Wars (449 – 431 BCE).
It was the peak of Athenian culture and development, led by Pericles.
Pericles' contributions included:
- Rebuilding the city after the Persian Wars.
- Rebuilding the Parthenon.
- Extending democracy and voting rights to nearly all free men.

Caused by competition between Athens and Sparta for dominance in the Greek world.
Competition increased with the formation of the Delian and Peloponnesian Leagues.
The wars lasted for 27 years, ending with Athens' surrender due to lack of supplies, military strength, plagues, and ultimately defeat.
This led to a slowdown in cultural developments and weakened political power.

In 359 BCE, Macedonia posed a new threat to the Greek city-states.
King Philip II of Macedonia aimed to conquer Greece, uniting the land.
The weakened state of the Greek city-states after the Peloponnesian Wars made them vulnerable to Philip’s conquest.
Philip died before completing the conquest; however, his son, Alexander the Great, finished the job.
Alexander established a Greek empire from Egypt to India, the largest Greek empire in history, and spread Greek culture.
Alexander’s time is the basis for the Hellenistic Age, where Greek culture blended with oriental elements and spread rapidly throughout the region.

Scientists:
- Archimedes:
  - Invented the lever and pulley.
  - Calculated Pi.
- Hippocrates:
  - “Father of Medicine.”
  - Created the Hippocratic Oath, which doctors still use today.
Mathematicians:
- Euclid:
  - Father of geometry.
- Pythagoras:
  - $a^2 + b^2 = c^2$
History:
- Herodotus: “First Historian”
- Thucydides: scientific historian
Sculpture:
- Phidias: Statue of Zeus at Olympia

Philosophy:
- Socrates: Great thinker who wanted people to question what was correct.
- Plato: Student of Socrates; wrote The Republic.
- Aristotle: Student of Plato; philosopher; created a method of proving logic called a syllogism (3 logically related statements).
Drama:
- Aeschylus and Sophocles wrote great tragedies for the theater.
- Homer wrote The Iliad and The Odyssey.

Three Types of Columns:
- Doric: Simplest; used in the Parthenon.
- Ionic: Taller/slimmer; tops look like scrolls.
- Corinthian: Tallest; top carved to look like Acanthus plants; most elaborate.